How to Speed up Windows 10 Boot and Make Windows Boot Faster

As time goes by, you might notice your computer getting slower. This is a natural thing that happens, especially under heavy use, and it's normal to wonder about "how to speed up Windows 10 boot."

More and more files are created on your device, your system receives updates, and your hardware might become less powerful to handle it all.

This article will explore how you can speed up all Windows 10 versions even without upgrading your setup.

Before we get started, learn how to get started with Windows 10 here.

Why is Windows 10 so slow to boot up?

To answer this, let's first ask, "What is the average boot time for Windows 10?

The average Windows PC boot time is 1 minute. But Window 10 should boot in seconds if not too many processes are starting at boot time. Most Windows PCs boot within 30 seconds.

So anything more than one minute, for example, 3.5 minutes, would be too slow and contribute to the slow PC boot.

But many users continue to report slow boot problems in Windows 10, and according to users, this issue is caused by a number of signs, including:

1. A corrupted Windows Update file.
2. Many startup programs and apps
3. Outdated Windows operating system
4. using old HDD instead of the new, lighter, and faster HDD
5. Malware (malicious software)
6. Outdated device drivers
7. Many background programs 
8. Windows updates running during active hours 

How to Speed up Windows 10

We have an article on How To Speed Up Windows 10: Tips to improve PC performance. You can check it out.

In this article, our tips focus on how you can increase the operating speed of your system without sacrificing features, visual appearance, and services.

We've also kept the methods below accessible and easy to perform — however, for even better results, we've linked some products in our store for you.

Tip: If you're not familiar with how Windows 10 works, we recommend reading our Getting started with Windows 10 article first.

#1. Make regular restarts

The longer you leave your computer on, the slower it might become. With your hardware constantly running, your system may slow down due to creating temporary files or various components simply overheating.

Although Windows 10 will put your display to sleep by default, many users leave their computers on for days or even weeks. During this time, applications continue running in the background, accommodating memory over time and causing severe slowdowns.

To avoid this from happening the next time you use your device, turn it off when you're done. You can do this by clicking on the Start menu in the taskbar, then clicking on the Power button.

Here, select Shut down. After a few minutes, turn your computer back on using its power button.

#2. Keep your system updated

It's essential to keep your Windows operating system up to date. New updates bring new features, better optimization, and often even security patches.

You can update Windows 10 from the Settings application, where you can also find further advanced system settings.

If you want a more in-depth guide on how to update windows 10, check out our article titled Update Windows 10.

It's important to ensure your OS is always on the latest available version to keep the system up-to-date and update all device drivers.

Read more here about: How to Update Windows 10

#3. Disable unnecessary startup apps

Every time your system boots up, various applications launch at startup. This is a feature used by many apps that you might want to have ready from the moment you gain access to your computer, such as antivirus software.

However, many apps are not necessary for your device to load upon startup because they end up using too many system resources.

Some apps, especially freeware, often modify your system and set unnecessary startup apps.

This doesn't only slow down your boot time but may cause severe performance drops as these applications continue running in the background.

Here's how you can disable unwanted startup apps to improve the speed of your Windows 10 operating system.

1. Open Task Manager using one of the following ways:
• Right-click on any space in your taskbar. This will open up a context menu. Here, select Task Manager.
• Alternatively, press the Ctrl, Alt, and Esc keys simultaneously on your keyboard.
2. If your Task Manager launched in the compact view, click on the More details option seen in the bottom left of the window. This will expand the window and show you the necessary taps to access startup applications.
3. Switch to the Startup tab using the menu at the top of the Task Manager window. Here, you can see all of the applications that start with your computer at launch.
   
4. You can check the Start-up impact column to determine which applications have a high impact measurement on your computer's system performance.
   • Note: Ensure that the application you're trying to disable doesn't have Microsoft Corporation stated in the Publisher column. These applications usually don't impact your system's performance and might be required for Windows 10 to run as intended.
5. Select an application you want to disable, then click on the Disable button in the bottom right of the window. Its status should change to Disabled.
   
   
6. Repeat this process for every app you don't need at startup, then restart your computer.

Your computer should launch without any impact-heavy or unnecessary apps automatically launching.

This gives you the ability to test your boot time and the performance of your device as well.

#4. Run the Disk Cleanup tool/utility

Windows 10 comes with a built-in tool to help you clean your computer's files, called the Disk Cleanup tool. 

The disk cleanup is easy to run and may free up a plethora of space on your device by deleting files you never even knew you had and certainly don't need.

Disk cleanup will remove temporary internet files, create more available space on your computer, and improve PC performance.

