How to Turn Off Sticky Keys in Windows 11

Select Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard, then switch Sticky keys to Off. To stop it from turning on when you press Shift five times, select Sticky keys and turn off Keyboard shortcut for Sticky keys.

Applies to: Windows 11.

Turn off Sticky keys in Settings

1. Select Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard.
2. Switch Sticky keys to Off.

Stop the Shift key from turning it back on

Pressing Shift five times in a row turns on Sticky keys. This often happens by accident in games.

1. On the same Keyboard page, select Sticky keys (the words, not the switch).
2. Turn off Keyboard shortcut for Sticky keys.

If the Do you want to turn on Sticky Keys? box pops up, select No.

Turn off Filter keys and Toggle keys too

The same Keyboard page has two related settings:

• Filter keys ignores short or repeated key presses. It can turn on if you hold the right Shift key for eight seconds. If your keys seem slow or don’t respond, switch it off.
• Toggle keys plays a sound when you press Caps Lock, Num Lock or Scroll Lock.

Turn it off in Control Panel

If Settings won’t open, or you prefer the older controls:

1. Press Windows logo key + R, type control access.cpl and press Enter to open Ease of Access Center.
2. Select Make the keyboard easier to use.
3. Clear Turn on Sticky Keys. Then select Set up Sticky Keys and clear Turn on Sticky Keys when SHIFT is pressed five times.
4. Select Apply, then OK.

Turn it off quickly while it’s on

Press Shift five times to bring up the Sticky keys prompt, and choose to turn it off. If Turn off Sticky keys when two keys are pressed at the same time is checked on the Keyboard page, pressing two keys together, such as Ctrl and Shift, also switches it off.

Turn it off in the Registry if it keeps coming back

If Sticky keys or its Shift-key prompt keeps returning after you turn it off in Settings, set it in the Registry. Change only this one value.

1. Press Windows logo key + R, type regedit, and press Enter. Select Yes.
2. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Accessibility\StickyKeys.
3. Double-click Flags, set Value data to 506, and select OK.
4. Sign out and sign back in.

506 keeps Sticky keys off and turns off the press-Shift-five-times shortcut. To go back to the Windows default, set Flags to 510.

What Sticky keys does

Sticky keys lets you press keyboard shortcuts one key at a time. For example, you can press Ctrl, let go, then press C to copy. It’s helpful if pressing two keys at once is hard, including for Shift + F10, the shortcut used to right-click without a mouse in Windows 11. You can turn it back on at any time on the same page.

Troubleshooting

• It keeps turning back on during games. Many games use Shift a lot. Turn off the keyboard shortcut, not just Sticky keys itself, as shown above.
• It’s on at the sign-in screen. Someone turned it on from the accessibility button there. Sign in and turn it off, or turn it off from the same button before signing in.
• Keys still seem to stick after turning it off. Check Filter keys, and check the keyboard for a physically stuck Shift, Ctrl or Alt key. Try another keyboard to compare.

Frequently asked questions

Why do I hear a beep when I press Shift?

Sticky keys or its shortcut is on. Turn off both as shown above.

Can I make the mouse pointer easier to see too?

Yes. You can change the cursor in Windows 11 to make it bigger or a different color.

My Fn keys act strangely. Is that Sticky keys?

Probably not. Fn lock is the more likely cause, and you can turn off Fn lock in Windows 11.

Will turning off Sticky keys affect other accessibility settings?

No. Each setting is separate. Narrator, Magnifier and the others stay as they are.

How do I know if Sticky keys is on?

You’ll hear a beep when you press Shift, Ctrl, Alt or the Windows key, and modifier keys stay active after you let go. The Keyboard page in Accessibility settings shows the switch’s current state.

Is the Windows 11 shortcut the same as in Windows 10?

Yes. Pressing Shift five times opens the Sticky keys prompt in both versions.

Other accessibility features can switch on by accident too. If Narrator starts talking, turn off Narrator in Windows 11. A Caps Lock box popping up on screen is a separate setting: turn off the Caps Lock notification in Windows 11.

The full list of shortcuts that trigger these features is on Microsoft’s Windows keyboard shortcuts for accessibility page.