Click or tap the Minimize button, the horizontal line at the upper-right corner of a window, to minimize it in Windows. The app keeps running while its window leaves your workspace. These steps use Windows 11 menus, and individual apps can omit or disable standard window controls.
The short version
- One window: Click Minimize or press Windows + Down arrow, repeating the shortcut if the first press restores the window.
- All windows: Press Windows + M to minimize all windows.
- Desktop toggle: Press Windows + D to show the desktop, then press it again to bring your windows back.
- Keep one visible: Focus the window you want to keep, then press Windows + Home to minimize the others.
| Method or option | Result | Condition or catch |
|---|---|---|
| Minimize button | Minimizes one window | The app must provide the button |
| Title-bar context menu | Offers Minimize | Requires a standard window menu |
| Title-bar app icon | Opens the window menu | Requires an icon and standard menu |
| Windows + Down arrow | Minimizes the focused window | May need another press |
| Alt + Space | Opens the window menu | Select Minimize afterward |
| Active taskbar button | Minimizes its window | Grouped buttons can open previews |
| Shift and taskbar right-click | Opens an individual window menu | Select Minimize |
| Windows + M | Minimizes all windows | Restore with Windows + Shift + M |
| Windows + D | Shows the desktop | Press again to bring windows back |
| Far-right taskbar corner | Shows the desktop | Enable its taskbar setting first |
| Windows + Home | Minimizes other windows | Keeps the active window visible |
| Title bar window shake | Minimizes other windows | Requires an enabled gesture and draggable title bar |
| Touchpad swipe | Shows the desktop | Requires compatible hardware and gesture assignments |
| Touchscreen swipe | Shows the desktop | Enable touch gestures first |
| Voice access setup | Enables voice control | Requires a microphone, supported language and initial download |
| Voice command for one window | Minimizes the current or named app window | Voice access must be listening |
| Voice command for the desktop | Shows the desktop | Voice access must be listening |
| Monitor disconnection setting | Minimizes windows on a disconnected display | Applies to external displays and docking stations |
| Outlook notification area | Hides Outlook when minimized | Applies to the specified classic Outlook versions |
| Terminal notification area | Minimizes Terminal to its notification-area icon | Requires a Terminal configuration change |
| Terminal summon shortcut | Minimizes the targeted foreground Terminal window | Requires a configured shortcut and running Terminal instance |
| PowerShell process launch | Starts an app minimized | The app must honor the startup state |
| Command Prompt launch | Starts a new command window minimized | Does not target an existing window |
| Shell automation | Minimizes all windows | Advanced desktop scripting option |
| Power Automate window action | Minimizes a selected window | Requires an interactive desktop session |
| Power Automate installation | Adds optional desktop automation software | Unnecessary for ordinary minimization |
| Title-bar shake policy | Permits a blocked shake gesture | Applies to specified managed Windows editions |
| Keyboard Filter adjustment | Removes a shortcut restriction | Relevant only when the feature blocks the shortcut |
Minimize one window with its title bar or keyboard
Find the horizontal-line Minimize button at the upper-right of the window, then click or tap it once. If the app exposes a standard window menu, you can also right-click an empty, noninteractive part of its title bar and select Minimize. On a touchscreen, press and hold that area instead, then select Minimize.
Some apps display an app icon at the left of the title bar. Click or tap that icon once to open its standard window menu, then select Minimize. This route requires an app that provides both the icon and the menu.
For a keyboard shortcut, focus the window you want to minimize, then press Windows + Down arrow. The first press can restore a maximized window or change its snapped state. Press the same shortcut again if the window remains visible.
For a window with a standard window menu, press Alt + Space, then select Minimize. In an English window menu, you can press N after opening that menu. The letter shortcut depends on the interface language, so select the named command when using another language.
Minimize and restore from the taskbar
With a window active, click its individual taskbar button to minimize it. Click the button again to restore the window. Grouped taskbar buttons can open window previews instead of minimizing a single window.
For an individual app window that exposes a window menu, hold Shift and right-click its taskbar button, then select Minimize. If a grouped button opens previews, use the window’s title-bar button or press Windows + Down arrow with that window focused.
Show the desktop or keep one window visible
Press Windows + M to minimize all windows. To restore the minimized windows, press Windows + Shift + M. For a reversible desktop visibility toggle, press Windows + D, then press it again to bring the windows back.
You can also enable a desktop action at the far-right corner of the taskbar. Right-click the taskbar, select Taskbar settings, expand Taskbar behaviors, then check Select the far corner of the taskbar to show the desktop. Click the far-right corner to show the desktop, then click it again to restore the windows.
To keep one window visible, focus it and press Windows + Home. Windows minimizes the other windows while leaving that one visible. Press the shortcut again to restore the other windows.