Here's how to run the Disk Cleanup on a Windows 10 device:

1. Use the search field in your taskbar, or press the Windows and S keys on your keyboard to open up the Search feature.
2. Type "Disk cleanup" and launch the tool from the matching search results.
3. If prompted, select the drive you want to clear. We recommend you start with the drive Windows 10 is installed on, then repeat these steps for any or all other drives.
   
   
4. Allow some time for the utility to analyze your device, then select what you want to delete from the system. After completing the action, you can also see how much space you will free up on your drive.
5. Click the OK button to proceed and permanently delete the files you've selected.
6. A reboot is recommended after the disk cleanup process has finished running.

You can also do this through advanced system settings to speed up Windows 10.

#5. Uninstall unused applications

There might be some applications on your computer that you no longer need or didn't even know existed. This can happen because of various reasons. Some vendors ship their machines with pre-installed software often referred to as bloatware.

Free applications, also called freeware apps, can successfully install hidden apps on your computer. Many computer users install apps for a specific purpose but never use them again.

The best thing you can do is head to Settings and uninstall applications you no longer need.

This should speed up Windows and support PC best performance.

Check out our Install and uninstall applications in Windows 10 article for further instructions.

#6. Run antivirus scans

Your device might be slow because of malicious software, especially if you often use the internet. There are many ways to get infected by malicious threats that might slip onto your device without proper protection.

If you want to secure your device correctly, check out our Set up security in Windows 10 article.

We recommend using Norton Security 2020 or Malwarebytes Premium antivirus program to remove and prevent future malware infections and enhance PC best performance.

How to Make Your Windows PC Boot Faster

In this age of Notebooks, Elitebooks, and Ultrabook, boot times of 30 seconds or less have become standard.

Anything above this is considered slow. Unfortunately, many mainstream notebooks can take even up to a minute and a half to load Windows Operating systems.

As we've said, this is often due to an abundance of pre-installed software and reliance on slow HDD hard drives. We looked at how to speed up Windows 10, not let's look at how to make your Windows PC boot faster or speed up Windows 10 boot.

Let's discuss them in detail here below:

#1. Enable Windows fast startup mode

Windows 10's fast startup feature does exactly what it sounds like. Quick Boot is a feature in BIOS that reduces your computer boot time.

Essentially, fast startup is a halfway mode between hibernating and shutting down Windows.

It won't save your open applications as hibernation will, but the under-the-hood OS will hibernation mode. This helps you start up with a clean state faster. 

You'll enable the fast startup mode through the Windows control panel. To reach the control panel:

Press Windows Key > Type control panel > Hardware and Sound  > Power options > System settings 

Also, rebooting is unaffected. So if you run into problems with Windows Update or getting into your BIOS, you may have to restart your PC to complete those tasks rather than shutting down.

From the control panel, you can access other settings like removing some background apps or all the programs that cause PC slow down.

How do I turn on Fast Boot?

You can do this through advanced system settings (advanced tab) or follow the steps below: 

1. Go to Settings > System > Power & Sleep (you can also access this through the control panel).
2. Click the Additional Power Settings link on the right-hand side of the window.
3. From there, click Choose What the Power Buttons Do
4. You should see a checkbox next to Turn on Fast Startup in the list of options.
5. If it's grayed out, you'll click the Change Settings That Are Currently Unavailable link at the top of that window first, then turn on the Fast Startup feature.
6. Make sure you click the Save Changes button when you're done.

#2. Adjust Your PC's UEFI/BIOS Settings

Some computers have a different Fast Boot setting in the BIOS.

But, unlike Windows' Fast Startup, this Fast Boot setting (name can be different depending on your motherboard) bypasses some of your PC's initial test runs when it first starts up.

Note: If you're overclocking or otherwise regularly accessing BIOS, you might want to leave this off. But most people will benefit from turning it on if it isn't already.

To turn it on:

1. Reboot your computer and press Delete to enter the BIOS setup (or another key, if prompted).
2. Search for any fast boot settings in the menu. Some folks also recommend changing your Boot Order Priority (making sure your hard disk is at the top of the list, rather than a DVD drive or network boot).
3. Every computer has a different motherboard, so poke around your UEFI/BIOS settings to see if there are any features you can enable or disable to speed up the boot process.
4. You can use your motherboard or PC manual to help show you where this is.

#3. Disable or Cut Down on Startup apps and Programs

The more apps and programs you have set to launch at PC startup, the longer it will take to get into a usable state during PC boot. More apps during startup mean a longer PC boot period.

You may need most of the programs to start at Boot, but not all. 

