Windows 11 Start Menu Goes Responsive with All Apps and Category View

Microsoft’s newest Insider bits finally give the Start menu room to breathe — but it’s still Windows, not you, that decides how big that breathing room will be. The latest preview introduces a responsive, scrollable Start that adapts to your screen size (8 columns vs. 6 columns, depending on display), adds category/grid views and a one-page “All” experience, and gives you toggles to collapse the Recommended area — yet it still refuses to let you manually drag the Start menu to the exact size you want.

Background​

For years, power users and everyday Windows customers have complained that the Windows 11 Start menu is too rigid: limited layout choices, pinned items locked into predefined grids, and a Recommended section that sometimes feels intrusive. Microsoft has been iterating on Start in Insider previews, and this round of updates is one of the more visible UI reworks since Windows 11 launched.
The changes first surfaced in Insider channel previews earlier this year and have been appearing across builds in both Dev and Canary channels. Microsoft’s redesign pushes a taller, scrollable Start that surfaces the “All” apps list at top level and makes Start sections responsive to screen size. Insiders now see new layout modes, additional toggles in Settings, and a mobile device button tucked into the Start chrome.
This article summarizes what changed, verifies the technical specifics of the redesign, analyzes UX and accessibility implications, flags where Microsoft still falls short (notably the lack of manual resizing), and offers practical workarounds and recommendations for users and for Microsoft.

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What changed — the headline features​

• Scrollable Start with All apps on one page. The new Start menu places the “All” apps list at top level, eliminating the extra page tap for many users. Apps can be navigated by scrolling vertically rather than clicking through separate panes.
• Two new All-apps views: Category and Grid. Category view groups apps into buckets like Productivity, Games, Creativity, and Social; Grid view lists apps alphabetically in a denser grid. Both are intended to make scanning faster and reduce the need for nested navigation.
• Responsive Start layout (what Microsoft calls “making better use of your screen real estate”). On larger displays the Start menu expands by default to show more content; on smaller displays it contracts. Microsoft’s documented defaults are:
• Larger screens: 8 columns of pinned apps, 6 recommendations, and 4 columns of categories.
• Smaller screens: 6 columns of pinned apps, 4 recommendations, and 3 columns of categories.
• Pinned and Recommended sections are responsive. If you have few pins, the Pinned section will shrink to a single row and other sections will slide up. If there are no recommendations available, that section collapses automatically.
• New Settings controls for recommendations and pins. You can now control which recommendation types appear from Settings > Personalization > Start. There’s also a “Show all pins by default” behavior to make all pinned apps visible immediately.
• New Phone Link button in Start UI. A small mobile device button beside the Search field expands or collapses Phone Link content directly within the Start surface.

These are not cosmetic footnotes: the changes materially alter how users will discover and launch apps, and how Start behaves across different form factors.

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Verified technical specifics​

Microsoft’s Insider documentation and multiple independent reporting outlets corroborate several concrete numbers and settings introduced with the update. The two most load-bearing technical claims verified are:

• The responsive column counts: 8 / 6 / 4 on larger devices and 6 / 4 / 3 on smaller devices for Pinned / Recommendations / Categories respectively. These figures were specified in the official Windows Insider notes and echoed by multiple independent outlets that tested the preview builds.
• The exact Settings toggles that control the Recommended feed: on the Start settings page you can toggle options such as “Show recently added apps,” “Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer”, and “Show recommendations for tips, app promotions, and more” (the UI strings may vary slightly in different builds). Turning these off suppresses most or all recommended items from appearing in Start.

Where possible, these claims were cross-checked against at least two independent reporting accounts and the official Windows Insider notes to ensure accuracy. That cross-check confirms the numeric layout claims and the Settings path and toggle names described above.
Caveat on builds and rollout: Microsoft often rolls UI changes through different Insider channels and via staged feature flights. The exact build number in which a tester sees these behaviors can vary by channel and by whether their device is on a controlled feature rollout. If an Insider blog entry names a build, that’s the published reference point — but many testers will have seen the Start redesign earlier in other preview builds.

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A closer look: how the responsive Start works​

Layout logic​

The redesigned Start no longer uses a rigid static size in the same way as earlier Windows 11 releases. Instead, Start calculates a layout that balances several inputs:

• Screen real estate (display size and resolution)
• Scaling / DPI settings
• Number of pinned apps
• Availability of recommended content
• Selected All-apps view (Category or Grid)

From those inputs, Start selects a default ‘density’ and column count that Microsoft has described in its Insider notes. On large monitors the default is broader: more pinned columns and more visible recommendations. On smaller devices Start defaults to fewer columns and tighter grouping.

