“Bing search suggestions” can refer to two different features. To stop predictions on Bing.com, open Bing Settings and clear See search suggestions as you type. To remove internet results from the Windows 11 Start or taskbar Search box, use Settings > Privacy & security > Search and switch off Web Searches if that control is available on your build.
The Windows switch is being rolled out with a September 2026 update, so it may not appear on every PC yet. Managed Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise editions have a separate Group Policy that blocks web queries and web results at the device level.
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First, identify which Bing feature you want to disable
There are two similarly worded experiences, controlled in different places:
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- Bing.com suggestions: drop-down predictions that appear while you type in the Bing website search box. This is a Bing website preference stored with browser cookies.
- Windows Search web results: internet results or suggestions shown when you search from Start or the taskbar. This is controlled by Windows 11 settings or, on supported managed editions, a device policy.
Turning off one does not automatically turn off the other. If you want a local-only search experience in Windows, use the Windows steps below. If you simply dislike the prediction list on Bing.com, change the Bing setting instead.
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The wording can be confusing because both experiences may show the Bing name, online suggestions or a web section. The location where the list appears is the quickest way to choose the right fix: a browser tab means Bing Settings; the Windows logo, Start menu or taskbar search box means Windows Search.
Disable suggestions on Bing.com
Use this route when the unwanted suggestions appear on the Bing website itself, not in the Start menu.
- Open Bing in your browser and open the site’s Settings page.
- In the Search section, find See search suggestions as you type.
- Clear that checkbox or switch.
- Return to the Bing search box and type a few characters to confirm that the prediction list no longer appears.
Microsoft says the setting remains off until you clear the browser’s cookies or turn suggestions back on. If suggestions return after a browser cleanup, check whether cookies were deleted and repeat the setting change. Private-browsing windows, cookie-blocking extensions and automatic browser cleanup can also prevent a website preference from persisting.
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This option affects autocomplete suggestions displayed by Bing.com as you type. It does not disable the Windows 11 Search box, remove Bing from the browser, or block web queries launched from Start. Those are separate controls.
It is therefore possible to have no predictions on Bing.com while Windows Search still shows online results, or to have Windows Search limited to local content while Bing.com continues to offer its own autocomplete list. Check both locations if you use both search experiences and want both changed.
Turn off web searches in Windows 11 Settings
Use this method when searching from Start or the taskbar produces internet results alongside local files, applications or settings.
- Open Settings. You can select it from Start or press Windows + I.
- Select Privacy & security in the left navigation.
- Open Search.
- Under Show suggested search results, switch Web Searches off.
- Open Start and search for a term that exists both on your computer and online. The expected result is a list focused on local files, settings and apps rather than web results.
The Web Searches switch is reported for the Windows 11 update released in September 2026. Microsoft can change labels and rollout availability, and the control is not guaranteed to be present on every region, edition or build. If you do not see it, that does not mean you missed a hidden submenu; follow the checks in the next section.
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What the Windows switch is intended to do
The reported effect is to make Start and taskbar searches concentrate on content stored on the PC, including files, settings and applications, instead of suggested web results. It is a Windows Search preference, not a change to Bing.com, your default browser or searches you perform directly on a website.
Confirm that the Windows setting worked
- Use a neutral test phrase, such as the name of a local document or an installed application.
- Search from both Start and the taskbar, because the two entry points can refresh at different times.
- Look for local categories such as files, apps and settings. The absence of a web section is the practical confirmation.
- If an old result remains visible, close and reopen the Search panel or sign out and back in before testing again.
A single search is not a reliable test if it matches only online content. Use a phrase tied to a local file or installed app, then try a second query that would normally produce a web result. The expected change is the removal of the web-results portion, not the removal of local results.
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If “Web Searches” is missing
The consumer-facing switch depends on the Windows update and its staged rollout. Work through these checks:
- Open Settings > Windows Update and select Check for updates.
- Install available cumulative or feature updates, restart the PC, and look again under Settings > Privacy & security > Search.
- Check the installed build by opening Settings > System > About and reviewing Windows specifications. A September 2026 update report is the basis for the current Settings path, so older builds may not expose it.
- If the PC is managed by an organization, a policy may control Search and hide or override user-facing options. Contact the administrator rather than changing registry values or applying unofficial scripts.
Do not assume that a missing switch means Search cannot be made local-only. On supported managed editions, the documented policy described below provides an explicit device-level block. On other editions, availability depends on the Windows build and Microsoft’s rollout.
