On Windows 10 System, many times, you don’t require the taskbar to display on the screen. However, while playing games, watching a movie, or doing some other task, sometimes the taskbar gets stuck and remains on the screen even when you have switched to full screen.
There could be a number of possibilities for that error. In this guide, we would discuss what is causing the taskbar not hiding in Windows 10 full screen mode and how to fix it.
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What Causes the Taskbar to Not Hide?
Generally, when you switch to full-screen mode on Windows 10, the taskbar automatically hides itself for the uninterrupted viewing experience. Other than that, it would also auto-hide when the taskbar auto-hide feature is enabled from settings.
The taskbar will stay hidden until any active app needs your attention. For example, if you have initiated a download on Google Chrome, then it would flash the icon on the taskbar once the download is completed. Likewise, the Skype icon or any other messenger icon would flash orange whenever you receive a new message, call, or notifications.
Similarly, the background apps can also stop the taskbar from hiding by displaying a notification badge.
Mostly these are not actually the issues, and by dealing with the notifications, you can hide the taskbar again. However, there are cases in which an app would display a notification, but you won’t find anything on opening it; hence taskbar won’t hide.
We will find the fixes for that.
How to Fix Windows 10 Taskbar not hiding ?
Restart the System
The ultimate solution to most of the Windows problems is Restarting the system. And no surprise in the case of Windows 10 taskbar not hiding problem, restarting the system has been very effective.
Check your Taskbar Settings
You can enable the auto-hide feature if the taskbar is not hiding in fullscreen mode.
On the Windows search bar, search for Windows Settings App and open it.
Select Personalization settings.
From the left pane, choose Taskbar.
Under Taskbar settings, switch ON two options: Automatically hide the taskbar in desktop mode and Automatically hide the taskbar in tablet mode.
Close the settings
Restart Windows Explorer Process
Sometimes restarting Windows Explorer process can refresh the taskbar, and hiding problems can be fixed.
- Right-click on the taskbar and click on Task Manager.
- Look for the Windows Explorer
- Right-click on it and select Restart.
Check the System Tray Icon’s Notifications
As already mentioned, the Windows 10 taskbar not hiding problem is primarily caused by apps notifications unattended. Often, the apps hidden in the system tray might need user attention, but they usually get unnoticed since they are hidden.
For solving the taskbar issue, check if system tray apps need to be addressed.
Uncheck Hardware Acceleration in Chrome
The Hardware Acceleration settings in Chrome can make taskbar active even on full screen. It becomes very frustrating, especially when you are watching any YouTube video in full screen mode.
For solving that, you can switch OFF the Hardware Acceleration in Chrome.
- Open Chrome and go to Settings.
- Scroll down and select Advanced Settings.
- Under the System heading, toggle the button to switch off the Use hardware acceleration when available.
- Restart the Chrome browser.
Update and Restart the Windows
You tried everything above, and still, the problem is intact? In that case, you may try to update the Windows and then restart the system.
- Navigate to Settings->Update & Security.
- Click on Check for updates.
- If updates are available, let Windows download and install them.
- Restart the system after the updates are installed.
Final Words
Taskbar not hiding can be very irritating, especially while watching movies or videos; it can be a huge distract. The solutions provided in this guide would definitely fix this problem for you so that your viewing experience can get back to normal and system can automatically hide the taskbar in Desktop mode as well as Full screen mode.
If the taskbar is not hiding while watching any YouTube video on Chrome in fullscreen mode, it may be because an app requires user attention or because of Hardware Acceleration in Chrome. Try finding the app that needs to be addressed or disable the hardware acceleration from Chrome settings as directed in this guide.
To lock the taskbar in Windows 10, right-click on the taskbar, and from the context menu, choose the Lock the Taskbar option.
Peter is an Electrical Engineer whose primary interest is tinkering with his computer. He is passionate about Windows 10 Platform and enjoys writing tips and tutorials about it.
How to Fix Taskbar not hiding in Windows 10? section
Worked fine. Problem was that the Taskbar would not hide when a browser had items that had not been accessed. Fixed problem when I put “Lock Taskbar” to off. Thanks
Thank you! Went into task manager to restart and it works perfectly again 🙂