Microsoft Edge Uninstaller

A PowerShell tool to completely remove Microsoft Edge from Windows 10/11 and prevent it from being reinstalled via Windows Update.

Quick Start

# Run as Administrator:
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Chiragsd13/microsoft-edge-uninstaller/master/Remove-Edge.ps1 | iex

Or clone and run locally:

git clone https://github.com/Chiragsd13/microsoft-edge-uninstaller
cd microsoft-edge-uninstaller
.\Remove-Edge.ps1

Why?

Windows makes it nearly impossible to uninstall Edge through normal means — there's no "Uninstall" button in Settings, winget uninstall fails with exit code 93, and the built-in setup.exe uninstaller is blocked on recent Windows 11 builds. This tool handles all of that.

What It Does

1. Sets registry keys to allow Edge uninstallation (AllowUninstall)
2. Kills all Edge processes (msedge, EdgeUpdate, EdgeWebView2)
3. Runs the official uninstaller via Edge's setup.exe --force-uninstall
4. Force-removes Edge directories if the official uninstaller fails (common on Win11 26300+)
5. Cleans up shortcuts (Start Menu, Desktop, Taskbar) and scheduled tasks
6. Cleans up stale registry entries (EdgeUpdate Clients, ClientState, Add/Remove Programs) so ghost registrations don't block WebView2 or other installs
7. Blocks reinstallation via registry policies so Windows Update doesn't bring it back

Usage

Remove Edge

# Open PowerShell as Administrator, then:
.\Remove-Edge.ps1

Options

Flag	Description
-SkipConfirmation	Skip the "are you sure?" prompt
-BlockReinstall:$false	Don't block reinstallation (only removes Edge)

# Remove without confirmation
.\Remove-Edge.ps1 -SkipConfirmation

# Remove but allow reinstallation later
.\Remove-Edge.ps1 -BlockReinstall:$false

Restore Edge (Undo)

If you want Edge back:

# Open PowerShell as Administrator, then:
.\Restore-Edge.ps1

This removes the reinstall block. After running it, download Edge from microsoft.com/edge or wait for Windows Update to restore it.

How It Works

The Problem

On modern Windows 11 (Build 26300+), Microsoft protects Edge from removal at multiple levels:

• Settings app: No uninstall button for Edge
• winget uninstall: Fails with exit code 93
• setup.exe --uninstall: Blocked by OS policy
• Remove-AppxPackage: Returns 0x80073CFA ("part of Windows")

The Solution

Step	Method	Why
1	Set HKLM:\...\EdgeUpdateDev\AllowUninstall = 1	Tells the Edge uninstaller it's OK to proceed
2	Stop-Process on all Edge processes	Can't delete files that are in use
3	Run setup.exe --uninstall --system-level --force-uninstall	Try the official way first
4	Remove-Item -Recurse -Force on Edge directories	Force removal when official uninstaller fails
5	Delete shortcuts + Unregister-ScheduledTask	Clean up residual artifacts
6	Remove stale Edge registry entries (Clients, ClientState, Uninstall)	Prevent ghost registrations from blocking WebView2 or other installs
7	Set DoNotUpdateToEdgeWithChromium = 1 + EdgeUpdate policies	Prevent Windows Update from reinstalling

Registry Keys Used

Key	Value	Purpose
HKLM:\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\EdgeUpdateDev	AllowUninstall = 1	Permits Edge uninstallation
HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate	DoNotUpdateToEdgeWithChromium = 1	Blocks Edge delivery via Windows Update
HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate	InstallDefault = 0	Blocks Edge auto-install
HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate	Install{56EB18F8-...} = 0	Blocks Edge Stable channel install

Important Notes

• Run as Administrator — the script will exit if not elevated
• Edge WebView2 is NOT removed — many apps depend on it (Teams, Widgets, etc.). Only the Edge browser is removed.
• Major Windows feature updates (e.g., 23H2 → 24H2) may reinstall Edge despite the registry blocks. Re-run the script if that happens.
• This is reversible — use Restore-Edge.ps1 to undo everything

Tested On

• Windows 11 Pro Build 26300 (2025)
• PowerShell 7.x and Windows PowerShell 5.1

Contributing

PRs welcome. If the script breaks on a new Windows build, open an issue with your build number and the error output.