To disable News and Interests on Windows 11, open Registry Editor and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh. Create a new DWORD (32-bit) value named AllowNewsAndInterests, set the value data to 0, and restart your PC. This applies a policy-level block that fully disables the feature instead of just hiding the Widgets button.
Applies to: Windows 11 (23H2, 24H2, 25H2) | Last updated: May 18, 2026
Key Takeaways
- News and Interests runs through the Widgets panel on Windows 11 and pulls content from Microsoft’s servers in the background, even when you never open it.
- The fix is a single DWORD —
AllowNewsAndInterestsset to0underHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh. This is a policy-level disable, not just a UI toggle. - You need to restart after applying the change. A sign-out is not enough — the policy is read at boot.
- One-line
reg addcommand works too — you can paste a single line into an admin Terminal instead of clicking through Registry Editor. - To skip the registry entirely, Winhance applies this tweak (and many others) with a single toggle.
Quick Steps
- Press Windows + R, type
regedit, and press Enter. - Navigate to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh. Create theDshkey if it does not exist. - Right-click in the right pane and choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
- Name it
AllowNewsAndInterestsand set the value data to0. - Restart your PC. News and Interests will no longer load.
Why Disable News and Interests on Windows 11?
News and Interests is the feed of news, weather, stocks, and sports content that Windows 11 surfaces through the Widgets panel. Even if you never click the Widgets icon, the feature is still running in the background, contacting Microsoft’s servers to refresh that content on a schedule.
In my computer repair shop, cleaning this up after a fresh Windows install was part of the standard routine — especially on lower-spec machines where every bit of background activity matters. If you are already trimming the system, it pairs well with disabling background apps on Windows 11 via the registry and turning off Windows Spotlight.
The registry method matters because it is more thorough than simply hiding the Widgets button on the taskbar. The taskbar toggle removes the icon, but the underlying service keeps running. Setting the AllowNewsAndInterests policy to 0 tells Windows to disable the feature itself, and the change holds up across most Windows updates.
How to Disable News and Interests Using Registry Editor
Follow these steps exactly. The registry path used here is a policy key, so it does not exist on a fresh Windows 11 install — you will create it as part of the process.
Step 1: Open Registry Editor
Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog. Type regedit and press Enter. If User Account Control prompts you, click Yes to allow Registry Editor to open with administrator rights.
Step 2: Navigate to the Policy Path
Paste the following path into the Registry Editor address bar at the top of the window and press Enter:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\DshIf the Dsh key does not exist, that is normal — most Windows 11 installations do not have it by default. Right-click the Microsoft folder in the left panel, choose New > Key, and name the new key Dsh exactly as shown.
Step 3: Create the AllowNewsAndInterests DWORD
Click the Dsh key on the left so it is selected. Right-click anywhere in the empty white space on the right pane and choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new entry AllowNewsAndInterests and press Enter.
Step 4: Set the Value Data to 0
Double-click AllowNewsAndInterests to open its properties. Change the value data from 1 (or blank) to 0 and click OK. A value of 0 instructs Windows to disable News and Interests at the policy level, which is the strongest form of disable short of removing the Widgets app entirely.
Step 5: Restart Your PC
Close Registry Editor and do a full restart — not just a sign-out. The Widgets process reads this policy at boot, and a sign-out alone will not always pick up the change. After the reboot, News and Interests will be inactive on your system.
One-Line Command to Disable News and Interests
If you would rather skip the manual clicks, you can apply the exact same registry change with a single command. Right-click the Start button, open Terminal (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin), and run:
reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh" /v AllowNewsAndInterests /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /fThe /f flag forces the change without a confirmation prompt, and reg add automatically creates the Dsh key if it is missing. This command works in both Command Prompt and PowerShell. After it completes, restart your PC for the policy to take effect.
Tip: If you manage multiple PCs, save the
reg addcommand in a.batfile and run it as administrator on each machine. It is faster than walking through Registry Editor and the result is identical.
Skip the Registry With Winhance
If you would rather avoid the registry entirely, I built a free tool called Winhance that applies this kind of tweak with a single toggle. Winhance handles the same policy-level changes covered here — News and Interests, background apps, telemetry, Advertising ID, and many more — through a clean interface, with everything reversible if you change your mind.
If you are setting up a fresh Windows install and want these tweaks applied automatically before you ever reach the desktop, take a look at UnattendedWinstall — it bakes the registry changes into the answer file so the system arrives pre-configured.
How to Re-Enable News and Interests
If you want the feature back, you have two options. The first is to flip the value: go back to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh in Registry Editor, double-click AllowNewsAndInterests, change the value data to 1, and restart.
The second option is to delete the AllowNewsAndInterests DWORD entirely, which restores the Windows default behavior. To do that with one command, run this in an admin Terminal:
reg delete "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh" /v AllowNewsAndInterests /fRestart your PC and News and Interests will run normally again.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
The Dsh key does not exist in the registry. That is expected on a clean Windows 11 install — the key is created the first time a policy targets it. Right-click the Microsoft folder under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies, choose New > Key, and name it Dsh. Alternatively, the reg add command above creates the key for you automatically.
Access denied when editing the registry. Registry Editor needs administrator rights to write to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Close Registry Editor, search for regedit in the Start menu, right-click the result, and choose Run as administrator.
News and Interests still appears after the change. Confirm you did a full restart and not just a sign-out. Then double-check that the value data on AllowNewsAndInterests is exactly 0 — a typo that leaves it at 1 means the policy is explicitly allowing the feature instead of blocking it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to edit the registry to disable News and Interests?
Yes. You are creating a policy-level registry key under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Dsh, which is the exact same kind of key IT administrators use to manage business PCs. It only affects the News and Interests feature — it does not touch Windows stability, other features, or your data.
Will this change survive Windows feature updates?
In most cases, yes. Policy keys like AllowNewsAndInterests are generally preserved across cumulative and feature updates. That said, major version upgrades (for example, moving from 23H2 to 25H2) can occasionally reset policy keys, so it is worth checking the value after a big update and reapplying it if needed.
Does disabling News and Interests also stop Windows from tracking me?
No, it only stops the News and Interests feed from pulling content. Windows still collects telemetry and other diagnostic data in the background. To reduce data collection more broadly, also disable Windows telemetry via the registry and turn off the Windows Advertising ID. Winhance applies all of these together with one click.
Can I disable News and Interests without using the registry?
You can hide the Widgets button by right-clicking the taskbar, choosing Taskbar settings, and toggling Widgets off. That only hides the icon, though — the underlying service still runs and continues to fetch content. The registry method in this guide (or the equivalent Winhance toggle) is the only way to disable the feature itself.
Does this method work on Windows 10?
No. Windows 10 had its own version of News and Interests that lived directly on the taskbar and used a different registry path. The Dsh policy key is specific to Windows 11’s Widgets-based implementation, so this guide is Windows 11 only.
Can I deploy this to multiple PCs at once?
Yes. Save the reg add command from earlier in this guide into a .bat file and run it as administrator on each PC. For unattended Windows installs, the same registry change can be baked directly into the answer file using UnattendedWinstall, so the policy is in place from the first boot.
