Personalize Quick Settings in Windows 11: Add, remove, and arrange toggles
Difficulty: Beginner | Time Required: 8 minutesWindows 11 puts quick access to common controls right at your fingertips with Quick Settings. If you’re like most users, you’ll want your most-used toggles (like Wi‑Fi, Bluetooth, Focus assist, Night light, and Battery saver) available first and others tucked away until you need them. This step-by-step guide helps you personalize Quick Settings by adding, removing, and rearranging toggles so you get to what you need faster.
This tutorial was generated to help WindowsForum.com users get the most out of their Windows experience.
Prerequisites
- A Windows 11 PC with version 21H2 or later (this feature is available in Windows 11 and improved in updates after launch). If you don’t see the exact options described, make sure your system is up to date via Settings > Windows Update.
- Basic familiarity with using a mouse or touchpad and keyboard shortcuts.
- Access to the desktop or a window where you can reach the taskbar.
- How to open Quick Settings
- How to enter customization mode
- How to add new toggles
- How to rearrange existing toggles
- How to remove toggles you don’t need
- Helpful tips and common issues
1) Open Quick Settings
- Click the Network, Sound, or Power (battery) icon cluster in the far-right corner of the taskbar, or press Windows + A on your keyboard.
- Quick Settings will slide up from the bottom of the screen (on touch devices) or appear as a panel on the right side of the screen, showing a grid of quick toggles.
- In Windows 11, there’s a small option to edit your Quick Settings. Look for a pencil icon labeled “Edit quick settings” (or a similarly named option) near the top of the panel.
- Click Edit quick settings to unlock customization. If you don’t see the option, ensure your Windows 11 build is up to date, as older builds may have a slightly different UI.
- In the customization view, you’ll see a list of available toggles you can enable. Tap or click Add (often shown as a plus sign or an “Add” button) to reveal a menu of extra options you can bring into Quick Settings.
- Examples of toggles you might add: Bluetooth, Wi‑Fi, Airplane mode, Focus assist, Night light, Battery saver, Mobile hotspot, Accessibility shortcuts, and more depending on your hardware and installed features.
- Turn on the toggles you want to appear in Quick Settings. They should immediately appear in the grid of the Quick Settings panel.
- In the same customization screen, you can arrange the order of your toggles by clicking and dragging the tiles up or down. Place your most-used toggles at the top for quick access.
- If you’re using a touch screen, you can press and hold a tile, then drag it to your preferred position.
- If you want to remove a toggle from Quick Settings, find the toggle in the customization grid and look for a remove or unpin option (this may appear as a small minus sign, a three-dot menu, or similar control next to the tile).
- Alternatively, some builds let you drag the tile out of the Quick Settings area and drop it somewhere else (or into a Remove/Hide section) to keep it off the main panel.
- After removing or hiding a toggle, it won’t appear in Quick Settings until you re-add it in the future.
- When you’ve finished adding, removing, and rearranging, click Done (or simply click outside the Quick Settings panel) to exit customization mode.
- Quick Settings will now reflect your new layout. Test a few toggles to ensure they’re in the positions you expect and that they perform their functions when toggled.
- Keep commonly used toggles handy: Place items you frequently use (e.g., Wi‑Fi, Focus assist, Night light) at the top of the grid to minimize hunting around.
- Be mindful of visibility: If you have many toggles enabled, your Quick Settings panel may feel crowded. Periodically prune those you rarely use to keep the layout clean.
- Sync across devices: If you sign in with a Microsoft account and have device sync enabled, your Quick Settings customizations may be carried across other Windows 11 devices where you’re signed in with the same account.
- Windows updates can change Quick Settings: Major feature updates can adjust how Quick Settings behaves or where options live. If something looks different after an update, revisit Edit quick settings to re-tune the layout.
- Windows 10 users: This exact in-panel customization experience is specific to Windows 11. Windows 10 has an Action Center for quick actions, but the drag-to-reorder and direct-on-panel customization of Quick Settings is not the same. If you’re on Windows 10, you’ll mostly rely on the Action Center and per-app controls rather than a drag-reorderable Quick Settings panel.
- Access via Settings for long-term tweaks: If you want more granular control, you can access related settings via Settings > System or Settings > Personalization > Taskbar. While not a replacement for Quick Settings customization, those menus help you configure related behavior.
- If you don’t see the Edit quick settings option: Make sure you’re using Windows 11, and update to the latest build. Some features may appear differently on older builds or require cumulative updates.
- Issue: Edit quick settings isn’t visible
- Fix: Check for Windows updates and install the latest feature updates. Sign out and back in or restart your PC if the UI doesn’t refresh after updates.
- Issue: A newly added toggle doesn’t seem to respond
- Fix: Ensure the device supports that feature (e.g., Bluetooth hardware, the particular driver is installed). You may need to pair or enable the hardware in its own settings first, then re-check Quick Settings customization.
- Issue: The layout feels crowded after adding many toggles
- Fix: Remove less-used toggles or group related items logically; consider leaving only 5–7 essential toggles visible for quick access.
Personalizing Quick Settings in Windows 11 makes everyday tasks flow smoother. By adding the most-used toggles, removing the ones you rarely touch, and arranging them in a practical order, you cut down on clicks and searches within menus. This is especially helpful for new Windows 11 users adjusting to the updated interface, as well as multi-device users who want consistent quick-access controls across their machines.
Key takeaways
- Quick Settings customization lets you choose which toggles appear and how they're ordered for fast access.
- Adding, removing, and rearranging toggles is easy in the Edit quick settings mode.
- Regularly refreshing your layout ensures you always have the most-used controls at your fingertips.
- The feature is native to Windows 11 (21H2 and later); Windows 10 users won’t find the same drag-to-reorder Quick Settings experience.
This tutorial was generated to help WindowsForum.com users get the most out of their Windows experience.
