How to uninstall updates on Windows 10

If a quality update is causing problems, Windows 10 offers at least four ways to uninstall it to mitigate the issue, and here's how.

Windows 10 uninstall updates
Windows 10 uninstall updates / Image: Mauro Huculak
  • To uninstall updates on Windows 10, open Settings > Update & Security > View update history > Uninstall updates, choose the update, and click “Uninstall.”
  • You can also remove Windows 10 updates from Command Prompt, PowerShell, and Advanced Startup.
  • If Windows 10 won’t start, you can use the Advanced startup options to uninstall the problematic update.

UPDATED 1/5/2024: Although Windows 10 updates are meant to fix problems and improve the experience, sometimes, these quality patches can cause more issues than they solve. For instance, it is not uncommon to see updates rolling out with bugs breaking features and drives, compatibility problems with software or hardware, and other issues that can negatively affect users. 

However, if you encounter a problem after applying an update, Windows 10 includes different options to remove a particular update to mitigate the problem using the Settings app, Command Prompt, PowerShell, and even the Advanced startup options (Windows Recovery Environment) when you cannot access the desktop.

In this guide, I will teach the four ways I use to remove problematic updates from Windows 10. Regardless of the method you use, Windows Update will try to redownload the update automatically. To prevent this behavior, you can use these instructions to block the specific update from reinstalling.

Uninstall Windows 10 updates from Settings

To uninstall an update on Windows 10 using the Settings app, use these steps:

  1. Open Settings on Windows 10.

  2. Click on Update & Security.

  3. Click on Windows Update.

  4. Click the “View updates history” button.

    View update history option

  5. Click the Uninstall updates option.

    Uninstall updates option

  6. Select the Windows 10 update to remove.

  7. Click the Uninstall button.

    Control Panel Uninstall updates

  8. Click the Yes button.

Once you complete the steps, the computer will release to apply the changes to revert to the previous state of the device.

Uninstall Windows 10 updates from Command Prompt

To uninstall an update permanently using Command Prompt, 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 update history and press Enter:

    wmic qfe list brief /format:table

    Installed updates list

  4. Check the Windows Update history of your device, and identify the update by its HotFixID and InstalledOn information.

  5. Type the following command to uninstall the update from your computer and press Enter:

    wusa /uninstall /kb:KBNUMBER

    In the command, replace “KBNUMBER” with the KB number corresponding to the update you try to uninstall. This example removes the update KB5001391 from Windows 10:

    wusa /uninstall /kb:5003637

    Uninstall Windows 10 updates command

  6. Click the Yes button.

  7. Continue with the on-screen directions (if applicable).

After you complete the steps, the update will be removed from the computer.

Uninstall Windows 10 updates from PowerShell

To remove Windows 10 updates with PowerShell commands, 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 install the PowerShell module to update Windows 10 and press Enter:

    Install-Module PSWindowsUpdate

    PSWindowsUpdate

  4. Type A to accept and install the module and press Enter.

  5. Type the following command to view a list of the 20 most recent updates and press Enter:

    Get-WUHistory | Select-Object -First 20

    PowerShell installed updates command

  6. Type the following command to select and block the update with PowerShell and press Enter:

    Remove-WindowsUpdate -KBArticleID KBNUMBER

    In the command, replace “KBNUMBER” with the update number you want to block. This example blocks the KB5003191 update:

    Remove-WindowsUpdate -KBArticleID KB5003637
  7. Type A to accept and install the module and press Enter.

Once you complete the steps, the device may need to restart to complete the process.

If the above instructions do not work, the Command Prompt steps will also work in PowerShell.

Uninstall Windows 10 updates from Advanced startup

To uninstall a quality update using the Advanced startup options on Windows 10, use these steps:

  1. Start the device in Advanced startup.

    Quick tip: Depending on the severity of the problem, you can access the Advanced startup options in a few ways. You can use this guide to learn all the methods to access Advanced startup, and then continue with the steps below.
  2. Click on Troubleshoot.

    Troubleshoot option

  3. Click on Advanced options.

    Advanced options

  4. Click on Uninstall Updates.

    Uninstall updates from Advanced startup

  5. Click the “Uninstall latest quality update” option.

    Uninstall latest quality updates

  6. Sign in using your administrator credentials.

  7. Click the “Uninstall quality update” button.

    Advanced startup uninstall quality update option

After you complete the steps, the system will uninstall the latest quality update on Windows 10 (if available).

Update January 5, 2024: This guide has been updated to ensure accuracy and reflect changes in the configuration process.

About the author

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].