5 Ways to Turn Off Cortana in Windows 10 (Guaranteed to Work)

 Are you planning to turn off or disable Cortana but don't know how to do it? Follow the guide of this article to find out how to turn off Cortana in Windows 10.

Even though Cortana is a pretty useful virtual assistant on Windows 10, not everyone needs it. If you don't like it, you can disable or turn off Cortana on your PC. Here are some ways to turn off Cortana in Windows 10.

How To Turn Off Cortana In Windows 10

1. Turn off Cortana via startup

The first way to turn off Cortana in Windows 10 is to use Startup in the Task Manager. Here's how to do it:

Turning Off Cortana Through Startup

1. In the Start menu search bar, search for Task Manager and select Best match.

2. Go to the Startup tab.

3. Right-click Cortana and select Disable.

4. Reboot your PC.

5. Check Task Manager again to check for changes.

2. Turn off Cortana via the app

This is a safe way to disable or turn off Cortana, and you can easily revert changes whenever you want.

Disable Cortana Keyboard Shortcuts

Disable Cortana Keyboard Shortcuts

1. Open Cortana.

2. Click the three dot menu from the top left corner, then select Settings.

3. Click the Keyboard shortcut and turn off the toggle.

4. Reboot your PC.

This way, you can't accidentally activate Cortana using a keyboard shortcut.

Turn off Voice Activation

You can do this if you want to keep Cortana's microphone access but don't want to enable it accidentally:

Turn off Voice Activation

1. Go to the Cortana Settings menu.

2. Click Voice Activation > Voice activation permissions.

3. Scroll down to Choose which apps can use voice activation.

4. Turn off the toggle for Cortana.

Disable Cortana Microphone Access

Disable Cortana Microphone Access

1. Open the Cortana Settings menu.

2. Click Microphone > Microphone Permissions.

3. Scroll down to Choose which Microsoft Store apps can access your microphone.

4. Turn off the toggle for Cortana.

3. Turn Off Cortana To Record And Save Search Habits And History

If you are concerned about information being managed by Cortana, you can turn off the settings that allow it to record and store information about you. Follow these steps to change Cortana's default settings:

Turn Off Cortana To Record And Save Search Habits And History

1. Right-click Start > Settings.

2. In Find a setting search bar, look for Permissions and History.

3. Scroll down to the History section, then turn off the toggle and click Clear device search history to delete Cortana's search history.

4. Search for Speech Privacy Settings in the Find a setting search field.

5. Turn off the toggle under Online speech recognition.

After changing these settings, Cortana will not be able to collect and report information or interact with you in any way. If you want to return to the original settings, follow the steps above and turn on the toggles.

4. Turn off Cortana in Windows 10 Home

If you are using Windows 10 Home, you will have to edit the Windows Registry to disable Cortana. Keep in mind that you should be careful when editing the Windows Registry as this tool can stop your system from working properly. Follow these steps to edit the Windows Registry:

Turn Off Cortana In Windows 10 Home

1. Press Windows key + R to open the Run window.

2. Type regedit, then press Enter.

3. Open the HKEY_CURRENT_USER menu, then go to Software > Policies > Microsoft > Windows > Windows Search.

4. Open AllowCortana.

5. Set Base to Hexadecimal and set Value data to 0.

6. Reboot your PC.

If no Windows Search folder is available:

1. Right-click Windows, then select New > Key.

2. Name it as Windows Search.

3. Right-click the Windows Search folder > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.

4. Name it AllowCortana.

5. Open AllowCortana , set Base to Hexadecimal, and set Value data to 0 .

6. Reboot your PC.

5. Turn off Cortana in Windows 10 Enterprise or Pro

On Windows 10 Enterprise or Pro, you need to access the Local Group Policy Editor to disable Cortana. If you are using a company owned device, you should contact the admin first as the device may be part of a domain.

However, domain policy will override local group policy. To disable Cortana via the Local Group Policy Editor, follow these steps:

Turn Off Cortana In Windows 10 Enterprise Or Pro

1. Press Windows key + R to open the Run window.

2. Type gpedit.msc, then press Enter.

3. Using the left menu, go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search.

4. Open Allow Cortana.

5. Under Allow Cortana, select Disabled.

6. Reboot your PC or logout and log back in.

If you want to re-enable Cortana, do steps 1-4, and in step 5, select Enabled.

Conclusion

So those were some ways to turn off Cortana in Windows 10. Since the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, you can't turn off Cortana with a toggle. However, if you are looking for a method to remove some of its capabilities or disable Cortana completely, this article will show you how to do it.