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The snap windows feature, also known as snap assist, can either be a great aid or a great annoyance. As the setting comes enabled by default, today we’re going to show you how to disable Window snapping in Windows 11.
Why you might want to disable Windows snap assist
The main reason you’d want to do this is if you already use a third-party solution for Window snapping that has more options or conflicts with the default Windows 10 behavior. PowerToys, for example, lets you set custom window layouts for all of your apps.
Thankfully, there are a few ways in Windows 11 to turn off snap. You can use the slickly designed settings app, the legacy control panel, or make a registry tweak. We’ll be showing you how to turn off window snap in Windows 11 using all three methods today:
Windows 11: Disable Snap Assist via Settings
The easiest and most foolproof way to turn off windows snap is through the in-built settings UI. The entire process takes less than a minute:
- Open Settings
To open settings, hit the Windows icon and click the “Settings” icon on your Start Menu. Alternatively, press “Windows + I” on your keyboard.
- Click “System” in your settings sidebar, then “Multitasking” in the main panel
- Turn off Snap windows by flipping the “Snap windows” toggle to “Off”
Of course, you can also do this the other way around to turn on snap windows.
Windows 11: Disable Windows Snap in Control Panel
If you don’t like the new settings app you can still use the legacy Control Panel. Here’s how you can use it turn disable snap windows:
- Open the Control Panel
Press the search icon on your taskbar and type “Control Panel” in the search bar, then click the top result.
- Search for “Ease of Access Center” in the Control Panel
You’ll find the search bar in the top-right corner. When it displays, click the “Ease of Access Center” heading.
- Click on “Make the mouse easier to use”
You can alternatively press “Make the keyboard easier to use” or “Make it easier to focus on tasks”.
- Look for the “Make it easier to manage windows” heading and tick “Preveant windows from being automatically arranged”
Now when you move windows to the edge of the screen they won’t snap. Press “OK” to apply the changes.
Disable Window Snapping in Windows 11 via Registry
If you’re unable to turn off snap assist via the settings or Control Panel, another option is the registry. We have created a specially crafted registry file to make doing so even easier. You can download it here.
- Extract the registry zip file
After you have downloaded the zip file, find it in your download folder and right-click it. Select “Extract All…”.
- Browse to your extraction location and press “Extract”
- Double click the relevant registry file to enable or diable windows snap
To disable snap assist in Windows 11 you’ll want to double click “disable_snap_windows_current_user.reg”.
If you want to enable it again in the future you can store the other registry file and double-click it when needed.
- Press “Run” on the security warning
- Press “Yes” to the prompt
- Click “OK” in the confirmation menu
Snap assist will be disabled the next time you restart or sign in and out.
Extra: How to Disable Snap Layouts on the Maximize Button
Now you know how to disable Windows snapping in Windows 11, but what if you just want to get rid of the GUI that pops up for it when you hover over the maximize button? For that, you can follow our dedicated tutorial.
