Southern New Hampshire University

Windows 11 Accessibility Overview

Updated on

This article covers settings that help support ease of use for everyone using Windows 11. Learn about accessibility settings for vision, hearing, dexterity, mobility, focus, and more.

How to Open Accessibility Settings

  1. Click on the start menu (Windows icon).
  2. Click on Settings (cogwheel icon).
  3. Choose Accessibility in the left column.
  4. Additionally, you can press Windows Key + U to directly open Accessibility Settings.
Screenshot of Windows settings with accessibility selected

Vision Settings

Text Size

Increase the size of text found in menus, icons, and Microsoft applications. This setting may not affect text in other non-Microsoft applications.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Text Size
  2. Adjust the slider to your desired size.
  3. Click “Apply” to save changes.
Screenshot of text size settings

Scale Everything Bigger

A zoom function that increases the size of everything including text, images, icons, and apps.


  1. Settings > System > Display > Scale & layout
  2. Look for the “Scale” heading.
  3. Use the dropdown menu to change the scale setting.
  4. Click "Apply" to save changes.
Screenshot of scale and layout settings

Zoom In on Currently Selected Window

  1. Press the Ctrl + “+” (Plus key) at the same time to zoom in.
  2. Press the Ctrl + “-” (Minus key) at the same time to zoom out.

Adjust Brightness

Adjust the brightness of Windows to make everything more visible.


  1. Settings > System > Display
  2. Adjust the slider next to the “Change brightness” heading.
  3. Additionally, you can change the brightness by selecting the Network icon on the right of the task bar.
Screenshot of brightness slider

Adjust Visual Effects

Change various visual effects in Windows to create a better experience.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Visual Effects
  2. You can toggle different Windows effects to your preferences:
    • “Always show scrollbars” makes all scrollbars in applications persistent.
    • “Transparency effects” changes whether application windows and toolbars are transparent.
    • “Animation effects” adjusts various animations. For example, when a window is minimized, an animation shows the window shrinking into the taskbar.
Screenshot of visual effects settings

Mouse Pointer Size and Color

Change the size of the mouse pointer for better visibility.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Mouse pointer and touch
  2. Look for the “Size” heading.
  3. Adjust the pointer size slider.
  4. Under change pointer color, select an option that is easier to see.
Screenshot of mouse pointer color and size settings

Add a Text Cursor Indicator

A text cursor indicator can help with finding where the text cursor currently is on the screen.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Text cursor
  2. Toggle “Text cursor indicator” to turn on.
  3. You can also adjust the size, color, and thickness of the text cursor.
Screenshot of text cursor settings

Apply Color Filters

Apply a color filter over your screen that helps with low vision or color blindness.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Color Filters
  2. Toggle “Color filters” to turn on.
  3. Choose an option for color filter:
    • Colorblindness options include Red-green (green weak, deuteranopia), Red-green (red weak (protanopia), or Blue-yellow (tritanopia).
    • Grayscale options include Grayscale, Grayscale inverted.
    • Invert colors with the Inverted option.
  4. You can also set up a keyboard shortcut to turn on color filters by toggling “Keyboard shortcut for color filters” to on (Windows key + Ctrl + C will turn on the color filter).
Screenshot of color filter settings showing potanopia settings

Enable Dark Mode

Replace the light background color system display with a darker display. The taskbar, windows, and other display aspects will change to a dark-gray color. This can help reduce eyestrain and fatigue.


  1. Settings > Personalization > Colors
  2. Next to “Choose your mode” select “Dark” from the dropdown menu.
Screenshot of dark mode settings

Enable Contrast Themes

Sets your Windows theme to have a stronger contrast between background and text. You can choose between four different themes and even change individual display colors to best suit your needs.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Contrast Themes 
  2. Next to “Contrast themes” choose one of the themes from the dropdown menu.
  3. Click “Apply” to apply the new theme.
    • Themes can be customized by selecting the “Edit” button.
    • Customize high contrast colors by selecting the different options in the box.
    • Click “Save as” to update theme and colors.
Screenshot of contrast theme settings

Night Light

Night Light reduces the blue light emitted from the computer screen. Reducing blue light may reduce eye strain when used in dimly lit or dark environments.


