Top 8 Essential Windows 10 PowerToys Tools for Power Users

PowerToys was originally released for Windows 95 as a collection of free tools for advanced users. It later made its way to Windows XP, introducing improved utilities for customizing the operating system. If you used Windows XP, you might recall popular PowerToys like TweakUI or Virtual Desktop Manager.

In October 2019, Microsoft launched the third generation of PowerToys, bringing similarly powerful tools to Windows 10. While the initial version included just a few utilities, the list of features has been expanding with each new release.

Let me walk you through some of the must-have PowerToys, highlighting their unique features and how they can simplify your daily tasks on Windows 10.

Prerequisites

Before diving into the details, you’ll need to download and install PowerToys.

1. Visit the official GitHub page: https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/releases.
2. Download the latest exe or msi file for PowerToys.



3. Run the downloaded file to install the PowerToys tools. If prompted to restart Windows Explorer, click Yes to proceed.

Utilize PowerToys

After installing PowerToys, it’s time to explore its utilities. Below are the features and usage instructions for each of its tools.

1. Color Picker

If you’re a web designer or developer, Color Picker might become your favorite PowerToy. Previously, GIMP was my go-to tool for taking screenshots and picking colors.

However, with PowerToys, I now use the Color Picker tool. Simply press Win + Shift + C and select an area on the screen to pick a color.

2. FancyZones

FancyZones is an excellent window management tool for Windows 10. If you’re not satisfied with Windows Snap, you’ll find FancyZones to be a great alternative.

This tool allows you to create custom and complex layouts for multitasking with multiple applications. While Snap works well for basic multitasking, FancyZones takes it a step further.

Here’s how to use FancyZones to organize your apps into efficient layouts:

1. Press Win + ` to open the FancyZones Editor.
2. Select a layout from the editor and click Apply.



3. Hold Shift and start dragging any window. FancyZones will display the layout and snap the window into the designated zone.

3. File Explorer Preview

File Explorer Preview enhances Windows 10’s File Explorer with additional features, including support for Markdown and SVG files. Personally, I find Markdown support particularly useful.

In the past, I had to open a Markdown file in an editor like Sublime Text, even for quick viewing. Now, I can preview .md and .svg files directly in File Explorer, making the process much more efficient.

4. Image Resizer

Image Resizer, like the Color Picker tool, is an add-on for File Explorer. It allows you to resize images directly from File Explorer and supports batch resizing. Here’s how to quickly resize images using this PowerToy:

1. In File Explorer, select one or more images, right-click, and choose Resize pictures to open the Image Resizer tool.
2. Select a predefined size for the images, then click Resize to apply the changes.

5. Keyboard Manager

Keyboard Manager is one of my favorite tools because it gives you extensive control over your keyboard, which is not easily achievable in Windows 10 by default.

Unlike Linux operating systems like Ubuntu, Windows lacks easy-to-use keyboard settings – especially for customizing keyboard shortcuts.

However, with Keyboard Manager, you can easily remap keys (e.g., changing the Home key to act as Delete) and modify keyboard shortcuts (e.g., using Ctrl + H to perform the Home function). Here’s how you can do it:

1. Open the Start menu and launch PowerToys.
2. Click on Keyboard Manager in the left sidebar.



3. Click on Remap a key or Remap a shortcut, then click the + (plus) button.
4. Click Type and press the desired keys, or select one from the dropdown menu. Click OK. For example, I remapped Ctrl + H to function as the Home key.

6. PowerRename

PowerRename is another File Explorer add-on that enables bulk renaming of files and folders, surpassing the default renaming feature in File Explorer. One of its standout features is its support for regular expressions, allowing advanced renaming using regex patterns.

Additionally, you can preview rename operations before applying them, giving you the chance to verify changes beforehand.

1. Right-click on one or more files, then select PowerRename.



2. Enter the text to search for in the Search for box, and the replacement text in the Replace box. You can see a preview of the changes under Preview. When satisfied with the preview, click Rename to finalize the changes.

Pro tip: You can customize your rename operation by selecting options under Options. For example, choose Exclude Files to rename only folders, or select Make Uppercase to convert the renamed text to uppercase.

7. PowerToys Run

PowerToys Run is an upgraded version of the standard Run utility in Windows 10. The key enhancement is that PowerToys Run allows you to search for apps directly within its interface, unlike the default Run. It functions as a global app search utility, similar to those in IntelliJ IDEA or Sublime Text.

Using PowerToys Run is straightforward:

1. Press Alt + Space to launch PowerToys Run.
2. Type the name of the app or utility, for example, “idea”.
3. Use the Up or Down arrow keys to highlight the desired app.
4. Press Enter to open the selected app.

Pro Tip: Hover your mouse over an app to reveal three icons: Run as administrator, Open containing folder, and Open path in console. Click any of these icons to perform the corresponding action.

8. Shortcut Guide

Windows 10 becomes much easier and faster to navigate with keyboard shortcuts. They allow you to perform tasks more quickly than using the graphical interface, but the challenge is remembering all Windows 10 shortcuts.

Shortcut Guide addresses this issue by displaying relevant shortcuts when you long-press the Win key. It only shows shortcuts applicable to the current screen, making it easier to learn and use them – like having a cheat sheet at your fingertips.

Setting Up PowerToys

If you want more control over PowerToys, you can configure it as follows:

1. Open the Start menu, right-click on PowerToys.
2. Select More > Run as administrator to access PowerToys Settings.
3. In PowerToys Settings, click on any utility name in the left sidebar. From there, you can customize the settings for the selected utility.

Enable or Disable a PowerToy

To enable or disable a PowerToy, click on the tool’s name in the sidebar and toggle the Enable button.

Customize Sizes for Image Resizer

Click on Image Resizer in the sidebar and adjust the values under Image sizes to customize the resizing options.

Show More Results in PowerToys Run

To show more results in PowerToys Run, click on PowerToys Run in the sidebar. Under Search & results, use the dropdown to change the value for Maximum number of results.

And that’s not all – each PowerToy has additional settings that you can explore by clicking on the tool name in the left sidebar. You can also customize the keyboard shortcuts for (almost) every tool using the same procedure.

Did you find this guide helpful? Have you ever used Microsoft PowerToys before, perhaps in Windows XP?