If Windows 10 and Windows 11 Start Menu is not working or Start Menu does not open or Start Button is not working, then this post will help you. If your Start Menu is not working, here are a few troubleshooting steps you may want to try out.
Start Menu does not open or Start Button not working
Before you proceed, you may want to restart the Start Menu process or restart the explorer.exe process and see if that helps. If it doesn’t, create a system restore point first, so that you can revert back, if you find that the results are not what you expected. Having done that, follow these suggestions:
- Restart Start process and see
- Run Windows Start Menu Troubleshooter
- Run System File Checker
- Re-register the Shell experience
- Register all app packages
- Repair Windows System Image
- Toggle Full Screen Start Menu
- Check with a new user account
- Uninstall the problematic Update and then hide it
- Other suggestions.
You will need admin permission to resolve this.
Fix Start Menu not working in Windows 11/10
1] Restart Start process and see
There is a separate process available for Start Menu — StartMenuExperienceHost.exe. Restart Start Menu and see if that helps.
2] Run Windows Start Menu Troubleshooter
Download and run the Windows 11/10 Start Menu Troubleshooter from Microsoft. It should fix all the related problems.
3] Run System File Checker
Run the following command in an elevated command prompt, to run the System File Checker.
sfc /scannow
Restart after the scan is over and see if it helped. The command will replace any corrupt file with a new one, which will ensure that the Start menu works again.
4] Re-register the Shell experience
Open an elevated PowerShell window and execute the following command:
Get-appxpackage -all *shellexperience* -packagetype bundle |% {add-appxpackage -register -disabledevelopmentmode ($_.installlocation + “\appxmetadata\appxbundlemanifest.xml”)}
See if this has helped.
5] Register all app packages
To open an elevated PowerShell prompt, type PowerShell in taskbar Search, and in the result ‘Windows Powershell’ which appears, right-click and select Run as administrator. Type the following and press Enter:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
You may do this, to open a Command Prompt or Powershell window. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open the Task Manager. Click on File menu > Run new task. To open a command prompt window, type cmd. To open a PowerShell prompt, type powershell. Remember to check the Create this task with the administrative privileges check-box. Then hit Enter.
6] Repair Windows System Image
Open an elevated CMD copy-paste the following and hit Enter
Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
Restart after the scan is over and see if it helped. This will Repair the Windows Image.
7] Toggle Full Screen Start Menu
Make Start full screen and back. Enable Tablet Mode and Start Screen and then go back. See if this toggling has helped.
8] Check with a new user account
Create a new user and see if it helps. To do this, open an elevated command prompt window, type the following, and hit Enter:
net user username /add
Here username is your new user name. You will see The command completed successfully message. Log into your new account and see if it has resolved your issue.
9] Uninstall Problematic Update
Windows allows you to uninstall the problematic Update and then hide it.
19] Other Suggestions
This post will help you if Windows 11/10 Start Menu Tile Database is corrupt. If Cortana or Taskbar search is not working, open Task Manager > File menu > Run new task. Type powershell and select the Create this task with administrative privileges checkbox and click OK. See this post if your Taskbar is not working in Windows 11/10.
Let us know if anything worked for you or if you have any suggestions to make for the benefit of others.
TIP: This post will help you if your WinX Menu is not working in Windows 11/10.
Nothing happens when I press the Start Button
Some keyboards come with a lock button that disables the Start button i.e. nothing will happen no matter how many times you press it. They are usually available on the gaming keyboard. So look for a button that has a lock icon on it, and press it once.
Related: Windows Start Menu does not close and remains frozen
I am not able to click on the apps on Start Menu
The easy way to fix this is using the Task Manager, which can restart the Windows File Explorer. Use Ctrl + Shift + Esc to launch Task Manager. Then locate the File Explorer, right-click on it and kill the process. It should relaunch the File Explorer. If not, Click on File > Run new Task > Type explorer.exe, and press the Enter key.