Also avoid treating a differently worded option as an exact substitute. Show search highlights is not the same as Web Searches; it controls changing highlights content, not the documented web-query block. If the switch is absent, record the Windows edition and build before asking an administrator or support technician for the next step.
Block web queries with Group Policy on managed editions
Microsoft documents a policy named Don’t search the web or display web results in Search. It prevents Windows Search from sending queries to the web and from displaying web results.
Supported editions and scope
Microsoft’s applicability table lists Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise editions for this policy. Windows 11 Pro is not listed in that table, so do not assume that the policy is available in the Local Group Policy Editor on Pro. The policy is device-scoped: once enabled, it applies to users of that PC rather than only to one Windows account.
This makes Group Policy the stronger choice for a managed computer where the requirement is an explicit block on both outgoing web queries and displayed web results. It is not merely a way to hide a panel. Because it is device-scoped, an administrator should consider the effect on every account that uses the machine.
Enable the policy
- Sign in with an administrator account.
- Open the Local Group Policy Editor. Press Windows + R, type
gpedit.msc, and press Enter. On a domain-managed computer, the organization may configure the equivalent domain policy instead. - Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search.
- Open Don’t search the web or display web results in Search.
- Select Enabled, choose Apply, and select OK.
- Open an elevated Command Prompt and run
gpupdate /force, or restart Windows so the policy is applied. - Search from Start and confirm that Windows no longer performs web queries or displays web results.
To undo the policy, return to the same setting and choose Not Configured (or Disabled if that is your organization’s intended state), apply the change, run gpupdate /force, and test again. A domain administrator can reapply the policy at the next refresh, so local changes may not persist on a managed PC.
Do not substitute a registry script for this documented setting on a work or school computer. A centrally managed policy can overwrite local changes, and an administrator may need to approve any change to the effective configuration.
Do not confuse web results with Search highlights
Windows 11 also has a Show search highlights control. Search highlights add changing content to Search Home and the Start menu search box. Turning highlights off removes that promotional or informational content, but Microsoft’s documentation treats it as a separate feature from web queries and web results.
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If your goal is only a quieter Search Home, turn off Show search highlights. If your goal is to prevent internet results, use the Web Searches switch or the documented Group Policy. Disabling highlights alone is not documented as a complete web-search block.
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| Option | Where it appears | Who can use it | Scope | Result | Availability caveat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Web Searches switch | Settings > Privacy & security > Search | Users on Windows 11 builds that expose the control | User-facing Windows Search preference | Search focuses on local files, settings and apps instead of suggested web results | Reported with the September 2026 update; rollout and labels can vary |
| Don’t search the web or display web results in Search | Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search | Administrators of supported Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise editions | Device policy | Windows does not perform web queries and does not display web results | Microsoft’s applicability table does not list Pro |
| Bing.com “See search suggestions as you type” | Bing Settings > Search | Anyone using Bing.com | Bing website preference stored through cookies | Removes autocomplete predictions on Bing.com | Clearing cookies or re-enabling the option restores suggestions |
| Show search highlights | Windows Search settings | Windows 11 users | Search Home and the Start menu search box | Removes Search highlights content | Not documented as a complete block on web queries or web results |
The practical comparison is access, scope and effect. The Settings switch is a user-facing option that depends on an updated build. Group Policy is an administrator-controlled, device-level setting and is explicitly described as stopping web queries as well as web results. The Bing.com checkbox affects only autocomplete on that site. Search highlights address presentation content, not the underlying web-search behavior.
Troubleshoot results that keep appearing
The Bing.com prediction list came back
Check the Bing setting first. The disabled state is tied to cookies; clearing them ends the state according to Microsoft. Restore the setting after cookie cleanup, and review browser privacy settings that delete site data when the browser closes. If you test in a private window, remember that it may not retain the preference between sessions.
Windows still shows a web section after switching off Web Searches
Make sure you changed the Windows setting, not the Bing.com checkbox. Close the Search panel, reopen it, and test from Start. If the setting is controlled by an organization, a policy refresh can replace a user preference. Run gpresult /h report.html from an elevated Command Prompt on a managed PC and ask your administrator to interpret the resulting policy report; do not remove organizational policies yourself.
