Press F11 to go full screen in Chrome, Edge and other browsers on Windows 11, and press F11 again to come back.
Other apps use their own key: Win + Shift + Enter for UWP apps, Alt + Enter in Windows Terminal, F in YouTube and VLC, and F5 in PowerPoint. The sections below cover each one, how to exit, and what to check when nothing happens.
Quick answer: Windows 11 full-screen shortcuts
Match the app in front of you to a row and press the key. Each key toggles, so the same press usually takes you back out.
| What is on screen | Press this | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome, Edge or another browser | F11 | Tabs, address bar and taskbar disappear; the page fills the display |
| An app with its own full-screen button or menu item | The Full screen button or menu entry | The app switches itself to full screen |
| A Universal Windows Platform (UWP) app from the Microsoft Store | Win + Shift + Enter | Windows makes the active app full screen |
| Windows Terminal | Alt + Enter or F11 | The terminal toggles between full screen and its normal window size |
| A video or slideshow | F on YouTube and in VLC, F5 in PowerPoint | The video or slides fill the screen until you press Esc |
If you only want the window as big as possible with the taskbar still showing, press Win + Up arrow to maximize it instead.
1. Use F11 to go full screen in browsers and File Explorer
Google documents F11 as the full-screen key for Chrome on Windows, and Microsoft lists F11 as Enter full screen (toggle) in Edge. The key is the same on Windows 10.
- Click anywhere inside the browser window so it is the active window.
- Press F11. The tab strip, address bar and Windows taskbar disappear.
- Press F11 again to return to the normal window. In Chrome, pressing and holding Esc also exits.
- In File Explorer, press F11 to maximize the active Explorer window. Microsoft describes this key as Maximize or minimize the active window for File Explorer.
File Explorer does not hide its own address bar and toolbar the way a browser does. F11 there gives you the largest Explorer window, not a chrome-free view.
If F11 changes the volume or brightness on your laptop instead, see the troubleshooting section below.
2. Use the app’s full-screen button or menu option
Use this route when you prefer the mouse, or when your keyboard's F11 key does something else. Chrome puts full screen in its main menu, next to the zoom controls.
- In Chrome, select More (the three dots) at the top right.
- Next to Zoom, select the Full screen icon.
- In a video player, select the Full screen icon in the player controls, usually at the bottom right of the video.
- In any other app, open its View menu and look for a Full screen entry.
Presentation apps such as PowerPoint go full screen when a slide show starts; the keys for that are in method 5.
3. Use Win + Shift + Enter for Microsoft Store-style apps
Microsoft's keyboard shortcut list says Win + Shift + Enter makes the active window full screen when it is a Universal Windows Platform (UWP) app. Many built-in and Microsoft Store apps are UWP apps; desktop programs such as Chrome are not.
- Open the app and click inside it so it is the active window.
- Press Win + Shift + Enter together.
- The app's title bar and the taskbar disappear and the app fills the display.
- Press Win + Shift + Enter again to put the app back in its window.
If nothing happens, the app is a classic desktop program rather than a UWP app. Use its own full-screen option or F11 instead.
This is different from maximizing: Win + Up arrow enlarges the window but keeps the title bar and taskbar in view.
4. Use Alt + Enter for games, terminals, and some apps
Alt + Enter is not a Windows-wide full-screen key. Each app decides what it does, and in File Explorer the same keys open Properties for the selected file.
| Where you are | What Alt + Enter does | What to use if it does nothing |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Terminal | Toggles full screen (the toggleFullscreen action; F11 is bound to it too) | Check the Toggle full screen action in Terminal's settings for a changed binding |
| A PC game | Depends on the game; Windows does not assign it | The game's own display or video settings, where full screen is a display mode option |
| File Explorer | Opens Properties for the selected item | F11 to maximize the window |
| Other desktop apps | Whatever the app assigns, often nothing | The app's View menu or its full-screen button |
Windows Terminal also has focus mode, which hides the tabs and title bar without going full screen. Bind a key to the toggleFocusMode action in Terminal's settings if you want it.
5. Use video, streaming, and presentation shortcuts
Video players and presentation apps use their own full-screen keys. Click inside the player first so the key reaches it rather than the browser.
| App | Go full screen | Exit full screen |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube in a browser | F | F again or Esc |
| Other streaming sites | The Full screen icon in the player controls | Esc |
| VLC media player | F | Esc or F again |
| PowerPoint, from the first slide | F5 | Esc |
| PowerPoint, from the current slide | Shift + F5 | Esc |
On a streaming site, the player's full-screen mode fills the display with the video alone. Browser full screen with F11 hides only the browser frame and keeps the rest of the page.
How to exit full screen on Windows 11
Press the key that got you in. If you do not remember which one that was, work down this list.
- Press Esc. It ends PowerPoint slide shows and video full screen, and pressing and holding it exits Chrome full screen.
- Press F11 again to leave browser full screen or Windows Terminal full screen.
- Press Win + Shift + Enter again if you put a UWP app into full screen.
- Press Alt + Tab or the Windows key to switch away when an app will not respond to any of the above.
On a Mac the keys are different; the guide to exit full screen on Mac covers Safari, Chrome and games there.
How to tell you are really in full screen
- Look at the bottom edge of the display. In true full screen the taskbar is gone, not just covered.
- Look at the top edge. The title bar with the minimize, maximize and close buttons is gone.
- In a browser, check that the tab strip and address bar are hidden as well.
- If the title bar and taskbar are still visible, the window is only maximized. Use the app's full-screen key from the table at the top instead.
