Windows 11/10 Notifications: Turn On or Off (All-in-One Guide)

Windows 11 notifications are controlled from Settings > System > Notifications, where a single master toggle — “Get notifications from apps and other senders” — turns app notifications on or off, and a scroll-down list lets you control each app individually. But here is the counterintuitive part that explains the #1 search complaint: that master toggle does not turn off all notifications. System security warnings, Windows Update alerts, and the AI-powered “suggested” notifications each live on separate toggles that the main page hides until you scroll, and some of them are controlled by Group Policy or the Registry instead. Turning off “notifications” and having them keep appearing is not a bug — you turned off one of five notification types, and the other four have their own switches.

Windows notifications are the small popup banners that appear in the bottom-right corner of your screen — new email from Outlook, a Teams message, a Windows Update alert, a security warning, a “suggestion” from Windows itself. They are useful until they are not, and the distance between those two states is about fifteen minutes of trying to figure out which settings page controls which popup. The notifications system in Windows 11 (and Windows 10, which shares the architecture) is split across the main Settings page, the notification center, Do Not Disturb, per-app settings, and the system-level policies — five different surfaces, each controlling a different type of popup.

Jake’s repair shop runs four Windows 11 machines, and the notification problem arrived with a specific customer interaction: he was walking a customer through a data transfer when Windows popped up a “suggested” notification about trying a new feature. The customer asked if the computer was broken. Jake said no, it was just Windows being helpful. The customer didn’t look convinced. That evening, Jake tried to turn off all notifications and discovered the toggle he found didn’t stop the suggested ones. He called Ethan. Ethan’s first question: “Which type of notification was it — a toast, a banner, or a suggestion? Because those are three different systems with three different off switches.”

What Windows 11 Notifications Actually Are

Windows 11 produces five distinct types of notifications, and knowing which one is annoying you is the first step toward silencing it:

Each type has its own controls, and some of those controls are on the Notifications settings page, some on sub-pages, and some in entirely different apps. The master toggle at the top of the Notifications page (“Get notifications from apps and other senders”) controls the app notifications — it does not control security alerts, some system notifications, or the AI suggestions, which have their own toggles further down the same page or in entirely different Settings pages. This is the structural reason “I turned off notifications and they keep coming” is the most common notification complaint.

“So the one toggle I found doesn’t actually turn off all the popups?” Jake asked.

“It turns off the biggest category — the app toasts,” Ethan said. “Teams, Outlook, Chrome, all of those go quiet. But Windows itself is a notification sender too, and its messages come from a different pipe. Turning off the master toggle is like closing the front door — it stops the visitors, but the mail still comes through the slot.”

Turning Off Notifications: Every Method

Method 1: Turn Off All App Notifications (The Master Toggle)

1. Press Win + I to open Settings, or click Start → Settings.
2. Click System in the left sidebar, then Notifications on the right.
3. At the top, toggle off “Get notifications from apps and other senders.” This silences all app toast notifications — Teams, Outlook, Discord, Slack, Chrome, everything that sends through the standard notification pipeline.

This is the method most guides stop at. It works for the majority of popups but leaves the system notifications, suggested notifications, and lock screen notifications untouched — each of those has its own toggle further down the same page.

Method 2: Turn Off Notifications for a Specific App

1. Open Settings > System > Notifications (same page as above).
2. Scroll down past the master toggles to the section labeled “Notifications from apps and other senders.” This is a list of every app that can send notifications.
3. Click the app you want to silence (e.g., Microsoft Teams).
4. Toggle off “Notifications” at the top of the app’s settings page — or keep it on and customize how notifications appear (banner, notification center only, sound on/off, priority).

This is the surgical approach: keep Teams notifications but silence Xbox Game Pass popups, or let Outlook notify you but mute Discord. Each app has its own settings for banner behavior, sound, and priority level (more on those below).

Method 3: Turn Off Suggested Notifications (the AI Popups)

1. Open Settings > System > Notifications.
2. Scroll down to the “Notifications from apps and other senders” list.
3. Find “Suggested” in the list (it may be near the bottom, under system entries).
4. Toggle it off. This silences the AI-powered recommendations that suggest features, tips, and “helpful” nudges.

These are the notifications that prompted Jake’s customer interaction. They are delivered by Windows itself rather than a user-installed app, and the master toggle does not always silence them because they come from the system pipeline, not the app pipeline. On some versions, the setting is labeled “Windows suggestions” or appears as a toggle under “Additional settings” at the bottom of the Notifications page.

