How to Minimize All Windows at Once on Windows

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Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: May 5, 2025 Tested

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This wikiHow teaches you four ways to minimize all windows at once when you’re using Windows.

Steps

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1. 
   1
   Press ⊞ Win+D. The ⊞ Win (Windows) key is near the bottom-left corner of the keyboard.

   • This shortcut quickly hides all open windows and shows the desktop.
2. 
   2
   Press ⊞ Win+M. The ⊞ Win (Windows) key is near the bottom-left corner of the keyboard.

   • The difference between ⊞ Win+M and ⊞ Win+D is that ⊞ Win+M will use the standard animations when minimizing windows, which may not be as fast. ⊞ Win+M does not minimize windowed fullscreen applications/games.
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3. 
   3
   Right-click the taskbar and select Show the desktop. This quickly hides all open windows and shows the desktop.
4. 
   4
   Click the desktop button. This button is the thin vertical strip on the far-right edge of the taskbar. It's thin and the same color as the rest of the taskbar, but shaded different. All windows will disappear to display the desktop.

   • This only works on Windows 10.
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