10 free upgrades for built-in Windows apps

Windows comes loaded with a lot of applications, but to be honest, they aren’t all the best. There are better tools out there, and you don’t have to spend any money to get them. 

These are must-have applications I always find myself installing on any new PC –— they’re all free, open source, and will instantly upgrade any Windows experience. Even better, they can boost your productivity at work or just streamline the way you use your PC at home.

Each of these is also lightweight and bloatware-free: No annoying features that get in your way, no ads bothering you, and no heavy application grinding away slowly while you wait for it to open — just a collection of useful, community-created tools that respect you and do their jobs well. Now, this is what PC computing was meant to be.

Want more useful Windows apps and PC-related tips? Sign up for my free Windows Intelligence newsletter. Plus, I’ll send you free Windows Field Guide downloads as a bonus when you sign up!

1. Everything

Everything is the best file-search tool on Windows, hands down. Unlike the built-in file search feature in the Start menu or File Explorer, Everything finds, well, everything, in an instant. And while those search results are just for file names, it’s still an incredibly fast and lightweight way to find anything on your PC. I find it absolutely indispensable.

Everything is the best Windows file search tool — bar none.Chris Hoffman/IDG

2. PowerToys (especially PowerToys Run)

Microsoft PowerToys is an incredible collection of tools I recommend to everyone. There are so many useful PowerToys in this package, and many of them feel like upgrades to built-in Windows experiences — like the “Advanced Paste” tool that lets you convert text you copy from Microsoft Word to Markdown formatting as you paste it to FancyZones (which is basically the Windows “Snap” feature on steroids).

But the best upgrade in the package just might be PowerToys Run. It’s an alternate launcher for Windows — you could use it instead of the Start menu, pressing a key combination (like Windows+Space) to open it.

And, unlike the Start menu, PowerToys Run actually respects your choice of default web browser and search engine, rather than forcing you to use Bing and Edge. That’s reason enough to use it, though it can also do so many other things — such as finding notes in your OneNote notebooks, switching to windows by their name, searching your browser history, and more.

PowerToys Run is the launcher Windows should include.
Chris Hoffman/IDG

3. Open-Shell (but Start11 is more polished)

Don’t like the standard Windows Start menu? Open-Shell is a completely free, open-source replacement that will work well on both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

That said, Open-Shell isn’t the most feature-filled application. Start11 is definitely the best Start menu replacement — if you’re willing to spend $10 to $15. (It’s the one application I’m mentioning here that isn’t open source, but it’s inexpensive and very polished.)

Whichever option you choose, you can customize and personalize your Start menu — and you won’t see ads or forced changes as Microsoft keeps updating Windows and tweaking the menu. It’s a great way to make Windows 11 behave more like Windows 10, too.

4. EarTrumpet

Do you find yourself adjusting the volume of individual apps? I do — especially when participating in online meetings. Windows has this functionality, but it takes a few clicks and some scrolling to find. 

EarTrumpet makes it much easier. After installing it, you’ll get a convenient system tray icon where you can access application volume sliders in just a single click. Simple.

EarTrumpet lets you control application volumes in a snap.Chris Hoffman/IDG

5. ShareX (or Greenshot for quick screenshots)

The Windows Snipping Tool is getting pretty good, especially on Windows 11, where it also has built-in screen recording features. But ShareX is still more powerful — and it also brings easy screen recording to Windows 10.

ShareX is packed with useful features. It can take a scrolling screenshot of a document, or record a video and save it as an animated GIF. It lets you annotate images — and you can even configure it to automatically upload the images you capture to a server when you’re done. It’s a serious power-user tool for capturing screenshots.

Greenshot, another classic screenshot tool, is still a great pick for quick screenshots. However, it’s no longer actively updated like ShareX.

6. Sumatra PDF

Sumatra PDF is an incredibly lightweight app for viewing PDF files. It launches with lightning fast speed, and it’s a nice minimal tool. It doesn’t include the serious security features Adobe uses to “sandbox” PDF code, but it doesn’t need to. Instead, Sumatra PDF stays secure by refusing to support scripting and other advanced document features that make PDFs more like web pages than traditional documents.

In other words: If you want to complete an interactive government form with built-in code, you’ll want another PDF reader. But if you just want to read a PDF document the old-fashioned way? Sumatra PDF is perfect — and fast.

Sumatra PDF helps you avoid those PDFs getting lost in a pile of browsers, too. It can even read eBook files!

For simple and minimal document viewing, Sumatra PDF is the best.
Chris Hoffman/IDG

7. NanaZip (or 7-Zip)

7-Zip is a classic free file archiver tool — a nag-free alternative to WinRAR and WinZip. It can open nearly anything you can throw at it, including RAR files, 7Z files, and TAR files. But 7-Zip is getting a little long in the tooth, and it shows — the interface just feels outdated.

That’s one reason why I prefer NanaZip, which is based on the same underlying 7-Zip code, but offers a more modern interface that feels at home on the latest version of Windows. More importantly, NanaZip automatically updates itself, unlike 7-Zip, ensuring you’ll always have the latest security patches installed without micromanagement.

8. Notepad++

The classic Notepad application is much too basic. On Windows 11, it’s more powerful with features such as tabs — but it also asks you to sign in with your Microsoft account. It’s weird.

Notepad++ is a major upgrade. This lightweight text editor has tabs — even on Windows 10 — and it sports syntax highlighting for programming and scripting. It’s useful even if you just need to tweak HTML regularly, like I do, and the Find and Replace feature works well. Plain and simple, it’s packed with useful features that will come in handy for when you need to work with plain-text files.

Notepad++ is the best plain-text editor for Windows PCs.
Chris Hoffman/IDG

9. Paint.NET

Microsoft is making Paint more powerful, but if I am being honest, it is starting to feel like an AI image generation playground. Paint.NET, on the other hand, is an incredible tool and a secret weapon I’ve used my entire career: a completely free, easy, and lightweight way to quickly edit images and screenshots.

Paint.NET is packed with features that Paint doesn’t have, and it feels more like a tool for getting image work done. 

10. VLC media player (and MusicBee)

Microsoft’s bundled Media Player app is fine, but VLC media player is even better. It can play nearly any type of video or audio file you throw at it — no configuration necessary. It’s also jam-packed with useful features, but you don’t have to use them. Out of the box, it’s just a simple, practical media player.

And if you still have a local music library? MusicBee is the best library-style player for managing that MP3 collection.

More classic Windows-tweaking apps

There is no need to settle for a PC that doesn’t work exactly how you want it — sometimes, all you need to take your PC to the next level is knowing where to look for the right apps. For more ways to improve your Windows experience, check out this guide on the easiest way to install apps on a new Windows PC.

Want even more Windows productivity and tweaking tips? Sign up for my free Windows Intelligence newsletter. I’ll send you three new things to try each Friday. Plus, you’ll get free copies of Paul Thurrott’s Windows Field Guides as a special welcome gift.