Method 4: Turn Off Lock Screen Notifications

1. Open Settings > System > Notifications.
2. Find the toggle for “Show notifications on the lock screen” (in the main section, before the per-app list).
3. Toggle it off. Notifications will still appear while you are signed in, but not on the lock screen before authentication.

This pairs naturally with the lock screen camera guide: together, they control what the lock screen exposes before sign-in — the camera and the notifications are separate policies, but the security concern is the same (pre-authentication information leakage).

Method 5: Disable via Registry (Scripted / All Users)

For scripted deployment or where the Settings UI is unavailable, the registry value that controls toast notifications:

:: Disable toast notifications for the current user
reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications" /v ToastEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

:: Re-enable toast notifications
reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications" /v ToastEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

This is the same value the Group Policy “Turn off toast notifications” writes. It affects the current user (HKCU); for all users on a machine, deploy through the Group Policy or Intune methods in the IT Admin Corner.

The Notification Center: Where Past Notifications Live

Press Win + N (or click the clock in the bottom-right corner of the taskbar) and the Notification Center slides open from the right side of the screen. This is Windows 11’s notification history — every notification you have not dismissed is still there, organized chronologically, even if the popup banner has already disappeared from your screen. The notification that vanished thirty seconds ago did not get deleted; it moved here.

This answers one of the most-searched Windows questions — “where did my notification go” and “how to view past notifications in Windows 11” — and it is the feature most people do not know exists. The Notification Center also houses the calendar (the month view that pops up when you click the clock), which is why the notifications and the calendar share the same panel. In Windows 11, Microsoft merged the Action Center (Windows 10’s name for this panel) and the calendar into one flyout, which is why some older tutorials still call it the “Action Center.”

The notification center has three limitations worth knowing:

• Notifications clear when you clear them — there is no automatic expiration. A notification from three days ago sits there until you dismiss it. This is why the panel can accumulate dozens of stale entries if you never clean it.
• No search — you cannot search past notifications by keyword. You scroll. For a notification from a specific app, the per-app sections help, but there is no Ctrl+F.
• No export — there is no built-in way to export the notification history to a file. If you need a record, screenshot it before clearing.

To clear all notifications, click the “Clear all” button at the top of the notification list (or the × on each individual notification to dismiss it one at a time). Once cleared, there is no undo — which is why “how to find deleted notifications in Windows 11” is a search query with no good answer.

Do Not Disturb and Focus Sessions: Temporary Silence

Do Not Disturb (called “Focus Assist” in Windows 10) mutes all notifications temporarily without turning them off permanently. When active, notifications do not show popups or play sounds — they silently accumulate in the notification center for you to review later. It is the right tool when you need twenty minutes of concentration, not a lifestyle change.

Turning Do Not Disturb On and Off

1. Open the Notification Center (Win + N or click the clock).
2. Click the bell icon (or the “Do not disturb” toggle) in the top-right area of the notification center.
3. Alternatively: Settings > System > Notifications > Do not disturb — toggle it on or off.

Automatic Rules (When It Turns Itself On)

The reason Do Not Disturb seems to “turn itself on” — a common search complaint — is that Windows 11 has automatic rules that activate it without asking:

• When you are duplicating your display (presenting to a projector or external screen)
• When you are playing a game (fullscreen game detection)
• During Focus sessions (the timed concentration blocks in the Clock app)
• For a set time period each day (if you have configured a schedule)

Each rule has its own toggle under Settings > System > Notifications > Do not disturb → Turn on Do not disturb automatically when I’…. If notifications mysteriously stop during a presentation or a gaming session and then resume later, this is the cause — and it is working exactly as designed, even though it feels like a bug.

Priority Notifications (What Gets Through)

You can configure a priority list — specific apps whose notifications break through Do Not Disturb. Settings > System > Notifications → scroll to the per-app list → click the app → set the priority to “High” (shown even during Do Not Disturb) or “Normal” (suppressed). For a repair-shop owner, this means Teams messages from the band get through while Xbox Game Pass popups do not.

Notification Position, Sound, and Behavior

Notifications in Windows 11 appear in the bottom-right corner of the screen by default, stacking upward as they arrive. Windows 10 positioned them in the same place. There is no built-in setting to move notifications to the top-right corner (the macOS position) or to a different edge of the screen — this is one of the most-searched notification features, and the honest answer is that Windows does not support it natively. Multi-monitor behavior: notifications appear on the screen where the taskbar clock is, which is the primary display by default. If you want notifications on a second monitor, you can set that monitor as primary in Settings > System > Display.

