How to enable Focus Mode in Windows Terminal

In this tutorial, we will show you how to enable focus mode in Windows Terminal. When the focus mode is activated in the Windows Terminal app, it hides the tabs and title bar located at the top part (including the maximize, minimize, and close buttons). As a result, only the main window is visible to focus on the content. Those who are looking for a way to activate focus mode in the Windows Terminal can use the options covered in this post below. You will also be able to disable or turn off the focus mode in Windows Terminal whenever needed.

How to enable focus mode in windows terminal

There are three ways to enable focus mode in Windows Terminal on a Windows 11/10 computer. These are:

Using the Command Palette
Set a custom hotkey
Launch Windows Terminal with Focus Mode enabled.

Let us check all these options one by one.

1] Enable Focus Mode using Command Palette in Windows Terminal

Command Palette is a built-in feature of Windows Terminal that lets you execute various actions or commands related to Windows Terminal. Toggle focus mode is one of those commands. Here are the steps to enable focus mode in Windows Terminal using Command Palette:

Open the Terminal app from the Search box, Win+X menu, or any other way on your Windows 11/10 computer
Press the Ctrl+Shift+P hotkey. This will present the Command Palette panel
In the text box of that panel, type toggle focus mode
When the command is visible, hit the Enter key to activate the focus mode.

When you need to disable focus mode, you can look for the same Toggle focus mode command in the Command Palette and execute the command or action.

2] Set a custom hotkey to enable Focus Mode in Windows Terminal

Windows Terminal comes with pre-set hotkeys for various actions like decreasing font size, closing a pane, duplicating a tab, etc., and it also lets you add a custom hotkey for any of the supported actions that are not present in the pre-added list. So, you can use this feature and set a custom hotkey to toggle focus mode. Here are the steps:

Launch the Windows Terminal
Use Ctrl+, hotkey to open the Settings tab
Select Actions from the left section in the Settings tab. Now you see the pre-set hotkeys for different actions
Press the Add new button
Use the drop-down menu, look for the Toggle focus mode option, and select it
Use the available box to enter a custom hotkey. Just make sure the hotkey is not associated with some other action already
Press the Accept button (blue tick mark).

That’s it! Now you can use that hotkey to enable/disable the focus mode in Windows Terminal.

You can also delete or edit that hotkey later when you want. Just access the Actions tab in the Settings tab, click on the Edit icon for the Toggle focus mode hotkey, and then use the Edit box or Delete icon.

3] Launch Windows Terminal with Focus Mode enabled

You can always start Windows Terminal with normal focus mode (resized window for Windows Terminal) or Maximized focus mode (open Windows Terminal with fullscreen mode). For this, follow these steps:

In the Windows Terminal app, open the Settings tab using Ctrl+, hotkey
Select the Startup tab from the left section
Open the drop-down menu for When Terminal starts option
Select the Focus option or Maximized focus option in the drop-down menu
Press the Save button available on the bottom right part.

The next time you launch the Windows Terminal, it will open with the focus mode.

To turn off or disable the Windows Terminal launch with focus mode, you can repeat the steps covered above and select the Default option in the drop-down menu for the When Terminal starts option. Use the Save button.

That’s all!

Also read: How to change Color Scheme for a Profile in Windows Terminal

How do I change Windows Terminal settings?

If you want to customize or change Windows Terminal settings, then use the Ctrl+, hotkey, or click on the Settings option present under the drop-down arrow icon (present next to the Open a new tab icon) on the top section. After that, you can change the appearance, set color schemes, set hotkeys for different actions, and customize settings for an individual profile in Windows Terminal. If anything goes wrong, you can always reset Windows Terminal settings to default.

How do I change the font size in the Terminal window?

If you want to change the font size for a profile in Windows Terminal, then first open the Settings tab. Select a profile (like Windows PowerShell, Command Prompt, etc.), and access the Appearance section. Use the increase and decrease icons available for the font size. Press the Save button. You can also set font face and font weight for a Windows Terminal profile from the Appearance section.