Internet Explorer is dead, and there’s no effort has been made by Microsoft to revive its legendary browser although it still being bundled on Windows 10.
With IE having a history of performance and security issues, and considering Microsoft themselves are forcibly removing IE from Windows via cumulative updates, many Windows 10 users are looking to remove IE from their systems completely.
If you never use that browser, it best to just remove it from your computer. In this guide, you will learn how to remove Internet Explorer on Windows 10.
Table of Contents
Remove Internet Explorer via Control Panel
1. Run Control Panel via Start Menu.
2. Go to Programs.
3. Select Turn Windows features on or off.
4. Now, uncheck Internet Explorer 11.
5. Click Yes to confirm.
Restart your computer to save the new setting. After that, Internet Explorer wouldn’t be able to found on Search Menu. Instead, Microsoft may encourage you to switch to the new Edge — which has similar features like Chrome.
Use Add/Remove Programs
The easiest way to uninstall the Internet Explorer application is through the Add or Remove Programs control panel:
- Open Settings > Apps > Apps & features
- Find “Internet Explorer 11”
- Click the “Uninstall” button
This will remove the IE application from your system.
Run Commands to Remove IE
You can also remove Internet Explorer by running some commands in an admin PowerShell or Command Prompt window:
DISM /Online /Disable-Feature /FeatureName:Internet-Explorer-Optional-amd64
Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Internet-Explorer-Optional-amd64 These commands use DISM and PowerShell to disable the IE Windows Feature.
Modify Group Policy Settings
Additionally, admins can push out group policy objects (GPOs) that modify registry settings under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft to fully disable IE notifications and icons.
Why You Should Remove Internet Explorer
There are several good reasons to remove Internet Explorer in Windows 10:
- Internet Explorer is deprecated – Microsoft ended support for IE on June 15, 2022 for most consumers
- Better, more secure browser options – Edge provides improved compatibility, speed, and security
- Performance and security issues – IE has a long history of critical vulnerabilities and is much slower than modern browsers
- Microsoft is removing IE anyway – Windows Updates are progressively disabling IE whether you uninstall or not
Put simply – IE is an outdated, insecure browser that lacks performance and official support. Microsoft themselves recommend organizations move to Edge instead.
Conclusion
While Internet Explorer revolutionized web browsing in the 90s and 2000s, superior browser alternatives make IE obsolete today. By uninstalling IE and disabling associated Windows features, you can prevent future use on Windows 10 devices.
Hopefully this guide gave you the steps and context needed to successfully remove Internet Explorer and move to a faster, safer browsing experience.
