Windows 11 Remove Chat Button from Taskbar

This post will show you how to add or remove the Chat button from the taskbar on Windows 11. The Chat button in Windows 11 integrates Microsoft Teams directly into the taskbar. It allows you quickly chat with your friends using Teams (RIP Skype) using text messages, voice, or video calls. All that is needed is to click the Chat button and start a conversation. Apart from traditional Task View and Search buttons, Windows 11 comes with new Widgets and Chat buttons by default. We have already covered how to add or remove the Widgets button from the taskbar in Windows 11. Now it is time to talk about that new Chat button.

While the idea of having such a Chat button itself sounds nice, not all users like it when Microsoft clutters the taskbar with unnecessary or unwanted apps and services. The recent addition of the News and Interests panel to Windows 10 was already controversial enough. Now Microsoft tries to force Windows 11 users to jump on to Microsoft Teams. Do not want to participate? Here is how to remove the Chat button from the taskbar in Windows 11.

Remove Chat Button from Taskbar in Windows 11

1. Right-click the Chat button on the taskbar.
2. Select the only option available: Hide from Taskbar.
3. The Chat icon will disappear from the taskbar.

That is it; the Chat button is gone. It is worth mentioning that you do not actually delete the Microsoft Teams app - you just remove it from the taskbar. You can restore the Chat button at any time. We will review this in a dedicated chapter.

The above option is the quickest method to remove the Chat button in Windows 11, but there is one more way to do that.

Using Settings

1. Press Win + I to open Settings.
2. Go to the Personalization section and click Taskbar.
3. In the Taskbar Items list, find the Chat button and disable it. That will remove the Chat button right away.

Add the Chat button to the taskbar in Windows 11

Adding the Chat button to the taskbar in Windows 11 is identical to how you remove it.  To add the Chat button to the taskbar, do the following.

1. Open Windows Settings; press Win + I for that.
2. Go to Personalization > Taskbar.
3. Enable the Chat toggle.

Done!

Note: At the time of publishing this article, Microsoft is slowly rolling out new Teams integration for Windows 11. That means you might not get it right away, as the Chat button is part of a "Controlled Feature Rollout."

The rollout is staged, which means only some Windows Insiders can test the feature right now. If you are eager to try out Microsoft Teams integration in Windows 11, you can force-enable it using a simple command in a third-party tool called ViveTool.

Force-enable Chat button on the taskbar in Windows 11

1. Download the ViveTool app from its repository on GitHub and extract it into any folder.
2. Next, run Windows Terminal as Administrator in Windows 11.
3. Go to the folder with ViveTool using the CD Here is an example: cd  C:\Users\Winaero\Desktop\Vivetool.
4. Now enter the following command: ViVeTool addconfig 31371065 2. Press Enter to execute the command.
5. Windows Terminal should notify you about a successful feature configuration set.
6. All that is left is to restart your computer. After you log back in, Windows 11 will greet you with a new Chat button right in the middle of the taskbar.

Now you can click the Chat button and proceed with installing Microsoft Teams app. If this doesn't happen, you can download the Microsoft Teams MSIX file from official Microsoft Servers to install the app manually.

Ready for use bat file

You can save yourself few clicks by using a dedicated bat-file that will do all the job for you. Do the following.

1. Download this ZIP archive and extract it into any folder.
2. Next, run the ms_teams.bat file as an Administrator. Right-click it and select Run as Administrator.
3. Restart your computer.

It is worth mentioning that Microsoft engineers do not recommend enabling hidden features using ViveTool. But the practice showed that there is no harm in force-enabling capabilities Microsoft rolls out "in waves." Of course, if you do not want to upset Windows developers, you can just sit back and wait for your computer to get the feature.

Credit for the latter finding goes to @WithinRafael.

That's it!