How does it feel when an annoying notification pops up while watching your favorite show on Netflix? Or your PC goes to Windowed mode while gaming, even though you ensured the taskbar to hide automatically?
At first, it seems complicated to tackle when Windows declines to show fullscreen mode. Factually speaking, this issue happens due to faulty taskbar settings on your PC, along with some other minor errors.
And to resolve the taskbar showing in fullscreen, you need to follow a few simple steps.
That’s what this article is about — reasons that prevent the taskbar from hiding automatically and how you can quickly fix it if the Windows taskbar doesn’t hide automatically.
Continue reading to find out.
Why Won’t my Taskbar Hide in Windows 11/10?
Constant notifications from the background applications are the main reason your taskbar won’t disappear. Also, mistakenly configured taskbar settings, generic system errors, or faulty application configuration can cause the taskbar to not auto-hide.
Most of the time, your taskbar will be hidden till an application needs your attention.
Windows applications tend to show notifications via either a direct popup on the taskbar or a system tray message.
In both cases, your fullscreen mode on Windows will be disabled. Whether you’re enjoying full-screen youtube videos or intense gaming, till you respond to that notification, the taskbar won’t hide.
Needless to say, this taskbar not hiding issue can be easily resolved. Just configure the settings not to disturb you, and you’ll be good to go.
Read the following passages to understand how you can fix the Windows taskbar when it refuses to hide automatically.
Check out our separate post: Disable File Compression on Windows 11/10.
What to do When Windows Taskbar Won’t Auto-Hide?
Right-click on the taskbar on Windows 10 and select task manager. Alternatively, Press Alt+Ctrl+Esc together to open the task manager. Right-click on Windows Explorer and select Restart. That will solve the bug issue that is causing the taskbar not to hide. 
After that, make sure you’ve turned off Windows notification settings. I know you’ve turned off the app notification. But, double-check for mistaken notification settings.
Those solutions helped you with the taskbar’s auto-hiding issue? If not, try out the following methods.
Here are the methods to solve the taskbar won’t go away even in fullscreen mode:
1. Turn Off Application Notification
If you’ve read it till now, you remember that application notification is the prime reason behind the Windows taskbar won’t hide.
So, for the first solution, we’ll turn off Windows 11 notifications and check whether the taskbar disappears or not.
Here’s the procedure to turn off app notifications to solve the taskbar not hiding:
- Press Windows + I to launch Windows settings.
- Click on Notifications on the System Settings tab.
- Toggle off the notifications from the top of the window.
That will prevent the notification from apps and other senders. Hence, no disturbance while you enjoy fullscreen mode. This solution mostly works for gamers. They don’t want any notification while gaming.
Games continue to run on Windowed mode when any alerts or popup appear while gaming. After you turn off the app notifications, the taskbar will be hidden.
If you’re using Windows 10, try the following steps to disable notifications.
Here are the steps to disable Windows 10 notifications to solve the taskbar won’t hide:
- Click on the Settings icon from Windows 10 start menu.
- Search for notification & action settings.
- Scroll down to Get notification from these senders section.
- Switch off all the app notifications.
After you complete these steps, Windows taskbar not hiding issue will be resolved.
Related content you should read: Remove Bloatware From Windows 11/10.
2. Customize Group Policy to fix Taskbar Won’t Hide
Group policy editor helps you to configure Microsoft’s active directory so that you can apply exceptional settings. When you modify the Windows group policy, you’ll be able to resolve the taskbar overlaying other applications’ issues.
Here are the methods to personalize the Windows group policy editor to fix the taskbar:
- Search for gpedit.msc in the Windows search menu and hit Enter.
- Double-click on User Configuration from the right pane.
- Open Administrative Templates from there.
- Launch the Start Menu and Taskbar A list of group policies will show up.
- Locate Lock the taskbar and double-click on it.
- Select Disabled from the options. Click on Apply > ok to save the changes.
Note: This solution works for both Windows 10 and Windows 11. Follow the steps that I explained.
Restart your computer after the above-mentioned steps are implemented. After that, check whether the taskbar is hidden or not. Jump to the following solution if not.
3. Hide Taskbar in Chrome Full Screen
When you are watching youtube videos on full screen, and the taskbar won’t go away, this fix might work. Usually, Google Chrome can’t hide the taskbar even on full screen.
You must access Chrome’s accessibility settings and make that full screen to fix that issue.
Here are the steps to hide the taskbar from Google Chrome fullscreen mode:
- Right-click on Chrome’s icon and select properties.
- Go to the Compatibility tab.
- Click on Change High DPI settings.
- Tick on Override High DPI scaling behavior. A new drop-down menu will appear.
- Select System (enhanced) from there.
- Click ok to save the changes.
Note: This solution works 100% when Google Chrome fails to show a fullscreen display on Windows 11/10.
Don’t forget to click on Apply after all these changes. Restart google chrome and check if your browser still displays the taskbar in fullscreen.
Read more on how to Fix Update Error Code 0x80004005 in Windows 11.
4. Turn Off Visual Effects on Windows
Whenever any application of your PC can’t run on fullscreen mode/ taskbar appears in fullscreen, disable visual effect to hide the taskbar.
Here’s the process to disable visual effects to make the taskbar hidden in fullscreen:
- Open Windows settings by pressing Windows + I keys.
- Navigate to System Settings > About.
- Scroll down and click on Advanced system settings on the about page.
- Go to the Advanced tab and select settings (Performance section).
- Select the Visual effects tab when a new popup window appears.
- Click on the option Adjust for best performances.
- Select Apply > Ok to save the changes.
