6 Ways to Fix Slow Search on Windows 11

Quick Tips

• Try restarting the Windows Search service or Windows Explorer to fix temporary issues with the search feature.
• Disabling web results from the Start menu search can help speed up searches in Windows.
• Consider rebuilding the Windows search index if nothing works.

Fix 1: Restart the Windows Search Service

The Windows Search service is a small program that provides search results for files, mail, and other important content. If this service encounters a problem, the search tool may not function properly. Here’s what you can do to fix it.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + R to launch the Run command, type services.msc, and press Enter.

Step 2: In the Services window, scroll down to locate Windows Search. Right-click on it and select Restart.

Fix 2: Restart Windows Explorer

Windows Explorer is a process that provides a graphical interface for the Start menu, Taskbar, and File Explorer. If this process malfunctions, the search tool may take longer than expected to fetch results. In most cases, restarting Windows Explorer will help you fix it.

Step 1: Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to launch the Task Manager.

Step 2: In the Processes tab, locate and right-click on Windows Explorer and select Restart.

Fix 3: Exclude Online Office Files From Windows Search

Several users on a Microsoft Community post reported resolving the slow Windows search problem in Windows 11 by excluding Office files stored online from their searches. You can also try it.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + S to open the search menu. Type file explorer options in the box and hit Enter.

Step 2: Under the General tab, uncheck the Show files from Office.com box. Then, hit Apply, followed by OK.

Fix 4: Disable Web Search in the Start Menu

The Windows Search tool allows you to scour the web directly from the Taskbar, in addition to your apps, files, and other documents. However, this feature can also slow down your PC or sometimes cause Windows to crash. Hence, try disabling web search in the Start Menu to see if that improves the situation.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + R to launch the Run dialog box. Type regedit in the box and press Enter.

Step 2: Copy and paste the following path into the address bar to navigate to the Windows key:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows

Step 3: Right-click on the Windows registry key, pick New, and select Key. Name it Explorer.

Step 4: Right-click on Explorer, select New, and choose DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name it DisableSearchBoxSuggestions.

Step 5: Double-click on the newly created DWORD, change the value data to 1, and hit OK.

Restart your PC to see if the search tool can fetch results faster.

Fix 5: Modify Indexing Options

Indexing your PC’s contents allows Windows to locate your files faster. However, if you don’t frequently search for files and folders in a particular drive, excluding them from the indexing list can speed up the process.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + I to launch the Settings app. Select the Privacy & security tab from the left column and pick Searching Windows.

Step 2: Scroll down to click on Advanced indexing options.

Step 3: Click Modify.

Step 4: In the Indexing Locations window, uncheck the folders or drives you want to exclude and hit OK.

Fix 6: Rebuild the Windows Search Index

Lastly, if the search on Windows is still slow, there might be an issue with the search index library on your PC. Try rebuilding the index from scratch. Depending on the number of files being indexed, this process may take a few hours to complete.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + S to open the search menu, type indexing options, and press Enter.

Step 2: Click Advanced.

Step 3: Hit the Rebuild button under Troubleshooting.

Wait for Windows to complete the indexing process. Again, this may take a while, but you can continue using your PC.