Good news for multitaskers: Microsoft is gradually rolling out taskbar scaling to squeeze in as many icons as possible in the latest Windows 11 Insider build

A Windows 11 taskbar with a lot of icons, on a Windows 11 background

(Image credit: Microsoft)

I love me a full taskbar. Give me the option to pin an app I'll use often, and boy howdy will I pin a lot of apps. I don't think I've filled it up entirely in many years, though, but if that sounds like you then you'll want to keep an eye on the latest Windows Insider Canary build—as Microsoft says it's rolling out taskbar icon scaling to let you squeeze in as many as your heart desires.

"With taskbar icon scaling, when your taskbar starts to get crowded with pinned or open apps, the icons will automatically scale down to a smaller size", says MS. "This means you can keep more apps visible and accessible without the need to dive into a secondary menu. It’s all about making your workflow smoother and more efficient."

Mmm, delicious efficiency. MS has provided a small selection of settings to play with for the feature, so you can configure icons to become smaller as they stack up, stay small forever, or never, ever become smaller than standard. That should nip a few "not on my desktop" complaints in the bud, at the very least.

For now, it's only coming to Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27898—which I don't currently have access to, so I can't test it for myself. Boo. Still, those lucky few who already have access will be able to adjust all the settings above with a right-click on the taskbar, under "Taskbar settings > Taskbar behaviours."

It's not clear if the scaling is enabled by default, so should you find your taskbar icons decreasing like they've been hit with a comic book villain's plot-defying shrink ray, this'll be why. Personally, I'm looking forward to making the most of every megabyte of RAM my machine possesses when the latest build hits.

"Are you sure you want to open all these programs at once?", my PC will say. Yes. Yes, I am. Bring on the miniature icons. After all, when was the last time your taskbar did something beyond the mundane?

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Andy built his first gaming PC at the tender age of 12, when IDE cables were a thing and high resolution wasn't—and he hasn't stopped since. Now working as a hardware writer for PC Gamer, Andy's been jumping around the world attending product launches and trade shows, all the while reviewing every bit of PC hardware he can get his hands on. You name it, if it's interesting hardware he'll write words about it, with opinions and everything.

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