Remove Bing Windows 11 Start Search Taskbar Microsoft Edge Tutorial

How to Remove Bing Search from Windows 11: A Comprehensive Guide

For many users, the integration of Bing search into various elements of Windows 11, including the Start menu, taskbar, and Microsoft Edge, can be both intrusive and resource-intensive. If you are among those who prefer to use alternative search engines or disable Bing search altogether, here are several methods to help you achieve this.

Method 1: Disable Bing Search Through Settings

To remove Bing search from the Start menu and taskbar using the Settings app, follow these steps:

• Open the Settings app by pressing Win + I or by right-clicking on the Start icon and selecting "Settings"[3][5].
• Navigate to Privacy & security > Search permissions.
• Turn off the toggles for both Microsoft account and Work or School account. This will stop personalizing your search results with online content.
• Scroll down and disable the Show search highlights option. This will remove the Bing button from the search box in the taskbar[3][5].

Method 2: Using Registry Editor

For a more permanent solution, you can use the Registry Editor:

• Press the Windows key and search for "registry." Open the Registry Editor.
• Navigate to Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer or alternatively to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search[1][3].
• Right-click on the appropriate key (e.g., Explorer or an empty space in the Search key), choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it DisableSearchBoxSuggestions or BingSearchEnabled.
• Double-click on the newly created value and set the Value data to 1 or 0 respectively.
• Restart your PC to apply the changes[1][3].

Method 3: Using Group Policy

If you have access to the Group Policy Editor, you can disable Bing search as follows:

• Press Win + R and type gpedit.msc to open the Group Policy Editor.
• Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search.
• Double-click on Do not allow web search and Don’t search the web or display web results in Search. Set both to Enabled.
• Click Apply and OK, then restart your computer[1][3].

Method 4: Hiding the Search Icon from the Taskbar

To remove the search icon from the taskbar, you can use the Settings app:

• Open the Settings app and navigate to Personalization > Taskbar.
• Under Taskbar items, select the option to hide the search icon. You can choose to display only the search icon, the search icon and label, or hide it completely[4][5].

Method 5: Using Command Prompt

For those comfortable with command-line instructions, you can use the Command Prompt:

• Press Win + S, type "CMD," and run the Command Prompt as an administrator.
• Type the following command and press Enter:

  reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Search" /v BingSearchEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
  

• Restart your computer to apply the changes[3].

Removing Bing from Microsoft Edge

If you also want to remove Bing as the default search engine from Microsoft Edge, follow these steps:

• Open Microsoft Edge and click on the three dots in the top right corner to open the Settings.
• Navigate to Privacy, search, and services.
• Scroll down to Address and search bar.
• Under Search engine used in the address bar, select your desired search engine (e.g., Google, DuckDuckGo).
• Ensure that the new tab page and home page are set to your preferred search engine if necessary[2][3].

By following these detailed steps, you can effectively remove Bing search from various components of Windows 11, including the Start menu, taskbar, and Microsoft Edge, allowing you to customize your search experience according to your preferences.