To see which programs launch at startup:

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to select Task Manager.
2. Click on More Details at the bottom
3. Go to the Startup tab.
4. Here, you'll see a list of programs that start with your computer and Windows' estimate of how much it impacts your boot time.
5. You'll also see a "Last BIOS Time" in the upper right corner, which tells you how long your BIOS takes to hand off control to Windows. If this number is more than a few seconds, you should recheck the BIOS settings described above. It could also be a result of a slow motherboard.

If the list has a program you don't need at startup, and if the program has a startup impact, there are two things you can do:

1. Go to that program's settings and uncheck the option to launch it with Windows boot.
2. Disable the program from Task Manager to prevent it from launching at Boot.

To disable a program from Task Manager:

1. Open Windows Settings > Apps > Startup
2. Select Task Manager apps
3. Disable or turn off anything you don't want to open at startup. 

Note: You can then open File Explorer and find startup app data system files (type %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup in the address bar to access the Startup folder). Any shortcuts in this folder will automatically launch at PC boot. So, if there's any program you don't want launching at startup, delete it from the folder or system files.

#4. Set Window Updates to run during downtime 

It takes memory, time, and other system resources to install those updates during restart and reboot during Windows updates. 

This is why it's important to let Windows do its thing when you aren't using the PC. This is different from letting your PC run automatic updates.

To do so without interrupting your work:

1. Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update
2. Click the Change Active Hours button.
3. Send Windows to the time you tend to use the device most—say, from 9 to 5
4. This is when the PC will try to run automatic updates and reboot when the system is idle. 

#5. Upgrade to a Solid-State Drive (SSD)

Nowadays, many modern computers come with SSD drives (SSDs) because they're much faster. So if your PC is still using the old mechanical HDD drive, it's time to shift to make your Windows PC boot faster. 

Not only will your apps and programs launch nearly instantaneously compared to the HDD hard drive, but your computer will also boot much faster.

How Fast Is SSD vs HDD?

The speed difference between an SSD and vs hard drive is most apparent when copying and moving huge files. HDDs can copy 30 to 150 MB per second (MB/s), while standard SSDs perform the same action at speeds of 500 MB/s.

Because they have no moving parts, SSDs offer super-fast boot and wake times and file-transfer speeds as high as 500 MBps. But you'll have to sacrifice storage space if you're using an SSD because of its decreased storage capacity.

Installing an SSD is fairly easy: Just copy the contents of your hard drive onto the SSD, then remove the hard drive (a screwdriver may be required) and replace it with the SSD. 

#6. Clear Windows Cache

Memory caching (often referred to as caching) is a technique in which computer applications temporarily store data in a computer's main memory (i.e., random access memory, or RAM) to enable fast retrievals of that data. The RAM used for temporary storage is known as the cache.

How do I clear the cache in Windows 10?

You can clear cache or remove temporary files in your Windows settings:

Final thoughts

We hope that this guide was able to teach you how you can increase the speed of your Windows 10 device. If you ever need further assistance, our customer service is happy to guide you through any issues you might have.

Do you want to learn more about the Windows 10 OS?

We recommend proceeding with our Update Windows 10 article or backtracking to our main Windows 10 tutorials page to find your next lesson.

Subscribe to our newsletter if you're looking for more guides or want to read more tech-related articles. We regularly publish tutorials, news articles, and guides to help you.

Also, visit our blog and help center regularly to get informative and updated articles on Windows troubleshooting, and tips and tricks about daily computer usage.

Recomended Further Reading

>> How to Set Up and How to turn on Windows Security in Windows 10
>> What Is the Best Driver Updater for Windows?
>> How To Lock and Unlock Your Keyboard on Windows and Mac
>> New Windows Terminal: Features and How To Get It Now
>> How to fix touchscreen not working on Windows
>> How to Manage User Accounts in Windows 10

FAQ: How to Speed up Windows 10 Boot

What is the fastest boot time?

World's Fastest Windows 10 Startup: How We Booted in 4.9 Seconds.

And, how long should a PC take to boot up?

Typically, a new computer running Windows may only take 45 seconds or less to boot up. So if your computer is taking more than a minute or two to wake up, it's time to take action.

Is Fast Startup Good or Bad?

It depends. While fast boot is an amazing feature to cut the boot-up time of Windows 10, it has its disadvantages. A fast startup, like Windows hibernation, works by closing down all the apps.

Is turn on fast startup good?

Windows 10's Fast Startup (called Fast Boot in Windows 8) works similarly to the hybrid sleep mode of previous versions of Windows.

Saving the operating system state to a hibernation file can make your computer boot up even faster, saving valuable seconds every time you turn your machine on.

Does Windows boot faster on SSD?

Does SSD improve boot time? Yes, using an SSD as a system drive would boost your boot time and Windows system performance.