Are you suffering from the Windows search bar slow issue in Windows 11/10? How to speed up the slow Windows search feature? Read this post from MiniTool to get a couple of useful solutions.

Windows Search Bar Slow

The taskbar search box helps you quickly find scanned documents, videos, pictures, applications, etc. However, many users reported that their Windows search is loading forever. Here you can see a true example.

I just used my computer for the first time since last week. Now my search bar on the taskbar is slow to show results. The problem does not persist when I do a safe boot. I would like to avoid having to restart my computer as much as possible.answers.microsoft.com

Windows search bar slow greatly affects the computer experience. Try to get rid of this problem by using the ways listed below.

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How to Fix Windows Search Bar Slow Windows 11/10

Fix 1. Restart the PC

Before you perform the advanced fixes, try to restart your computer. This is because sometimes the Windows 11 search slow issue is caused by temporary glitches. If after restarting, the search function is still very slow, try the next way.

Fix 2. Restart the Windows Explorer Task

Windows Explorer provides a graphical user interface for accessing the file system. It is also a component of the operating system that presents many user interface items on the screen, such as the taskbar and desktop. So, facing the Windows search slow Windows 11/10 issue, you can fix it by restarting the Windows Explorer task.

Right-click the Windows logo button to select Task Manager.

Find and click the Windows Explorer task, then click the Restart button as depicted below.

restart the Windows Explorer task

Fix 3. Restart the Windows Search Service

Windows Search service provides content indexing, property caching, and search results for files, e-mail, and other content. If you encounter the issue of “Windows search bar slow”, you can restart the Windows Search service.

Step 1. Press Windows + R key combination to open the Run command window.

Step 2. Type services.msc in the input box and press Enter.

Step 3. In the new window, scroll down to click Windows Search. Then click the Restart button on the left side.

restart the Windows Search service

Fix 4. Run the Search and Indexing Troubleshooter

Windows built-in troubleshooters can help to fix various Windows issues. Here, to fix the “Windows search is loading forever” problem, follow the steps below to run the Search and Indexing troubleshooter.

Step 1. Press the Windows + I keyboard shortcut to open Windows Settings.

Step 2. Select Update & Security.

Step 3. Move on to the Troubleshooter tab, then click Additional troubleshooters in the right panel.

Step 4. In the new window, scroll down to click Search and Indexing > Run the troubleshooter.

run the Search and Indexing troubleshooter

Finally, wait for the troubleshooting process to complete and check if the Windows search speed is back to normal.

Fix 5. Disable Unnecessary Startup Programs

Unnecessary startup programs may interfere with the Windows search feature. To deal with the matter of “Windows search bar slow”, you can disable unwanted startup applications.

Step 1. Right-click the Windows logo button to select Task Manager.

Step 2. Go to the Startup tab, select the unnecessary program, and then click the Disable button.

Restart your computer and see if the Windows search is faster.

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Fix 6. Rebuild the Windows Search Index

The last way to fix the slow Windows search is to rebuild the Windows search index.

Warning:
The duration of rebuilding the search index depends on the volume of items being indexed and the processing power of the system. Depending on user experience, this process can sometimes last for hours or even days. So please think carefully and do it at your own risk.

Press the Windows + I keyboard shortcut to access Windows Settings. Click Search > Searching Windows. In the right panel, scroll down to click Advanced Search Indexer Settings.

In the pop-up window, select Advanced. Then click the Rebuild button.

rebuild the search index

Please be patient until the whole process completes.

Tips:
Apart from the slow Windows search issue, Windows can sometimes have other issues such as a black screen after pressing Alt + Tab, Windows Security shows unknown, etc. These can easily lead to data loss. In such situations, you can use MiniTool Power Data Recovery to recover deleted files for free.

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Bottom Line

In a word, this post explains how to fix the Windows search bar slow issue in Windows 11/10.

If you have come across any other good solutions to this problem, welcome to leave them in the comment zone below. Thank you in advance.

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