15 Easiest Ways to Open Windows 10 Settings: (2025)

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Computers and Electronics
Operating Systems
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Windows 10

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Learn every way to find settings you're looking for in Windows 10

Co-authored byScott St Gelaisand Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: April 26, 2025Fact Checked

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Start Menu

Keyboard Shortcut

Windows Search

Power User Menu

Action Center

MS Copilot

File Explorer

Command Prompt

PowerShell

Run Menu

Control Panel

Desktop Menu

Task Manager

Specific Settings

Taskbar

Video

Tips

As Microsoft is trying to move away from the Control Panel, the Windows 10 settings are slowly being moved into the modern Settings app. If you're wondering all the ways the Settings app can be opened, we can help! This wikiHow article will teach you every way to open the Settings app on a Windows 10 PC.

Open Windows 10 Settings: The Easiest Ways

Click the Start menu and select the Settings gear icon.
Press Windows key + i at the same time.
Right-click the Start menu and select Settings.
Type "start ms-settings:" into Command Prompt, PowerShell, or the run dialog.

Method 1

Method 1 of 15:

Using the Start Menu

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1
Click the Start menu and select Settings
. The gear icon near the lower left corner of the Start menu is a quick and easy way to open your Windows 10 settings.

Method 2

Method 2 of 15:

Using a Keyboard Shortcut

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1
Press the Windows key + I keyboard keys at the same time. This is a very quick and convenient way to open Settings.

Method 3

Method 3 of 15:

Using Windows Search

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1
Type settings into the Windows Search bar and press ↵ Enter. If you don't see the Search bar in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen, click the circle or magnifying glass icon to open it first.
- You can also press the Windows key on your keyboard to activate search.

Method 4

Method 4 of 15:

Using the Power User Menu

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1
Press Ctrl+X and click Settings. The Ctrl + X shortcut opens a secret Windows menu that gives you quick access to Settings, task manager, device manager, and more.
- You can also access the Power User menu by right-clicking the Start menu.

Method 5

Method 5 of 15:

Using Action Center

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1
Click the speech bubble icon and select All settings. The Action Center (near the clock) is where you can view any notifications on your device. You can perform actions using the tiles at the bottom (called quick actions), including this tile that opens the Settings app.
- If you only see four tiles, click the "Expand" link to show the rest of them.

Method 6

Method 6 of 15:

Using Microsoft Copilot

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1
Click the Microsoft Copilot button. If you have Microsoft Copilot, the latest AI feature from Microsoft, for Windows 10, you can use it to open the Settings app. Look for a blue and pink icon to the right of the clock.
- If you don't see this icon, Copilot may not be available for your device.^[1]
2
Type open windows settings and press ↵ Enter. Copilot will reply, asking if you want to open Settings.
3
Click Yes. The Settings app will launch.

Method 7

Method 7 of 15:

Using File Explorer

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Open File Explorer. A fast way to do this is to right-click the Start menu and select File Explorer.
2
Select This PC in the left pane.
3
Click the Computer tab at the top and select Open Settings. It's the blue and white gear icon in the toolbar at the top of File Explorer.
- Alternatively, select the local drive Windows is installed on, navigate to "Windows\ImmersiveControlPanel", and then open "SystemSettings" or "SystemSettings.exe".

Method 8

Method 8 of 15:

Using the Command Prompt

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1
Open Command Prompt. To do this, type cmd into the Windows Search bar, then click Command Prompt.
- If you don't see the search bar in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen, click the circle or magnifying glass icon first.
2
Type start ms-settings:. Type it exactly as written at the prompt.
3
Press ↵ Enter. This opens the Settings app.

Method 9

Method 9 of 15:

Using PowerShell

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1
Open PowerShell. Type powershell into the Windows search bar and press ↵ Enter to run PowerShell.
- If you don't see the search bar in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen, click the circle or magnifying glass icon first.
2
Type start ms-settings:.
3
Press ↵ Enter. You will now see the Windows Settings app.

