The Best Free Software for Windows 11

Windows 11 includes a lot, but a few free programs get even more out of your computer. Below you'll find well-known, trustworthy programs by category. Always download them from the maker's official website or via a package manager such as winget, never from third-party download sites. "Free" may only apply to personal use for some programs, so check the license before using one at work.

Install and update software

winget: Windows' own package manager. winget install VideoLAN.VLC installs a program, winget upgrade --all updates everything.
Chocolatey: a popular alternative, especially among admins.
Microsoft Store: many free programs are available there too.

Office and documents

Microsoft 365 for the web: free Word, Excel and PowerPoint in the browser with a Microsoft account.
LibreOffice: a fully free office suite.
Adobe Acrobat Reader, or simply Microsoft Edge, to read and sign PDFs.

Photo, video and audio

GIMP and Paint.NET for photo editing.
Audacity for recording and editing audio.
HandBrake to convert videos.
VLC: plays almost any video and audio file.
Clipchamp: the video editor that comes with Windows 11.

Handy utilities

7-Zip for zip, 7z and other archives.
Microsoft PowerToys: a collection of extras, such as a color picker, window layouts and text extraction from images.
TreeSize Free or WinDirStat to see which folders fill your drive.
Snipping Tool (built in) or Greenshot for screenshots.
Quick Assist (built in) to help someone remotely. TeamViewer is free for personal use.
VirtualBox to test another operating system in a virtual machine.

Internet and communication

Browsers: Microsoft Edge (built in), Firefox and Google Chrome.
Messaging: Signal, WhatsApp and Microsoft Teams (free version for personal use).
Video calls: Teams, Google Meet or Jitsi Meet in the browser.
Cloud storage: OneDrive (built in) or Dropbox.
Proton VPN has a free tier if you need a VPN.

Security and maintenance: already built in

Windows Security (Microsoft Defender Antivirus) already protects your PC. A second free antivirus is usually unnecessary.
Storage Sense cleans up temporary files automatically. You don't need a separate "cleaner".
Keep Windows and your programs up to date via Windows Update and winget.

Also see winget in Windows and free Office online.

Nederlandstalige versie: De beste gratis software voor Windows 11 per categorie

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The best free software for Windows 11 by category