How to get started with PowerToys Command Palette on Windows 11 — an answer to macOS Spotlight for Windows PCs

The Command Palette is a feature available on Windows 11 through PowerToys designed for advanced users who want faster access to apps, settings, and system tools through a single, lightweight interface. It's usually compared to macOS Spotlight because it offers a similar keyboard experience for quickly finding and launching items.

When using Command Palette, with just a few keystrokes, you can launch apps, open settings, and trigger actions with near-instant results, often faster and more consistent than Windows Search or navigating through File Explorer.

Perhaps the best feature is its extensibility. The tool ships with a solid set of built-in extensions, and you can install additional extensions directly from within the palette to unlock new capabilities without leaving your workflow.

Beyond app launching, Command Palette can run system commands, making it possible to perform common tasks without opening Command Prompt or PowerShell.

While its core purpose is to serve as an app and settings launcher, an optional extension also enables full system search, allowing you to locate files, apps, and other content on your computer. The only limitation is that searches require an extra step to specify the search type before accessing the results.

In this how-to guide, I'll outline the steps to get the most out of this Spotlight-like feature that you can use on Windows 11.

How to install Command Palette on Windows 11

To access the Command Palette, you have to install PowerToys with these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt (or PowerShell), right-click the top result, and choose the Run as administrator option.
3. Type the following command to install PowerToys and press Enter: winget install --id Microsoft.PowerToys

Once you complete the steps, the tool will install on your computer, and then you'll have access to the Command Palette.

Alternatively, you can always install the tool from the PowerToys page in the Microsoft Store. You only need to click the "Install" button on the web page, then, from the Store, click the "Install" button again.

How to configure Command Palette on Windows 11

To manage the Command Palette settings, use these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for PowerToys and click the top result to open the app.
3. Click on System Tools.
4. Click on Command Palette.
5. Turn on the "Enable Command Palette" toggle switch (if applicable).

6. Click on Settings.
7. Customize the activation and behavior features (as necessary).

While on the page, you can customize various aspects of the Command Palette, such as the shortcut to launch the experience, the preferred monitor, and more.

For example, if you don't like the default keyboard shortcut to bring up the tool, you can use the "Activation key" setting to configure an easier-to-use shortcut.

Although the logical choice is show the interface in the monitor where the mouse is located, it's possible to show the Command Palette surface on any assigned monitor using the "Preferred monitor position" setting.

In the "Activation" settings, you can also control other settings for full-screen mode, home page, and search highlight.

In the "Behavior" section, it's possible to control some aspects of the experience. For example, you can show app details during each, the backspace button to perform a back action, single-click activation when interacting with items, and it's possible to control whether the icon appears in the System Tray.

On the "Extensions" page, you can control a slew of built-in extensions for Command Palette. At the time of this writing, the tool offers 16 extensions, ranging from add-ons to use the tool as a calculator, web results, clipboard history, bookmarks, app installer, and more.

You can not only turn extensions on or off, but also customize them based on their capabilities. For example, Command Palette can show files and web results, but only if the "File search" and "Web Search" extensions are enabled.

Also, the "WinGet" extensions let you search for and install apps from GitHub and the Microsoft Store using the Windows Package Manager tool directly from the Command Palette.

Furthermore, the "Window Walker" works as a high-speed, text-based alternative to the traditional "Alt + Tab" window switcher, but inside Command Palette.

Instead of cycling through every open window visually, Window Walker lets you search for specific windows by application name (for example, "Chrome") or window title (for example, the name of a specific document or website).

How to use Command Palette on Windows 11

To get started with Command Palette, use the following steps:

1. (Option 1) Open Start.
2. Search for Command Palette and click the top result to launch the app.
3. (Option 2) Click the Command Palette icon from the Taskbar's System Tray.
4. (Option 3) Use the "Windows key + Alt + Space" keyboard shortcut (assuming the default shortcut is configured on the tool).

Once in the experience, you can search for virtually anything, including apps, settings, and files, and even start a web search. However, depending on the extensions enabled in the utility, you can perform more advanced queries, and here are a few examples.

