The traditional Windows desktop allows you to place icons on it for quick and easy access to different applications installed on your system. With the help of these icons, you can launch a program without searching for it in the Start menu. However, if you have a lot of applications installed on your PC, your desktop can get pretty cluttered.

Additionally, since icons are stored in your system drive, a large number of desktop icons can potentially fill up your C drive, resulting in a slower system. Thankfully, there are a few ways by which you can specifically hide certain desktop icons while keeping those you need frequently in view.

Thus, you can quickly find and open applications from your Windows 11 desktop while ensuring a clean and lag-free experience. If you're wondering how to do so, this is just the guide you need.

Hide app icons from the Personalization Settings

The easiest way to hide specific icons in Windows 11 is through the Personalization Settings page.

  1. Open the Settings app and click on the 'Personalization' option on the left.
  1. Alternatively, right-click on your desktop and click on the 'Personalize' option.
  1. When the Personalization page opens up, click on the 'Themes' option.
  1. On the Themes page, scroll down and click on the 'Desktop Icon Settings' option.
  1. The pop-up that appears will let you choose which icons you want to hide. Simply click on the box next to the icons you want to hide to uncheck them so they are not selected and they will not appear on your desktop. Click on the 'OK' button when done.

You can follow these steps to easily hide specific app icons on your Windows 11 desktop. If you want to make them visible again, follow the same steps and click on the boxes next to them so they are checked.

Alternatively, you can delete app icons from the desktop for installed programs to hide them as long as they are shortcuts. However, this will not hide the icon but remove it completely. To view deleted icons again, you will have to manually add them to your desktop again via the Start menu.

On Windows 11, you can hide all or specific desktop icons to make your desktop clutter-free. This can be quite handy if you want more real estate on your screen and may even help reduce problems like lag.