If you are sticking to Windows 10 because it has fewer annoyances than Windows 11, especially in the Start menu, we have bad news for you.
Let's put it this way; when Microsoft announced its plans to start adding features to Windows 10 once again, despite the operating system's inevitable demise in October 2025, everyone expected slightly different things to see ported over from Windows 11. Sadly, the latest addition to Windows 10 is one of the most annoying changes coming from Windows 11's Start menu.
Earlier this year, Microsoft introduced a so-called "Account Manager" for Windows 11 that appears on the screen when you click your profile picture on the Start menu. Instead of just showing you buttons for logging out, locking your device or switching profiles, it displays Microsoft 365 ads. All the actually useful buttons are now hidden behind a three-dot submenu (apparently, my 43-inch display does not have enough space to accommodate them). Now, the "Account Manager" is coming to Windows 10 users.
The change was spotted in the latest Windows 10 preview builds from the Beta and Release Preview Channels. It works in the same way as Windows 11, and it is disabled by default for now because the submenu with sign-out and lock buttons does not work.
Earlier this year, Microsoft introduced a so-called "Account Manager" for Windows 11 that appears on the screen when you click your profile picture on the Start menu. Instead of just showing you buttons for logging out, locking your device or switching profiles, it displays Microsoft 365 ads. All the actually useful buttons are now hidden behind a three-dot submenu.
I have to use a windows 11 machine for work, and it genuinely surprises me how terrible it is. I don’t understand the opposition to local accounts - if I’m working somewhere with public WiFi/capture portal, I have to use my phone as a hotspot first.
The PIN log in seems to roll a random number and decide each morning whether it is going to work or not.
I also got a laptop with 11 on it for gaming. So much spyware I’ve had to uninstall, configuring anything is a nightmare. I was trying to adjust my mouse sensitivity/figure out why the scroll wheel is either 0 or to the moon, but even when you dig into the control panel, half the settings are missing.
I also had to turn off my WiFi and google commands to make a local account, because otherwise Microsoft accounts are mandatory.
Every change seems to make the experience actively worse for the user.
Windows 10 will be my last Windows operating system. It’s been fine and it works well enough. I’ve already started setting up a drive with Linux Mint 22 for use moving forward.
Every time I see crap like this makes me even happier I ditched it a year and a half ago. If you switch to Linux and started with mint but don't like it, give PopOs a test drive. It's been flawless for me.
I'm in the EU and use Windows 10 LTSC so I mostly clear off of this bulshit. A few months ago I bought a cheap refurbished laptop to use occasionally and decided from day 1 it would be Linux Mint only since I only use it for the basics.
A few months later and I'm surprised how far Mint came. It's so easy to use. Customizing it was a bit harder but nothing major. And to my surprise...even games. I threw a couple of games at it and everything the computer can handle would run. I was from the time where gaming on Linux was a no-no.
When LTSC support goes, I'll most likely go full Linux. The only problem is the Adobe software but maybe I can fix that with a virtual machine.
I'm unironically beginning to view Microsoft as one of my favorite companies. They treat their cattle just right. Hopefully they'll start arbitrarily deleting local files.
Is there anything the cattle won't tolerate? LETS FIND OUT
I call bullshit. Charge Microsoft criminally. Sue them into the ground! We will never get enough people to truly harm them just by leaving, so we need to FUCKING DESTROY ANY COMPANY THAT PULLS THIS BULLSHIT!
The fact that people pay hundreds of dollars for this OS to get advertised to is insulting. Same energy as these smart TVs that feel like they have the right to show you ads.
If I'm dictator, I'm making this shit illegal, full stop.
Funny. Not long after all the spyware was inserted into Win 10, they imported it into Win 7, and we got a general notice to not install those updates (or uninstall them).
I just recently installed the windows 11 LTSC IOT enterprise edition, it contains no ads and is meant for corporate use. I got it off of the massgravel Dev site. The only thing pre-installed is the edge browser. Boots way faster and my games are right there. I have it dual-boot alongside Ubuntu. I recommend it if you have to use windows for some programs.
Didn't they already put ads in the Windows 10 start menu? Every time I see a fresh Windows 10 install, it's got candy crush and a bunch of promotional links to Microsoft apps in the windows store (office, Outlook, etc.) in the start menu.
Tbh my biggest gripe with Windows 11 isn't even the ads, you can disable them or -- like I did back when I used Win11 on a spare partition for VR gaming -- just install a start menu replacement like startallback. My biggest gripe is that they removed the fullscreen launcher and mobile/touch optimized metro app system (ik windows store apps exist, but they behave like regular windows apps, which is awkward on a tablet when you're using it without the keyboard cover). I liked that Windows 10 basically kept all the Windows 8 tablet features, but made them optional so that you can have a full desktop experience on a tablet. Now windows 11 just feels kind of poorly designed and clunky on a tablet PC.
I ended up installing ChromeOS on my tablet through Project Brunch just to get a decent, polished-feeling tablet interface (with android apps, which is a huge plus since that's already a massive library of touch-optimized software). I run NixOS on my main PC, but for the tablet it was either Linux+GNOME (GNOME is the only desktop DE with acceptable touch support imo, especially paired with the cosmic shell extension for automatic window tiling), or ChromeOS, and I tried a bunch of different distros (including open-source chromiumOS distros like FydeOS).
In the end, I liked FydeOS, but ChromeOS through Brunch Framework has extra features I'd rather not live without (like Android phone connectivity), and FydeOS has borked touch support on the OpenFyde releases, so I'd need to use the proprietary Fyde For You builds with specific drivers for the Surface Pro 4, but those cost money after 90 days, and if I'm using a proprietary OS, I might as well pick the free one. If you've never used ChromeOS, it's basically like if stock Google android had a good desktop mode and could (easily/officially) run desktop Linux apps.
If you MUST use windows for work or something, at least install OpenShell. Otherwise, use Linux. It's so easy to switch for most use cases. Even gaming on Linux has come a very long way.
On machines where I have to use windows I run start10 to replace the start menu with something a little more bearable. I imagine there's a FOSS equivalent but I bought a license years and years ago so I've never bothered to search.
If you're a person who prefers to type commands than click through menus then you should try the "run" program in the "powertoys" suite from Microsoft.
It a launcher program that's superior to Start in every way. You can type in plain English system commands like "shutdown"; a search that actually works; you can pass queries into your browser's search engine; and of course launch programs by typing in their names. You can even enter entire registry addresses to open regedit at the desired location.
This is a complete replacement for the Start Menu.
Well.. it's time to HOST style AdBlock to shine baby...
If you use HAGEZI Ultimate Aggressive, 1Host Pro, StevenBlack, & Hblock filters in your machine, you practically immune to Microsoft ads
I haven't even used the start menu in so long because Windows 10 always had a shitty one and I really just use my PC for games which I launch from Steam or my desktop (if non steam). If I ever need to open the settings or whatever, I use Windows Key+R and just type out what I want to run.
First, going to say that putting ads into Win10 is bad.
But I also wonder, how many people even use the start menu anymore? I almost never even look at mine. I use it for one thing: to shut down my computer. All of my most used apps are on the quick launch bar or are shortcuts on my desktop.
I use a different start menu on my office laptop, because IT staff populated it with the productivity apps and locked it for editing, so all the apps I use are hard to find. (I mostly use the process bar anyways)
So even if they put ads on Win10 Pro I won't see them.