Pin File Explorer & Documents Folders To Start Menu In Windows 11

Documents, Downloads, Pictures, and Videos folders are some of the most frequently accessed folders in the Windows operating system.

There are multiple options to access these folders in Windows 11. These folders usually appear in the Quick Access section of the File Explorer so that users can easily access them. In addition to the File Explorer, one can also use the search to access these locations quickly. But did you know that you can pin Documents, Pictures, Downloads, and Videos folders to Windows 11 Start menu as well?

Yes, Windows 11 allows you to pin Documents, File Explorer, Downloads, Pictures, Videos, Music, Network, and Personal folder (user profile folder) to the Start menu. Users need not pin all these folders to the Start menu. You can pin only folders that you access often.

Once added to the Start menu, these folders appear at the bottom of the Windows 11 Start menu, i.e., between the user account picture and power icon, as seen in the image above.

This guide will show you how to pin Documents, Downloads, File Explorer and Pictures to the Start menu in Windows 11.

Add File Explorer, Documents, and Downloads to Windows 11 Start menu

Step 1: Open the Settings app using search or Windows + I hotkey.

Step 2: In the left pane, click Personalization. Now, on the right side, click Start to see Start menu settings.

Step 3: Click Folders (refer to the picture below) to see a list of folders that can be added to the Start menu.

Step 4: Move the toggle button to the “On” position to add a folder to the Start menu. For instance, to add the File Explorer to the Start menu, move the toggle button next to it to the On position.

That’s it! The folder(s) should now appear at the bottom of the Start menu.

Can I pin any folder to the Start menu in Windows 11?

Like Windows 10, Windows 11 also supports pinning folders to the Start menu. To pin a folder, right-click on a folder and then click the Pin to Start option to add it to the Start menu. The pinned folder shows up in the Pinned apps section of the Start menu.