Responsive sections​

• Pinned section: Defaults to two rows of pinned icons on larger screens, but will shrink to a single row if you only have a small number of pins. There’s a “Show all pins by default” option to expand more pins automatically.
• Recommended section: If disabled via Settings toggles, or if there’s no content to show, the section collapses and gives more room to pinned and All apps. Windows will also auto-collapse the section when it detects nothing to populate it.
• All apps: Now a scrollable list (or grid), eliminating the old “All” page navigation. Category view groups apps; Grid view lists them alphabetically.

This approach tries to balance visible affordances (what you can see at a glance) against discoverability (how quickly you can find an app).

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What didn’t change — and why people are annoyed​

The single biggest user frustration remains: there is still no manual drag-to-resize for the Start menu. The new behavior is better than nothing — Start grows and shrinks to match your display — but the key point is that Windows decides the size, not the user.
Why this matters:

• Many users want fine-grained control over UI density. Designers, developers, and people who personalize their workflow expect to be able to nudge a menu a few pixels wider or taller so that one more item appears, or so a column lines up with other UI elements.
• Forced automatic resizing undermines muscle memory. Long-time Windows users develop reflexive habits for where icons and groups appear; when the system reassigns column counts based on display, a user can be left hunting.
• Multi-monitor and mixed DPI setups are common. If Start automatically sizes itself to the primary monitor, what happens when you open Start on a second monitor with different scaling? Microsoft aims to make Start responsive, but the lack of per-monitor manual overrides leaves edge cases unaddressed.

In short: the update improves Start’s intelligence, but it doesn’t restore the user-centric control many expected.

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Settings and practical controls users should know​

If you want to tame the new Start without third-party tools, these are the practical options available now:

• Open Settings > Personalization > Start. From there you can:
• Toggle Show recently added apps.
• Toggle Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer (this control suppresses many Recommended items).
• Toggle Show recommendations for tips, app promotions, and more.
• (Newer builds) Enable Show all pins by default to expand pinned apps automatically.
• Choose More pins vs More recommendations to bias the visible layout.
• Use the All-apps view selector to switch between Category and Grid views depending on whether you prefer grouped discovery or a denser alphabetical list.
• For enterprises, Group Policy can be used to adjust Start behavior across managed fleets. There are administrative templates for Start and taskbar controls, but options vary by SKU and build.
• If you need absolute control (resize or customize beyond Windows’ UI limits), third-party alternatives like Start11 or OpenShell remain functional options. They restore classic behaviors but come with trade-offs in integration and support.

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UX and accessibility analysis​

Strengths​

• Reduced clicks to find apps: Moving All to the top-level and introducing vertical scrolling dramatically reduces taps for users with many apps. The Category view in particular surfaces frequently used tools by grouping.
• Cleaner Recommended controls: Letting users disable recommendation feeds (or collapse them automatically when empty) respects user preference and privacy expectations.
• Adaptive layouts for modern screens: Desktops, ultrawides, and high-DPI laptops are common; a Start that scales sensibly to show more content is appropriate for these devices.

Concerns​

• Lack of manual control undermines accessibility and productivity. Keyboard-only and screen-reader users depend on predictable layout and determinism. When Start changes column counts dynamically, focus targets and reading order may shift unpredictably.
• Inconsistent multi-monitor behavior is a usability risk. Mixed-resolution multi-monitor setups are common; if Start determines size only from primary monitor characteristics, opening Start on the secondary display could produce jarring inconsistencies.
• Touch targets and reachability. On smaller screens or in tablet posture, the larger Start may feel awkward if it expands aggressively; conversely, on large touch displays, condensed layouts may reduce tappable area size.
• Feature discoverability. Users must dig into Settings > Personalization > Start to disable recommendations or show all pins. The toggles are there, but many casual users won’t know they exist.

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Comparison: old Start vs. new Start vs. third-party alternatives​

• Old Windows 11 Start:
• Static-size, limited pins, All button navigated to a secondary page.
• Recommended feed fixed in place, limited toggles.
• Familiar but constrained.
• New responsive Start:
• Scrollable All at top level; Category and Grid views.
• Responsive columns (8/6/4 vs 6/4/3) based on screen size.
• New toggles to mute recommendations and show all pins.
• Smarter, but less user-directable.
• Third-party tools (Start11, OpenShell):
• Restore classic Start behavior, support manual resizing and deep customization.
• Potential downsides: third-party maintenance, compatibility with future Windows changes, possible security considerations and more limited integration with newer Windows features like Phone Link or Copilot+ integrations.

For users who need absolute control today, third-party shells are still the most complete answer. But they trade off integration and require extra installation and maintenance.

