HomeWinBuzzer TipsHow to Delete a User Account in Windows 10 (6 Methods)

How to Delete a User Account in Windows 10 (6 Methods)

We show you six different ways to delete a user account in Windows 10, including via PowerShell, command prompt, and netplwiz.

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All things change, including the user accounts you want on your computer. There are many ways to delete a user account in , and we're going to show you six of them today.

The easiest way to delete a user account in Windows 10 is via the settings menu, but that's not suitable for everyone. At times, it can throw up errors, run into conflicts with family groups, or be unsuitable for an enterprise environment.

As a result, this tutorial will cover how to remove an account through settings, the Control Panel, Computer Management, netplwiz, , and command prompt. Let's get started:

How To Delete a User Account via Settings

This is the easiest way to delete a Windows 10 user account and the method most people should use.

  1. Open settings


    Press the Windows key to open the Start Menu and click the settings cog on the left-hand side.

    Windows 10 - Open Settings

  2. Open Account settings


    In the Windows Settings app, click “Accounts”.

    Windows 10 - Settings

  3. Open “Family & other users”


    On the left side-panel of account settings, click “Family & other users”. Then, click on the account you'd like to delete.

    Windows 10 - Settings - Accounts

  4. Click “Remove”


    Windows 10 - Settings - Accounts - Family and other Users

  5. Delete the account


    Back up any local files you need and click “Delete account and data” to fully remove it.

    Windows 10 - Settings - Accounts - Family and other Users - Delete account (1)

How To Delete a Windows 10 Account via the Control Panel

  1. Open Control Panel


    Press the Windows key and type “Control Panel”. Click the first result under ‘Best match'.

    Windows 10 - Search - Control Panel

  2. Go to User Accounts


    In the Control Panel, click on the “User Accounts” category.

    Windows 10 - Control Panel

  3. Manage another account


    Under “Make changes to your user account”, click “Manage another user account”.

    Windows 10 - Control Panel - User Accounts

  4. Click on the Windows 10 user account you'd like to delete


    Windows 10 - Control Panel - Manage Accounts

  5. Make changes to the account


    In the next window, click the text that says “Delete the account”.

    Windows 10 - Control Panel - Manage Accounts - Change an Account

  6. Press Delete Files


    Read the small print and make any required backups before clicking “Delete Files”.

    Windows 10 - Control Panel - Manage Accounts - Delete Account (1)

  7. Confirm the deletion


    Windows 10 - Control Panel - Manage Accounts - Delete Account - Confirm

How To Remove a User Account with Computer Management

  1. Open Computer Management


    Press the Windows key and type “Computer Management”. Click the first result under ‘Best match'.

    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management

  2. Open “Local Users and Groups”


    The “Local Users and Groups” subheading can be found under ‘System Tools' in the left sidebar. Click it.

    Windows 10 - Computer Management

  3. Click “Users”


    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management - Users

  4. Find the account


    The Users folder contains a list of all the accounts on the PC. Click the person you'd like to delete, in our case, ‘Elena Mendoza'.

    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management - User Account (1)

  5. Click “More Actions”


    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management - User - More Actions

  6. Click “Delete”


    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management - User - Delete

  7. Read the small print


    Windows 10 will now inform you that deleting a user account via this method will delete its identifier, meaning that even if you create an account with the same username they'll be unable to access the old user's files. If you're okay with that, click “Yes”.

    Windows 10 - Search - Computer Management - User - Delete - Confirm

How To Delete Windows 10 User Account via netplwiz

  1. Open netplwiz


    Press the Windows key and type “netplswiz. Click the first result under ‘Best match'.

    Windows 10 - Netplwiz

  2. Find the account


    This will open a list of all users. Find the user you'd like to delete and click “Remove”.

    Windows 10 - Netplwiz - User Accounts - Remove

  3. Click “Yes”


    Make sure you read 's warning so you know exactly what you're getting into.

    Windows 10 - Netplwiz - User Accounts - Remove - Confirm

How To Delete a User Account in Windows 10 via PowerShell

The command-line often provides faster methods for advanced users. Here's how to delete a user account in Windows 10 with PowerShell:

  1. Open PowerShell as an Admin


    Press “Windows + X” and then click “Windows PowerShell (Admin)”.

    Windows 10 - Open PowerShell (Admin)

  2. Find the user list


    Type Get-LocalUser to return a list of all the accounts and their official names.

    Windows 10 - PowerShell (Admin) - Get-LocalUser

  3. Remove the user


    Type Remove-LocalUser -Name “Elena Mendoza”. Bear in mind that though there's no warning, the same applies as when you delete an account via any other method – you may permanently lose access to its files.

    Windows 10 - Open PowerShell (Admin) - Remove-LocalUser (1)

How To Delete a User Account in Windows 10 via Command Prompt

Some prefer to use Command Prompt as their terminal of choice. Here's the method for Microsoft's classic command-line tool:

  1. Open Command Prompt


    Press the Windows key and type “Command Prompt”. Click the first result under ‘Best match'.

    Windows 10 - Search - Command Prompt

  2. Get a list of users


    In the Command Prompt interface, type net users to get a list of all the accounts. Take note of the one you wish to delete.

    Windows 10 - Command Prompt - Net Users

  3. Delete the user


    Type net user “Elena Mendoza” /delete to remove the user account. Bear in mind that you may also lose all of its data, so you should still make a backup first.

    Windows 10 - Command Prompt - Net User Delete

  4. Delete a user account from domain


    If the above command does not work, it's likely because the account is a domain user rather than a local one. You can remedy this by adding /domain to the end of the command, like so:

    net user “Elena Mendoza” /delete /domain

    Windows 10 - Command Prompt - Net User Delete Domain

Ryan Maskell
Ryan Maskellhttps://ryanmaskell.co.uk
Ryan has had a passion for gaming and technology since early childhood. Fusing the skills from his Creative Writing and Publishing degree with profound technical knowledge, he enjoys covering news about Microsoft. As an avid writer, he is also working on his debut novel.
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