To turn off the news feed in Windows 11, open Widgets (Windows key + W), select the settings button on the navigation bar, and under Dashboards, turn Discover off. Discover is the stream of news stories in the Widgets board. To get rid of the weather and headlines on your taskbar too, right-click the taskbar, select Taskbar settings, and turn off Widgets. For more on that switch, read about showing or hiding Widgets and weather in Windows 11.
These steps are for Windows 11 Home and Pro with current updates installed. Microsoft has changed the Widgets board several times, and older steps that mention a “Show or hide feeds” option no longer match what most PCs show. This guide uses the current steps from Microsoft’s Widgets help article, plus its Allow widgets policy documentation for Windows 11 Pro.
Which Option Do You Need?
| What you want gone | What to turn off | Keeps your widgets? |
|---|---|---|
| News stories in the Widgets board | Discover dashboard | Yes |
| Breaking news alerts and badges on the taskbar | Widgets Notifications settings | Yes |
| Weather and headlines on the taskbar | Widgets in Taskbar settings | Yes, with Windows key + W |
| News and weather on the lock screen | Widgets in Lock screen settings | Yes |
| The whole Widgets feature | Allow widgets policy (Pro and up) | No |
How the Widgets Board Is Organized
The Widgets board has a navigation bar with separate dashboards. The Widgets dashboard holds cards like weather, stocks and photos. The Discover dashboard is the curated news stream, and it’s the part most people mean by “the news feed” or “the MSN feed.” Some providers also get their own dashboards. You can open the board by selecting the Widgets area on the taskbar, pressing Windows key + W, or swiping in from the side of a touch screen.
Turn Off the Discover News Feed
- Press Windows key + W to open Widgets.
- Select the settings button on the navigation bar. The Widgets settings page opens.
- Under Dashboards, toggle Discover to Off.
The Discover dashboard disappears from the navigation bar. Your weather, calendar and other widget cards stay where they are.
To add more cards, such as calendar or sports, learn how to add widgets in Windows 11.
If you don’t see Discover: your PC has an older Widgets board. Install the latest updates in Settings > Windows Update, then restart and check again. On older boards, the widget settings may show Show or hide feeds instead; turn it off. If neither option appears, hide Widgets from the taskbar as shown below.
If you need help with that step, here’s how to check for and install Windows 11 updates.
Stop News Alerts and Badges on the Taskbar
Even without the feed, Widgets can flash breaking news or other announcements on the taskbar. To quiet them:
- Open Widgets and select the settings button on the navigation bar.
- Under More settings, select Notifications.
- Turn off Show badges on the taskbar and Show badges on the navigation bar.
- Under Dashboard notifications, turn off notifications for any dashboards you don’t want to hear from.
If you keep Discover on but only want fewer alerts from it, open the Discover dashboard, select your user account button, and use the Notifications tab there. Microsoft also notes that badges and announcements don’t appear on the taskbar during a focus session, which is handy when you need a quiet hour without changing settings.
Stop Widgets From Opening When You Hover
If the board pops open whenever your mouse passes over the taskbar icon, open Widgets, select the settings button on the navigation bar, and turn off Open Widgets board on hover. The board then opens only when you click the icon or press Windows key + W.
Hide Widgets From the Taskbar
- Right-click an empty part of the taskbar and select Taskbar settings.
- Under Taskbar items, turn the Widgets switch off.
The weather and news area disappears from the taskbar. Microsoft notes you can still open the Widgets board with Windows key + W when you want it. For the other buttons on that page, read about customizing the Windows 11 taskbar.
Remove News and Weather From the Lock Screen
The lock screen has its own widgets, separate from the taskbar and the Widgets board.
- Select Start > Settings > Personalization > Lock screen.
- Find Widgets and turn it off to hide all of them. To keep some, select the more options button next to a widget and remove only the ones you don’t want.
- Press Windows key + L to lock the PC and check the result.