A large number of users in the Microsoft community reported that turning off the visual effect helped them to make the taskbar hidden. Use this solution at least once. It might hide your taskbar from showing up.
5. Update Windows When Taskbar is not Hiding Automatically
Outdated Windows is just another important reason behind your taskbar not hiding automatically. Update your Windows to the latest build version to get rid of the issue.
Here are the steps to update Windows to fix the taskbar not hiding:
- Click on the Windows start menu and select the settings icon.
- Choose Windows Update from the left pane.
- Click on check for updates from the top.
Windows will download and install the update if available. Restart Windows after the update is completed.
You may also like Windows 11 Import & Export Registry Keys from Command Line
Alternative Solution to Taskbar Won’t Hide in Fullscreen Windows 11
Make sure the Auto-hide feature is on if you find the Windows taskbar doesn’t hide automatically. To turn on the auto-hide feature, press Windows + I to launch Windows settings. Navigate to Personalization > Taskbar > Taskbar behaviors. Tick on Automatically hide the taskbar option.
That will ensure your taskbar remains hidden until you move the mouse cursor.
However, if your taskbar remains unhidden even after this tweak, try the following technique to make it hidden.
Fix Taskbar is Showing in Full Screen While Gaming
If the taskbar on your Windows appears in the gaming mode and forces you to play games on Windowed mode, this solution is for you. Follow the exact steps to enable the fullscreen mode again.
Here are the steps to fix overlaying taskbar while gaming:
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys while playing a game. Task Manager Windows will open.
- Locate the Windows Explorer in the process tab.
- Right-click on it and select End Task.
- Open Task Manager, and click on File if you want to reopen the explorer.
- Click on Run new task.
- Type in explorer.exe, and press Enter.
That will restart Windows Explorer and resolve the windowed mode issue on gaming.
I hope these solutions will solve the issues you’re facing with fullscreen mode on Windows 10/11. But do you know the optimal way to hide the taskbar manually?
Most of the time, not hiding the Windows taskbar in a perfect way leads you to the problem that we’ve been discussing. So, it’s my responsibility to share how to hide the Windows taskbar adequately.
Read the following section to find out.
How to Hide Taskbar in Windows 10/11
To hide the Windows taskbar temporarily, Right-click on anywhere on the visible taskbar and select Taskbar settings. Select the Taskbar behavior section from there. Then, tick on the option Automatically hide the taskbar. Alternatively, press the Alt+Enter/F11 key to make a taskbar-free display.
There are other approaches to make your taskbar hidden. Many users install third-party applications to do that. But I’d suggest otherwise. Use the command prompt to hide the taskbar.
Here are the steps to make the Windows taskbar hidden using command prompt:
- Type cmd in the Windows search box.
- Click on Run as administrator from the right side.
- Copy this command; powershell -command “&{$p=’HKCU:SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\StuckRects3′;$v=(Get-ItemProperty -Path $p).Settings;$v[8]=3;&Set-ItemProperty -Path $p -Name Settings -Value $v;&Stop-Process -f -ProcessName explorer}”.
- Paste this command in the prompt and hit Enter.
Restart your computer, and your taskbar will be hidden. This approach works both on Windows 10 and Windows 11.
To unhide the taskbar later, launch the command prompt as explained and paste this command:
powershell -command “&{$p=’HKCU:SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\StuckRects3′;$v=(Get-ItemProperty -Path $p).Settings;$v[8]=2;&Set-ItemProperty -Path $p -Name Settings -Value $v;&Stop-Process -f -ProcessName explorer}”
If these working methods seem complicated even a little bit, you can apply the following technique to hide the taskbar on Windows 11/10.
You may also like to read: Windows 11: Unable to Change Mouse Settings.
Registry Editor is the tool that assists you in operating the system more efficiently. Due to buggy settings, you can’t make the Windows taskbar hidden; a few changes in the registry can help you with that.
Here are the steps to hide the taskbar by editing the Windows registry:
- Press Windows + R for the Run prompt.
- Type Regedit in the prompt and hit Enter.
- Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\StuckRects3.
- Double-click on the setting’s value.
- Locate the 00000008 value data in the second column and change the first of it’s value to 02.
- Click Ok to save the changes.
Note: Change the value to 03 in case you want to unhide the taskbar/ make the taskbar visible again.
Restart your computer to apply new values. This technique works 100% when you want to make the taskbar disappear.
However, you can use some third-party applications to hide the taskbar in Windows 10/11. Such as SmartTaskbar, AutoHotKey, HideTaskbar etc. Go to your web browser and download any of those (not recommended). Those applications will help you to make the taskbar hidden.
Now, have any questions regarding the taskbar auto-hiding issue? Check out the following section if you have any.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why won’t my taskbar hide in Windows 11?
Check whether you enabled the auto-hide feature or not. If not, go to Windows Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Mark on automatically hide the taskbar option.
How do I make the taskbar disappear from fullscreen?
Press Alt+ Enter to make a specific window taskbar-free. Alternatively, press the F11 button.
How do I fix my taskbar that won’t hide?
First of all, make sure you’ve turned on the auto-hide feature on Windows 10/11. Then, restart Windows Explorer from the task manager. That will fix the issue when Windows taskbar won’t hide from the screen.
Conclusion
Watching the taskbar in fullscreen mode can be really irritating. But, with the help of the solutions I’ve added here, you can make the Windows taskbar hidden. Just read the article from top to bottom, and you’re all set.
Restart the Windows explorer and verify that you’ve enabled the auto-hide feature. That’s it. Your taskbar will be hidden and no longer will bother you while in fullscreen mode.
However, comment below which solution resolved the taskbar issue.
