How to See Which Programs Run on Windows Startup

Does your PC take forever to boot? It’s probably because of programs that run automatically when Windows starts. When I set up my last PC, I had over 20 apps launching on startup: Spotify, Discord, Teams, Adobe, OneDrive… A mess. Learning how to see which programs run on Windows startup and disabling the unnecessary ones is one of the most effective optimizations you can make.

Table of contents

How to see startup programs in Task Manager

Windows 11’s Task Manager is the most direct tool for seeing what runs at startup.

How to open it:

• Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc (the fastest shortcut)
• Or right-click the taskbar and select “Task Manager”
• Or search for “Task Manager” in the Start menu

Steps to see startup programs:

1. In Task Manager, go to the “Startup” tab (or “Startup apps” in more recent Windows 11)
2. You’ll see a list of all programs configured to start automatically
3. Each program shows:
   • App name
   • Publisher (who made it)
   • Status (enabled or disabled)
   • Startup impact (high, medium, low, or not measured)

To disable a startup program, right-click it and select “Disable”. It doesn’t uninstall the app — it just stops opening automatically.

Pro-tip: Sort the list by “Startup impact” to see which programs slow your boot the most. High-impact ones should be the first you consider disabling.

Which programs you can safely disable

This is the part that worries most people: what can I remove without breaking anything? Here’s a guide:

Programs you should NOT disable

• SecurityHealth or Windows Security: Your real-time antivirus
• Intel or AMD drivers: Essential hardware drivers
• Realtek Audio: Sound driver
• Synaptics / ELAN: Touchpad driver (on laptops)
• Third-party antivirus programs (Bitdefender, Kaspersky, etc.)

General rule: if you don’t know what a program does, Google it before disabling it. Three seconds of searching can save you hours of troubleshooting.

How to manage startup programs from Settings

Windows 11 also offers a view from System Settings:

1. Open Settings (Win + I)
2. Go to Apps > Startup
3. You’ll see the same list of apps with toggles to enable/disable

This view is cleaner and more user-friendly than Task Manager but shows fewer details. Use it if you just want to quickly enable or disable without worrying about impact.

How to see advanced startup programs (startup folders and registry)

Some programs are configured to start through methods that don’t appear in Task Manager. For the more curious:

Windows startup folder:

1. Press Win + R to open “Run”
2. Type shell:startup and press Enter
3. A folder will open showing shortcuts of programs that launch at startup

Startup folder for all users:

1. Press Win + R
2. Type shell:common startup
3. Shows programs that start for ALL users on the PC

Windows Registry (advanced):

Warning: Don’t touch the Windows Registry if you don’t know what you’re doing. A mistake here can make your system unstable. Only do this if you have experience.

Startup keys in the registry are at:

• HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

Tips to speed up Windows 11 boot time

After managing startup programs, there are other tweaks that make a difference:

Fast Startup: Go to Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do > Change settings that are currently unavailable > Enable “Turn on fast startup.” This combines hibernation with shutdown for a faster boot.

Startup processor count: If you have a multi-core processor:

1. Press Win + R, type msconfig
2. Go to the “Boot” tab > “Advanced options”
3. Check “Number of processors” and select the maximum
4. Restart

Switch to SSD: If you’re still using a mechanical hard drive (HDD) as your primary drive, no software tweak will give you a comparable result to switching to an SSD. It’s the single most impactful upgrade that exists for a PC.

Third-party tools for managing startup programs

If Task Manager and Settings don’t give you enough control, there are third-party tools that offer more information and options:

Autoruns (from Microsoft Sysinternals): This is the most comprehensive tool that exists for managing Windows startup. It shows you absolutely everything: programs, services, drivers, scheduled tasks, browser extensions… It’s free and directly from Microsoft, so it’s safe.

How to use it:

1. Download Autoruns from the Microsoft Sysinternals site
2. Run it as administrator
3. You’ll see an exhaustive list of everything that runs at startup
4. Uncheck the box next to any item to disable it

Pro-tip: In Autoruns, the “Logon” tab shows the programs that appear in Task Manager, but the “Services” and “Scheduled Tasks” tabs reveal many more items that may be slowing down your PC without you knowing.

MSConfig (System Configuration): Although more basic, msconfig is still useful for managing startup services:

1. Press Win + R, type msconfig
2. Go to the “Services” tab
3. Check “Hide all Microsoft services” to see only third-party ones
4. Uncheck the services you don’t need

How to diagnose which program exactly slows down boot

If your PC still takes a long time to boot after disabling the obvious programs, you need to go further:

Check each program’s startup time: In Task Manager, the “Startup impact” column gives a general idea, but for more precise data:

1. Press Win + X and select “Windows Terminal (Admin)”
2. Type: Get-Process | Sort-Object StartTime -Descending | Select-Object -First 20 Name, StartTime
3. This will show you the first 20 processes that started and when

Review Event Viewer: Windows logs every startup program in Event Viewer:

1. Open Event Viewer (search for it in the Start menu)
2. Go to Windows Logs > System
3. Filter by source “EventLog” or “Kernel-General”
4. Look for events showing total boot time

Measure boot time precisely: If you want exact data, you can use Windows Performance Analyzer (part of the Windows SDK) or simply check Settings > System > Startup, where Windows 11 shows the last boot time.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions

Does disabling startup programs delete them from my PC?

No. It only prevents them from running automatically when you turn on the PC. The app stays installed and works when you open it manually.

How many programs should I have at startup?

As a general rule, the fewer the better. Ideally, only programs you use immediately when turning on the PC should start (antivirus, hardware drivers, and not much else). Everything else, open it when you need it.

Why do some programs re-enable themselves at startup?

Apps like Teams, Adobe Creative Cloud, or Skype re-add themselves to startup when they update. You need to disable the “Start at startup” option within the app itself, in addition to doing it in Task Manager.

Does improving startup programs speed up the PC while it’s running?

Yes. Startup programs don’t just affect boot time — many of them keep running in the background consuming RAM and CPU. Disabling them improves overall system performance.

Conclusion

Seeing which programs run at Windows startup and disabling unnecessary ones is a 5-minute optimization that improves both boot time and overall performance. Review the list in Task Manager, disable what you don’t need, and your PC will thank you every time you turn it on.