Location of the Startup Folder in Windows 11, 10 and Windows Server

Updated October 2026: These folder locations are the same in Windows 11 and in Windows Server 2016 through 2025. We also corrected the shortcut for the all-users folder: it opens with shell:common startup.

Windows startup folder location

Current User

The Current Users Startup folder in Windows is located at:

C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

Short cuts of executables in this folder will start up for the current logged in user only. To directly access this folder, open Run, type shell:startup and hit Enter, Or to quickly open the folder, press WinKey, type shell:startup and hit Enter.

All Users

The All Users Windows startup folder is located at:

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

Short cuts of executables in this folder will start up for all users. To directly access this folder, open Run, type shell:common startup and hit Enter, Or to quickly open the folder, press WinKey, type shell:common startup and hit Enter.

You can add shortcuts of the programs you want to start with Windows at login in this folder.