Microsoft PowerToys

Info

Utilities to customize Windows

Microsoft PowerToys is a set of free, open-source utilities designed to help power users and developers get more out of Windows.

powershell
winget install Microsoft.PowerToys

Awake: keeps the PC from sleeping on demand.
Command Palette: a fast launcher (Win + Alt + Space) that replaced the old “PowerToys Run”. Type to launch apps, open files, do calculations, run web searches, switch windows — all from one box. This is the single biggest productivity unlock.
FancyZones: define custom window layouts, then snap windows into zones by holding Shift while dragging.
PowerRename: bulk-rename files via right-click, with search/replace, regex, and undo.
Color Picker: Win + Shift + C to grab any pixel’s color from anywhere on screen, copied in hex/RGB/etc.
Text Extractor: Win + Shift + T to OCR any region of the screen — copy text out of an image, video, or screenshot.

Advanced Paste: Win + Shift + V to paste clipboard content reformatted — strip formatting, convert to JSON/Markdown, or use AI to transform it.
Peek: select a file, hit Spacebar to preview its contents instantly (like macOS Quick Look) without opening an app.
Mouse utilities: Find My Mouse (shake to spotlight the cursor), Crosshairs, Highlighter for clicks — great for presentations/screen sharing.
Keyboard Manager: remap keys or whole shortcuts globally (e.g. make CapsLock do something useful).
Always On Top: Win + Ctrl + T pins any window above the rest.

Shortcut Guide (rebuilt): hold the Win key and it shows a side pane of shortcuts relevant to whatever app is currently focused — a great way to discover shortcuts as you go.
Command Palette Extension Gallery: browse and install extensions without leaving the palette, plus per-monitor Dock layouts.
ZoomIt: now supports webcam overlays during recordings and stitching clips with transitions.
Under the hood: moved to .NET 10, ~15% smaller installer, faster startup.

Hosts File Editor: edit your hosts file with a real UI (toggle entries on/off).
Environment Variables: manage env vars with switchable profiles.
File Locksmith: right-click → see which process is locking a file.
Registry Preview, Command Not Found (suggests the WinGet package when a command isn’t found in PowerShell), and File Explorer add-ons (preview/thumbnails for SVG, Markdown, PDF, source code).