Your pen starts writing in text boxes or drawing when you want to select something. Microsoft doesn't document a single consumer switch that disables every inking feature, but you can turn off the behavior that's getting in your way. Start with handwriting settings, or jump to your tablet driver if you want to change how a drawing app handles pen input.
Stop handwriting in Windows text fields
Windows 11 has a dedicated setting for writing directly into text boxes. It applies to compatible digital pens on devices that offer handwriting entry.
Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Pen & Windows Ink, then turn off Use your handwriting to enter text. That stops direct handwriting entry without disabling drawing in applications. To disable a drawing tablet's Windows Ink integration, use its driver settings below.
Disable Windows Ink in your tablet driver
For a drawing tablet, use the instructions that match your manufacturer's driver interface. To retain pressure sensitivity with Windows Ink disabled, your drawing app and driver must both support and use an alternative such as WinTab.
For Wacom devices configured through Wacom Center, open that application. Select your tablet in the Devices sidebar, then select your pen. Click Advanced, then turn Windows Ink off.
For Wacom models configured through Wacom Tablet Properties, open that application. Select your pen, then choose the general application profile to apply the change broadly. Open the Mapping or Calibrate tab, depending on your device, and clear Use Windows Ink.
For Huion's V15 driver interface, open HuionTablet > Digital Pen > Press Key. Clear Enable Windows Ink, then restart the Huion driver when switching between Windows Ink and WinTab. Set your drawing application's input protocol to match the driver, using the app instructions below.
For supported XPPen devices, open XPPenTablet > Pen settings. Turn off Windows Ink.
For a ugee Q6, open the ugee driver. This path applies to the Q6's documented interface; other models use their own layouts. Select your connected device, then go to Pen Settings > Pen Shortcut Key.
Turn off Windows Ink. Disabling this integration also risks losing handwriting functionality in applications such as Office and Whiteboard.
For GAOMON, open the GAOMON driver. GAOMON does not specify a single tab or exact checkbox label for this control. Disable the driver's Windows Ink option.
Limit the change to one app
A Wacom application profile disables Windows Ink for one program while leaving other profiles' settings intact.
Open Wacom Tablet Properties, then select your pen in the tool list. Click + beside the Applications list. Add your drawing app or browser by selecting it from the running applications or browsing to it.
Select that application's profile, then open the Mapping or Calibrate tab. Clear Use Windows Ink.
Match your drawing app to WinTab
With a compatible WinTab driver, follow the entry for your drawing app so both use the same input protocol.
- 1.In Krita, open Settings > Configure Krita… > Tablet Settings. Under Tablet Input API, select WinTab instead of Windows 8+ Pointer Input. Save the setting and restart Krita.
- 2.In Clip Studio Paint, open File > Preferences > Tablet. Under Using tablet service, select Wintab, then click OK. Also disable Windows Ink in your tablet manufacturer's settings using the matching instructions above. This applies to external pen tablets with compatible WinTab drivers. Clip Studio recommends Tablet PC for tablet PCs, so this is not a universal Surface workaround.
- 3.For Photoshop, create a plain-text file named
PSUserConfig.txtcontainingUseSystemStylus 0. Save it inC:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\[Photoshop version]\[Photoshop version Settings]\, substituting your account and version's folder names. Restart Photoshop and configure the tablet driver consistently for WinTab. Adobe specifically documents this method for tablets without a Windows Ink option.
Keep Office from drawing automatically
In a supported Windows desktop Office application, open File > Options > Advanced > Pen. Select Use pen to select and interact with content by default. This changes that application's default pen behavior. Repeat the change in each other Office application that offers the setting.
To leave the current inking mode temporarily, use the Draw tool on the Draw ribbon tab to switch to selection mode.
In OneNote desktop for Microsoft 365, OneNote 2024, or OneNote 2021, open File > Options > Advanced > Pen. Clear Automatically switch between inking, selecting, typing, and panning. After this change, drawing requires you to select an ink tool explicitly. Keep the change inside Office when automatic drawing is your only problem, since these settings do not disable Windows Ink system-wide.
Hide the pen menu from the taskbar
This hides the Windows 11 pen launcher without disabling Windows Ink or pen input.
Right-click the taskbar, then select Taskbar settings. Open System tray icons, then turn off Pen Menu.
Restore pressure sensitivity
Lost pressure after turning Windows Ink off? Check the input protocol first. Your drawing app and tablet driver must both support and use the same alternative, such as WinTab.
In Krita, open Settings > Configure Krita… > Tablet Settings. Under Tablet Input API, select WinTab to match a compatible driver with Windows Ink disabled. Save the change, then restart Krita. If you use Huion, restart its driver after switching protocols.
If pressure still fails, reverse the changes: turn the tablet driver's Windows Ink integration back on using its control above, and restore the drawing application's previous input setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does turning off inking personalization disable Windows Ink?
No. Open Start > Settings > Privacy & security > Inking & typing personalization and turn off Custom inking and typing word list to clear your personalized word list. Drawing and handwriting input remain available.
Can I disable Windows Ink with a registry edit?
Not every feature. Microsoft documents the AllowWindowsInkWorkspace policy value under Software\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsInkWorkspace only for Windows Ink Workspace access on Pro, Enterprise, Education, and IoT Enterprise editions, and it doesn't document a registry value that disables every Windows Ink feature. The commonly repeated AllowWindowsInkWorkspace recipe should not be treated as a universal pen-input switch.
What can my IT administrator disable on a managed PC?
Administrators can disable Workspace access by setting ./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/WindowsInkWorkspace/AllowWindowsInkWorkspace to integer 0 through MDM. Value 1 only blocks access above the lock screen. Microsoft lists Pro, Enterprise, Education, and IoT Enterprise editions starting with Windows 10 version 1607; Home is not listed. This restriction does not disable every inking API or all application pen input.
Can I remove one pen menu shortcut without hiding the whole menu?
Yes. Open the Windows 11 pen menu from the taskbar, then select Settings > Edit pen menu. Select the remove icon beside the unwanted pinned app. This removes only its shortcut.
How do I stop sending inking and typing diagnostic samples?
Open Start > Settings > Privacy & security > Diagnostics & feedback. Where the setting is available, turn Improve inking and typing off. This changes diagnostic collection without disabling pen functionality.
Why do older instructions mention Windows Ink Workspace instead of Pen Menu?
Windows 10 used the Windows Ink Workspace taskbar button; Windows 11 uses the pen menu. Both are launchers, and hiding either leaves the underlying inking features enabled. Ordinary Windows 10 support ended on October 14, 2025.