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Risks, bugs, and rollout caveats​

• Feature flighting and build variance. Microsoft often experiments across channels and uses controlled rollouts. What appears in one Insider build may land slightly differently or later in another channel. Expect discrepancies in exact build numbers and availability.
• Telemetry and auto-collapse behavior could hide content unexpectedly. If the Recommended section collapses because Windows detects no recommendations, users may be confused about missing recent files — particularly if a toggle off in Settings also suppresses related items in File Explorer and Jump Lists.
• Accessibility regressions. Any responsive layout change must be vetted by accessibility testing. Shifts in element order and focus can break predictable navigation for assistive tech.
• Enterprise compatibility. Admins should test the updated Start across managed images. Group Policy and management templates evolve; some organizations may need to lock down Start behavior until controls are formalized.
• Unverifiable claims and edge cases. While the core layout numbers and Settings toggles are confirmed in official notes and independent reporting, certain user-reported behaviors (exact per-monitor behavior, how Start responds to exotic scaling combos) vary by device and feature flight. Those edge-case behaviors should be tested on your specific hardware before relying on them.

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Practical recommendations​

For everyday users​

• Go to Settings > Personalization > Start and toggle off the recommendation controls if you want a cleaner pinned-first layout.
• Try the Category view if you have many apps across genres; it often surfaces your most-used apps on top of each category.
• Enable “Show all pins by default” (if available in your build) to avoid extra clicks.
• If you still need a precise Start size or classic menu behavior, evaluate third-party shells but weigh the integration trade-offs.

For power users and IT admins​

• Test the new Start on representative hardware, including mixed-DPI multi-monitor setups, before broad rollout.
• Use Group Policy where available to control or standardize Start behavior across the fleet.
• File feedback in Feedback Hub for missing manual resize controls and any accessibility gaps; Microsoft prioritizes feedback from Insiders for design work.

For Microsoft (constructive suggestions)​

• Add a simple manual-resize affordance (drag handle or Settings slider) as an accessibility and productivity feature.
• Expose per-monitor behavior and a toggle for “use primary monitor sizing” vs “size to active monitor.”
• Improve Settings discoverability with a short in-Start “Manage layout” link directing users to Personalization > Start controls.
• Publish accessibility testing notes detailing how responsive Start preserves keyboard and screen reader focus order.

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Why this matters: design philosophy vs. user control​

This redesign exposes a philosophical split: Microsoft is embracing a more opinionated, design-driven Start that tailors itself to your device. That’s a reasonable modern approach — mobile OS UX guidelines do this successfully by reducing decision paralysis. But desktop power users expect agency over their environment.
When the system chooses layout, it can optimize for an average user, but it will also occasionally be wrong for individual workflows. The ideal compromise is a responsive default with an easy-to-find manual override — something Microsoft has not yet provided.

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Flagged uncertainties and final caveats​

• Build-specific availability: Insiders may see these features in different builds across Dev and Canary channels. The responsive column counts and toggles are documented in Insider notes and observed in testing, but the exact build number where the feature appears can vary by channel and controlled rollouts.
• Per-monitor and mixed-scaling edge behavior: While the general responsive logic is documented, precise behavior when opening Start on monitors with different DPI/scaling settings may differ across hardware and driver combinations. Test on your hardware to be sure.
• Strings and toggles: UI text for toggles in Settings may vary slightly between builds and localization; the functional effect is the same, but the exact label text can be different in a particular preview.

These are practical caveats rather than deal-breakers — the redesign is real, but its behavior is still being tuned.

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Conclusion​

The Start menu refresh in Windows 11 Insider builds is an important step: it makes All apps easier to reach, introduces Category and Grid views that improve discovery, and uses screen real estate more sensibly with concrete column counts that scale to your display. Those are all wins.
But the headline “Start menu resizing” is a little misleading: Windows has added responsive sizing, not user-controlled resizing. That distinction matters. Microsoft’s logic may produce better default layouts for many users, but it doesn’t replace the simple power-user demand to drag the menu to a preferred width and height.
For now, users who need deterministic control should rely on Settings toggles to mute recommendations, tweak “More pins” vs “More recommendations,” or fall back to third-party Start replacements for complete customization. Meanwhile, feedback through Insider channels — specifically requesting a manual resize handle, clearer per-monitor behavior, and accessibility guarantees — remains the fastest route to meaningful change.
This update is a clear improvement in discovery and adaptability, but it also highlights an enduring tension in modern OS design: balancing polished, opinionated defaults with the granular choices long-time Windows users expect.

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Source: XDA The latest Windows 11 Canary finally build adds Start menu resizing, but not in the way you want