Trusted Reviews is supported by its audience. If you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.Learn more.
How to start Windows 10 in Safe Mode
In This Article
Safe Mode is arguably one of the most useful features within Microsoft’s operating system, given it’s a handy troubleshooting measure for finding out if anything’s wrong with your PC.
Conveniently, there’s multiple different ways of getting into Safe Mode, so if you do ever need to use it you’ve got a lot of options to choose from. So, whether you’re using a budget Windows laptop or an all-conquering tower, here’s how to start Windows 10 in Safe Mode.
Hardware Used
The Short Version
Step1
Open the Settings menu
To open the Settings menu, either type ‘Settings’ into the search bar, press the gear icon in the Windows corner menu or press the Windows key & I at the same time.
Step2
Select ‘Updates & security’
Once within the main menu, press on ‘Update & security’ – it’s the final option under the general settings menu.
Step3
Then, on the sidebar, press on ‘Recovery’ – it’s around halfway down.
Step4
Click on ‘Restart now’ under ‘Advanced startup’
On this page under the ‘Advanced startup’ options, press the ‘Restart now’ button.
Step5
Press on ‘Troubleshoot’ in the ‘Choose an option menu’
Once you’ve done this, it will bring your PC to the ‘Choose an option’ menu – press on ‘Troubleshoot’
Step6
Click on ‘Advanced options’
Now click on ‘Advanced options’ to access another settings menu.
Step7
When in here, press on ‘Startup Settings’, and then hit ‘Restart’ to power cycle your PC again.
Step8
Press either the 4 or 5 key
As your PC boots up again, you can either press the 4 key to boot in Safe Mode, or the 5 key to Safe Mode with internet access.
FAQs
You can either press the ‘4’ or ‘5’ key as your PC boots up.
You might like…
Reece has been writing for Trusted Reviews since 2019 on a freelance basis thanks to a few days’ work experience and writes about all things computing. He’s a soon to be graduate from the University o…
Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Why trust our journalism?
Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
