Remove Bloatware from Windows 11
Short answer: Right-click the app in the Start menu and, if Uninstall appears, click it — most bundled apps (Clipchamp, LinkedIn, Spotify, TikTok) remove cleanly this way. For apps with no Uninstall option or OEM bloat like McAfee, Dell SupportAssist, and HP Wolf, use winget uninstall or a PowerShell Remove-AppxPackage command, and skip anything you do not recognize at the system level.
Right-click the app in the Start menu. If “Uninstall” appears, click it and you’re done. Most built-in Windows 11 apps can be removed this way — Clipchamp, LinkedIn, Spotify, TikTok, Instagram, Disney+, whatever Microsoft bundled in. They uninstall cleanly without side effects.
The ones that can’t be uninstalled through the Start menu right-click are the problem. Settings, Apps, Installed apps shows a longer list but some apps — like Microsoft News, Weather, Cortana, People, Microsoft To Do — either don’t show an uninstall button or the button is greyed out. Microsoft decided you need these. You don’t.
PowerShell removes them. Open Terminal as administrator (right-click Start, Terminal (Admin)). Run Get-AppxPackage *BingNews* | Remove-AppxPackage and the News app is gone. Replace BingNews with the package name of whatever you want to remove. Common ones:
*Clipchamp* for Clipchamp. *BingWeather* for Weather. *MicrosoftSolitaireCollection* for Solitaire. *ZuneMusic* for the old Groove/Media Player UWP. *549981C3F5F10* for Cortana — Microsoft gave it a product ID instead of a readable name. *MicrosoftTeams* for the Teams personal app. *Todos* for To Do. *People* for People.
Don’t remove these: *WindowsStore* (breaks app updates entirely), *WindowsCalculator* (actually useful), *DesktopAppInstaller* (needed for winget), *HEIFImageExtension* and *VP9VideoExtensions* (media codecs, removing them breaks photo and video viewing in unexpected ways), *WindowsTerminal* (you’re using it right now).
OEM Bloatware
Dell, HP, Lenovo, and ASUS all ship their own pre-installed software that’s worse than what Microsoft bundles. Dell SupportAssist alone runs three background services, consumes 200-400MB of RAM, and has had multiple remote code execution vulnerabilities published in CVEs. HP has Wolf Security that reinstalls itself after Windows updates. Lenovo has Vantage that opens pop-ups asking you to register.
Settings, Apps, Installed apps, sort by Publisher. Look for your manufacturer’s name. Dell: SupportAssist, Digital Delivery, My Dell, Dell Update, Dell Power Manager. HP: HP Support Assistant, HP Wolf Security, HP Audio Switch, HP Documentation. Lenovo: Lenovo Vantage, Lenovo ID, Lenovo Hotkeys. ASUS: MyASUS, ASUS Update, Armoury Crate.
Some of these are harder to remove because they install Windows services that persist through normal uninstall. Our uninstall guide covers winget and Revo Uninstaller for the ones that really fight you. McAfee — which Dell, HP, and Lenovo all pre-install — is the worst offender. The standard uninstall leaves services running. Download the McAfee Consumer Product Removal tool (MCPR) from mcafee.com, run it, restart. Then check services.msc for anything McAfee left behind.
After uninstalling OEM bloatware, check Task Manager’s Startup tab. OEM software loves adding itself to startup even after “uninstallation.” Disable anything from your OEM that you removed. Check services.msc too — right-click any remaining OEM services, Properties, set Startup type to Disabled.
What’s Actually Safe to Remove
People worry about removing the wrong thing and breaking Windows. Here’s the test: if it’s a Store app (UWP/MSIX), you can remove it and Windows keeps working. Store apps are sandboxed — they don’t integrate into the OS in a way that removing them causes problems. The worst case is you need something back and reinstall it from the Store.
The exception is Windows components disguised as apps. Xbox Identity Provider, Windows Web Experience Pack (powers Widgets), HEVC Video Extensions (video codec), UI.Xaml (framework other apps depend on). These don’t show in the Start menu and most people never encounter them, but PowerShell’s Get-AppxPackage lists everything including framework dependencies. Stick to removing things you recognize as apps.
For laptops that came with 30+ pre-installed apps and feel sluggish out of the box — a 20-minute cleanup session removing OEM bloatware and unnecessary startup items can cut boot time by 30-50% and free up 500MB-1GB of RAM. We do this as part of our speed optimization service along with a full startup and services audit. If you’re doing it yourself, our speed guide covers the Task Manager and services cleanup process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to remove pre-installed Windows 11 apps?
Yes for Store apps — they're sandboxed and don't affect Windows functionality. You can always reinstall them from the Microsoft Store. Don't remove WindowsStore itself, DesktopAppInstaller, WindowsTerminal, or media codec extensions like HEIF and VP9. Those are framework dependencies that other parts of Windows rely on.
How do I remove apps that don't have an uninstall button?
Open Terminal as administrator and use PowerShell: Get-AppxPackage *AppName* | Remove-AppxPackage. Replace AppName with the package identifier — BingNews for News, BingWeather for Weather, 549981C3F5F10 for Cortana. This removes apps that Microsoft greyed out the uninstall button on.
Why does Dell SupportAssist keep coming back?
Dell SupportAssist installs Windows services that survive normal uninstall and re-download the app. After uninstalling through Settings, check services.msc for Dell services and disable them. Also check Task Manager Startup tab for Dell entries. The same applies to HP Wolf Security which reinstalls after Windows updates.
Will removing bloatware speed up my computer?
Removing OEM bloatware and unnecessary startup items can cut boot time by 30-50% and free up 500MB-1GB of RAM on laptops that came with 30+ pre-installed apps. The speed improvement comes from fewer background services and startup processes, not from freeing disk space.