How to Change the Color of Taskbar?

If you like a specific color aesthetic for your PC, you can change it by picking an accent color for your PC. The accent color changes colors for specific parts of Windows, including the taskbar. You can choose one from the colors already listed or pick a custom shade from the color pallet.

Windows also provides you the option to automatically pick the color that best matches your background. Follow us to the end of the article to learn how to change the color settings of your taskbar.

How to Change the Color of Taskbar?

A taskbar houses many important features like the date, time, and shortcuts, making it all the more important to customize. We’ve listed a couple of methods to change your PC’s taskbar color, along with some other methods that can help you customize the taskbar more to your liking. 

Using Windows Settings

The personalization section of your Windows settings allows you to change the color of your Taskbar. However, making this change will also collectively change the color of your taskbar, start menu, and action center. Here’s how you do it:

On Windows 10

1. Press Win + I to open settings.
2. Click on Personalization.
   
   
3. Select Colors from the left panel.
   
   
4. Click on the dropdown menu under Choose your color and select Dark.Selecting Custom will let you choose different color modes for windows and Applications. 
   
   
5. Scroll down to the bottom of the center panel and tick the Start, taskbar, and action center tickbox.
   
   
6. Choose your preferred color under Windows colors. Since the color applies instantly, you can click and check them individually. To pick a custom color, click on the + and choose a custom color from the pallet.
7. You can also use the slider under Transparency effects to give your taskbar slight transparency. 

On Windows 11

1. Press Win + I to open Settings.
2. Go to Personalization > Colors.
   
   
3. Click on the dropdown menu next to Choose your mode and select Dark. Select Custom to set color modes for windows and applications individually.
   
   
4. Click on Accent color to expand the list of colors and other options.
   
   
5. Scroll down and turn On the Show accent color on Start and taskbar slider.
   
   
6. Choose your preferred color from the grid of colors. To select a custom color, click on View colors and select your preferred shade.

Using Themes

You can also use themes to change the color of your taskbar. However, using themes will also change the background and other settings depending on the theme you choose. But if you dont like something about the theme, you can just change it without disrupting the other elements of that theme. Follow these steps to learn how to apply a theme:

1. Open Settings.
2. Go to Personalization > Themes.
3. Select your preferred theme under Change theme.
   
   
4. Clicking on Get more themes on Microsoft Store will redirect you to the theme store where you can download more themes.

How to Change Colors of Your Taskbar Only?

Changing the taskbar color also changes the colors of the action center and Start Menu. You can change this behavior by making some changes to the registry. Registry changes can be risky as an unintentional change can cause issues to your PC. So, be sure to back up your registry before making changes to it.
Follow these steps to learn how to apply color to your taskbar only:

1. Press Win + R.
2. Type regedit and press Enter.
3. Provide administrator access to open the registry editor.
4. Navigate to the following key. Copying and pasting it on the address bar will also work.
   HKEY_CURRENT_USERSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionThemesPersonalize
   
   
5. Double-click on ColorPrevalence on the right panel and set the Value data to 2.
   
   
6. Press OK and Restart your PC to apply the changes.

Changing the ColorPrevalance value data to 1 will apply the color to your taskbar, action center, and Start, whereas setting the value to 0 will disable it. This registry edit will let you apply color to your taskbar even if your Windows is not activated.

Still Unable to Change Color of Taskbar?

If the option to change the taskbar color is greyed out, it’s probably because you’re in light mode. Lightmode only supports the default white color. You will have to use dark mode or custom to enable the option. Using custom mode will let you pick different modes for windows and apps. 

If you choose to use custom mode, you will have to choose Dark as your default Windows mode to be able to change the color of your taskbar.