Why My Taskbar Won’t Hide On Windows 10?

Fullscreen mode is a great feature that covers all your screen with the video or anything that you are playing, and in that Fullscreen, if you have the taskbar showing at the bottom, it can get annoying. You can turn that off by turning on the settings for hiding the taskbar.

Now you are probably here; if the Taskbar Won’t Hide even after turning on the settings, then you should try solutions that I have mentioned below that will surely fix your problem with the taskbar. There are multiple fixes, so if one doesn’t work, you can always try another.

The solutions are easy and don’t require any external software except for one fix you might have to download a software named Restoro. Now turn on the computer and start trying the fixes, and you will start watching your favorite videos on Fullscreen in no time.

Causes For The Taskbar Won’t Hide On Windows 10

There are multiple causes for this problem. The main cause can be that you haven’t turned on the settings for hiding the taskbar, I know it is a common solution, but most people ignore this and try doing other methods to hide the taskbar.

Make sure that the setting has been turned on before proceeding.

The other main cause can be that the windows explorer is not responding correctly; by restarting it can fix this problem. There are other main causes as well, such as the group policy settings have not been changed, hidden apps notifications is causing interference.

These are all the causes that can prevent the taskbar from hiding, and the main cause that can be if your Windows 10 is broken, it can also cause this problem as files are missing, you can try repairing Windows with installation media and after that try turning on the settings.

The reasons for this problem are small, and they are easily fixable if you apply the steps correctly.

How To Fix Taskbar Won’t Hide in Windows 10?

There are multiple solutions that you try to fix this problem, such as turning on the correct settings, restarting Windows Explorer, turning off visual effects, using the F11 shortcut key, tweaking hidden apps notification settings, using an advanced tool (Restoro), and checking Group policy settings.

1- Verify The Taskbar Settings

First of all, we have to check that if the settings of the taskbar are properly configured before processing sometimes; if the settings are not configured properly, it can cause the taskbar not to hide while you think it’s your computer that is causing it.

If your taskbar is not hiding after you have configured the settings, then you will need to apply the other fixes that I have shown below, but there is a high chance that your taskbar will start hiding after you have verified the settings.

Now to check the settings, you will have to right-click the taskbar and check Taskbar settings. Now a new window will open with different settings.

Turn on the setting that says hide your taskbar in desktop mode. Now, your taskbar will start hiding if it doesn’t turn on the tablet mode option too.

Many users complain that here taskbar is not hiding as before. That’s because installing some apps can cause this setting to turn back off; you only need to turn on the settings, and our taskbar will start hiding again.

This is a simple step, but many people overlook the simple settings.

I hope that’s the same case for you if it is, then your taskbar should be hiding now, but if not, then don’t worry, I will show you more fixes that will surely help you solve this problem. But please make sure to verify the taskbar settings before proceeding.

2- Restart Windows Explorer

Windows Explorer is a process that helps you access your computer files with GUI. Restarting this process can reset all the errors causing the taskbar problems. This method is the quickest and effective method that can fix your taskbar.

1. Open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the taskbar and selecting Task Manager.
2. Once the Task Manager has been opened, find a process named Windows Explorer. You can find that easily if you have a windows explorer opened on currently.
3. Once you have found the process right-click on the process and click restart.
4. Now, once you have clicked restart, your screen might go black for some time, and some apps might close themselves. So, don’t worry if the screen goes black.
5. After restarting, your taskbar will automatically start hiding.

Note: You can also kill the process and restart again if the restarting doesn’t work for you.

3- Turn Off Visual Effects On Windows

Turning off visual effects is one the most effective way to hide the taskbar. This method is simple, and your taskbar will start hiding again.

1. Open the Run command by pressing Windows + R keys simultaneously on your keyboard, or you can open it by searching it in the taskbar.
2. After the run box has opened, type the command sysdm.cpl and press enter on your keyboard. It will open a new dialog box of system properties.
3. Now go on the advanced tab if you are not already there, and press the Settings option that will be under the performance category.
4. Now, you will be redirected to the performance option, there you will see a category of Visual effects.
5. Now you have to click on the Adjust for best performance option. This will disable all the visual effects.
6. Click Apply and Click OK, and you have disabled the visual effects.

