Microsoft Edge is the default browser in Windows 10. However, many people prefer to use other browsers like Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. If you think you can uninstall Edge like other app, you are in for a bad surprise.
According to experts, removing Edge from Windows 10 is not easy. The reason is the Edge browser is integrated into several Windows processes and your operating system might become unstable if you try to remove it the wrong way.
(Note- the manual uninstallation method for Edge is only available for manual Edge installations. If the Edge browser was installed along with other components of Windows, you need to follow the methods given in this post.)
Though we have mentioned it is difficult to uninstall Edge from Windows 10, we never said it is impossible. To make things easy for you we have shared Edge removal steps for users who wish nothing less than uninstalling Microsoft Edge for Windows 10. For less persuasive users, we have also shared steps to disable Microsoft Edge in Windows 10.
Method One – Disable Microsoft Edge in Windows 10
Disabling Microsoft Edge is the safest way to get the browser out of sight. This way you will not risk making your Windows OS unstable but would be contended of not seeing a recommendation for using Edge from time to time. Here are the steps to follow.
- Click This PC on the desktop
- Navigate to C:\Windows\SystemApps in File Explorer. Locate the Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_xxxxxx folder.
- Right-click the folder and click Rename
- You can rename the folder anything like but we recommend keeping things simple. Just add old to the folder name. It will allow you to find and rename the folder (default name) if you change your mind and want the Edge browser back.
- When you see a User Account Controls window, click Yes
When the folder is renamed, Windows OS will not be able to access the folder and the Edge will remain disabled until you rename the folder back to its original name.
Method Two- Uninstall Microsoft Edge
As mentioned earlier, you cannot remove Edge browser from the Apps and Features option in the Settings app. You won’t find the Edge listed with other apps. To uninstall Edge, you need to use Windows PowerShell.
Windows PowerShell is a configuration management framework from Microsoft. It uses a command-line shell to make changes to the Windows configuration. Here are the steps to follow.
- Click Start
- Type windows powershell in the Cortana search
- Click windows powershell with a description as “app” that appears at the top of the search results
- In the PowerShell window, type get-appxpackage *edge* and press Enter on the keyboard
- The above command will show you the detailed location of Microsoft Edge in Windows installation
- Type remove-appxpackage” in the PowerShell window
- Now press the space bar on the keyboard and copy the address next to the item PackageFullName
- Paste the address just after the command
- Wait for the process to complete. The above command will uninstall the Edge browser from Windows 10 completely.
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