How to Set Colors for Active and Inactive Title Bars in Windows 11
Have you ever wanted to customize the bar at the top of every window that tells you the app’s name? That’s called the “title bar,” and Windows 11 isn’t configured by default to show an accent color on title bars and borders. Therefore, all your software windows will have boring white or black title bars by default.
you’re able to select custom colors for both active and inactive (background window) title bars. A custom color selected for a title bar is also applied to windows' borders. Here is how you can customize Windows 11 by setting custom colors for title bars.
How to Set the Color for the Active Title Bar
Windows 11 includes a palette with which you can choose an accent color for the active title bar. You simply need to turn on a built-inShow accent coloroption in Settings to apply the selected color to software windows. Here are the steps for setting the active title bar color in Windows 11:
The active window’s title bar and border will now have the color you selected.Open Control Panelto see the difference. The Control Panel’s title bar will now include the accent color you set in Settings.
Screenshot by Jack Slater - no attribution required
How to Set the Color for Inactive Title Bars by Editing the Registry
Inactive title bars are used on background windows that aren’t currently selected. Setting the color for inactive title bars is a bit more complicated because Windows 11 doesn’t include a built-in option for doing so. Nevertheless, you can apply a color to inactive title bars by manually tweaking a registry key in the following steps:
First, choose a color for the inactive title bar by setting a color for the active one in Settings as outlined for the method above. That may sound confusing, but you’re going to need to copy the code for that color in the Registry Editor to apply it to the inactive title bar.
Once you have it, clickStart(or you’re able to press theWinkey). InputRegistry Editorin the “type here to search box” at the top of Windows 11’s Start menu, then select the search result toopen the Registry Editor.
Now it’s time to do some editing:
Now title bars on inactive windows will include the color you previously selected in step one. To see the difference, open theDWMregistry key again, as covered in steps two to four. Then double-click any DWORD for that key to bring up the “edit” window for it.
The Registry Editor window’s title bar in the background will include the color you set with theAccentColorInactiveDWORD like in the screenshot directly below.
To remove the inactive title bar’s color, right-click theAccentColorInactiveDWORD and selectDelete. SelectYeswhen prompted for deletion confirmation. Or you can turn off theShow accent color on title barsoption to remove coloring from both active and inactive window bars.
How to Set the Color for the Inactive Title Bars With Winaero Tweaker
The freeware Winaero Tweaker provides an alternative, more straightforward method for selecting an inactive title bar color. That software includes a customization setting for choosing an inactive title bar color. This is how it’s possible to set the color for inactive title bars with the Winaero Tweaker software:
Inactive title bars on windows will now include whatever color you chose for them. To test this, swap to another window other than Winaero Tweaker. When Winaero Tweaker becomes inactive, its title bar should turn the color you just set up. If it isn’t, you probably need to enable theShow accent colors on titlebaroption in Settings.
Winaero Tweaker also includes some other title bar customization settings worth noting. Double-click theAdvanced Appearance Settingscategory to selectWindow Title Bars. Then you could choose a different title bar font by clicking theChange fontbutton. Or drag theWindow title bar heightbar’s slider to reconfigure the bar’s height. ClickApply Changesto save the settings you’ve selected there.
Colorize the Title Bar in Windows 11
You don’t have to stick with a plain white title bar in Windows 11. you may apply two of your favorite colors to active and inactive window title bars with the methods above. However, note that your selected title bar colors will not be applied in Settings, Microsoft Store, File Explorer, and some other pre-installed UWP apps.
Why stick with boring old black and white? Here’s how to add some flair to your text on Windows 11.
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