Applies to Windows 8, Windows RT

Making your PC easier to use

There’s no single best way to set up your PC. Everyone works differently, so we’ve given you lots of ways to change your settings so you can use your PC the way you want to.

Notes

The most commonly used accessibility options are available from the sign-in screen. Click the Ease of Access button in the bottom-left corner to choose those settings for your PC that you want to have available each time it starts.
For more information about these and other accessibility technologies, go to the Microsoft Accessibility website.

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Customising the Ease of Access page

You can find a few more settings on the Ease of Access page – a convenient summary page where you can change common settings.

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, then tap Search.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the top-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, then click Search.)
Enter Ease of Access in the search box, tap or click Settings, then tap or click Ease of Access in the results.

Here are the settings you'll find on the Ease of Access page:

High contrast. If it’s hard to read text on your screen, you can change the theme of your PC to a colour combination that’s easier to read.
Make everything on your screen bigger. If things on your screen are too small to read, you can use this setting to magnify everything on the screen.
Pressing Windows+ Volume Up will turn on. This works on newer laptops and tablets. First, choose a setting (Narrator Magnifier, or On-Screen Keyboard), then turn it on with a quick press of the Windows logo button and Volume Up button together.
Show notifications for If you find that notifications appear and disappear too quickly, you can change how long they’re visible – so you have time to read and react to them.
Cursor thickness. If the cursor is too small for you and hard to spot on the screen, use this setting to change its thickness.

Choosing more tools and settings in the Ease of Access Center

The Ease of Access Center gives you the most control for customising your accessibility settings.

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, then tap Search.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the top-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, then click Search.)
Enter current accessibility settings in the search box, tap or click Settings, then tap or click View current accessibility settings.

The first section in the Ease of Access Center includes quick access to four common tools:

Magnifier. This enlarges part – or all – of the screen, so it’s easier to read. For more information, see Using Magnifier to see items on the screen.
Narrator. This is a screen reader that reads the text on your screen aloud. For more information, see Hear text read aloud with Narrator.
On-Screen Keyboard. This lets you use your mouse or other pointing device to interact with a keyboard on the screen.
High Contrast. This heightens the colour contrast of some text and images on your screen, which helps make those items easier to identify.

The second section of the Ease of Access Center lists all of the other settings you can use.

Use the computer without a display. Here, you can turn on Narrator, turn on audio descriptions for videos, set up Text to Speech and change how long dialogue boxes stay open for.
Make the computer easier to see. If you occasionally have trouble seeing items on your screen, adjust these settings to make the screen easier to see. You can change to a high contrast theme, turn on Magnifier, adjust colours and remove unnecessary animations and background images.
Note
- For most PCs, the resolution needs to be higher than 1920 x 1080. This setting isn't supported on most tablets.
Use the computer without a mouse or keyboard. Windows includes an on-screen keyboard that lets you enter text by selecting characters on the screen. You can also use Speech Recognition to control your PC with voice commands, and dictate text into programs. For more information, see How to use Speech Recognition.
Make the mouse easier to use. This setting lets you change the size and colour of the mouse pointer, or use the numeric keypad to control the mouse.
Make the keyboard easier to use. You can adjust the way Windows responds to mouse or keyboard input so that key combinations are easier to press, typing is easier and accidental keystrokes are ignored.
Use text or visual alternatives for sounds. Windows can replace system sounds with visual cues and display text captions for spoken dialogue in multimedia programs.
Make it easier to focus on tasks. These settings include a number of ways to help you focus on reading and typing. Use them to turn on Narrator, adjust how the keyboard responds to certain keystrokes, and change the way certain visual elements are displayed.
Make touch and tablets easier to use. When you choose this option, Narrator starts automatically when you press the Windows logo button and Volume Up button together. You can change this so Magnifier or On-Screen Keyboard starts instead.

Get recommendations for Ease of Access Settings

If you're not sure which settings to use, fill in the Ease of Access questionnaire to get recommendations.

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, then tap Search.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the top-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, then click Search.)
Enter current accessibility settings in the search box, tap or click Settings, then tap or click View current accessibility settings.
Tap or click Get recommendations to make your computer easier to use.