Per-app, you can control three notification behaviors:

• Banner — the popup appears in the corner AND goes to the notification center
• Notification center only — no popup; the notification silently lands in the center
• Show notification banners — toggle per app; when off, notifications go to the center only

Sound is also per-app: each app’s notification settings include a “Play a sound when a notification arrives” toggle. There is no system-wide notification sound picker — the sound is set by the app itself, not by Windows. To change the system default notification sound, you would need to change the Windows sound scheme (Settings > System > Sound → More sound settings → Sounds tab → Notification), which affects all apps that use the default sound.

Notifications Not Working: the Honest Fixes

The “notifications not working” search cluster is the largest in this topic, and the causes cluster into a small set. Here is the diagnostic table:

The single most common cause across all these symptoms: the app has its own notification settings that are separate from Windows’s settings. Teams, Outlook, Discord, Slack, and Chrome each have internal notification toggles that must be on and the Windows per-app toggle must be on. If either is off, notifications do not appear. This two-layer system is why “I checked Windows settings and they’re on but Teams still doesn’t notify me” is such a common complaint — the reader checked one of two required switches.

“So I have to check the settings in the app AND in Windows?” Jake asked. “That’s like having two locks on the same door.”

“It is,” Ethan said. “And neither lock tells you the other one exists. The app says ‘notifications are on’ and Windows says ‘notifications are on’ and the notification still doesn’t appear — because one of them is lying, or because Do Not Disturb is eating them before they reach the screen. Check both, then check Do Not Disturb. That catches ninety percent of the cases.”

The IT Admin Corner: Deploying Notification Controls at Scale

For administrators managing fleets of Windows devices, notification controls are a compliance and productivity lever. The Group Policy paths and registry keys below cover the enterprise deployment scenarios.

Group Policy Deployment

The notification-related policies live under User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar:

1. Open the Group Policy Management Console (gpmc.msc) and create or edit a GPO linked to the target OU.
2. Navigate: User Configuration → Policies → Administrative Templates → Start Menu and Taskbar.
3. Relevant policies include “Turn off notifications” (disables toast notifications), “Turn off balloon notifications” (legacy), and settings that control the notification area behavior.
4. Set the policy to Enabled to apply the control, then run gpupdate /force on a test machine.
5. Verify with gpresult /h report.html.

Registry Deployment (Scripted)

:: Disable toast notifications for current user
reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications" /v ToastEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

:: Disable notification sounds
reg add "HKCU\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps\.Default\.Notification.Current" /ve /t REG_SZ /d "" /f

:: Re-enable
reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications" /v ToastEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

PowerShell for At-Scale Deployment

function Disable-ToastNotifications {
    $path = "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications"
    if (-not (Test-Path $path)) {
        New-Item -Path $path -Force | Out-Null
    }
    Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name "ToastEnabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord
    Write-Host "Toast notifications disabled." -ForegroundColor Green
}

function Enable-ToastNotifications {
    $path = "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications"
    if (Test-Path "$path\ToastEnabled") {
        Set-ItemProperty -Path $path -Name "ToastEnabled" -Value 1 -Type DWord
        Write-Host "Toast notifications re-enabled." -ForegroundColor Yellow
    }
}

Intune Configuration

In the Intune admin center, notification settings are deployable through the Settings Catalog (search for “notification”) or through custom OMA-URI profiles for ADMX-backed policies. The toast notification control maps to the same PushNotifications\ToastEnabled registry value.

When It Breaks: the Deepest Fixes

When the table above does not fix it, the deeper issues:

1. Restart the Push Notification Service: Open services.msc (Win+R → services.msc), find “WpnService” (Windows Push Notification Service), right-click → Restart. This is the Windows service that delivers toast notifications; if it crashes, notifications stop silently.
2. Re-register the notification framework: Open PowerShell as Administrator and run Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"} — this re-registers the shell experience that hosts the notification center.
3. Create a new user profile: If notifications work for other users on the same machine but not for yours, the user profile is corrupted. Create a new local user, log in, and test. If notifications work there, the profile is the problem.
4. Check Focus Assist automatic rules: If notifications stop during specific times or activities (presentations, gaming, specific hours), check Settings > System > Notifications → Do not disturb → automatic rules. A rule you forgot about is the silent killer.

And the when-nothing-works paragraph: if the service restart, the re-registration, and the new profile all fail, the Windows installation itself may need repair — run sfc /scannow from an elevated command prompt to check for corrupted system files, then DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth if SFC finds problems. The DISM repair guide covers the source-files error that sometimes blocks this. In rare cases, a Windows 11 in-place upgrade (reinstall Windows keeping files) rebuilds the notification infrastructure from scratch — the nuclear option, but it works.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I turn off notifications in Windows 11?

