If you have installed the latest version of Windows and want to add or customize Widgets in Windows 11, here is how you can do that. It allows you to hide or remove a particular widget, customize any specific section, add more widgets, etc. This detailed guide helps you if you are about to use Windows 11 for the very first time.
How to add and customize Widgets in Windows 11
To add or customize Widgets in Windows 11, follow these steps:
- Add new widget
- Remove or hide particular widget
- Customize widgets
- Search from Widgets
- Pin or unpin a widget
- Resize a widget
- Move a widget
To learn more about these tips and tricks, continue reading.
1] Add new widget
By default, Windows 11 Widgets displays weather forecasts, stock information, sports (depends on your region), etc. However, there are a lot more other things you can add to the Widgets panel. For example, you can include Family Safety, Outlook Calendar, Microsoft To Do, Traffic information, etc. To add a new widget, do the following:
- Open the Widgets panel by clicking the Taskbar icon.
- Click on the Add widgets button.
- Find a widget you want to show.
- Click the plus sign.
- Click the Close flyout button.
After that, you can find the desired widget in the Widgets panel.
2] Remove or hide particular widget
Like making a widget visible, you can hide or remove a particular widget as well. To hide a widget, follow these steps:
- Open the Widgets panel in Windows 11.
- Click the three-dotted icon of a widget you want to hide.
- Select the Remove widget button.
If you want to re-add that widget, you can follow the Add new widget guide mentioned above.
Read: How to change the language of Widgets in Windows 11
3] Customize widgets
Depending upon the widget, you can customize it as per your requirements. For example, you can change the location for the Weather widget, dd new league to the Sports widget, add desired stock in the Suggested for you widget, etc. To do that, you need to click on the three-dotted icon visible on the top-right corner of a particular widget and select the Customize widget option.
Then, you can choose what you want to edit. Although options are limited, you can find all the essential information from these widgets by customizing them. Apart from that, you can hide a particular news story, hide a publisher, save a story to read later, etc.
4] Search from Widgets
Like your mobile, you have a search box in the Widgets panel. It is possible to search the web for anything you want. However, it uses Bing as the default search engine instead of Google and Microsoft Edge as the default browser. To search for anything, you need to open the Widgets panel in Windows 11 and type anything in the search box before hitting the Enter button.
5] Pin or unpin a widget
This is a pretty useful option for the widgets’ customization in Windows 11. If you want some widget(s) to remain on the top part of the widgets board, then you can pin a widget of your choice. Later, you can also unpin a widget in Windows 11 easily. The steps are as follows:
- Access the widgets board from the taskbar
- Click on the More options icon (three vertical dots) for a widget
- Click on the Pin widget option.
To unpin a widget, you can follow the similar steps mentioned below:
- Open the widgets board
- Use the More options icon for a pinned widget
- Click on the Unpin widget option.
6] Resize a widget
A pinned widget can also be resized to small, large, or medium size depending upon the card size supported by a particular widget. To resize a widget:
- Open the More options menu of the widget
- Click on the size (Medium, Small, or Large) option.
7] Move a widget
If you want to change the position of a widget, then you can also move a widget from one spot to another spot on the widgets board. This works for both pinned and unpinned widgets.
For doing this, press and hold the left mouse button on a widget header, drag the widget to move it, and drop it to a place on another spot on the widgets board.
Read: Best Free Windows 11 Widgets and Gadgets.
How do I fix my Widgets on Windows 11?
If the Widgets are not opening on Windows 11 or it showing blank, you need to sign in to your Microsoft account. Windows 11 doesn’t show widgets if you don’t do that. The reason being, it lets you customize stories, saves them to read later, etc. Without a Microsoft account, it is not possible to do so.
Read: How to put Live Tiles in Windows 11 Desktop.
Why can’t I add widgets in Windows 11?
Though widgets can be added and used easily in the widgets board, sometimes the users find that they cannot add or remove Widgets in Windows 11. If this happens, then you can try the following solutions to fix this issue:
- Log in to your Microsoft account
- Restart Widgets
- Set Microsoft Edge as the default browser
- Delete AllowNewsAndInterests Registry entry, etc.
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