How to disable startup programs in Windows

The more programs you install on your computer, the longer it may take for Windows to start. Many programs add themselves to the list of programs that started when you turned on your computer, and this list can go on.

Editor's note: Obviously, our most attractive readers already know how to do this, but this article is for everyone else. Feel free to share it with your non-technical friends!

If you're using Windows 8 or Windows 10, scroll down.

Disable startup programs in Windows 7, Vista, or XP

For some programs, it's smart to start with Windows, such as antivirus and firewall. However, for most programs, starting them at startup wastes resources and prolongs startup time. There is a tool installed with Windows, called MSConfig, that allows you to quickly and easily see what starts and disable the programs that you prefer to run on our own after startup as needed. This tool is available and can be used to disable startup programs in Windows 7, Vista, and XP.

Note:

MSConfig can be used to configure several things other than just startup programs, so be careful what you do with them. If you are not sure about using it, just follow the steps in this article and you will be fine.

To run MSConfig, open the Start menu and type "msconfig.exe" (without the quotes) in the search box. As you type, the results are displayed. When you see "msconfig.exe", click on it or press Enter, if it is highlighted.

Note 2:

If you are using Windows XP, open the Run dialog box from the Start menu, type "msconfig.exe" in the "Open" edit box, and then click OK.

Click the Startup tab in the main window to configure the system. A list of all startup programs is displayed with a checkbox next to each of them. To prevent a program from starting with Windows, select the check box next to the desired program so that there is no check mark in the box. Click OK once you have made your choices.

A dialog box is displayed telling you that you may need to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Click Restart to restart your computer immediately. If you are not ready to restart your computer, click Finish without restarting.

Disable startup programs after Windows 10 update in April 2018

If you're running the latest version of Windows 10, there's a new startup app management panel that makes it incredibly easy to disable startup programs. Simply open the settings panel, then search for "Startup," and open the Startup apps panel. If you don't see this, you don't have the latest version yet, and you'll want to use the task manager to manage startup apps (keep reading this next section).

Once you have the Startup Apps panel, you can simply toggle things that you don't want to run at startup.

Disable startup programs in Windows 10, 8, or 8.1

Windows 8, 8.1, and 10 make it really easy to disable startup applications. All you have to do is open the task manager by right-clicking on the taskbar, or using the shortcut key CTRL + SHIFT + ESC, clicking More Details, going to the Startup tab, and then using the Disable button.

It's really that simple. If you don't see these options, be sure to click More Details, located in the same place as Less Details you see in this screenshot.

Disable startup programs in CCleaner

The free PC cleaning utility CCleaner also has a tool that allows you to disable startup programs. In CCleaner, click the Tools button on the left side of the dialog box and click Startup to see the list of startup programs. The Enabled column indicates whether each program is set to start with Windows. To disable an enabled program, select the program in the list and click Disable. You can also enable programs that are disabled.

Note 3:

CCleaner doesn't seem to prompt you to restart your PC, so be sure to do it yourself.

There's a professional version of CCleaner that costs $24.95 and comes with priority technical support. However, there is a free version available as an installable version and a mobile version.

Note that some applications need to be configured to turn themselves off when you start the computer, or they will only add themselves to the list of startup programs again. In this case, there is usually a setting in the program options to prevent it from starting Windows.