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How to Activate Full Screen Mode in Internet Explorer 11

View web pages and media without visual distraction

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Updated on February 7, 2021

What to Know

Hands-down easiest: Press the F11 key.
Next easiest: Gear icon > File > Full Screen.

This article explains how to open a link in Internet Explorer 11 full-screen mode on any supported version of Microsoft Windows.

Microsoft no longer supports Internet Explorer and recommends that you update to the newer Edge browser. Head to their site to download the newest version.

Activate Full-Screen Mode in Internet Explorer 11

Turn IE11 full-screen mode on and off in a few steps.

Open Internet Explorer.
Select the gear icon (located in the upper-right corner of the browser window).
When the drop-down menu appears, hover the mouse cursor over the File option to open a submenu.
Select Full Screen. Alternatively, use the F11 keyboard shortcut.

The browser should be in full-screen mode. To disable full-screen mode and return to the standard Internet Explorer 11 window, press the F11 key.

Set Internet Explorer to Always Open Maximized

If Internet Explorer does not open as a maximized window when you select it in the Start menu, the shortcut has the incorrect default Run property. Change it from the Windows desktop.

Right-click a blank area on the desktop. Point to New and select Shortcut.
Select Browse, then navigate to Program Files/Internet Explorer/iexplore.exe.
Choose Next.
Enter a name for the shortcut, then select Finish. The shortcut appears on the desktop.
Right-click the shortcut and select Properties.
Go to the Shortcut tab. Then, select the Run drop-down arrow and choose Maximized.
Select Apply, then select OK.