Disable Web Search Results in Windows 11

Step by step

1. 1 min

   Open the Group Policy Editor

   Press Win + R to open the Run dialog box. Type gpedit.msc and press Enter to launch the Local Group Policy Editor.

   Note: This tool is only available on Windows Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions.
2. 1 min

   Locate the search policy folder

   In the left-hand pane, navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search. Select the Search folder to view the list of policies in the right-hand pane.

3. 30 sec

   Disable web search results

   Locate the entry titled 'Do not allow web search' and double-click it. Select the 'Enabled' radio button, then click 'Apply' and 'OK'.

   Note: Enabling this setting explicitly forbids the OS from searching the web via the search bar.
4. 30 sec

   Disable cloud search

   In the same folder, find 'Don't search the web or display web results in Search'. Double-click it, select 'Enabled', then click 'Apply' and 'OK'.

5. 30 sec

   Restart the Windows Explorer process

   Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager. Find 'Windows Explorer' in the list, right-click it, and select 'Restart'. Your search bar will now only return local results.

   Note: A full system restart is also effective if you prefer to reboot.