A priority level determines the proportion of arrangement resources, more specifically CPU time and RAM resource allotment, prepare for Windows software. Windows 11/x automatically assigns priority levels to programs. Most standard user apps will have normal or lower priority levels, and the OS reserves higher levels for more than important system processes and services.

Yet, you tin can alter the priority levels for programs yourself by adjusting a Prepare priority option. By doing so, you'll be giving certain software more or less system resources priority. This is how to change a program's priority level in Windows xi.

How to Select a Priority Level for a Programme With Chore Manager

The Set priority option is a well-hidden Task Manager setting y'all can select to change the processor priority of a process. That's a context carte option available within the Details tab of Chore Director. It includes half dozen priority levels for users to cull from.

You tin can select a priority level for a running program with this option as follows.

  1. First, launch the software you lot want to set a priority level for. If it'south a game you launch, you'll probably need to return to the desktop by pressing the Win key or Ctrl + Alt + Delete to select Task Director.
  2. Click the Beginning carte du jour's taskbar icon with the right button on your mouse to select a Chore Managing director option.
    The Task Manager option
  3. Select Task Manager's Details tab.
  4. So right-click the EXE process for the software you only started to select Set priority.
    The Set priority option
  5. Choose a Realtime, Loftier, To a higher place Normal, Normal, Below Normal, or Low pick on the Gear up priority menu. Don't ever select the highest Realtime setting, which is primarily for hardware-related processes.
  6. A confirmation prompt will then pop upward. Click the Change priority push button on that dialog box.
The Change priority button

Now your selected software is running with a different priority level until yous shut it. Notation what the confirmation prompt says about how changing priority levels for programs tin can generate organization instability. So, don't get carried abroad and start setting high priority levels for loads of 3rd-party software processes within the Details tab. It'due south best to fix a college priority level for ane arrangement-resource heavy software only, such as a game or prototype editor.

How to Select a Permanent Priority Level for a Program

The Task Manager'southward Set priority level option isn't a permanent setting for any program. A program you changed the priority level for will revert to default when restarted. That's non platonic if you always desire to run sure software at a different priority level.

To save yourself having to always manually alter priority for a plan, check out Process Hacker. Process Hacker is a Task Manager alternative with which y'all tin can select to save a chosen priority level for a running program.

Here is how yous can select a permanent priority level with Process Hacker.

  1. Open up Process Hacker'southward Softpedia page.
  2. Click Download Now and the External mirror options.
  3. Then open File Explorer'due south window, and navigate to the folder that includes Procedure Hacker'south Cypher archive.
  4. Click Procedure Hacker's Cipher file with the right mouse button to select Extract All.
    The Extract all option
  5. Select the Evidence extracted files option, and click the Extract button.
    The Extract Compressed window
  6. Click the x64 subfolder in Process Hacker's folder to open up it.
  7. Then double-click the ProcessHacker.exe to open the window in the screenshot directly below (no installation required).
    process hacker window
  8. Launch software for which to modify the priority level.
  9. And then right-click a program's procedure in Process Hacker to select Priority. If you lot tin can't find the software at that place, enter a keyword for the process in the search box.
  10. Select a priority level on the submenu.
  11. Right-click the same software process once again to select the Priority > Relieve for options.
    The Save for option
  12. Now shut the software for which you just saved the priority level. When you restart the software, y'all'll see in Process Hacker that the program has the aforementioned priority level yous configured and saved information technology to start with.

You can also add a Run with priority shortcut to Windows 11'due south context menu with Winaero Tweaker. Such a shortcut will enable y'all to outset software packages with different priority levels. Then you won't need to rummage through Chore Manager to modify priority levels for processes. These are the steps for calculation a Run with priority submenu to the context menu.

  1. Bring upwards the Winaero Tweaker download page.
  2. Select the Download Winaero Tweaker link to save a ZIP file for the software.
  3. Open the folder in which you downloaded Winaero Tweaker's ZIP annal inside Explorer.
  4. Then excerpt Winaero's ZIP as covered in the fourth and 5th steps of the previous method.
  5. Double-click WinaeroTweaker-ane.33.0.0-setup.exe in Winaero's extracted folder to launch that setup sorcerer.
  6. Select Adjacent two times, and click the I accept the agreement radio button.
  7. Click Adjacent and Browse to select a different binder for the software if you prefer.
    The Winaero Tweaker setup window
  8. Then you tin can keep clicking Adjacent until yous go to the Install choice. Select Install to complete the installation.
  9. Make sure you lot've selected the Run Winaero Tweaker checkbox, and click the Stop pick.
  10. Whorl down to and double-click the Context menu category in Winaero Tweaker's left sidebar.
  11. Select the Run with Priority selection shown straight below.
    The Run with Priority option
  12. Then click the Add together Run with priority context card checkbox to select it.

Check out the new Run with priority submenu on Windows 11'southward context carte du jour. Correct-click a software shortcut on your desktop to select Show more options, which opens a classic context menu. And then select the new Run with priority card option in that location to view settings. Cull one of the five priority options (excluding Realtime) to launch the software.

The Run with priority context menu option

Y'all can e'er remove that Run with priority submenu from the context menu with Winaero Tweaker. To exercise and so, open the Run with Priority option in Winaero. Then click the Reset this page to defaults choice for that setting. You lot can restore all the Winaero options to default by clicking Actions > Reset all Tweaks.

Give Organization Resource Heavy Software a College Priority Level

The Set up priority option is by and large useful for selecting higher levels for system-resource intensive software. For case, yous can get meliorate performance from a game with high organisation requirements by choosing a higher priority level. Raising the priority level can fifty-fifty sometimes prepare games crashing. And then, raising the priority level is a good fashion to give your software a bit of a boost when needed.