For a mouse gesture, open Start > Settings > System > Multitasking, then turn on Title bar window shake. Hold the desired window by its draggable title bar and shake it back and forth to minimize the others. Organizational policy can block this gesture.
Set up touch gestures
On a compatible touchpad, swipe down with three fingers to show the desktop. Some gestures require a precision touchpad, and customized assignments can change what the swipe does. To review the assignments, open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad, then open Three-finger gestures or Four-finger gestures.
A Windows 11 touchscreen has a separate gesture setting. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touch, then turn on Three and four-finger touch gestures. Swipe down with three fingers on the screen to show the desktop.
Set up voice access to minimize windows
Voice access can minimize windows on Windows 11 version 22H2 and later, with a microphone and a supported speech language. Open Start > Settings > Accessibility > Speech, then turn on Voice access. First-time setup needs an internet connection to download the language files.
Choose a supported language, select Agree and continue, then wait for the download to finish. Choose your microphone on the Setup microphone screen. Once Voice access is listening, say Minimize window, or target an app by saying Minimize Edge.
To show the desktop by voice, say Minimize all windows, say Go to desktop, or say Go home. These phrases are English commands, so use them with the appropriate language configuration. Voice access replaced the older Windows Speech Recognition feature for Windows 11 version 22H2 and later.
Set up automatic and app specific minimization
On a PC with an external monitor or docking station, open Start > Settings > System > Display > Multiple displays. Check Minimize windows when a monitor is disconnected. Windows on that external monitor are minimized when you disconnect it or undock the PC.
In classic Outlook for Microsoft 365, Outlook 2024, or Outlook 2021 on Windows, right-click the Outlook icon in the notification area and select Hide When Minimized. Then click Minimize on the Outlook window. These steps apply to those classic Outlook versions.
In current Windows Terminal, edit settings.json, set the top-level property minimizeToNotificationArea to true, and save. Minimize the Terminal window, then restore it through its notification-area icon.
For a configurable Terminal shortcut, assign a key binding to the globalSummon action with toggleVisibility set to true. With Terminal running and the targeted Terminal window in the foreground, press your assigned shortcut to minimize it. The quakeMode action uses this visibility toggle too.
Launch or minimize windows with commands
In the built-in Windows PowerShell 5.1, you can request that a new application process start minimized. Replace the executable path in this command with your application’s path, then run it. This launches a new process rather than minimizing an existing window, and the application must honor the requested startup state.
Start-Process -FilePath "C:\Path\App.exe" -WindowStyle MinimizedTo start a new Command Prompt window minimized, run the following command from Command Prompt. The /min parameter controls the newly started window, and you can also supply a command or script to that new window.
start "" /min cmd.exeFor desktop scripting, you can invoke the Shell’s MinimizeAll method from Windows PowerShell. Run this command to minimize all windows through the Windows desktop shell.
(New-Object -ComObject Shell.Application).MinimizeAll()Automate a selected window
Power Automate for desktop is an optional route if you need minimization as part of a desktop flow on a supported Windows 11 PC. Microsoft provides Microsoft Store and installer routes for the software. Ordinary window minimization requires no download.
In a Power Automate desktop flow, add Set window state. Set Find window mode to By title and/or class and enter Window title, or identify the window through another supported mode. Set Window state to Minimized, then run the flow. You need an interactive desktop session and a window that the flow can identify and minimize.
Fix blocked shake gestures and shortcuts
If title-bar shake is blocked by policy, an administrator can allow it on Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, Education, and applicable IoT Enterprise editions. In Local Group Policy Editor, open User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Desktop > Turn off Aero Shake window minimizing mouse gesture. Select Disabled or Not Configured; enabling this policy blocks the gesture. For MDM administration, the corresponding policy is ./User/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_Desktop/NoWindowMinimizingShortcuts.
If Keyboard Filter blocks a desired shortcut, an administrator can remove the relevant suppressed-key rule. This fix applies to Windows 11 Enterprise, Education, Enterprise LTSC, IoT Enterprise, and IoT Enterprise LTSC when that optional feature is responsible for the restriction.
To disable the entire feature, search for Turn Windows features on or off, open it, and expand Device Lockdown. Uncheck Keyboard Filter, select OK, and restart.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does double-clicking the title bar minimize a window?
Double-clicking a standard title bar maximizes or restores the window. It changes the window’s size rather than minimizing it.
Can I use F11 to minimize a browser?
Chrome uses F11 to toggle full-screen mode. That changes the browser’s presentation rather than minimizing it, so it is not a universal minimize shortcut.
Can I preview the desktop without minimizing my windows?
Press Windows + comma to temporarily preview the desktop. This is a preview action rather than a command to minimize your windows.
What if I want to make a window smaller while keeping it visible?
Use Restore Down, drag the window’s borders, or use Snap to change its size or arrangement. Browser zoom changes the presentation of page content instead of minimizing the browser window.