Windows 11 · Windows
Shut Down or Restart Windows With Keyboard Controls
Source-checked About 10 minutes
Answer
Save your work, show the desktop, press Alt+F4, choose Shut down or Restart, and confirm the selected power action.
Save work before using a power shortcut
Save documents, uploads, recordings, virtual machines, and other active work. A normal restart or shutdown asks apps to close, but unsaved changes can still be lost. Do not use a forced power-off for this task; it is reserved for an unresponsive device and can interrupt updates or storage writes.
Make the desktop active
Press Windows key + D to show the desktop, or minimize every application. This matters because Alt + F4 closes the currently active app first. If you still see an app highlighted on the taskbar or a dialog has focus, finish or close it deliberately before using the shutdown shortcut.
Open the Shut Down Windows dialog
With the desktop active, press Alt + F4. On some laptop keyboards, the function-row setting may require Alt + Fn + F4. Read the dialog title and selected action before pressing Enter; if an application closes instead, the desktop was not active and you should save that app before trying again.
Choose Shut down or Restart
Use the list or arrow keys to select Shut down for a powered-off state or Restart when Windows or an installer needs a fresh boot. Select OK or press Enter only after confirming the choice. Restart closes Windows and starts it again; it is not the same as signing out or putting the PC to sleep.
Use the Quick Link menu as another keyboard route
Press Windows key + X to open the Quick Link menu, then navigate to Shut down or sign out and choose Shut down or Restart. On some English Windows installations the menu mnemonics are U followed by U or R, but those letters can differ by display language and Windows version, so follow the labels shown on the screen rather than memorizing an unverified sequence.
Use the Start menu when the dialog does not appear
Press the Windows key, navigate to Power, then select Shut down or Restart. This is the clearer fallback when remote-desktop software, accessibility tools, a compact keyboard, or function-key settings intercept Alt + F4. Avoid downloaded “shutdown shortcut” utilities for a control Windows already provides.
Troubleshoot a stalled power action
If Windows remains on a closing or update screen, give active updates time to finish and keep a laptop connected to power. If the same app repeatedly blocks shutdown, reopen it, save or close its work, and try again. Use a forced hardware power-off only when the computer is genuinely unresponsive and after accepting the risk to unsaved data.
Optional sponsored tool
The supported procedure above does not require this third-party product. This optional link is retained from the original tutorial; Tech How may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Video walkthrough
Sources and verification
Checked against official documentation on . Scope: Windows.
Follow the linked first-party guidance if labels differ after a platform or app update.