How To Close All Apps At Once In Windows 11?

Last evening, a user asked us via email if it was possible to close all open apps at once on a Windows 11 PC using some hotkeys or shortcuts.

Is there a keyboard shortcut to close all running apps at once in Windows 11?

Unfortunately, Windows 11 does not offer a keyboard shortcut to close all running apps at once. Of course, we can use the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut to close open apps and windows, but the shortcut does not close all apps at once. We need to close each open app individually.

The best way to close apps quickly is probably to use the Delete key on the Alt + Tab screen. For detailed instructions, refer to our How to Close Apps Quickly from Alt + Tab Screen in Windows guide.

Shut down to close all apps at once in Windows 11

If you want to close all open apps, you will likely want to shut down your Windows 11 PC after closing all running apps. In that case, you will be glad to know that you need not close open apps before shutting down your PC.

When you shut down your Windows 11 device, Windows 11 automatically terminates all running apps before shutting down your PC. In fact, if there is any unsaved work, like an unsaved document in the Word app, for instance, it will prompt you to save it before closing the app.

Command to close all apps (except File Explorer) at once in Windows 11

There is a command available to close multiple running apps except for File Explorer. Yes, the command cannot close the File Explorer. If you do not mind closing the File Explorer manually, try this command in the Command Prompt recommended by ElevenForums.

PowerShell -Command “Get-Process |? {$_.MainWindowTitle -ne \”\” -and $_.Id -ne $PID -and $_.ProcessName -ne \”explorer\”} | Stop-Process -Force”?

When you run this from an elevated Command Prompt window, all running apps except the Windows File Explorer will be terminated instantly. If File Explorer windows are open, you can quickly close them all by right-clicking the File Explorer icon on the taskbar and then clicking the Close all windows option.

What’s the best way to close all open apps in Windows 11?

As of writing this article, Windows 11 does not allow you to close all open apps at once unless you shut down your PC. A third-party app is also available to close all apps at once, but it requires selecting apps that you want to close, which means you have to perform multiple clicks before you can close all running apps.

We recommend using the Delete key in the Alt + Tab screen or the command mentioned above to close all running apps quickly.

You might also be interested in our seven ways to close apps on Windows 11 PC guide.