How to pin icons to the Taskbar in Windows 10

The Windows taskbar has always offered fast access to frequently used programs, files and folders and continues to do so. While it looks like a bit of a mess at times with a riot of colored icons, it is no doubt one of the most-used elements of the Windows OS. If you are setting up a new install or a new PC and want to pin icons to the Taskbar in Windows 10, here is how you do it.

Customizing Windows is part of the fun of computer ownership. Fortunately, managing the desktop is one of the easier aspects of running this operating system.

Pin icons to the Taskbar in Windows 10
There are two ways to add or remove icons from the Windows Taskbar.

1. Navigate to Windows Explorer and find the program you want to add.
2. Right click the executable file and select ‘Pin to taskbar’. The executable usually has the suffix .exe and is listed as Type: Application in Explorer.
3. The icon should immediately appear in the Taskbar. You can now drag it along to position it alongside the other icons.

Or:

1. Navigate to Windows Explorer and find the program you want to add.
2. Highlight the executable and select Manage in the Explorer menu.
3. Select Pin to taskbar on the far left of the ribbon.

Remove icons from the Taskbar in Windows 10
If you want to remove icons from the taskbar, just do this:

1. Right click the icon you want to remove from the Taskbar.
2. Select ‘Unpin from Taskbar’.
3. The icon should immediately disappear.

For interest, your Taskbar icons are stored in ‘%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar’.

More useful Windows 10 tips and tricks:
How to add Internet Explorer desktop icon in Windows 10
How to enable or disable fast boot in UEFI firmware settings for Windows
How to refresh Windows 10

View all of our Windows 10 Tutorials

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