The Windows 11 taskbar provides quick access to your favorite applications, the Start menu, and system tray icons. However, it permanently occupies the bottom strip of your monitor, which can be frustrating if you are working on a smaller laptop screen or playing a game in borderless windowed mode. To maximize your available screen real estate, you can configure the taskbar to automatically slide out of view when you are not actively using it.
How to Enable the Auto-Hide Feature
Microsoft built the auto-hide functionality directly into the taskbar settings, making it incredibly simple to toggle on and off.
- Right-click on any empty space on your Taskbar.
- Select Taskbar settings from the small context menu that appears. (Alternatively, you can open the Settings app, go to Personalization, and select Taskbar).
- In the Taskbar settings window, scroll down to the very bottom and click on the Taskbar behaviors section to expand it.
- Locate the checkbox labelled Automatically hide the taskbar.
- Click the checkbox to enable the feature.
How to Use a Hidden Taskbar
The moment you check the box, your taskbar will slide downwards and disappear off the edge of your screen, granting you a few extra rows of pixels for your active windows.
To access the taskbar again, simply move your mouse cursor to the very bottom edge of your monitor. The taskbar will immediately pop back up, allowing you to launch apps, check the time, or open the Start menu. The moment you move your mouse cursor away from the taskbar area, it will slide back down and hide itself again.
If you ever find this behaviour distracting, simply return to the Taskbar behaviors menu and uncheck the box to permanently dock the taskbar to the bottom of the screen once more.