Settings > System > Notifications → toggle off “Get notifications from apps and other senders.” This silences app notifications. Scroll down to turn off “Suggested” notifications and lock screen notifications separately, as the master toggle does not control those.

How do I turn off notifications for a specific app?

Settings > System > Notifications → scroll down to “Notifications from apps and other senders” → click the app → toggle off “Notifications.” You can also customize banner behavior, sound, and priority level per app.

Where do I find past notifications in Windows 11?

Press Win+N or click the clock in the bottom-right of the taskbar. The notification center shows every notification you haven’t dismissed, even if the popup banner has already disappeared from the screen. There is no search, no export, and notifications clear permanently when you clear them.

Why are my notifications not working in Windows 11?

Three common causes: the master toggle is off (check Settings > System > Notifications), Do Not Disturb is on (check the notification center), or the app has its own notification settings that are off (check inside the app, e.g., Teams > Settings > Notifications). All three must be on for notifications to appear.

How do I stop notifications from appearing on the lock screen?

Settings > System > Notifications → toggle off “Show notifications on the lock screen.” This hides the content of notifications before you sign in — the sender and subject line of an email notification are visible on the lock screen by default, which is a privacy concern in shared spaces.

How do I turn off suggested notifications in Windows 11?

Settings > System > Notifications → scroll down to “Suggested” in the app list → toggle off. These are the AI-powered tips and recommendations Windows delivers (e.g., “Try Windows Copilot”), and they are separate from app notifications — the master toggle does not always silence them.

Why does Do Not Disturb keep turning on by itself?

Windows 11 has automatic rules that activate Do Not Disturb without asking — during presentations (screen duplication), during fullscreen gaming, during Focus sessions, or on a schedule. Check Settings > System > Notifications → Do not disturb → “Turn on Do not disturb automatically when I’m…” to see and disable the rules.

How do I change where notifications appear on screen?

Windows 11 does not have a built-in setting to move notifications from the bottom-right corner. Notifications appear where the taskbar clock is, which is the primary display by default. To get notifications on a different monitor, set that monitor as primary: Settings > System > Display → select the monitor → “Make this my main display.”

How do I turn off notification sounds?

Per-app: Settings > System > Notifications → click the app → toggle off “Play a sound when a notification arrives.” System-wide: Settings > System > Sound → More sound settings → Sounds tab → set “Notification” to (None). Both work independently.

How do I disable notifications via Group Policy or Registry?

Group Policy: User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Start Menu and Taskbar → “Turn off notifications.” Registry: reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PushNotifications" /v ToastEnabled /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f. The registry method works on all editions including Home.

How do I fix Teams notifications not working?

Check both settings: Teams → Settings → Notifications (inside the Teams app), AND Settings → System → Notifications → Teams (in Windows). Both must be enabled. Also check Do Not Disturb, which silently suppresses Teams notifications if it’s on. If both are on and notifications still don’t appear, sign out and back in to Teams.

How do I fix Outlook notifications not working?

Check Outlook → File → Options → Mail → Desktop Alert Settings, AND Settings → System → Notifications → Outlook in Windows. Outlook’s desktop alerts are controlled by both its own settings and Windows’s per-app toggle. If using the new Outlook, check the settings within the app itself.

What is the keyboard shortcut to open notifications?

Win+N opens the notification center. This is the fastest way to check past notifications you missed. Clicking the clock in the taskbar also opens it.

How do I clear all notifications at once?

Open the notification center (Win+N) and click “Clear all” at the top of the notification list. This dismisses every notification permanently — there is no undo, no history, and no recovery. Individual notifications can be dismissed with the × button on each one.

How do I keep notifications on screen longer?

Windows 11 does not have a built-in setting to control how long notification banners stay on screen. Banners auto-dismiss after a few seconds and move to the notification center. To review them later, open the notification center (Win+N) — they remain there until you clear them.

Can I disable notifications for specific times of day?

Yes — through the Do Not Disturb automatic rules. Settings > System > Notifications → Do not disturb → set a schedule under “Turn on Do not disturb automatically.” You can also use Focus Sessions (in the Clock app) for timed quiet periods with an end time.

Revision note. Updated September 2026, covering Windows 11. Notification behavior and settings locations are consistent across both versions, with Windows 10 calling Do Not Disturb “Focus Assist” and the notification center the “Action Center.” Microsoft iterates notification features (especially the AI-powered suggestions) with each Windows release — check Settings > System > Notifications for current toggles. If you have been toggling every notification setting and popups keep appearing, take heart: you were turning off one of five notification types, and the other four have their own switches — now you know exactly where each one lives.