How to prevent taskbar ‘news and interests’ open on hover on Windows 10

Windows 10 21H1 and higher lets you disable open on hover for the news and interests widget, and here's how.

Avatar for Mauro Huculak
@Pureinfotech
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Windows 10 news and interests disable open on hover
Windows 10 news and interests disable open on hover

On Windows 10, the news and interests widget opens automatically as soon as you hover the mouse over the weather icon in the taskbar. Although this gives you quick access to the latest feed, it is not something that everyone likes since you can accidentally open the widget more times than you want to use the feature.

However, Windows 10 includes an option to disable the open on hover feature, or you can even disable the news widget entirely.

In this guide, you will learn the steps to prevent the news and interests widget from opening on mouse hover. In addition, we will look into the steps to enable the option again.

Disable taskbar news and interests open on hover

Use the following steps to disable open on hover for news and interests:

  1. Right-click the taskbar on Windows 10.

  2. Select the news and interests menu and clear the Open on hover option.

    Disable open on hover
    Disable open on hover

Once you complete the steps, the widget will no longer open when accidentally hovering over the weather icon.

Enable taskbar news and interests open on hover

Use the following steps to enable news and interests to open on hover:

  1. Right-click the taskbar on Windows 10.

  2. Select the news and interests menu and check the Open on hover option.

    Enable open on hover
    Enable open on hover

After you complete the steps, the widget will open as you hover over the weather icon with the mouse cursor.

Disable news and interests open on hover using Registry

To disable the widget open on hover with the Registry, use these steps:

Warning: Modifying system files can further damage your Windows installation if it’s not done correctly. It’s assumed that you know what you are doing and have previously created a full backup of your computer. Proceed with caution and use this as the last course of action.

  1. Open Start.

  2. Search for regedit and click the top result to open the Registry.

  3. Browse the following path:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Feeds

  4. Right-click the Feeds key, select the New submenu, and choose the DWORD (32-bit) Value option (if applicable).

  5. Name the new key ShellFeedsTaskbarOpenOnHover and press Enter.

  6. Double-click the newly created key and make sure the value is set to 0 to disable the feature.

    Registry enable open on hover taskbar feeds
    Registry enable open on hover taskbar feeds

  7. Click the OK button.

  8. Restart your computer.

Once you complete the steps, the widget’s open on hover will be disabled on your computer.

Enable taskbar news and interests open on hover using Registry

To allow the taskbar widget to open on mouse hover, use these steps:

  1. Open Start.

  2. Search for regedit and click the top result to open the Registry.

  3. Browse the following path:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Feeds

  4. Right-click the Feeds key, select the New submenu, and choose the DWORD (32-bit) Value option (if applicable).

  5. Name the new key ShellFeedsTaskbarOpenOnHover and press Enter.

  6. Double-click the newly created key and make sure the value is set from 0 to 1 to enable the option.

    Registry disable open on hover taskbar feeds
    Registry disable open on hover taskbar feeds

  7. Click the OK button.

  8. Restart your computer.

After you complete the steps, the news and interests widget will open automatically as you hover over the weather icon in the taskbar.

The news and interests widget was originally planned for version 21H2, but Microsoft is releasing it earlier starting with Windows 10 21H1 (build 19043.962).

About the author
Avatar for Mauro Huculak

Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].