  1. Settings > System > Display
  2. Toggle “Night light” to turn on.
  3. You can click on the “Night light” box to change various settings like setting an automatic timer for the Night light.

Use Windows Magnifier

Magnifier makes part or all of your screen bigger so you can see words and images better.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Magnifier
  2. Toggle “Magnifier” to turn on.
  3. Other settings can be changed to customize magnifier:
    • “Zoom level” will adjust the size of the screen, and you can customize zoom increments.
    • Click on “View” to open Magnifier view options:
      • Change the Magnifier view between full screen, docked, and lens styles under the “View” dropdown.
      • “Have Magnifier follow my” settings let you choose between whether the Magnifier follows the mouse pointer, keyboard focus, text cursor, or Narrator cursor.
      • “Keep the mouse pointer” dropdown lets you choose whether to keep the mouse pointer within the edges of the screen or centered in the screen.
      • “Keep the text cursor” dropdown lets you choose whether to keep the text cursor within the edges of the screen or centered in the screen.
  4. “Invert colors” can be used to invert the colors in the magnifier.
  5. “Smooth edges of images and text” will make images and text appear less pixelated.

For more detailed information, please see the following article from Microsoft Support: Use Magnifier to make things on the screen easier to see

Screenshot of Window Magnifier being used

Narrator Screen Reader

Narrator is the built-in Windows screen reader that is designed to support individuals who are blind or who have limited vision to use your PC without the use of a mouse. It reads and interacts with things on the screen, like text, buttons, and images.


  1. Settings > Ease of Access > Narrator
  2. Toggle “Turn on narrator” to turn on.
  3. Other settings can be changed to customize magnifier:
    • You can configure how the Narrator tool behaves during start-up under the “Start up options” header.
    • You can personalize the voice of the Narrator tool along with its pitch, speed, volume, and what device the narrator’s voice plays from under the “Personalize Narrator’s voice” header
    • You can adjust the level of detail the Narrator tool will describe your actions as well as what is displayed on the screen under the “Change what you hear when reading and interacting,” and “Change what you hear when typing” headers.
    • You can adjust keyboard settings under the “Choose keyboard settings” header.
    • The “Use Narrator cursor” settings let you add a cursor to where the Narrator is focused on the screen.
    • If you have a braille display, the “Use braille” settings guides you to download the necessary software to have Narrator interact with your braille display.

Microsoft Support offers an extensive overview of Narrator: Complete guide to Narrator

Windows Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts are keys or combinations of keys that provide an alternative way to do something that you’d typically do with a mouse. 

Please see the following articles from Microsoft Support to get an overview of keyboard shortcuts:

Hearing Settings

Use Mono Audio

Mono audio combines the left and right audio channels and plays them in both ears. This is useful for individuals who have better hearing in one ear.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Audio
  2. Toggle “Mono audio” to turn on.
Screenshot of mono audio settings

Show Alerts Visually

You can choose receive visual alerts when a notification is received.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Audio
  2. Use the “Flash my screen during audio notifications” dropdown to choose how the screen will flash when a notification is received.
Screenshot of "flash my screen during audio notifications" setting

Use Live Captions

Any audio and video will be live captioned on your screen (Currently only available in English).


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Captions
  2. Toggle “Live captions” to turn on.
  3. Alternately, you can press Windows key + Ctrl + L to turn on live captions.
Screenshot of live captions settings

Adjust How Captions are Displayed

Closed captioning provides text for spoken words and sounds in videos. Closed captioning in useful for those who are Deaf or hard of hearing, or even if you are in a noisy environment and cannot hear audio.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Captions
  2. Use the “Caption style” dropdown menu to choose a default caption style.
  3. Click the “Edit” button to further customize how captions will be displayed.
    • Under the “Text” tab, you can adjust the appearance of the caption font and that font’s color, transparency, style, size, and effects in each corresponding dropdown menu.
    • Under the “Background” tab, you can adjust the appearance of the caption's background and the background’s color and transparency in each corresponding dropdown menu.
    • Under the “Window” tab, you can adjust the appearance of the caption's window and the window’s color and transparency in each corresponding dropdown menu.
Screenshot of caption style settings

Dexterity and Mobility Settings

Voice Access

Voice access enables everyone to control their PC and dictate text using their voice. For example, you can open and switch between apps, browse the web, and read and author emails using your voice. You do not need an internet connection to use voice access.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Speech
  2. Toggle “Voice access” to turn on.

