How to Make Windows 10 Taskbar and Start Menu Transparent.

Windows 10 is one robust operating system that gives it users various customization options. Today, I am going to teach you how to activate transparent Taskbar and Start Menu.

However, it is noteworthy to point out that as of when I am writing this post, the transparent Taskbar and Start Menu feature is still under development. So, you need to make some tweak to the Windows 10 Registry before you will be able to use it. Also, as of now, you do not have control over the opacity of the transparent effect feature.

See Also:

• How to Hide the App List in Windows 10’s Start Menu
• How to Enable or Disable Windows 10’s Full-Screen Start Menu
• How to Get the Classic Windows 7 Start Menu in Windows 10

Activating Windows 10 Transparent Taskbar and Start Menu Feature.

From the App list in the Start menu, expand the Windows Administrative Tools folder. Then click on Registry Editor to open it.

In the left pane of the Registry Editor, expand the following folders

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• SOFTWARE
• Microsoft
• Windows
• CurrentVersion
• Explorer
• Advanced

Now, right-click on the Advanced folder in the left pane, hover your mouse on New, and then click on the DWORD (32-BIT) option. The name of the new DWORD file should be UseOLEDTaskbarTransparency.

When you are through creating the UseOLEDTaskbarTransparency file, double-click on it, and then change the Value data from 0 to 1.
Finally, click the OK button, and you are done.

See Also:

• Changing the Location of the Taskbar in Windows 10.
• How to Give the Windows 10 Taskbar a Name
• How to Get Windows 10’s Dark Taskbar and Start Menu Back

Enabling and Disabling the Transparent Effect

Once you are through activating the Transparent effect above, you do not need the Registry Editor again if you which to enable or disable the feature. Do the following instead:

Open the Settings app.
Windows + I is the keyboard shortcut key for opening the Windows 10 Settings app.

Click on Personalization, and in the left pane, click Colors. Now, in the right pane, scroll down to the Transparency effects section. Use the Toggle button to On (enable) or Off (disable) the transparent effect feature.

So, there you have it. Now, your Taskbar and Start Menu will stand out from that of your friends.