How to Hide and Unhide the Search Box: Windows 10 and 11

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A user-friendly guide to enabling or disabling the search bar

Written by Rain Kengly

Last Updated: October 15, 2025 Fact Checked

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Using Windows 11

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Using Windows 10

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Troubleshooting

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Video

Is the Windows search bar missing from your taskbar? The search bar can be used to search files and programs on your computer as well as the internet. If you want to add the search feature to your desktop's taskbar, you can enable it in the settings. If your search bar is not working, you can easily troubleshoot it. This wikiHow will show you how to show or hide the search box on the taskbar in Windows 10 or 11.

Quick Steps

On Windows 11, right-click the taskbar.
Click Taskbar settings.
Click Taskbar items to expand the section.
Click the "search" drop-down menu.
Select Search box.

Section 1 of 3:

Using Windows 11

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1
Right-click the taskbar. This is the bar that contains the Start menu logo. You can also press and hold it. A pop-up menu will open.^{[1]
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- Use this method to add or remove the search bar in Windows 11.^{[2]
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This is at the top of the menu.

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3
Click Taskbar items. This will expand the section.^{[3]
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- This section may already be expanded.
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Select the "Search" drop-down menu and select Search box. This will show the search box on your taskbar.^{[4]
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- If you don't want to include the entire search box on your taskbar, you can select Search icon only or Search icon and label instead.
- If needed, you can also hide the taskbar.
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Hide the search box (optional). If you have a new device or if you want to maximize the taskbar space, you can hide the search box instead.^{[5]
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Research source} Do the following:
- Right-click the taskbar and click Taskbar settings.
- Click Taskbar items.
- Click the "Search" drop-down menu and select Hide.

Section 2 of 3:

Using Windows 10

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1
Right-click the taskbar. This is the bar that contains the Start menu logo. It should be at the bottom of the screen, unless you changed the taskbar position. A pop-up menu will open.
- Use this method to add or remove the search bar in Windows 10.
You can find this underneath Toolbars.
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Click to select Show search box. This adds the Windows 10 search box to your taskbar. Alternatively, you can select Show search icon if you only want to see a magnifying glass icon.
- If you don't see this option, right-click the taskbar and click Taskbar settings. Toggle off Use small taskbar buttons.
  - When "Use small taskbar buttons" is enabled, you'll only get to pick between having the search feature hidden or displaying the search icon.^{[6]
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    Microsoft Support
    Technical support and product information from Microsoft.
    
    Go to source}
4
Hide the search box (optional). If you have a new device or if you want to maximize the taskbar space, you can hide the search box instead. Do the following:
- Right-click the taskbar.
- Hover over Search.
- Click Hidden.

Section 3 of 3:

Troubleshooting

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1
Check for updates. If your Windows search bar isn't working, check for any updates.^{[7]
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Research source} These updates usually provide fixes to common problems. To check, do the following:
- Open the Start menu.
- Type "check for updates".
- Click Check for updates.
- Click Check for updates again.
- Install any updates.
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Use the Search and Indexing troubleshooter. You can use the Windows Search and Indexing troubleshooter to find and fix any problems with the search bar. Do the following:
- Open the Start menu.
- Click the cog icon to open Settings.
- Click Update & Security.
- Click Troubleshoot in the left panel.
- Click Additional troubleshooters.
- Click Search and Indexing.
- Click Run the troubleshooter.
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Restart Windows Search. You can restart the Windows Search process to restart the search bar. Do the following:
- Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete to open the Task Manager.
- Click the Details tab.
- Find and right-click SearchUI.exe.
- Click End task.
- Click End process.
- Try searching again.