On older versions of Windows 11, this page has a Lock screen status setting instead of Widgets. Install updates to get the newer controls. If your background is set to Picture or Slideshow, also turn off Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen to drop Microsoft’s extra content. For the rest of that page, read about setting the lock screen on Windows 11.
Turn Off Widgets Completely on Windows 11 Pro
On Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise and Education, an administrator can switch off the whole Widgets experience, including the taskbar content, with Group Policy:
- Press Windows key + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter.
- Go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Widgets.
- Open Allow widgets, select Disabled, and select OK.
- Restart your PC if the change doesn’t show up right away.
To undo it, open the same policy and choose Not Configured.
Windows 11 Home doesn’t include the Group Policy Editor, so use the Taskbar setting above instead.
The Registry Equivalent
The policy writes the registry value AllowNewsAndInterests under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh, where 0 means not allowed. It’s supported on Pro, Enterprise and Education, not Home. Editing the registry incorrectly can cause problems, so use Group Policy if you have it, and back up the registry first if you don’t.
- Press Windows key + R, type regedit, press Enter, and select Yes at the User Account Control prompt.
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft. If there’s no Dsh key, right-click Microsoft, select New > Key, and name it Dsh.
- Right-click Dsh, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it AllowNewsAndInterests.
- Leave its value at 0, then restart your PC.
To bring Widgets back, delete the AllowNewsAndInterests value and restart.
Personalize the Feed Instead of Removing It
If you like having headlines but not the ones you’re getting, keep Discover on and tune it:
- Pick topics and publishers: open the Discover dashboard, select your user account button, and choose what to follow on the Discover tab. Review what you follow on the Following tab and what you’ve blocked on the Blocked tab.
- Train it story by story: on a story you don’t want, use Hide this story or Fewer like this, or hide that publisher’s stories. Use More like this on stories you do want.
- Change language and region: from the same account menu, choose a different option under Region and Language.
The feed can take a while to reflect these choices, so give it some time before you decide to turn it off.
How to Turn the News Feed Back On
Open Widgets with Windows key + W, select the settings button, and turn Discover back on under Dashboards. To restore the taskbar button, turn Widgets back on under Taskbar items in Taskbar settings.
If the Feed Keeps Coming Back
- It’s back after a big update. Updates can add new Widgets options or change defaults. Open the Widgets settings again and check Discover and the taskbar switch.
- The setting is missing or grayed out. On a work or school PC, your organization can control Widgets. Ask your IT department instead of trying to work around the policy.
- The Group Policy change didn’t apply. Make sure you edited Computer Configuration, not User Configuration, then restart.
- You still see news. Check the lock screen widgets and the Microsoft Edge new tab page. Each has its own settings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the news feed the same as the MSN feed?
Yes. The “MSN feed” people talk about is the Discover news stream in Widgets, so turning off Discover hides it.
Will turning off the feed remove the weather on my taskbar?
No. To remove the weather and headlines from the taskbar, turn off Widgets under Taskbar items in Taskbar settings.
Does turning off Widgets make my PC faster?
Not noticeably on most PCs. The main benefits are fewer distractions and no accidental pop-ups when your mouse crosses the taskbar.
What about the news on the Microsoft Edge new tab page?
That’s a separate feed controlled by Edge’s own new tab page settings, not by Widgets. Open a new tab and select the page settings button to change what it shows. While you’re in Edge, you can also set Google as the default search engine.
Matthew Burleigh is the founder, head writer, and editor of Solve Your Tech, which he launched in 2012. He has written technology tutorials since 2008 and worked in IT since 2003, including small-business support, IT management, and consulting. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science from Arizona State University.
Matthew writes practical guides for Windows, iPhone and iPad, Microsoft Office, Outlook, Google apps, and Android. Solve Your Tech’s guides are checked step by step against the device or app maker’s own documentation and tested on his own devices whenever he has the hardware or software, with clear steps, sources, and update dates.
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