Note: if you don’t want to disable all the visual effects, you can always choose the custom options, which is below the best performance option. You can choose which settings you want to turn on and which one-off.

4- Try The Autohide For Taskbar

This option is for those users who have previous Windows versions, such as Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1. This feature is the same as the feature you have to turn on to hide the taskbar. It can be found in the settings.

Now to turn it on, you have to go to settings.

1. Right-click the taskbar and select Properties.
2. A new window will open called Taskbar and Start Menu Properties.
3. Now, you will see an option called Auto-Hide the taskbar, check the box of this option, and click Apply.
4. Now close all the windows, and your taskbar should be hidden.

Note: If this method doesn’t work, try other methods that I have shown for Windows 10.

5- By Using The F11 Shortcut key

It is a short-term and quick solution for you if the videos you are playing in Fullscreen, and you have the taskbar close the Fullscreen and press F11.

It is a shortcut key for going in Fullscreen mode, sometimes this works, or sometimes it doesn’t, but it is worth a try.

It is a quick workaround for the problem as pressing the F11 causes the application to go in Fullscreen, and if your luck is good, then this will work for you. It is not a permanent fix but can work on all the websites.

6- Hidden Apps Don’t Have A Notification

One main cause for this error is that the hidden apps in your tray have notifications, which can cause the taskbar not to hide.

Now by allowing all the notifications in the notification tray can solve this problem. I will show you how to toggle all the notifications to the tray.

1. Go to settings, then go to Personalization, and then on the Taskbar, now scroll down until you see notifications options.
2. Now select the option named, select which icons appear on the taskbar, and then toggle on the option that says Always show all the icons in the notification area.
3. This option can cause the taskbar not to hide. After turning on this option, your taskbar will start hiding.

7- Use The Advanced Repair Tool

Restoro is advanced software that helps you scan all the errors and outdated drivers in your computer and fix them for you in just one click. It is a great software that can help you fix the taskbar problem with just one click.

1. Download Restoro free version from their official website.
2. After you have downloaded the setup, launch it and follow the on-screen instruction to install the software on your computer.
3. Once the software is installed, it will scan your computer for outdated drivers and errors that are causing the taskbar not to hide.
4. Once the scan is completed, it will show you detailed results of the errors in your computer.
5. Click the green button that says Clean now to clean all the errors from your computer.
6. Now restart your computer and turn on the taskbar hide settings, and it should be working now.

Note: Restoro has both free versions and paid; the free version can fix the problem of the taskbar, but if you want more features, you can always purchase the pro version of the software.

8- Check The Group Policy Settings

Sometimes incorrect group policy settings can cause the taskbar not to hide. You can change these settings on your computer from the group policy editor.

Note: Group policy editor can only be found in the Pro and Enterprise Editions of Windows 10, if you have Windows 10 home you can create this file (Link to The File) and Run it as Admin to install gpedit.msc.

1. Open the Run command either from the taskbar or by pressing Windows + R keys simultaneously.
2. After the run box has opened, type the command gpedit.msc and press enter on your keyboard.
3. Navigate to User Configuration and click the arrow on the left side of it. It will open sub-options.
4. Navigate to Administrative Templates and open its sub-options.
5. Now click on the Start Menu and Taskbar option and hover your mouse to the right side.
6. There will be different settings for the start menu and taskbar, but we only need to change the taskbar settings. So, find the following settings
   • Lock all taskbar settings
   • Turn off all balloon notifications
   • Turn off the automatic promotion of notification icons to the taskbar.
   • Turn off feature advertisement balloon notifications
7. Change the settings according to your needs.

9- Restart your computer

Restarting is a common solution for all the problems; people end up trying different solutions, but the taskbar won’t hide.

Sometimes just restarting can fix this problem. If the files and process are not responding, restarting it can fix, thus fixing those files that are causing the problem.

So, make sure to restart your computer to see if the problem is solved. You never know when the fix is only one restart away.

