5 Best Windows 11 Tips for Boosting Your Productivity

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Adding productivity to the workday is always a top-of-mind goal. Whether you’re working from home or heading into the office, Windows 11 was designed to be the ultimate workday sidekick to boost your efficiency and make the day run more smoothly. 

But to get the most out of Microsoft’s OS, you need to know all the newest features. Here’s a look at the top five tips to boost your productivity with Windows 11: 

1) Snap Layouts 

Perhaps one of the coolest new features offered by Windows 11, snap layouts is definitely one you want to take advantage of.  

Snap layouts let you organize all your apps and windows by grouping them together. If you’re familiar with Macs, it’s a bit like Split Screen—but Microsoft takes this basic feature to a whole new level with Windows 11. 

Windows 11 gives you layout options based on your screen’s display size. Then you can arrange all your apps in a way that makes the most sense for you and your workflow. This means no more manually resizing browsers and apps so they fit comfortably on your screen. Instead, you can snap your programs to specific sections of your screen with just a click.  

Plus, Windows 11 has pre-configured snap layouts that intelligently adapt to the size and dimension of your screen. Windows will even remember your specific snap layouts, so any time you open a snap group from your toolbar, everything will be right where you left it in the exact same place. 

How to use snap layouts: 

• Hover your mouse over a window’s maximize button 
• Choose a layout you like 
• Click on a zone of that layout to snap your window to that space 
• Click other windows to snap them to other zones of the layout 
• Minimize and maximize the entire snap group whenever you like 

2) Custom Desktops 

Another standout feature of Windows 11 is custom desktops.  

By empowering users to create custom desktops, Windows 11 eliminates the hassle of clicking through tens of minimized windows and tabs to find what you’re looking for.  

With all-too-busy schedules that encompass packed work days and/or school responsibilities on top of personal activities, managing it all and keeping everything organized is a challenge for all of us. But custom desktops can make a big difference in keeping it all under control.  

With the power to create separate custom desktops for different work projects, schoolwork, and entertainment and personal tasks, Windows 11 makes it easy for you to stay organized. You can even personalize each desktop with different backgrounds. 

How to use custom desktops: 

• Scroll over Task View in the Taskbar OR hit the Windows key + Tab 
• View all your existing desktops 
• Toggle between existing desktops OR create a new desktop 

3) Gestures 

Not the biggest fan of using the touchscreen on your laptop? Windows 11 will convert you.  

When it comes to convertible touchscreens and tablets, one of the biggest barriers to adoption has been ease of use. Up until now, swapping your mouse for your fingertips to navigate Windows wasn’t always intuitive.  

Now that’s changed.  

Microsoft has designed Windows 11 to work seamlessly with both your fingertips and your mouse. But don’t worry—you don’t have to relearn the wheel. When your laptop is in computer mode, everything will stay the same. But when you switch to tablet mode, the interface will automatically adjust to make it easier to navigate with your finger.  

What’s different?  

The biggest problem is that fingers aren’t as precise as a mouse. But Windows 11 has found the solution. For one, touch targets are now bigger, so things don’t feel as clumsy when you’re navigating the screen. In tablet mode, Windows 11 also adds more space between icons so you can see exactly what you’re tapping with your finger. 

4) Widgets 

It’s easy to get distracted during the workday—all too easy. And it can take about 23 minutes and 15 seconds to focus on work again after getting distracted, says a study from University of California Irvine. 

Microsoft is betting its widgets can help make the difference.  

With this built-in feature, Windows 11 is all about helping you stay on top of what’s important by giving you the latest, need-to-know info at glance. 

Widgets are small cards that display dynamic content from your apps and desktop. Your widgets board is your own zone of personalized, aggregated content. Here, you can toggle between your calendar, emails, tasks, news, weather, traffic, even sports scores—whatever’s important to you—all without ever having to go into the browser.  

Because you don’t have to constantly switch between apps, widgets help prevent you from losing focus. And you remain 100% in control of what you see. In your widgets board, you can discover new widgets, pin your favorites, unpin others, and resize, rearrange, and customize them to your unique needs. 

How to use widgets: 

• Click on the fourth icon from the left in the Taskbar 

5) Integrated Voice Typing 

This one is for the ultimate multi-taskers.  

With Windows 11, you can forget about typing long sentences and simply tell your computer what you want to say. This integrated voice typing is a major win for busy days at the office when you need to write while looking over other materials. Instead of toggling back and forth between tabs or desktops and losing your train of thought, try out integrated voice typing, where you can simply dictate what you want to say.  

Using online speech recognition that’s powered by Azure Speech services, Microsoft’s natural voice typing helps you express yourself with no interruptions. And there are no limits to what you can do—this built-in feature works both in your apps and in your browser and can even recognize 46 different languages. 

How to use voice typing: 

• Hit the Windows key + H together on the keyboard 
• Click the microphone icon 
• Start speaking 
• Click the microphone icon again to stop recording 

There’s always demand to be more productive at the office. But to be your best, you need the right tools to support you—that’s Windows 11. 

*The opinions reflected in this article are the sole opinions of the author and do not reflect any official positions or claims by Acer Inc.

About Dan VanPatten: Dan is a full-time technology writer with interests in gaming, gadgetry, and all things PC tech related. He writes about a variety of topics including technology news, product reviews, and software. His experience stems from years of experience writing & producing content for technology newsletters & publications.