If the switch is visible but the result does not change, verify that the setting was applied to the same Windows account and that you are testing Start or the taskbar rather than a browser tab. Then restart Search or sign out and back in before concluding that the option failed.
The Group Policy Editor cannot find the policy
Check the Windows edition under Settings > System > About. The documented applicability list covers Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise, not Pro. Home and Pro installations may not include the editor or the policy template. Use the consumer Settings switch when it is available, or ask an administrator about the organization’s supported configuration.
Only highlights disappeared, but web results remain
That behavior is expected when Show search highlights is disabled. Highlights and web results are separate. Reopen Privacy & security > Search and look specifically for Web Searches, or have an administrator configure the web-search policy on a supported edition.
Search appears unchanged immediately after a policy update
Policy processing can be delayed. Run gpupdate /force, sign out and back in, or restart Windows, then test with a new query. Domain-managed computers can receive a different policy at the next refresh, so the administrator’s configuration takes precedence.
The setting is absent after updating
Check the Windows specifications and the update history, then restart and look again. The September 2026 report describes the route but does not establish that every region, edition or device receives it at the same time. If it still is not present, use only a supported organizational policy where your edition and administrator allow it; do not claim that the missing control is hidden under another unrelated Search option.
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How to restore Bing suggestions or Windows web results
Restore Bing.com suggestions
- Open Bing Settings.
- Under Search, enable See search suggestions as you type.
- Type in the Bing search box to verify that predictions are displayed.
Restore Windows web results
- Open Settings > Privacy & security > Search.
- Turn Web Searches on if the switch is present.
- If a Group Policy is enabled, open the policy and set it to Not Configured or Disabled according to your administrator’s requirements.
- Run
gpupdate /forceor restart, then test from Start.
If an organization manages the PC, a local change may be temporary or blocked. The effective policy, rather than the visible switch, determines whether web queries are allowed.
Which method should you use?
- Choose Bing Settings when the suggestions are on Bing.com and you still want normal Windows Search behavior.
- Choose the Windows Web Searches switch when you want Start and taskbar searches to concentrate on content stored on the PC, provided your updated build exposes that option.
- Choose Group Policy when you administer a supported Enterprise, Education or IoT Enterprise device and need a device-wide block that explicitly prevents web queries and web results.
- Choose Search highlights settings only when the unwanted material is the highlights panel itself, not internet results.
These controls are independent. Applying the one that matches where the suggestions appear avoids changing browser behavior when the real issue is Windows Search, or changing Windows settings when the prediction list belongs only to Bing.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does turning off Bing.com suggestions disable Bing in Windows Search?
No. The Bing.com checkbox controls autocomplete on the Bing website. Windows Start and taskbar web results use the Windows Web Searches switch or, on supported managed editions, the Search Group Policy.
Why can’t I find Web Searches in Windows 11 Settings?
The control is update- and rollout-dependent. Check Windows Update and your build under Settings > System > About. The September 2026 route may not yet be available on every region, edition or device.
Will turning off Search highlights stop internet results?
Not necessarily. Microsoft documents Search highlights as a separate feature. Use Web Searches or the documented Group Policy when you need to stop web queries and web results.
Can Windows 11 Pro use the documented Group Policy?
Microsoft’s applicability table lists Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise, but not Pro. Do not assume the policy is available on Pro; use the consumer switch when present or consult the device administrator.
What happens when the Group Policy is enabled?
The policy named Don’t search the web or display web results in Search is documented to prevent web queries and prevent web results from being displayed. It applies at the device level.
Why did Bing suggestions return after I disabled them?
Microsoft says the Bing preference remains off until cookies are cleared or suggestions are enabled again. Restore the setting after browser cleanup and review automatic cookie deletion or private browsing.
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How do I know whether the Windows switch worked?
Search from Start or the taskbar for a local file or installed app, then try a phrase that would normally produce web results. Results should focus on local files, settings and apps, without a web-results section.
Can I override a work or school Search policy?
A domain or device administrator can reapply policy and override a user preference. Contact the administrator rather than changing registry values or using unofficial scripts.
The Bottom Line
Use Bing Settings > Search to clear See search suggestions as you type when the predictions are on Bing.com. For Start or taskbar results, turn off Web Searches under Settings > Privacy & security > Search when your updated Windows 11 build provides it. On supported Enterprise, Education and IoT Enterprise devices, administrators can enable Don’t search the web or display web results in Search for a device-wide block. Search highlights are a separate setting.
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