- Microsoft confirms that Taskbar won’t get the option to change position.
- The company didn’t scratch the idea, but it said that it’s not important right now.
- However, the Taskbar for Windows 11 will get many other improvements.
During an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on YouTube, Microsoft revealed that the Taskbar won’t get the option to position it at the top of the screen or sides on Windows 11. According to the company, adding a setting to reposition the Taskbar is not important as building and fixing other parts of the OS.
When the company began the official rollout of Windows 11, one of the most controversial redesigns was the Taskbar. Since it was rebuilt with a focus on modernizing the interface, improving the system tray, and optimizing it for touch-enabled devices, the final version lacked many legacy functionalities. For example, the new Taskbar didn’t include apps and files drag and drop, date and time across monitors, the option to resize icons or show app labels, and the ability to move the Taskbar to the top, left, or right side was gone.
Although some of the legacy functionalities are back, and others are coming back on Windows 11 22H2, the company says that the option to change the location of the Taskbar is not coming back (at least any time soon).
In the YouTube session, Microsoft explains that the Taskbar is docked permanently at the bottom because moving it to the sides or top of the screen is a considerable challenge, and since there’s not enough demand, it’s not worth the effort.
According to the company, only moving the Taskbar to the right side suddenly changes the entire design (including the Start menu and apps). The current interface and animations are designed for the bottom placement.
Since it takes a lot of work to build this experience, Microsoft had to go back to the drawing board and choose the most critical features to include in the Taskbar first. Repositioning it to the sides or the top is not something that everyone does. As a result, the option was scratched as a priority.
Currently, the company is working on many improvements for the Taskbar. For example, drag and drop for files an app, the ability to hide the icons menu in the system tray, tweaks for the Quick Settings, Notification Center, and Keyboard layout flyouts, and many other tweaks that seem more important.
However, it doesn’t mean that changing the Taskbar position option is off the table as it may come in future releases, but it’s unclear when. In the meantime, you may still be able to change the Taskbar position by tweaking the Registry.
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 14 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 20 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].