A virtual desktop is a separate screen-space that holds its own set of open windows. You can have Desktop 1 for your email and browser, Desktop 2 for a code editor and documentation, and Desktop 3 for personal stuff — all running simultaneously, with one keypress to move between them. Windows has had this feature built in since Windows 10, but because it lives in the Task View panel rather than a visible button, most people never discover it.
Opening Task View
The entry point is Task View. Press Win + Tab to open it. You will see all open windows on your current desktop arranged as thumbnails. Along the top (Windows 11) or top area of the screen (Windows 10), you will see your existing desktops listed — initially just one called "Desktop 1" — and a button to add a new desktop.
Alternatively, click the Task View button in the taskbar. In Windows 11 it looks like two overlapping rectangles. In Windows 10, it is the icon to the right of the search bar. If the button is missing, right-click the taskbar and enable "Show Task View button."
Creating a New Desktop
Inside Task View, click New desktop (the + icon next to your desktop thumbnails). A second desktop appears in the strip at the top. Click it to switch to it — your current windows disappear and you start with a clean, empty desktop. Open the applications you want to live on this desktop and they will stay here.
You can create as many virtual desktops as you need. There is no enforced limit, though having more than five or six tends to become harder to navigate than it is worth.
Switching Between Desktops
The keyboard shortcut for switching desktops is the most important thing to memorize:
Ctrl + Win + Right Arrow— move to the next desktopCtrl + Win + Left Arrow— move to the previous desktop
These work even when Task View is closed. Once you are using two or three desktops regularly, cycling between them with this shortcut becomes fast and natural.
You can also click directly on a desktop thumbnail inside Task View to jump to it without cycling through.
Moving Windows Between Desktops
To move a window from one desktop to another, open Task View, hover over the desktop that contains the window you want to move, then right-click the window thumbnail. A context menu appears with a "Move to" option listing your other desktops. Select the destination and the window moves.
You can also drag a window thumbnail from one desktop slot to another in Task View. This is sometimes faster when moving several windows at once.
Closing a Desktop
In Task View, hover over the desktop thumbnail you want to remove. An X button appears in its top-right corner. Click it to close the desktop. Any windows that were open on that desktop do not close — they move to the desktop to the left of the one you removed. This means you will never lose work by closing a desktop.
Pinning Windows to All Desktops
Some windows you want visible regardless of which desktop you switch to — a reference document, a timer, a music player. In Task View, right-click any window thumbnail and choose "Show this window on all desktops." The window then appears on every desktop you switch to, staying in its position. Right-click and deselect the option to unpin it.
Keyboard Shortcut Reference
All the shortcuts for virtual desktops in one place:
Win + Tab— open Task ViewWin + Ctrl + D— create a new desktop immediately (no Task View needed)Win + Ctrl + Right/Left— switch to next/previous desktopWin + Ctrl + F4— close the current desktop
Practical Setups That Work Well
The approach that works best depends on your workflow, but a few arrangements are consistently useful:
- Two desktops: Work on Desktop 1, personal browser and chat on Desktop 2. Alt-Tab stays clean within each context.
- Project-per-desktop: If you juggle multiple client projects or documents, one desktop per active project keeps each context separate. Switch projects by switching desktops rather than hunting through Alt-Tab.
- Reference desktop: Keep documentation, a calculator, or a reference spreadsheet pinned to all desktops so it is always one click away without cluttering your primary workspace.
Virtual desktops do not affect performance — all open windows continue running in the background regardless of which desktop is active. They are purely a window organization tool, not a resource management one. If you want to suspend background applications to save memory, that requires a different approach (such as suspending individual processes or using browser tab suspender extensions).