Hide the Keyboard Selection Icon in Windows 11

Language Bar & Taskbar Input Indicator

Why That "ENG" or "US" Icon Shows Up

If your keyboard or region settings include more than one input language, Windows adds a small language indicator (often reading "ENG" or "US") to your system tray. It's meant to help you switch keyboards quickly — but if you only ever use one language, it's just clutter next to your clock.

There are actually two related-but-different things people mean by "the keyboard selection icon":

What You See What It's Called How to Hide It
A floating toolbar you can drag around the screen The Language Bar Settings method below
A small "ENG"/"US" icon docked in the system tray The Input Indicator Registry method below

The Settings-based method removes the old floating language bar. On most modern Windows 11 installs the system tray icon is what people actually want gone — that requires the registry tweak further down this page.

Hide the keyboard language bar icon in Windows 11
Applies to: Windows 11 (all current builds). Works the same on Windows 10.

Method 1: Hide the Floating Language Bar

This is the officially supported setting in Windows. Use it first — if the system tray icon is still visible afterward, move on to Method 2.

  1. Open Advanced Keyboard Settings.
    • Press Windows + I to open Settings.
    • Go to Time & language → Typing.
    • Scroll down and select Advanced keyboard settings.
  2. Switch the language bar to hidden.
    • Check the box for "Use the desktop language bar when it's available."
    • Click Language bar options.
    • In the window that opens, select Hidden under the Language Bar tab.
    • Click Apply, then OK.

Your language switcher keeps working the whole time — press Windows + Spacebar to cycle input languages even after the visual indicator is hidden.

Method 2: Force-Hide the Taskbar Input Indicator Registry Edit

If the "ENG"/"US" icon is still sitting in your system tray after Method 1, it's the input indicator, not the language bar. Windows 11 doesn't expose a Settings toggle for this icon, but a documented registry value controls it directly.

Editing the registry is safe when you follow the exact steps below, but mistakes elsewhere in the registry can cause problems. Consider exporting the LangBar key first (Registry Editor → right-click the key → Export) so you can restore it if needed.
  1. Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
  2. Navigate to: 
    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\CTF\LangBar
  3. Find the value named ShowStatus. If it doesn't exist, right-click the empty space in the right pane → New → DWORD (32-bit) Value → name it ShowStatus.
  4. Double-click ShowStatus and set its value to 3 (Hexadecimal or Decimal — either is fine for this value).
  5. Sign out of Windows and back in (or restart) for the change to take effect.

To restore the icon later, set ShowStatus back to 0, or delete the value entirely, then sign out and back in.

Troubleshooting & Notes
  • Both settings are per user profile. If a shared computer has multiple Windows accounts, each one needs to be updated separately.
  • If the icon reappears after a Windows Update, re-check the ShowStatus value — feature updates occasionally reset it.
  • Removing the icon only hides the visual indicator. Your keyboard shortcuts (Windows + Spacebar or Alt + Shift) still switch languages normally.
  • If you only have one input language installed, you likely won't see this icon at all — it only appears when two or more languages are configured.
Further Reading

Registry edits and configuration changes carry inherent risk. You are responsible for ensuring any change is suitable for your environment and for backing up your registry before making edits.

Review our terms of service at https://www.itms-us.com/Website-Terms-Of-Use. Instructions on this page are provided "as is," without warranty, and IT Master Services is not responsible for any issues resulting from their use.

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