How to Shut Down Windows 11

Shutting down Windows is not a task that everyone needs to learn, but to your surprise, there are numerous ways to shut down Windows 11. The one way that everybody is familiar with is by forcing the computer to shut down. However, forcing Windows to shut down may stall the overall system. That is why it is advisable to shut down Windows correctly. Moreover, occasionally shutting down the system comes with benefits such as it clears out the temporary files and processes that are slowing down the Windows and allowing the system to roll the updates.

In this article, you will observe various methods to shut down Windows 11.

How to Shut Down Windows 11

Here is the list of methods to shut down Windows 11:

• Method 1: Shut Down Windows 11 via Keyboard Shortcut (Alt + F4)
• Method 2: Shut Down Windows 11 from the Start Menu
• Method 3: Shut Down Windows 11 Using the WinX (Power) Menu
• Method 4: Shut Down Windows 11 via Run Dialog Box
• Method 5: Shut Down Windows 11 by Creating a Shutdown Shortcut
• Method 6: Shut Down Windows 11 Using Command Prompt
• Method 7: Shut Down Windows 11 Using PowerShell
• Method 8: Shutdown Windows 11 by Pressing the Power Button

Method 1: Shut Down Windows 11 via Keyboard Shortcut (Alt + F4)

The quick and easy way to shut down Windows 11 is through the “Alt + F4” keyboard shortcut. To shut down Windows 11 using the shortcut, it is a must to close all the applications or you must be on the Desktop.

To shut down Windows 11 from the keyboard, first:

• Press the “Alt + F4” keyboard shortcut to open the “Shut Down Windows” pop-up window.
• Then, select the “Shut down” from the drop-down list and click the “OK” button:

Method 2: Shut Down Windows 11 from the Start Menu

The easy and standard way of shutting down Windows is through the “Start menu”. To shut down Windows 11 from the Start menu, first:

• Press the Windows key from the keyboard or click on the “Start menu” button.
• Then, click on the “Power” icon and select the “Shut down” button to shut down Windows 11:

Method 3: Shut Down Windows 11 Using the WinX (Power) Menu

The “WinX” or Power menu has powerful options to operate Windows and the option to shut down Windows 11. To shut down Windows 11 via the WinX (Power) menu:

• Press the “Windows + X” shortcut key to open the WinX menu first.
• Then, click on the “Shut down or sign out” option and select “Shut down” to shut down Windows 11:

Method 4: Shut Down Windows 11 via Run Dialog Box

Windows 11 users can also shut down Windows through the “Run” dialog box. For that purpose:

• Press the “Windows + R” shortcut key to open the “Run” dialog box.
• Then, type the given command, and hit the “OK” button:

shutdown /s /f /t 0

Method 5: Shut Down Windows 11 by Creating a Shutdown Shortcut

Windows 11 users can create a shortcut on the Desktop to shut down Windows with just a click. To create a shutdown shortcut, first:

• Right-click on the Desktop’s empty-space, click on the “New” option, and select the “Shortcut” option, this will open a “Create a Shortcut” window:

• Following that type the below code in the input field and hit the “Next” button:

shutdown /s /f /t 0

• Lastly, type the shortcut name and hit the “Finish” button to create the Windows 11 shut-down shortcut:

• Now, to shut down Windows 11, simply double-click on the shortcut.

Method 6: Shut Down Windows 11 Using Command Prompt

You can also shut down Windows 11 via Command Prompt. To shut down Windows 11 using CMD:

• Open “Command Prompt” from the “Start menu”.
• Then, type the given command, and press the “Enter” key to shut down Windows 11:

shutdown /s

Method 7: Shut Down Windows 11 Using PowerShell

PowerShell also allows you to shut down Windows 11, for that reason, simply, launch “PowerShell”, type and execute the given command to shut down Windows 11:

Stop-Computer

Method 8: Shutdown Windows 11 by Pressing the Power Button

The Laptop’s “Power” button is a primary way to turn on and shut down Windows. On some computers pressing the power button one time will make the computer sleep. However, you can instantly shut down Windows just by pressing the power button one time. To set the power button to shut down the Windows, first:

• Launch the “Control Panel” from the Start menu.
• Then, navigate to “Hardware and Sound > Power Options” and click on the “Choose what the power button does” to open the “System Settings” window:

• In the “System Settings” window, locate the “When I press the power button” option, and set both “On battery” and “Plugged in” options to “Shut down”.After that, click on the “Save changes” button:

Conclusion

To shut down Windows 11, first close all the running applications, then press the “Alt + F4” shortcut to open the Shut Down Windows window, select the shutdown from the drop-down list, and click the “OK” button to shut down Windows 11. You can also shut down Windows using PowerShell, Command Prompt, shortcut, power button, run dialog box, Start menu, or WinX menu.