With Windows 11, the Start Menu is now centered, though you can still move it to the left if you like. If you’re wondering whether users can align the icons to the center in Windows 10, well, the answer is Yes, but not completely. This post will guide you on how you can center align taskbar icons in Windows 10. Post that, it will look pretty similar to the one seen on Windows 11.
Although Windows 10 offers extensive customization options, the operating system has not experimented with some of the most basic elements of its interface, such as the Taskbar and the Start Search Menu. For close to two decades, both of these UI elements have been left-aligned. On the other hand, Mac OS, Chrome OS, and now even Windows 11 have their app docks centered, which certainly does feel and look much more utilitarian and symmetrical.
How to Center Align Taskbar Icons Windows 10
Users can follow various methods to center Taskbar icons in Windows 10
- Manually Move Taskbar Icons to Center
- Use TaskbarX
1] Manually Move Taskbar Icons to Center
Windows offers its users the option to customize the Taskbar. Some options include hiding or unhiding the taskbar, enabling the widget for Cortana, locking the taskbar, and more. Here’s how you can manually move the taskbar icons to the center.
- On the Desktop, right-click on the taskbar and make sure that the option to Lock the Taskbar is disabled.
- Next, right-click again, but choose Toolbars -> and enable Links from the drop-down menu.
- With this, you’ll find a new Links option appearing on the Taskbar at the right. Now drag and drop the handlebar icon present left to the Links menu to the bottom left corner.
- This will, in turn, push the icons present in the Taskbar to the right. Now, similarly, drag and drop the handlebar for the icons to the center of the taskbar.
- Now right-click on the Taskbar again and Lock the Taskbar.
Note that: While this works great, anytime you add a new icon to the taskbar, the symmetry will be disturbed, and you will need to adjust it once again.
2] Use TaskbarX
TaskbarX gives users complete control over the position of the taskbar icons.
The application provides users with a feel similar to the ones seen on Windows 11. Unlike moving icons manually, TaskbarX will move the icons to the center or user-given position when an icon gets added or removed from the taskbar.
There’s an option to choose between a variety of different animations and their speeds. The center position can also be changed to bring your icons more to the left or right based on the center position. Using the application is as simple as downloading the files and launching the application. There’s also a configurator bundled, which helps with customizations.
This concludes our guide on how to center the Taskbar icons in Windows 10. While the native Windows’s way happens to get the job done, third-party applications offer animations, automatic recentering, and more which is absolutely great. That said, do let us know your preferences for the Taskbar by dropping a comment down below.