For more detailed information, please see the following article from Microsoft Support: Use voice access to control your PC & author text with your voice

Screenshot of voice access toggle

Talk Instead of Type with Voice Typing

Voice typing allows you to speak what you want to type rather than using the keyboard. To use voice typing, you will need to be connected to the internet, have a working microphone, and have your cursor in a text box.


  • Press the Windows key and the H key.

For more detailed information, please see the following article from Microsoft Support: Use voice typing to talk instead of type on your PC

Turn on Windows Speech Recognition

An older version of “Voice Access” used on previous versions of Windows that is used to operate your computer and dictate text by using your voice.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Speech
  2. Toggle “Windows Speech Recognition” to turn on.
Screenshot of Windows speech recognition settings

Use On-Screen Keyboard

Displays a visual keyboard with all the standard keys, so you can use your mouse or another pointing device to select keys.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard
  2. Toggle “On-screen keyboard” to turn on.
  3. Additionally, press Windows Key + Ctrl + O (the letter O) to toggle the feature on or off.
Screenshot of the on-screen keyboard with the on-screen keyboard settings in the background

Activate Sticky Keys

Sticky keys enable one handed activation of multi-key combinations such as CTRL+ P (print) or Alt + Tab (switch windows).


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard
  2. Toggle “Sticky keys” to turn on.
  3. Additionally, you can adjust more settings for Sticky keys by click on the Sticky keys button:
    • Toggle “Keyboard shortcut for Sticky keys” to be able to press the Shift key five times to toggle the feature on or off, and more.

Activate Toggle Keys

Toggle keys plays a sound each time the caps lock, num lock, or scroll lock keys are pressed.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard
  2. Toggle “Toggle keys” to turn on.
  3. Additionally, press and hold the Num Lock key for five seconds to toggle the feature on or off.

Activate Filter Keys

Filter Keys ignores brief or repeated keystrokes and may be useful for people who have difficulty targeting keys or who have a tremor in their hands.


  1. Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard
  2. Toggle “Filter Keys” to turn on.
  3. Press and hold the right Shift key for eight seconds to toggle Filter keys.
  4. Additionally, further settings that can be adjusted by clicking on the Filter key button:
    • Press and hold the right Shift key for eight seconds to toggle Filter Keys, and more.

Cognitive and Focus Settings

Focus Assist

Focus Assist silences some or all notification sounds and pop-up alerts. This can help you focus on reading and tasks.


  1. Settings > System > Focus
  2. Click on the “Start focus session” button.
  3. Additionally, you can adjust settings the duration and other settings for focus.
Screenshot of focus settings

Turn on Text Suggestions

Text suggestions are provided whenever you type.


  1. Settings > Time & language > Typing
  2. Toggle “Show text suggestions when typing on the physical keyboard” to turn on.
  3. Additionally, you can toggle additional settings to assist with typing:
    • Receive text suggestions in different languages by toggling “Multilingual text suggestions.”
    • Toggle “Autocorrect misspelled words as I type” to have Windows use the autocorrect function.
    • Toggle “Highlight misspelled words” to make misspelled words easier to identify.
Screenshot of various text suggestions settings

Immersive Reader

Immersive Reader provides options for a comfortable and easy to process experience by allowing you to listen to the text read aloud or adjust how text appears by modifying spacing, color and more. This helps with focus and dyslexia.


  1. In Windows applications (Word, OneNote, etc.): Click on the view tab, then select Immersive Reader in the top ribbon.
  2. You can change different settings for Immersive Reader:
    • Column width
    • Page color
    • Line focus
    • Text spacing
    • Syllable spacing
    • You can also have the text Read Aloud with the built-in text to speech function using the “Read Aloud” button.
Screenshot of immersive reader showing words separated by syllables and various colors

Additional Resources

Previous Article Assistive Technology Support
Next Article macOS Accessibility Overview