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Improving Windows quality: Making Taskbar and Start more personal

Written By

Diego Baca

published

May 15, 2026

In our commitment to Windows quality, we outlined our plans to deliver improvements in performance, reliability, and craft. We are also committed to being transparent about the work behind those efforts, including what we are shipping, why we prioritized those features, and where we still have more work to do.

Start and taskbar are some of the most visible and frequently used experiences in Windows, so we are focused on improving their quality and giving you more flexibility to personalize them to meet your needs.

Let’s walk through where we’re making meaningful progress against the feedback we’ve heard from you, rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Experimental channel over the coming weeks, including several rolling out today.

Bringing more personalization to the taskbar

The taskbar is where your PC experience comes to life. Just like a well-organized workspace, having it tailored to your needs helps you stay productive, so we’re introducing more ways to customize it.

Taskbar positions

Location, location, location. The ability to move the taskbar to the top or sides of the screen has been one of the most requested features, and we are bringing it to Windows 11.

Starting today, Windows Insiders in the Experimental channel will be able to:

Position the taskbar on any edge of the screen: Top, bottom, left, or right (see figure 1).

Choose icon alignment for every taskbar position: Top-aligned or centered when the taskbar is on the left or right, and left-aligned or centered when the taskbar is on the top or bottom.

Use Start, Search, and other flyouts relative to the taskbar location: For example, when the taskbar is on the top, Start opens from the top (see figure 2).

See every window at a glance: When using a vertical taskbar with “Never combine” taskbar buttons and show labels enabled, each app window appears as a separate labeled button, making it easier to identify and switch between windows (see figure 3).

For people who value vertical screen space, like developers who want to see more of their code at once, moving the taskbar to the side can help reclaim precious room on the screen. If accessibility or ergonomics make the top of the screen easier to reach, you can place the taskbar there. If you rely on the taskbar to keep track of your work, a vertical layout with ungrouped icons can help you stay organized. The choice is yours.

(Figure 1) Screenshot of the taskbar in the left-aligned position.<br>(Figure 2) Screenshot of the taskbar in the top-aligned position, with Start opening from the top.<br>(Figure 3) Screenshot of the taskbar in the left-aligned position with buttons never combined and labels shown.<br>To change the taskbar position, go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Taskbar behaviors , where you will find the new option alongside taskbar icon alignment.

Personalization > Taskbar page showing the taskbar position options." width="1024" height="689" />(Figure 4) Screenshot of the new Settings > Personalization > Taskbar page showing the taskbar position options.<br>We’re excited to hear your feedback. We’re still working through additional visual polish, performance improvements, and a few known issues, and there are also some features that are not yet included in this release but are coming soon:

Auto-hide and tablet-optimized taskbar are not yet supported in alternate positions.

Touch gestures for alternate positions are still in progress.

Search boxes are not yet supported in alternate positions and will appear as a search icon for now.

We are also evaluating additional features like different taskbar positions per monitor and drag and drop. Our focus is to deliver the core functionality you need while keeping the experience simple, predictable, and free from accidental taskbar...