How to Automatically Sign into Windows 11

If you use a password to sign into your Windows 11 personal computer (PC) you can adjust a setting which will allow you to automatically sign in, bypassing the password input requirement.

This is handy if you need to have an account password set (for example, network sharing) but don’t want to manually insert a password upon starting or rebooting your PC.

Follow the steps within this article only if you’ve physically secured your Windows 11 PC and you’re the only person using your computer.

 

Automatically Logging Into Windows 11

The steps below will guide you through the processes of automatically signing you into your Windows 11 PC if you have a password set.

1. As previously mentioned, make sure your user account has a password assigned. To do so open your Settings app by pressing Windows + I. Then click on Accounts > Sign-in options to make sure your user account has a password assigned.
2. Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box, type netplwiz
3. In the User Accounts window, under the Users tab, uncheck the Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer option.
   • In some cases, this checkbox is missing. See how to enable it using these supplemental instructions.
4. Click Apply.
5. Type in your user account password and confirm it.
6. Click OK and then restart your PC to confirm that you can login automatically.

If you followed above steps exactly as they’re mentioned, you should be able to login automatically at startup on your Windows 11.

This automatic login will be valid until you change your user account password. If you changed your account password, you need to follow the steps mentioned above again to enable automatic login.

 

Missing Checkbox Option

In some cases, the User must enter a username and password to use this computer checkbox may not be available within the Users tab of the User Accounts dialog box. Toggling this option is required in order to enable Windows automatic login.

If this checkbox is missing, follow the steps below to enable it.

1. If open, close the User Accounts window then open the Windows Registry Editor by clicking the Windows Start button and typing regedit. Click on the Registry Editor system icon.
2. Copy the directory address location below and paste it into the address bar at the top of Registry Editor window or manually navigate to the location using the file structure on the left pane.

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device

3. Within the right pane double-click DevicePasswordLessBuildViersion REG_DWORD to edit it.
4. By default, the Value data field is 2, simply change this field to 0 and click OK. Then open the User Accounts window again.
   • Open the Run dialog box, type netplwiz. This will open the User Accounts windows again.
   • Now, the Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer checkbox option should be visible.
5. Uncheck that box and click Apply.
6. Type in your user account password and confirm it.
7. Click OK and then restart your PC to confirm that you can login automatically.

Alternatively, you can download the registry editor script using the button below (at your own risk of course). Be sure to have a full system backup, just in case.

 

Conclusion

I hope my article on automatically logging into Windows 11 has helped you. I welcome your thoughts, questions or suggestions regarding this article.

You may support my work and future improvements by sending me a tip using your Brave browser or by sending me a one time donation using your credit card.

Let me know if you found any errors within my article or if I may further assist you by answering any additional questions you may have.

 

Editors Notes:

• This article was first published on Mar 22, 2024 and was revised to include a downloadable Regedit script.