You expect to see ads everywhere online, but ads in your operating system are a rarer beast—though not as rare as they used to be. Recently, Windows 11 Pro and Home users have reported seeing ads in the operating system’s Start menu, with ads for “recommended” apps and websites appearing beneath the list of installed apps.
It’s not a hugely surprising move, given the company has been pushing ads to the Windows 11 lock screen too, and opening the Settings app will hit you with a huge advertisement for Office 365 if you aren’t a subscriber. Microsoft has even been pushing ads for Bing in Google Chrome.
Thus far, the Start Menu change only appears to be showing in the latest preview builds available to Windows 11 Insiders. As such, it’s possible it might not graduate into the consumer build of Windows 11 if the reaction to it is negative (and loud) enough.
Based on images shared in reports from Windows Central and others, there have been ads and accompanying descriptions for apps like 1Password. They appear alongside the other recommended apps and documents Microsoft feeds to your Start menu.
How to turn off Start Menu ads in Windows 11
Luckily, it does look like you’ll have the option to turn it off these ads if Microsoft does end up keeping them around, as Windows Insiders have also spotted a new option under Settings > Personalization > Start, which allows you to toggle off “Show recommendations for tips, app promotions, and more.”
This is but one of recent attempts by Microsoft to roll advertisements into its operating system, a change that many have argued against for years. Windows isn’t a cheap OS, and having to deal with ads in an operating system you paid a good chunk of change for isn’t a great look. And just because you can turn them off now doesn’t mean you’ll always be able to.
