Remove Recommended section from Start menu in Windows 11

Windows 11 Start menu includes a Recommended section (just below the Pinned apps) showing new apps, recently added files, most used items, etc. If you find it useful, you can keep it that way. Those who don’t find it that helpful can completely remove or hide the Recommended section from Windows 11 Start menu using Group Policy, Registry or ExplorerPatcher.

We have already seen how to show or hide Recommended list in Windows 11 Start menu. Now let’s see how to completely remove or hide the entire Recommended section.

Remove Recommended section from the Start menu in Windows 11

To remove Recommended section from the Start menu in Windows 11, you can use the following options:

Group Policy Editor
Registry Editor
ExplorerPatcher.

Let’s check these options.

1] Group Policy Editor

The Group Policy Editor feature of Windows 11 also comes with a remove Recommended section from the Start menu setting, but here’s a little catch. This setting is supported on Windows 11 SE edition (designed for low-end devices for education purposes) and not Pro, Enterprise, and other editions of Windows 11. We might get the same or similar setting for other editions in the future. The steps to access this policy setting are as follows:

Open the Group Policy Editor window
Expand the Computer Configuration, then Administrative Templates, and select Start Menu and Taskbar
Double-click on the Remove Recommended section from Start Menu setting. This will open a new window
Select the Enabled option in that window
Press the Apply button and then the OK button.

Later, if you want to show the Recommended section in the Start menu, you can follow these steps and select the Not Configured option for the same Group Policy setting. Use Apply button and OK button to save the setting.

2] Registry Editor

A corresponding Registry entry can be found for the same Group Policy Editor setting. But again, it is not for Pro and other editions of Windows 11. That particular Registry entry is present under the following path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer

There will be a HideRecommendedSection DWORD value that is used for the Recommended section of the Start menu. If the DWORD value is set to 1, the Recommended section is disabled in the Start menu. If you do not see it, you may need to create it.

If there is no such DWORD value or the DWORD value is present and it is set to 0, then Recommended section will be there on the Start menu.

3] ExplorerPatcher

ExplorerPatcher is an open-source tool that lets you choose between Windows 11/10 taskbar, Alt+Tab switcher style, add Windows 10 Task View button on the taskbar, disable Windows 11 new context menu in File Explorer, and more. The option to disable Recommended section from Windows 11 Start menu is also available to use. Here are the steps:

Download the EXE file of ExplorerPatcher and execute it
After that, it will automatically apply the pre-set settings and you will see the changes on the taskbar, right-click menu, etc., based on those settings
Now you need to open the Properties window of this tool. For this, right-click on the taskbar, and click on the Properties option
Access the Start menu section available on its Properties window
Click on Disable the “Recommended” section option.

Now open the Start menu and you will see that the Recommended section has vanished.

You can follow the above steps and use the same option to bring back the Recommended section in Windows 11 Start menu.

This is one of the easiest ways to do this. The only thing you need to take care of is this tool automatically applies some settings that you may not like. So, in that case, you need to use its Properties window and undo the changes using different menus.

If you don’t want this tool, uninstall it from the Settings app or Control Panel.

I hope it is helpful.

How do I remove suggestions from my Start menu?

If you want to remove app suggestions from the Start menu in Windows 10, then you can right-click on a suggested app and use the Turn off all suggestions option. You can also turn off Occasionally show suggestions in Start option in the Settings app for it. On the other hand, if you want to turn off recommended content (that includes recently added apps, opened items, etc.) in the Start menu of Windows 11, then access the Start page available in the Personalization category in the Settings app.

How do I get the Classic Start menu in Windows 11?

There is a Registry setting to switch back to the classic Start menu in Windows 11, but it doesn’t work with newer versions of Windows 11. But, you can use some third-party Start menu alternative software like Start Menu X, Open Shell, etc., that comes with a classic Start menu feature, different layouts, and other interesting options.