5 Ways to Empty Recycle Bin When You Can’t Delete Files in Windows 11

Pankil is a Civil Engineer turned freelance writer. Since his arrival at Guiding Tech in 2021, he delves into the world of how-tos, and troubleshooting guides for Android, iOS, and Windows. Besides his new-found love for mechanical keyboards, he’s a disciplined footfall fan and loves international travel with his wife.

Method 1: Empty Recycle Bin via Context Menu

Let’s start with a method most of you might be familiar with. The quickest way to empty theRecycle Bin on Windowsis from the context menu. Right-click on theRecycle Bin iconand selectEmpty Recycle Binfrom the resulting menu.

Alternatively, you can also right-click anywhere on an empty spot within the Recycle Bin window and select theEmpty Recycle Binoption.

Method 2: Empty the Recycle Bin via Settings

If the above methods do not work, try clearing Recycle Bin files from the Settings app. This method also allows you to configure Windows to empty the Recycle Bin automatically.

Step 1:Press theWindows key + Ito open the Settings app and head toSystem > Storage.

Step 2:Click onTemporary files.

Step 3:Check theRecycle Binbox and uncheck everything else. Then, click theRemove filesbutton at the top.

Alternatively, you can use Windows’s Storage Sense feature to automatically empty the recycle bin. To do so, go to the Storage settings page and clickStorage Sense.

Enable theAutomatic User content cleanupoption. Then, use the drop-down menu underRun Storage Senseto specify how often Windows should run this tool. Use the Recycle Bin drop-down menu to specify how long a file should remain in the Recycle Bin before Storage Sense deletes it.

Method 3: Empty Recycle Bin With Disk Cleanup Utility

Disk Cleanup is a useful Windows tool forremoving temporary files from your system. You can also use it to empty the Recycle Bin if the above methods do not work. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1:Click on thesearch iconon the taskbar, typedisk cleanup, and select the first result.

Step 2:Use the drop-down menu to select yourprimary driveand clickOK.

Step 3:Under Files to delete, check theRecycle Binbox. Uncheck everything else and clickOK.

Step 4:When a confirmation prompt appears, clickDelete Files.

Method 4: Empty the Recycle Bin With Command Prompt

Command Prompt lets you communicate with your computer via text commands. It is a handy tool to perform complicated tasks such as processing batch files,formatting hard drives, and more. Here’s how to use it to empty Recycle Bin on Windows.

Step 1:Right-click on theStart iconand selectTerminal (Admin)from the list.

Step 2:Enter the following command to empty the Recycle Bin.

Step 3:PressY>Enterto confirm your choice.

Method 5: Empty Recycle Bin Using Windows Powershell

You can also empty files from the Recycle Bin by entering a quick command into the PowerShell window. Here’s how.

Step 1:Open thesearch menu, typeWindows PowerShell, and clickRun as Administrator.

Step 2:Paste the following command and pressEnter.

Step 3:TypeYand pressEnterto confirm.

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Last updated on 02 September, 2024

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