(Credit: Cole Kan/PCMag/Microsoft/Chris Titus Tech/Raphire)
Microsoft is scrambling to improve Windows 11, but, in the meantime, the web is full of utilities that promise to improve it in just a few clicks. So, I decided to test four popular debloaters: Chris Titus Tech’s Windows Utility, Raphire’s Win11Debloat, Tiny11 Builder, and the dangerous Tiny11 Core Builder, which disables Windows Update and stops your PC from getting security fixes. These tools didn't transform Windows in the way I hoped, and they often made other questionable changes to the OS. I'll walk you through what they did to my PC—and why I recommend skipping them. You can (and should) take control of your PC yourself, without blindly trusting someone else's software.
Can You Really Trust Windows Debloat Tools?
Windows 11 comes with bundled apps, obnoxious advertisements, and features that send data to Microsoft. You can always streamline Windows manually, but debloat tools purport to do all of the hard work in just a few clicks. You might decide to run them for any number of reasons, such as to reduce Windows 11’s RAM usage, clean up the default operating system, and quickly tweak system settings.
The idea is appealing, but also dangerous: When you download a debloat tool from somewhere like GitHub, you’re giving it deep access to your PC. Do you trust the tool’s developer? Are you sure they didn’t make a mistake in the script? Some Windows-tweaking scripts might even be malicious and compromise your computer. Do you want to take that risk?
For its part, Raphire’s Win11Debloat script comes with this somewhat unsettling warning: “Great care went into making sure this script does not unintentionally break any OS functionality, but use at your own risk!”
Debloat tools sometimes make aggressive changes that cause problems with Windows. They might break Windows Update, turn off important system services, set registry values, or enact some other modification that could cause problems for your PC in future updates.
Nonetheless, I downloaded some popular debloating tools to see what they can do, both good and bad.
A Fresh Windows 11 Install Already Runs Surprisingly Lean
For this experiment, I installed Windows 11 (version 25H2) in a virtual machine with 4GB of RAM. The base Windows operating system ran just fine—no debloating tools required. My vanilla Windows 11 install used between 1.9GB and 2.1GB of RAM on a fresh boot. Microsoft says Windows 11 needs at least 4GB of RAM, presumably to run demanding applications and websites, but the core operating system is remarkably streamlined.
Putting Debloat Tools to the Test: Small Gains, Big Trade-Offs
Debloat tools largely focus on debloating Windows itself. They remove applications that come with the operating system, turn off features, and make other tweaks to Windows 11’s default state. But none of the four tools I tested made much of a dent in Windows 11’s RAM usage. At most, they saved 100MB or 200MB.
First, I downloaded Chris Titus Tech’s Windows Utility and ran the standard selection of tweaks. I also ran the included, privacy-tweaking tool, O&O ShutUp10++. Windows 11’s memory usage on a fresh boot was 1.9GB—almost the same as a standard install.
Then, I ran Raphire’s Win11Debloat tool in a fresh virtual machine with the default settings. It removed some preinstalled apps and made some other tweaks. I rebooted and checked the OS’s RAM usage. It was 2.1GB—no change from the baseline Windows 11 system.
I also used Tiny11 Maker to build a customized, debloated Windows 11 ISO and then installed it in a new virtual machine. The OS felt streamlined, but it still used 2GB of RAM from a fresh boot—about the same as my standard Windows 11 install.
Finally, I used Tiny11 Core Maker to make a Windows 11 ISO without a functioning Windows Update. The system used 1.8GB of RAM on a fresh boot, which doesn't make for much of a difference.
When Debloating Becomes Breaking Things
Many debloat tools make changes to Windows that go beyond streamlining the operating system. The standard configuration of Chris Titus Tech’s Windows Utility, for example, sets a large number of background system services to launch manually when programs access them, rather than automatically at boot. This change didn’t actually save much RAM, as mentioned, and it might introduce delays in regular computer use.
In Raphire’s Win11Debloat, the default settings disable Fast Startup in Windows. This forces Windows to perform a full shutdown each time you turn off your PC. Your computer will then take a bit longer to boot. This can fix problems with device drivers on some hardware configurations, but it’s a trade-off.
Both of the above are good examples of what Windows debloat tools often do. Their developers have opinions about how Windows should work, and their tools change Windows settings to match those preferences. Anyone can create a script that tweaks Windows settings, but these changes aren't necessarily subject to comprehensive testing or vetting.
Debloating tools also might not work the way you expect. For example, many have a toggle for disabling telemetry data. Home and Professional editions of Windows 11 always send required diagnostic data to Microsoft. Although debloat tools can flip a Group Policy or Registry setting, Windows will ignore it unless you’re using a Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) version of Windows 11, intended for businesses.
You Can Debloat Windows Yourself—Without the Risk
Many debloat tools do streamline Windows, in a way: They clean up the Start menu and give you a minimal Windows 11 install—no Copilot, Clipchamp, or Outlook in sight. But you can do this yourself by opening the Start menu, right-clicking offending apps, and clicking Uninstall. It’s that easy.
You can quickly remove many Windows features without a third-party tool, too. If you don’t like how OneDrive backs up your folders to the cloud, you can uninstall OneDrive. If you hate ads, you can turn them off in the Settings app. Windows also includes helpful tools to free up disk space. I recommend you configure and clean up your PC yourself—it should just take a few clicks, and you won't have to trust any third-party downloads with deep access to your PC.
Windows debloat tools don’t—and can’t—fix many of the operating system's problems. They don’t make a big dent in RAM usage or background CPU usage. Windows 11 will continue sending telemetry data to Microsoft, and there’s no way to turn this off. To ensure you get security updates, Windows Update will continue running, and it might reinstall parts of Windows you removed or otherwise undo your changes. The only way to prevent this from happening is to completely break Windows Update, a core part of the OS I don't recommend touching.
Microsoft is promising big changes to Windows, and I hope it delivers. But if you truly can't get along with Windows, another way you can debloat your PC is to switch to Linux. It’s a capable alternative and worth a fair try. The lightweight ChromeOS Flex is another good option.