Full screen vs maximized vs borderless: what’s the difference?
| Mode | Taskbar | Title bar and app toolbars | How you get it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximized | Visible | Visible | Win + Up arrow, or the maximize button |
| Full screen | Hidden | Hidden | F11 in browsers, Win + Shift + Enter in UWP apps, the app's own key |
| Borderless (windowed) in games | Hidden while the game has focus | No frame, sized to the display | The game's display or video settings |
| Taskbar auto-hide | Hidden until you point at the bottom edge | Visible | Taskbar settings > Taskbar behaviors |
Pick maximized when you switch between apps often, and full screen for reading, video and presentations. In a game, the display mode setting chooses between full screen and borderless.
How to make the Windows 11 taskbar less distracting
Auto-hide gives a maximized window almost the whole screen without leaving full-screen mode. It works in every app, including ones with no full-screen key.
- Right-click an empty area of the taskbar and select Taskbar settings.
- Expand Taskbar behaviors.
- Check Automatically hide the taskbar.
- Move the pointer to the bottom edge of the screen whenever you need the taskbar back.
- Uncheck the same box to keep the taskbar visible again.
What to do if full screen is not working
F11 changes volume or brightness on a laptop instead
The top row of keys is set to hardware functions, so F11 only works with the Fn key.
- Hold Fn and press F11.
- If that works, check your laptop maker's manual for its function-lock setting so F11 works on its own.
- Use the app's menu instead, such as Chrome's More > Full screen icon next to Zoom.
The window will not go full screen at all
The app is not a browser or UWP app, so F11 and Win + Shift + Enter do not apply to it.
- Click inside the window first so it is the active window, then press the key again.
- Try Win + Shift + Enter; it works only for UWP apps.
- Open the app's View menu or settings and look for a Full screen option.
- If the app has no full-screen mode, press Win + Up arrow to maximize it and turn on Automatically hide the taskbar.
Full screen without F11
Your keyboard has no working F11, or you prefer the mouse.
- In Chrome, select More, then the Full screen icon next to Zoom.
- In a UWP app, press Win + Shift + Enter.
- In Windows Terminal, press Alt + Enter.
The screen is stuck in full screen
An app or the browser is still in full-screen mode, often after an accidental F11 press.
- Press F11 once.
- Press Esc, or press and hold it in Chrome.
- Press Win + Shift + Enter if the app is a UWP app.
- Press Alt + Tab to switch to another window, then close and reopen the stuck app.
Useful Windows 11 window shortcuts that are not full screen
These come from Microsoft's Windows keyboard shortcut list. They resize or move windows while keeping the taskbar in view.
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Win + Up arrow | Maximize the active window |
| Win + Down arrow | Minimize the active window |
| Win + Shift + Up arrow | Stretch the window to the top and bottom of the screen |
| Win + Shift + Down arrow | Restore a snapped or maximized window |
| Win + Left arrow / Win + Right arrow | Snap the window to the left or right side |
| Win + Alt + Up arrow / Win + Alt + Down arrow | Snap the window to the top or bottom half |
| Win + Z | Open snap layouts |
| Win + Shift + Left arrow / Right arrow | Move the window to the monitor on the left or right |
| Win + D | Show and hide the desktop |
| Win + PrtScn | Save a screenshot of the whole screen to Pictures > Screenshots; see how to screenshot on Windows 11 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the shortcut to go full screen on Windows 11?
Press F11 in Chrome, Edge and other browsers. For UWP apps from the Microsoft Store, press Win + Shift + Enter. Windows Terminal uses Alt + Enter or F11, YouTube and VLC use F, and PowerPoint uses F5 to start a slide show.
How do I go full screen on Windows 10?
The keys are the same as on Windows 11. Press F11 in a browser, Win + Shift + Enter in a UWP app, or the app's own full-screen key. Press Win + Up arrow if you only need the window maximized with the taskbar still visible.
How do I go full screen on Windows without F11?
Use the app's menu. In Chrome, select More at the top right, then the Full screen icon next to Zoom. In UWP apps press Win + Shift + Enter, and in Windows Terminal press Alt + Enter. Video players have a full-screen icon in their controls.
How do I go full screen on a Windows laptop or HP laptop?
Press F11 in a browser. If the key changes the volume or brightness instead, hold Fn and press F11, because the top row is set to hardware functions. The laptop maker's manual names the function-lock setting that makes F11 work on its own.
How do I go full screen in Microsoft Edge?
Press F11 in Edge. Microsoft lists F11 as the full screen toggle for Edge on Windows, so pressing it a second time returns the normal window with tabs and the address bar.
How do I make a window go completely full screen?
Use the app's full-screen mode, not maximize. F11 in a browser or Win + Shift + Enter in a UWP app hides the title bar and the taskbar. Win + Up arrow only maximizes, so the taskbar and title bar stay on screen.
Is there a command to go full screen on Windows 11?
No single Windows command makes every app full screen. Full screen belongs to each app, so use F11 in browsers, Win + Shift + Enter in UWP apps, or the app's own key. Win + Up arrow maximizes any active window.
Why is my screen stuck in full screen?
An app or browser is still in full-screen mode, usually after an accidental F11 press. Press F11 or Esc to exit, or Win + Shift + Enter for a UWP app. If nothing responds, press Alt + Tab to switch away and restart the app.
How do I stop Windows from going full screen?
Press the same key that turned full screen on, usually F11 or Esc, and avoid F11 afterwards. If you want a larger window without full screen, maximize it with Win + Up arrow and turn on Automatically hide the taskbar in Taskbar settings.
How do I go full screen on a Mac instead?
Mac keys differ from Windows. Chrome on a Mac uses Command + Control + F instead of F11. The techdows guide to zooming in on a Mac covers full screen and zoom shortcuts there.
