Long time PC users who upgraded to Windows 7 soon after its release probably remember that there were no less than fifty third-party utilities available to tweak and customize the operating system at the time of its release. There were tools to customize every nook and corner of the operating system from the boot screen to copy/paste animations.
These days, we hardly see developers coming up with new applications to tweak and customize Windows operating system. It could be because of smartphones, but most users prefer keeping Windows operating system as it is without any customizations.
That said, there is no shortage of tweaking and customization tools for Windows 10. It’s been just two months since the release of Windows 10. There are already a bunch of quality tools to tweak and customize the newest version of Windows.
Customize & tweak Windows 10 with these free tools
In no particular order, the following are some of the best free tools out there to tweak and customize Windows 10.
Aero Glass for Windows 8.1+
Like in Windows 8/8.1, the Aero glass transparency feature is not available in Windows 10 as well. If you love Aero glass transparency and want to get the same in Windows 10, download and install Aero Glass for Windows 8.1+. The free tool helps you bring back Aero glass to window borders with blur effect. The program also allows you to change the transparency level and skin window borders without actually installing a new visual style.
Download Aero Glass for Windows 8.1+
WinAero Tweaker
WinAero Tweaker is probably one of the best free tweaking tools out there for Windows 10. With this free tool, you can change various default settings and also personalize Windows 10 to your liking. The Tweaker is updated regularly to include new tweaks and customizations.
Download WinAero Tweaker
TileCreator
Windows 10 supports pinning your favorite apps, links, and programs to the Start menu. But if you want to create a new tile on the Start menu to quickly access a file or executable by including custom icon and tile background color, then TileCreator is the ideal software for the job.
Unlike similar apps available in the Store, this program is entirely free.
Ultimate Windows Tweaker
Probably the complete tweaking tool available for Windows 10. The Ultimate Windows Tweaker for Windows 10 includes over 200 settings to tweak almost every major area of Windows 10. The program is easy-to-navigate, and more importantly, it’s portable. Just download and run the program to start using it.
Download Ultimate Windows Tweaker
Windows 10 Login Screen Background Changer
By default, Windows 10 uses the default desktop wallpaper as the login screen background. But if you would like to set a custom picture as login screen background, you can use the free Windows 10 Login Screen Background Changer application.
Login Screen Background Changer also enables you to replace the default login screen background picture with a solid color, like in Windows 8/8.1.
Download Login Screen Background Changer
Classic Shell
The Start menu in Windows 10, although it is not perfect, it’s better than the Start screen in many ways. If you upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10 using the free upgrade offer and now missing the classic Windows 7’s Start menu, go ahead and install Classic Shell to get Windows 7 style Start menu in Windows 10.
And even if you’re not interested in Windows 7’s Start menu, there are plenty of settings to tweak and customize Windows 10. For instance, there is a setting to make the taskbar fully transparent.
7+ Taskbar Tweaker
If you want to change the default settings of the taskbar in Windows 10, look no further than 7+ Taskbar Tweaker. The program has been recently updated to support Windows 10 and offers close to 30 settings to change the default behavior of the taskbar.
For instance, you can use it to hide the Start button on the taskbar. And if you are looking to customize the taskbar, refer to our 13 ways to customize windows 10 taskbar guide.
Windows 10 Color Control
Windows Color Control is a little program from the developer of 7+ Taskbar Tweaker. The program allows you to set different colors for the taskbar as well as window borders, which is not possible by default.
Download Windows Color Control
Folder Marker
Folder Marker is a free software designed to change the default color of folders in Windows. The free version of Folder Marker offers plenty of options to customize the default look of folders. With the free version, you can assign an icon to a folder from EXE, BMP, DLL, or ICO files as well as change the icon of one folder at a time or apply the same icon to all the folders in Windows 10 at a time.
NTLite
While NTLite will not help you customize Windows 10 directly, the tool can be used to customize and tweak the Windows 10 installation. With the help of NTLite, you can create unattended Windows 10 ISO and integrate drivers and other essential software.
The software can also be used to integrate new themes, wallpapers, and screensavers in your Windows 10 ISO or DVD.
Download NTLite
HackBGRT
HackBGRT is a free utility developed to enable you to change the UEFI boot logo on Windows 10 PCs. Use this software if you get your PC manufacturer’s logo during the boot.
Windows OEM Info Editor
With Windows OEM Info Editor, you can change the Windows 10 OEM logo, model name, and contact information that you see the System window (system properties window).
The latest version of the software is fully compatible with Windows 10.
Andrew M Winter says
wow how lame.
The two apps I was looking for most don’t have working links anymore. Someone had to disable the links, whoever did that should have removed the product images or at least given some HINT as to why the links don’t work
admin says
George, use onscreen keyboard.
George says
I am using this on Windows 10 tablet. How do I have ‘ctrl’ key so as to be able to copy and paste?
thanks, George