How to Turn Off Cortana in Windows 11

Removing the Obsolete Voice Assistant

When Microsoft launched Windows 10, Cortana was deeply integrated into the operating system as a direct competitor to Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa. However, as the digital assistant landscape evolved, Microsoft shifted its focus toward artificial intelligence, culminating in the launch of Microsoft Copilot. Consequently, Cortana has been officially deprecated.

While Microsoft has stopped supporting the standalone Cortana app and removed it from the primary taskbar experience in Windows 11, remnants of the software may still exist on your PC, particularly if you upgraded to Windows 11 from an older Windows 10 machine rather than performing a clean installation. These leftover background processes can occasionally consume system resources or appear in your startup menu.

If you want to ensure Cortana is completely disabled and prevented from running quietly in the background, you can turn it off using the Windows Settings menu or remove it entirely via PowerShell.

Method 1: Stop Cortana from Starting Automatically

The least intrusive way to deal with Cortana is to simply ensure it never launches when you turn on your computer. This reclaims your system memory without requiring you to delete any system files.

1. Click the Start button on your taskbar and select the Settings gear icon (or press the Windows Key + i on your keyboard).
2. In the left-hand sidebar of the Settings window, click on Apps.
3. Select Startup from the list of options on the right.
4. You will see a list of every program that has permission to launch when Windows boots up. Scroll down until you find Cortana.
5. Click the toggle switch next to Cortana to turn it Off.

The next time you restart your PC, Cortana will not load into your system memory.

Method 2: Revoke Cortana’s App Permissions

Even if an app does not start automatically, Windows 11 allows certain applications to run quietly in the background to receive updates or notifications. You can explicitly revoke this permission for Cortana.

1. Open the Settings app again.
2. Click on Apps in the left sidebar, then select Installed apps (or “Apps & features” on slightly older versions of Windows 11).
3. Wait a moment for the list of installed software to populate, then type “Cortana” into the search bar at the top of the list.
4. When Cortana appears, click the three horizontal dots next to its name and select Advanced options.
5. Scroll down to the “Background apps permissions” section.
6. Click the drop-down menu under “Let this app run in the background” and change it to Never.
7. While you are on this screen, you can also scroll down further and click the Terminate button to immediately kill any hidden Cortana processes currently running on your PC.

Method 3: Completely Uninstall Cortana via PowerShell

Because Cortana was originally considered a core system component, you cannot simply click an “Uninstall” button in the standard Settings menu; the button will be greyed out. However, if you are comfortable using Windows PowerShell, you can force the operating system to completely delete the app.

1. Click the Start button and type PowerShell into the search bar.
2. When “Windows PowerShell” appears in the search results, look at the options on the right side of the menu and click Run as Administrator. Click “Yes” if Windows asks for permission to make changes.
3. A blue command line window will open. Carefully copy and paste the following command exactly as it appears here:

Get-AppxPackage -allusers Microsoft.549981C3F5F10 | Remove-AppxPackage

4. Press the Enter key on your keyboard.

The process will only take a few seconds. You might see a brief flash of text indicating the package is being removed. Once the cursor returns to a new line waiting for your next command, Cortana has been permanently deleted from your computer.

Note: If you ever change your mind in the future, you cannot undo this command easily. You would need to open the Microsoft Store app, search for “Cortana”, and manually download it again. However, given Microsoft’s transition to Copilot, reinstalling Cortana is not recommended.