Easy Ways to Manage Your Notifications and Quick Settings

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Personalize your Quick Settings and notifications in Windows

Co-authored by Travis Boylls Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: July 8, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Customizing Quick Settings
|
• Changing Notifications Settings
|
• Video

|Show more |Show less

Recent Windows updates removed the ability to add and remove Quick Settings options and added a scrolling option instead. However, you can still organize your Quick Settings options by dragging and dropping them. You can also still change and manage your notification settings. This wikiHow article teaches you how to customize your Quick Settings and notifications in Windows.

Customize Quick Settings and Notifications

• You can’t add or remove Quick Settings options in Windows anymore, but you can reorganize them by clicking and dragging them.
• Press Win + i to open Settings and go to System > Notifications to adjust your notification settings.
• You can customize your notifications and select which apps you want to receive notifications from in the Settings menu.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Customizing Quick Settings

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1. 
   1
   Click the Quick Settings menu. It’s the icon with the speaker, Wi-Fi symbol, and battery (on laptops) in the lower-right corner.
2. 
   2
   Click and drag the Quick Settings options. You can reorganize the Quick Settings options by clicking and dragging them. Move the options you use frequently to the top and move the ones you don’t use to the bottom (next page).

   • Since the release of Windows 11 24H2, Windows no longer has the option to edit the Quick Settings menu. Instead, they have implemented a scrolling system that displays all options in a single small space. While you can no longer add and remove options, you can reorganize them by clicking and dragging them.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Changing Notifications Settings

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1. 
   1
   Open the Notifications Settings. You can do so by typing “Notifications” in the search bar and clicking Notifications and actions, or you can use the following steps to open the Notifications settings:

   • Press Win + i to open Settings.
   • Click System.
   • Click Notifications.
2. 
   2
   Turn Notifications on and off. Click the toggle switch next to “Notifications” at the top of the menu to turn notifications on and off. If you don’t wish to receive any notifications, turn notifications off.
3. 
   3
   Customize notification options. To customize your notification options, click Notifications to expand the Notification options. Then click the checkbox to enable or disable any of the options you want. The options are as follows:

   • Allow notifications to play sounds: If you want a sound to play when you receive a notification, click the checkbox next to this option. If you want your notifications to be silent, uncheck this option.
   • Show notifications on the lock screen: Check this option to view your notifications when your computer is locked. Uncheck this option if you don’t want your notifications to be visible on the lock screen.
   • Show reminders and incoming VoIP calls on the lock screen: Check this option to see incoming voice-over-IP calls (e.g., Teams, Zoom, Google Voice) while your computer is locked, and view reminders for upcoming voice-over-IP meetings and calls on the lock screen.
   • Show notification bell icon: Check this option to display the bell icon in the taskbar's lower-right corner. The bell icon will appear blue when you have notifications, as a visual reminder to check them.
     • If you have notifications muted, the bell icon with two Z's on it will appear, regardless of this setting.
     • Regardless of whether this option is checked or not, you can still view your notifications by clicking on the clock to open the Notification Center, or by pressing ⊞ Win+N.
4. 
   4
   Select which apps you want to receive notifications from. Scroll down to the bottom of the notifications settings menu to view a list of your apps. Click the toggle switch next to each app to enable or disable notifications from that app. You can use the drop-down menu at the top to sort the apps by name or most recently used.

   • It may take one to two minutes for the list of apps to populate.
5. 
   5
   Customize Notification options for individual apps. You can change how notifications for individual apps appear in the notification center. To do so, scroll down to the bottom of the notification settings menu and click an app. This opens a menu with the following options:

   • Notifications: Click the toggle switch at the top to enable or disable notifications for the app.
   • Show notification banner: Click the checkbox next to this option to enable or disable pop-up notification banners from this app.
   • Show notifications in notifications center: Click the checkbox next to this option to enable or disable notifications in the notifications center.
   • Hide content when notifications are on the lock screen: Click the toggle switch below this option to allow or disallow notifications from the app on your lock screen.
   • Play a sound when notifications arrive: Click the toggle switch below this option to enable or disable a sound when a notification from this app arrives.
   • Priority of notifications in the notification center: This lets you set a priority for notifications from this app. The options are as follows:
     • Top: This displays notifications from this app at the top of the notification center.
     • High: This places notifications from this app above notifications with normal priority.
     • Normal: This is the default notification setting. This places notifications in the notification center in the order they were received.
6. 
   6
   Enable Do Not Disturb. When Do Not Disturb is on, you will only receive notifications from the priority apps you choose. All other notifications will be sent to the notifications center, which you can view later. To enable Do Not Disturb, click the toggle switch next to “Do not disturb.”
7. 
   7
   Set up automatic Do Not Disturb. In addition to enabling Do Not Disturb manually, you can schedule a time when Do Not Disturb is enabled automatically. Use the following steps to do so:

   • Click Turn on do not disturb automatically.
   • Click the checkbox next to “Do not disturb.”
   • Enter a start time next to “Turn on.”
   • Enter a stop time next to “Turn off.”
   • Use the drop-down menu next to “Repeat” to select “Daily,” “Weekdays,” or “Weekends.”
   • Click the checkbox next to “When duplicating your screen” to turn on Do Not Disturb automatically when you are mirroring your screen to another display.
   • Click the checkbox next to “When playing a game” to turn on Do Not Disturb while you are playing a game.
   • Click the checkbox next to “When using an app in full-screen mode” to turn on Do Not Disturb when viewing an app in full-screen mode.
   • Click the checkbox next to “For the first hour after a Windows feature update” to turn on Do Not Disturb for one hour after Windows updates.
8. 
   8
   Set priority apps. Priority apps are apps that you can receive notifications from even if Do Not Disturb is turned on. Use the following steps to set priority apps:

   • Click Set priority notifications.
   • Click Add apps
   • Click on the app you want to add.
     • To view all priority apps, click Apps in this menu.
     • To remove a priority app, click the icon with three dots (•••) next to it and click Remove.
   • Check the checkbox next to “Show incoming calls, including VoIP” if you want to receive calls while Do Not Disturb is on.
   • Check the box next to “Show reminders, regardless of app” to receive reminders while Do Not Disturb is on.
9. 
   9
   Set up Focus mode. Focus mode reduces distractions for a set period of time. Use the following steps to set up and start a focus mode session:

   • Click Focus in the Notifications menu or System menu.
   • Click the Plus (+) or Minus (-) button to set the length of your focus session.
   • Check “Show timer in the Clock app” to see a timer for your Focus session.
   • Check “Hide badges on taskbar apps” to hide the notification dots next to apps open in the taskbar.
   • Check “Hide flashing on taskbar apps” to prevent taskbar icons from flashing to get your attention.
   • Check “Turn on do not disturb” to enable Do Not Disturb during your focus session.
   • Click Start focus session.
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