Actions keywords

While in Command Palette, you can type "=" followed by the equation to use the tool as a calculator. For example, =2+2.

If you type the "<" (less-than) character followed by a keyword, you'll invoke the "Window Walker" extension that shows open windows matching the query.

As I mentioned previously, Windows Walker is a text-based alternative to the system's app switcher. Instead of cycling through every open window visually, this extension lets you search for specific windows by app name (for example, "Chrome") or window title (for example, the name of a specific document or website).

If you want to run a specific command, such as ping or cmd, you can use the ">" (greater-than) character followed by the command. For example, > ping.

To search and install applications from Command Palette, type "winget," select the item from the list, search for the app name, select the app, and press "Enter" to install it.

If you use the "Clipboard History" feature on Windows 11, you can also find items in your history by invoking the Command Palette, searching, and selecting "Clipboard history."

You can also find Windows 11 system settings. For example, you can start a query using "$" followed by the settings' query, such as $ display.

Instant system commands

You can trigger system-level actions without ever touching your mouse. For example, you can invoke Lock, Sleep, Hibernate, Shutdown, Restart, or Sign Out.

Even further, you can use the "Empty Recycle Bin" to quickly free up space on your computer.

Contextual power actions

When you find a result (like a file or an app), don't just hit "Enter." Use these modifiers. For instance, the "Ctrl + Shift + Enter" keyboard shortcut opens the selected app with administrator privileges.

If you use the "Ctrl + Shift + E" keyboard shortcut, it opens the folder containing the file you just found, and the "Ctrl + C" shortcut copies the file path or the result.

Web searches

You can use the "??" hotkey to start a web search, but results will open in the web browser, not in Command Palette.

While "??" is the default for web searching, you can use community plugins or custom snippets to create shortcuts for specific sites. For example, if you install the WebSearchShortcut plugin from the Microsoft Store, you can create custom shortcuts to search specific sites.

By default, the extension has custom shortcuts for Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, YouTube, and other sites, but you can add any shortcut for virtually any site.

If you want to build a custom search shortcut, open the Command Palette, search for "Add Search Shortcut," select the item from the result, complete the configuration by providing the required information, and then save it.

Whenever you need to use your shortcut, type the name of the shortcut in the bar, followed by a search query, and the results will appear in the web browser.

You can also check the developers' page for additional details about this extension.

If you want to find additional extensions while in the tool, type "Install Command Palette extensions," select the item in the result, select it, and double-click it to install.

Usually, you can uninstall extensions from the Command Palette by right-clicking on the extension and selecting the Uninstall option. Some extensions can be uninstalled from the Settings > Apps > Installed apps, like regular applications.

Registry browser

The Windows Registry extension in the PowerToys Command Palette is perhaps one of the most powerful tools (if you're a savvy user). It lets you navigate the Registry entirely with your keyboard.

By default, the Registry plugin is triggered by the colon ":" symbol. For example, if you type ": hkcu" to find results within HKEY_CURRENT_USER.

You can type full or partial paths like ": HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft" to jump to a specific path.

As you type, the tool suggests subkeys. You can use the arrow keys to drill down into the Registry tree without ever opening the Editor.

Once you find the key you want, pressing "Enter" opens the Registry and jumps directly to that location.

So, why use this? The standard Registry Editor does not have a "search as you type" feature for paths. You usually have to paste a path into the address bar or click through folders. The Command Palette turns the Registry into a searchable database.

PowerToys' Command Palette is a fantastic tool for launching apps and system settings. It can also replace Windows Search, but it requires an extra step to display these types of results.

Even further, the tool is super customizable, and its capabilities can be extended using extensions.

The tool is available in PowerToys and works on x64 and ARM64 devices. However, this is not the only tool, as you can choose from several other utilities to replace Windows Search.

FAQs about Command Palette on Windows 11

These are common questions regarding the configuration and usage of PowerToys Command Palette on Windows 11.

More resources

Explore more in-depth how-to guides, troubleshooting advice, and essential tips to get the most out of Windows 11 and 10. Start browsing here:

• Windows 11 on Windows Central — All you need to know
• Windows 10 on Windows Central — All you need to know

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