Your Guide to User Account Settings in Windows 11

Lots of Windows settings are accessible in the appropriately named Settings tool built-in to Windows 11. It's here that you can access things like the sign-in options to change how you log in, or where you go to change user account settings for you or other users.

How to Access Windows 11 Account Settings

Right-click the Start menu and choose Settings, or use the WIN+i keyboard shortcut to get there without a mouse. Then, select Accounts from the menu on the left, and scroll down to the Account settings area.

What Are the Windows 11 User Account Settings?

There are several options available from the Accounts settings page:

• Your info
• Sign-in options
• Email & accounts
• Family
• Windows backup
• Other users
• Access work or school

Below are descriptions of those options and explanations of why you'd want to access those particular settings.

'Your Info' Settings

This is where you can change your profile image and switch between using a local account or a Microsoft account. If you're logged in to your MS account, there's a link to access additional settings, like for privacy and payments, at account.microsoft.com.

'Email & Accounts' Settings

Accounts used by email, calendar, contacts, and other apps are listed here. Go here to remove existing accounts, or to add accounts from places like Outlook.com, Google, iCloud, and more.

'Sign-in Options' Settings

There are multiple sign-in options in Windows 11:

• Facial recognition: Log in by showing your face.
• Fingerprint recognition: Log in by providing your fingerprint.
• PIN: Log in with a PIN (numbers, letters, or symbols).
• Security key: A special USB device can be plugged in to authenticate your account.
• Password: Log in with a password.
• Picture password: Log in by selecting a specific part of a photo.

These are the settings you'd access to set up any of those login methods or to change them, like to remove your Windows 11 password.

Further down this screen are additional settings. One decides when Windows should make you sign in again if you've been away. Another option is for dynamic lock, which, when turned on, lets Windows automatically lock your device when a Bluetooth-connected phone falls outside the Bluetooth range (i.e., Windows will lock the device when you walk away).

You can also have restartable apps start back up automatically when you sign back in to your account. In addition to those sign-in options is one to show or hide your account details on the sign-in screen, and another to use your sign-in information to automatically finish setting up the device after an update.

'Family' Settings

If you want other people to have access to this computer with their own user account, this is where you include them. You can add Microsoft accounts, including child accounts that work with Microsoft Family Safety.

You won't see this screen if you're using a local account. Adding other users from a local account is possible through Email & accounts.

'Windows Backup' Settings

Back up files, apps, and more so you can have the same setup on other devices you log in to. You can set up OneDrive folder syncing, and turn on "Remember my apps" and "Remember my preferences" so those things are accessible across all your devices.

'Other Users' Settings

This is where you can add local user accounts, change another user's account type, and remove other local accounts.

This is also where you can turn the device into a kiosk. Primarily meant for businesses but equally usable on a personal computer, this mode displays just one app of your choosing. It's used to let other people access the computer in a locked-down mode where a single app—for example, Mail—is open, but they can't use any other app or browser files and folders.

'Access Work or School' Settings

This is where you can set up a work or school account to access things like apps, email, and more on the network. You can enter your school/work email address or join the computer to Azure Active Directory or a local Active Directory domain.

How Do I Change User Accounts in Windows 11?

The Other users section of Settings lists all the users connected to the computer. It might make sense to go there to change user accounts, but that's only partially true, depending on what you mean by that.

Go to that Settings screen to change a user's account type between Standard User and Administrator, depending on the level of rights you want the user to have. Choose Change account type to do that.

Something else you can do is change the user account you're logged in as. This isn't possible through Settings. Instead, switch users in Windows 11 by right-clicking the Start button and going to Shut down or sign out > Sign out, and then select the user you want to log in as. The WIN+L shortcut is another option.