Method 10

Method 10 of 15:

Using the Run Dialog

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1
Press Windows Key + R on the keyboard. This opens the Run dialog window.
2
Type start ms-settings:.
3
Click OK. The Settings window will now open.

Method 11

Method 11 of 15:

Using Control Panel

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1
Use Control Panel to open specific pages in the Settings app. You can launch Control Panel by clicking or tapping the search bar (or magnifying glass icon), typing control panel, and then pressing ↵ Enter or selecting the matching result. You can use the Control Panel to jump to different areas of the Settings app:
- System and Security > Security and Maintenance > Recovery. If you're having problems with your PC, this will help you reset it.
- User Accounts > User Accounts. Make changes to my account in PC settings.
- Appearance and Personalization > Taskbar and Navigation (or Navigation properties). This takes you to your Taskbar settings.
- Appearance and Personalization > Turn High contrast on or off. Quick access to high-contrast theme settings.
- Time and Language. Make changes regarding the display language of the system or the timezone.

Method 12

Method 12 of 15:

Using the Desktop Context Menu

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1
Right-click the desktop and select Personalize. This takes you to the Personalization area of the Settings app. You can also navigate the rest of the Settings app by clicking Home at the upper-left corner.

Method 13

Method 13 of 15:

Using Task Manager

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1
Press Ctrl+⇧ Shift+Esc. This quick keyboard shortcut launches Task Manager, another place from which you can launch the Settings app in Windows 10.
2
Click the File menu and select Run new task. The "Create new task" window will appear.
3
Type start ms-settings: and click OK. The Windows Settings app will now open.

Method 14

Method 14 of 15:

Searching for Specific Settings

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Type the setting you're looking for into the search bar. If you want to bypass the Settings app and head right to the setting you want to view or modify, just type the name of the setting into the search bar on the taskbar. For example, type color, and then selectColor settings to open the Colors area of your Personalization settings.

Method 15

Method 15 of 15:

Pinning Settings to the Taskbar

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Click the Start menu and hover your cursor over the Settings app. If you want to make the Settings app super easy to find in the future, you can pin it to your taskbar.
2
Right-click the Settings app. A list of options will appear.
3
Click Pin to taskbar. You can now click the Settings icon in the taskbar to open Windows Settings.

Community Q&A

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Question
Is the Settings app a universal app or desktop app/program?
Community Answer
The Windows 10 Settings app is a universal app. It is available on multiple different Windows 10 platforms.
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Tips

If Windows Settings won't open, restart your computer. If that doesn't help, there may be file system corruption. Open Command Prompt as an administrator, type sfc /scannow, and press Enter to scan for and repair errors.
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If the Settings app still won't open, you can reinstall it using PowerShell. Type powershell into the search bar, right-click Windows PowerShell, and select Run as administrator. Then, type the following command and press Enter:
- Get-AppXPackage | foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
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References

↑ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/copilot-ai-features

About This Article

Co-authored by:

Scott St Gelais

IT Consultant

This article was co-authored by Scott St Gelais and by wikiHow staff writer, Nicole Levine, MFA. Scott St Gelais is an IT Consultant and the Owner of Geeks in Phoenix, Arizona. With over two decades of experience, Scott specializes in computer service and repair, development, computer graphics, and website authoring. Scott received his Technical Associates Degree from High Tech Institute and completed the IT Support Professional Certificate by Google. Geeks in Phoenix is a member of the Microsoft Partner Network and an Intel Technology Provider Gold Partner. This article has been viewed 162,591 times.

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Co-authors: 13

Updated: April 26, 2025

Categories: Windows 10

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15 Easiest Ways to Open Windows 10 Settings: (2025)

Open Windows 10 Settings: The Easiest Ways

Using the Start Menu

Using a Keyboard Shortcut

Using Windows Search

Using the Power User Menu

Using Action Center

Using Microsoft Copilot

Using File Explorer

Using the Command Prompt

Using PowerShell

Using the Run Dialog

Using Control Panel

Using the Desktop Context Menu

Using Task Manager

Searching for Specific Settings

Pinning Settings to the Taskbar

Community Q&A

Tips

Video

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References

About This Article

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