Moving the Taskbar to a Different Edge of the Screen

The Taskbar is an important part of the Windows interface. It normally appears at the bottom of the screen and includes the Start menu button, links to frequently used programs, Taskbar buttons for currently running programs, and a Notification area that includes lots of configuration icons.

You can instruct Windows to place the Taskbar along a different edge of the screen, if you are so inclined. To move the Taskbar to a different location, follow these steps on a Windows 10 system:

1. Right-click somewhere within a blank area of the Taskbar. (Don't right-click one of the icons on the Taskbar; right-click an area that contains no icons.) Windows displays a Context menu.
2. Choose Taskbar Settings from the Context menu. Windows 10 displays the Taskbar area of the Settings dialog box. (See Figure 1.)



Figure 1. The Taskbar screen.

3. Use the Taskbar Location on Screen drop-down list to choose where the Taskbar should appear: Bottom, Top, Left, or Right.
4. Click the X in the upper-right corner to close the Settings dialog box.

The Taskbar is immediately moved to the edge of the screen you indicated in step 3.

If you are using Windows 7 or Windows 8, follow these steps:

1. Right click somewhere within a blank area of the Taskbar. (Don't right-click one of the icons on the Taskbar; right-click an area that contains no icons.) Windows displays a Context menu.
2. Choose Properties from the Context menu. Windows 7 displays the Taskbar tab of the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box. Windows 8 displays the Taskbar tab of the Taskbar and Navigation Properties dialog box. (See Figure 2.)



Figure 2. The Taskbar tab of the Taskbar and Navigation Properties dialog box.

3. Use the Taskbar Location on Screen drop-down list to choose where the Taskbar should appear: Bottom, Top, Left, or Right.
4. Click OK.

The Taskbar is immediately moved to the edge of the screen you indicated in step 3.

There is another way to move the Taskbar, as well, regardless of which version of Windows you are using. All you need to do is to unlock the Taskbar on the Taskbar tab of the dialog box shown above if you are using Windows 7 or Windows 8. If you are using Windows 10, then click on the Lock the Taskbar button to turn it Off. Then you can "drag and drop" the Taskbar to any of the four screen edges. Just point to an unused area of the Taskbar, click and hold the mouse button, and drag the Taskbar to the desired edge. When you release the mouse button, the Taskbar stays at that location.

 This tip (10860) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.