Don’t you hate it when you get a shiny new computer, and you find it to be full of programs you don’t want or need (or what we call bloatware)? The manufacturer added these programs to your computer to promote their apps or the apps of their partners. The apps don’t take up a tremendous amount of space, but depending on the number of them installed, they can cause speed issues.
You can remove bloatware from your Windows 10 computer and free up space. Be aware, though, that major Windows updates may just reinstall them anyway.
Most of these programs are impossible to uninstall using traditional uninstall, although some can be. They don’t want to make it easy to get rid of these apps because Microsoft and their partners stand to lose money if these programs are not on your computer.
And even with several different methods of removing bloatware, there are some apps you cannot uninstall using any method. These apps include:
- Contact Support
- Cortana
- Microsoft Edge
- Windows Feedback
The following are four different ways to get rid of bloatware and unwanted applications, from ways to remove them one at a time, to one method that will clear everything out with one click of a button.
1. Traditional Uninstall
You can remove some bloatware programs through the traditional “Uninstall” feature on Windows 10. To remove programs such as Microsoft Money, News, or Sports:
1. Click on the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner.
2. Locate the program you want to uninstall and right-click on it.
3. Click Uninstall and confirm the uninstall.
2. PowerShell
Windows PowerShell is a shell, or user interface, developed by Microsoft for task automation and configuration management. We can use PowerShell to remove bloatware in two different ways.
Hiding Apps Using “Remove-AppxPackage”
The first procedure hides the apps without actually deleting them from your system. This method is best if you think you may want to reinstall the app at another time.
Before you uninstall apps, make sure no other programs are running on your computer. Then start PowerShell.
1. Type Powershell in the search box in the lower-left corner.
2. Click “Run as Administrator.”
3. Click “Yes” to confirm.
4. Enter the command listed below for the program you want to uninstall.
Get-AppxPackage *appName* | Remove-AppxPackage
Replace appName with the actual name of the application you want to uninstall.
5. Press Enter.
6. Repeat for other programs you want to remove.
Enter a command from this list for the program you wish to uninstall.
3D Builder:
Get-AppxPackage *3dbuilder* | Remove-AppxPackage
Alarms and Clock:
Get-AppxPackage *windowsalarms* | Remove-AppxPackage
Calculator:
Get-AppxPackage *windowscalculator* | Remove-AppxPackage
Calendar and Mail:
Get-AppxPackage *windowscommunicationsapps* | Remove-AppxPackage
Camera:
Get-AppxPackage *windowscamera* | Remove-AppxPackage
Get Office:
Get-AppxPackage *officehub* | Remove-AppxPackage
Get Skype:
Get-AppxPackage *skypeapp* | Remove-AppxPackage
Get Started:
Get-AppxPackage *getstarted* | Remove-AppxPackage
Groove Music:
Get-AppxPackage *zunemusic* | Remove-AppxPackage
Maps:
Get-AppxPackage *windowsmaps* | Remove-AppxPackage
Microsoft Solitaire Collection:
Get-AppxPackage *solitairecollection* | Remove-AppxPackage
Money:
Get-AppxPackage *bingfinance* | Remove-AppxPackage
Movies & TV:
Get-AppxPackage *zunevideo* | Remove-AppxPackage
News:
Get-AppxPackage *bingnews* | Remove-AppxPackage
OneNote:
Get-AppxPackage *onenote* | Remove-AppxPackage
People:
Get-AppxPackage *people* | Remove-AppxPackage
Phone Companion:
Get-AppxPackage *windowsphone* | Remove-AppxPackage
Photos:
Get-AppxPackage *photos* | Remove-AppxPackage
Store:
Get-AppxPackage *windowsstore* | Remove-AppxPackage
Sports:
Get-AppxPackage *bingsports* | Remove-AppxPackage
Voice Recorder:
Get-AppxPackage *soundrecorder* | Remove-AppxPackage
Weather:
Get-AppxPackage *bingweather* | Remove-AppxPackage
Xbox:
Get-AppxPackage *xboxapp* | Remove-AppxPackage
3. Deleting Bloatware Using DISM
If you want to obliterate all bloatware from your system totally, you can use a different command in PowerShell called DISM. DISM stands for Deployment Imaging Service and Management.
