How to close not responding app on Windows 11

• To close an app that is not responding on Windows 11, use the “Alt + F4” keyboard shortcut or right-click the app in the Taskbar and choose the “End task” option.
• Alternatively, open the “Processes” tab in Task Manager and end the task.
• If you want to use Command Prompt, run the “taskkill /im AppName /t /f” command. In PowerShell, run the “Stop-Process -Name ProcessName” command.

On Windows 11, there are at least six easy ways to close an application that is not responding, and this guide will teach you how.

Although you can often work with apps without issues, they can freeze or get stuck suddenly for many reasons. For example, a bug after an update can cause an app to become unresponsive. If the program relies on an internet connection but can’t find it, the application may get stuck loading. Also, depending on the task, the action can cause the app to go “Not responding.”

Whatever the reason it might be, if the system doesn’t offer a way to close the app, Windows 11 offers several ways to force close an app that’s not responding using a keyboard shortcut, Task Manager, Settings app, Command Prompt, and even PowerShell.

In this guide, I will teach you the five best ways to close programs that do not respond to Windows 11.

Close not responding apps on Windows 11

You have multiple ways to close an application that appears frozen or unresponsive.

1. Force close unresponsive app from shortcut

To force close an app with a keyboard shortcut on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Click the app’s title bar to bring it to focus.

2. Press the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut.

   Quick note: Depending on the keyboard, you may need to press the “Alt + Fn + F4” shortcut combo.

2. Force close unresponsive app from Taskbar

To close an app that’s not responding from the Taskbar, use these steps:

1. Right-click the app in the Taskbar and choose the “End task” option.

   

If the option isn’t available, you must enable it manually from Settings > For Developers and turn on the “End task” toggle switch.

3. Force close unresponsive app from Task Manager

To force quit unresponsive apps from Task Manager, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Task Manager and click the top result to open the app.

3. Click on Processes.

4. Select the app.

5. Click the End task (or Restart task) button.

   

4. Force close unresponsive app from Settings

To close a frozen Microsoft Store app on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Settings.

2. Click on Apps.

3. Click the Installed apps page.

4. Click the menu (three-dotted) button next to the apps and select Advanced Options.

   

5. Click the Terminate button.

   

5. Force close unresponsive app from Command Prompt

To close an unresponsive app from Command Prompt on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

3. Type the following command to view the running applications and press Enter:

   tasklist

   

4. Type the following command to force quit the application and press Enter:

   taskkill /im AppName /t /f

   

   In the command, change “AppName” to the application’s name as it appears in the previous step. For example, this command closes Task Manager: taskkill /im Taskmgr.exe /t /f

6. Force close unresponsive app from PowerShell

To force close an app that’s not responding from PowerShell on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for PowerShell, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

3. Type the following command to view the running applications and press Enter:

   Get-Process

   

4. Type the following command to close the unresponsive application and press Enter:

   Stop-Process -Name ProcessName

   

   In the command, change “ProcessName” to the application’s name as it appears in the previous step. For example, this command closes Task Manager: Stop-Process -Name Taskmgr

Once you complete the steps, the system should terminate the application.

If none of the above methods seem to work, you may need to restart your computer.

Update June 3, 2024: This guide has been updated to ensure accuracy and reflect changes to the process.