The Xbox Game Bar makes capturing screenshots and recording gameplay clips super simple while gaming on a Windows PC. It also allows you to track system performance and chat with your friends. Being a feature-rich tool, it consumes extensive system resources that can negatively impact your system performance.
If you want to save resources and improve game performance, you can turn off the feature in Windows 10 and restrict its background activity in Windows 11. Below, we’ll show you how to do just that.
How to Disable the Xbox Game Bar in Windows 10
Windows 10 lets you disable the Xbox Game Bar completely. To do that, follow these steps:
- Right-click the Windows Start button and open the Settings application.
- Go to the Gaming section.
- Select the Xbox Game Bar tab on the left.
- Turn off the toggle under the Xbox Game Bar.
How to Restrict Xbox Game Bar’s Background Activity in Windows 11
Unlike Windows 10, Windows 11 does not offer an easy way to disable the Xbox Game Bar completely. Therefore, you will have to block the app from running in the background to save system resources. Here’s how you can do that:
- Open the Settings app.
- Select the Apps tab from the left menu.
- Go to Installed apps on the right.
- Search “Xbox” in the search bar.
- Click the three horizontal dots next to the Xbox Game Bar app and select Advanced options.
- Select Never in the dropdown menu under Let this app run in the background.
Like disabling the Xbox Game Bar, you can tweak a few settings to improve your gaming performance on Windows 10 and Windows 11.
Don’t Let the Xbox Game Bar Drain Your System Resources
The Xbox Game Bar is a helpful tool for gamers, but it can have an adverse effect on game performance. Hopefully, you now know how to completely disable the tool in Windows 10 and how to restrict its background activity in Windows 11 to reduce resource consumption.
Once you stop the Xbox Game Bar from stressing your hardware, your games will run more smoothly.