How to remove Skype from Windows 10 System Tray

Very soon the use of the old desktop Skype app will come to an end as it is being steadily and silently getting replaced with the in-built Store version of Skype for all Windows 10 users. For some of those who had already started using the new Skype, trying to remove the icon from the system tray has become troublesome. The removal of the icon has been made a tough job for amateur computer users as there is no “Quit” option when you right-click on the new built-in version of Skype.

If the icon has disturbed and distracted you for long, that is going to be a thing of the past. Below are methods on how you can hide the icon.

See also: How to set parental controls in Windows 10

Removing Skype icon for the new built-in store version

Method 1

Simply follow the procedure outlined below.

  • On the system tray, right-click on the Skype icon and select the “Settings” option by clicking on it.
  • Upon selecting the “Settings” option, a “General” tab will be displayed, select that tab too.
  • Under the “General” tab, browse to an option labelled; “Show Skype in the Windows notification area” and click on the box to uncheck this option.
  • After the above steps are completed the icon would be hidden from the system tray successfully.

Method 2

Perform the following steps in the given sequence.

  • Launch the Skype application with a double click execution.
  • On the left side of the screen where there are the user name and profile picture, locate the button annotated as simply “…” which is a menu button, click on it and go to the Settings
  • Click on the “Settings” button and select the “General” option which will open up a Skype configuration section.
  • On this section click on the option labelled “Show Skype in the Windows notification area” to disable this option which comes as enabled by default.

After executing the above steps, regardless of which method was used, the icon will disappear from the system tray.

What to expect after removing the Skype icon from the System tray?

Even after hiding the icon from the system tray, you will still receive notifications and messages from your contacts unless you sign-out of your account.

To sign out:

  • Open the Skype app by double-clicking the app icon.
  • Navigate to the three-dotted-menu and click on it.
  • A menu will pop up and from the available options select “Sign Out” and confirm.
  • After signing out, you won’t receive any more messages or notifications.

In case you want to enable the Skype icon on the System tray again, follow the steps of method 2 of Removing Skype icon for the new built-in Store version. This time around, the option labelled “Show Skype in the Windows notification area” will be unchecked (that is it won’t be having a tick), navigate to that section and select it.

Be careful not to be confused if you have both – the old and new Skype versions installed on your computer. In case you want to remove one and remain with the other, type Skype on the search bar and both versions will be displayed. The one labelled “desktop app” is the old one which does not have any troubles. The one shown as “Trusted Microsoft Store app” is the new one that does not have the quit option and comes as part of the updated Windows 10 operating system. Choose the one you want to remove and right-click on it and select uninstall.

It is really surprising that only after you sign out on the new built-in Store version are you able to see the quit option. Hopefully, a new update will be released soon with the appropriate fixes.

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