The Disappearing Interface
In modern versions of Windows 10, Microsoft introduced a design language that heavily favors clean, minimalist interfaces. As part of this design philosophy, scrollbars in UWP (Universal Windows Platform) apps—like the Settings app, the Microsoft Store, and the Start menu—are hidden by default when you aren’t actively using them. They collapse into a thin, nearly invisible line at the edge of the window to save space.
While this looks sleek, it can be incredibly frustrating for usability. If you rely on visually scanning the scrollbar to determine how long a page is, or if you struggle to quickly grab the thin scrollbar line with your mouse before it expands, the auto-hiding behavior is a major annoyance. Fortunately, Windows 10 includes an accessibility setting that allows you to force scrollbars to remain visible on the screen at all times.
How to Keep Scrollbars Always Visible
You can turn off the auto-hiding feature in the Windows Ease of Access settings.
- Click the Start button and select the Gear icon to open Settings.
- In the Settings window, click on Ease of Access.
- In the left-hand sidebar, under the “Vision” category, click on Display (this is usually the default screen that opens).
- Scroll down on the right side until you find the section titled “Simplify and personalize Windows.”
- Look for the toggle switch labelled Automatically hide scroll bars in Windows.
- Click the switch to turn it to the Off position.
The change is instantaneous. The scrollbars in the Settings app (and all other modern Windows apps) will immediately expand to their full width and will remain permanently visible on the screen, making navigation much easier.