1. Type Powershell in the search box in the lower-left corner.
2. Click “Run as Administrator.”
3. Click “Yes” to confirm.
4. View the entire list of system bloatware using the following command:
DISM /Online /Get-ProvisionedAppxPackages | select-string Packagename
5. Locate an app you want to delete from your system entirely.
6. Copy the Packagename for the app. I’m deleting Xbox apps from my system.
7. Type this command:
DISM /Online /Remove-ProvisionedAppxPackage /PackageName:PACKAGENAME
replacing PACKAGENAME with the name from the list we generated earlier. Mine was:
DISM /Online /Remove-ProvisionedAppxPackage /PackageName:Microsoft.Xbox.TCUI_1.24.10001.0_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe
8. Repeat until you have deleted the bloatware you want to remove.
9. Restart your machine for the changes to take effect.
4. Windows 10 Debloater App
If you are absolutely sure that you want to delete all of the bloatware on your machine, you can use a third-party app called Windows 10 Debloater to remove them all with one click of a button. Here is a list of the programs Windows 10 Debloater will remove.
1. Go to the Windows 10 Debloater site.
2. Click the green Clone or download button.
3. Click Download ZIP.
4. Save the file to your machine.
5. Click on the “Extract all” button to extract the contents of the file.
6. For easy location, click the box that says, “Show extracted files when complete.”
7. Right-click on Windows10DebloaterGUI and select “Run with PowerShell.”
8. Click Open.
9. Type Y for yes and press Enter.
10. A window for Windows 10 Debloater will open.
11. Click the first button, which says, “Remove All Bloatware.”
The app will immediately begin uninstalling bloatware apps on your machine. You can watch the progress in the PowerShell Window that remains open in the background.
Whatever your reason for wanting to remove bloatware from your Windows 10 computer, these methods will help you get rid of everything you possibly can.
Related:
- How to Uninstall Bloatware and System Apps without Root in Android
- 5 Tools that Improve Windows 10 Hard Drive Performance
Tracey Rosenberger spent 26 years teaching elementary students, using technology to enhance learning. Now she's excited to share helpful technology with teachers and everyone else who sees tech as intimidating.
“Microsoft and their partners stand to lose money if these programs are not on your computer.”
How is that? If I am not using a program, they cannot make money. UNLESS the programs run stealthily in the background, harvesting data without my knowledge.
AFAIAC, the best way to decrapify a PC is to completely remove Windows O/S and replace it with BSD. I was going to say Linux but most of the popular distros also have a bloatware problem. Much of the bloat cannot be removed because it is tied to system modules.
How much disk space does this actually free up?
Ever since Windows 7 the entire array of source software just stays on the computer, and resides inside the WinSxS folder which is the bloatiest thing ever invented.
Win 10 Debloater is a nice piece of software; I used it for quite a while but don’t now since it works, well, too well? Be sure deleting vs. hiding an app is what is desired. Apps can be unhidden easily; reinstalled after deletion, maybe, maybe not.
Two years ago, Intel and more recently, nVidia began placing their Graphics driver GUI’s in the MS Store as UWP’s. If you can’t access the store, driver updates won’t download the GUI, leaving you GUI-less, unable to change any settings. This maneuver between MS and Intel, nVidia and others splitting out important portions of software to force MS Store downloads is total BS but we’re stuck with it.
Yeah, Linux has become rather bloated, distros come with many different available packages to do the same thing. Most distros install a suite of software in the same manner Windows does, then you remove half of it and install what you want, a la Windows. NO Linux distro I’ve tried is anywhere near as obtrusive as Windows though nor has Linux spawned a huge secondary industry of programs designed to hobble distros’ spying and offensive features like Windows has.