Taskbar Showing In Full-Screen On Google Chrome

Watching videos in Fullscreen is amazing, but having a taskbar on Fullscreen kills all the experience.

It is a common issue among chrome users that the taskbar is constantly showing on all Fullscreen videos not only from one website but from all websites.

So, it is pretty obvious that the problem is causing by Google Chrome, not from the website. There is a simple fix to this problem. I will show you how to fix this by changing some chrome settings.

1. Right-Click on the Google Chrome icon that is on your desktop and select properties.
2. Now switch to the compatibility tab and select the option called Change High DPI settings. It will be at the bottom of the dialog. After clicking on that, a new window will open.
3. Now check the box under the option High DPI scaling override. The name of the option will be Override High DPI scaling behavior. After that, click Ok and close all the windows.
4. If the browser is running, close the browser and restart it again.
5. And it is done now the taskbar should be hiding in full screen.

Play a video to make sure the taskbar is not showing. Make sure your Chrome is updated to its latest version, as this problem mostly occurs on the previous version of Google Chrome.

Taskbar Showing In Full-Screen During A Game

If the taskbar is showing while you are playing games in Fullscreen, it will most probably interrupting your game as most of the functions are not working properly. You can hide it by following these simple methods.

1st Method

You can try unpinning the programs from your taskbar, you can do that by right-clicking an icon on your taskbar and select unpin.

Now your game should be running fine on Fullscreen after you have unpinned all the programs from the taskbar. Unpinning prevents the taskbar from popping in while you hover your mouse to the taskbar.

You can always pin your programs to the taskbar once your issue has been resolved.

2nd Method

The other method is to close the explorer.exe process; you can do that by:

1. Open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the taskbar and selecting Task Manager.
2. Go to the Details tab and find a process named explorer.exe, and select End Task. This will cause your desktop to disappear.
3. After that, select the File option, it will be on the top of the task manager. After that, select Run new task and select explorer.exe. It will bring back your desktop.

The problem should have been gone by now if you have followed the steps correctly.

Taskbar Showing In Full-screen On YouTube

If the taskbar is appearing on Fullscreen YouTube videos, then you are probably using a browser to access it. Google Chrome is a popular browser, but it still shows a taskbar while playing videos to some users.

Just like it is on other websites, it is the same for YouTube too, it kills the experience of video by lowering the resolution of the video. Now the solution to this problem is the same as the other that I have discussed above for Google Chrome.

You just have to check the Override the DPI settings box by going in Google Chrome properties and selecting the compatibility option.

This solution is universal for all browsers, and you can try that for any browser that you are using, and this works for all websites, too, not only YouTube.

The other method you can try is by restarting the Windows explorer process, or you can kill it and run the process again. This feature is useful if the above solution doesn’t work for you.

I hope that by applying one of the solutions, the taskbar has been hidden, and you have gone back to watching your favorite videos.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1- How do I fix my taskbar, not auto-hiding?

Ans: You can try different solutions such as turning off the visual effects or by using an advanced repair tool such as Restoro. This can help fix the files that are causing the problems and fix your taskbar as well.

Q2- Why isn’t my taskbar hiding in Fullscreen?

Ans: Multiple reasons can cause the taskbar not to hide, such as windows explorer is not responding, the notification of the hidden apps is interfering, Visual effects, or the group policy settings. You can fix these problems easily.

Q3- How do I completely hide my taskbar?

Ans: You can do that by going in settings, then going to the personalization tab, and scroll down to the taskbar settings area. There you will find an option to hide the taskbar toggle that on, and your taskbar will start hiding.

Q4- How do I reset my taskbar Windows 10?

Ans: You can reset the taskbar by restarting Windows Explorer. You can do that by opening the task manager, go to the Details tab, find a process named explorer.exe, right-click that process, and select restart, it will reset the taskbar.

Q5- How do I fix the unresponsive taskbar in Windows 10?

Ans: You can fix that by restarting the Windows Explorer process, or you can kill the process and start a new one. You can do that all from the task manager.