A window that stays above everything else has been made “topmost”, and the fastest fix is to undo it the same way it was set: press the pinning tool’s shortcut again (Win+Ctrl+T for PowerToys Always On Top), turn off the app’s own “always on top” or “keep on top” option, or close and reopen the window. If you cannot tell what pinned it, work through the checks below in order. If you want pinning that is easy to see and easy to undo, PinPoint from Automata Labs draws a border around every window it pins and can release a pin automatically after a set time.
See which windows are pinned at a glance, and unpin any of them with one hotkey.
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Why is a window stuck on top of everything?
Windows has a built-in idea of “topmost” windows. Microsoft’s SetWindowPos documentation describes the HWND_TOPMOST setting as placing a window “above all non-topmost windows,” and says the window “maintains its topmost position even when it is deactivated.” In plain terms, once a window is topmost, clicking another app does not push it back.
Any program can set that flag on its own windows, and a pinning utility can set it on other programs’ windows. So a stuck window usually comes from one of four places:
- A pinning tool you or someone else turned on, such as PowerToys Always On Top, an AutoHotkey script, or a dedicated pinning app.
- The app’s own setting, for example a “keep on top” button in a media player, calculator, chat window or terminal.
- A dialog or child window of a pinned app. The same Microsoft page notes that “any window (for example, a dialog box) owned by a topmost window is itself made a topmost window.” That is why a pinned app’s Save or Settings dialog can float too.
- A window that is designed to float, such as an overlay, a picture-in-picture video or a notification panel.
How do I turn off always on top for a window?
Start with the cheapest checks. Most stuck windows are fixed by step 1 or 2.
- Press the PowerToys shortcut again. Microsoft’s PowerToys Always On Top guide says that to unpin a window, “you can either use the activation shortcut again or close the window.” The default shortcut is Win+Ctrl+T, applied to the active window, so click the stuck window first. If PowerToys draws a colored border around it, that border is your clue.
- Look for the app’s own toggle. Check the window’s menus, title bar and settings for “Always on top”, “Keep on top” or a pin icon. Our article on why some Windows apps have a keep on top button lists common places these live.
- Right-click the title bar. If PowerToys has “Show Always on Top in the title bar context menu” turned on, the toggle appears there.
- Close and reopen the window. A pin set by a tool usually does not survive the window closing. If the window comes back pinned, something is re-applying it at launch, which points to an app setting, a startup script or an automatic rule.
- Check running scripts and helper apps. Look in the notification area and in Task Manager for AutoHotkey or other window tools, and pause them one at a time to see which one owns the pin.
Which apps and tools pin windows, and how do I unpin each one?
| Source of the pin | How it was turned on | How to turn it off |
|---|---|---|
| PowerToys Always On Top | Win+Ctrl+T on the active window, or the title bar menu if enabled | Press the shortcut again on that window, or close it |
| Windows Terminal | The alwaysOnTop setting, or the toggleAlwaysOnTop action | Run the same action again, or set alwaysOnTop to false |
| Task Manager | Its own “Always on top” option in Settings | Clear the option in Task Manager settings |
| AutoHotkey script | WinSetAlwaysOnTop in a script | Run it with 0 to turn off, or exit the script and reopen the window |
| The app itself | A pin icon or “keep on top” menu item | Use the same control to switch it off |
| PinPoint | Hotkey, profile or per-app auto-pin rule | Press the hotkey again, or turn off the rule for that app |
A few details from each source’s own documentation:
- Windows Terminal. The appearance settings page says that when alwaysOnTop is true, “Windows Terminal windows will launch on top of all other windows on the desktop,” and that the state “can also be toggled” with the toggleAlwaysOnTop action described on the actions page. If every new Terminal window floats, the setting is on in your settings file.
- Task Manager. Task Manager has its own Always on top checkbox. A Microsoft Q&A answer describes it under the gear icon, then Window management. If Task Manager covers your work, clear that box.
- AutoHotkey. The WinSetAlwaysOnTop reference explains that a value of 0 turns the setting off and -1 “toggles the setting.” A hotkey bound to the toggle is easy to press by accident.
Colored borders show exactly which windows PinPoint has pinned, so nothing floats by mystery.
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Why does a dialog box or a second window also stay on top?
This is the “owned window” rule at work. When a window is made topmost, Windows also makes the windows it owns topmost, so its dialog boxes cannot fall behind it. Microsoft’s documentation adds that when a topmost window is made non-topmost, “its owners and its owned windows are also made non-topmost windows.” So you rarely need to unpin a dialog directly. Unpin the main window, or close the dialog, and the pair goes back to normal stacking.
If a window seems to float but is not topmost at all, it may simply be a separate full-screen or overlay surface. Picture-in-picture players and game overlays are designed to sit above other content, and their own settings control them.
What if I cannot find what is pinning the window?
Try this short elimination process:
- Restart the app. If it comes back on top by itself, the cause is in the app’s settings or in an automatic rule.
- Quit window tools one at a time. Exit PowerToys, any AutoHotkey scripts and any pinning app, then reopen the stuck window after each one.
- Sign out and back in. This ends scripts and helper apps that started with your session. If the window stops floating, one of your startup items was the cause.
- Check the app’s update notes or settings file. Apps like Windows Terminal store “always on top” as a plain setting, so a synced or copied settings file can carry it to a new PC.
If the problem is the opposite, a window you want on top will not stay there, see our guide to always on top not working in Windows 11.
How does PinPoint keep pinning under control?
Most “stuck on top” moments happen because pins are invisible and easy to forget. PinPoint is built to make them obvious and temporary when you want them to be. Its Microsoft Store listing describes:
- A customizable global hotkey to pin and unpin the active window, so the same keys always undo a pin.
- Custom visual borders in your choice of color and thickness, so you can see which windows are pinned across all your monitors.
- Audio feedback for pin and unpin actions, so you know which way the toggle went.
- Timed countdown release, which unpins a window after the duration you set. Pin a reference window for a 30-minute task and it lets go on its own.
- Per-app auto-pinning and workspace profiles, for windows you do want on top every time, with each rule kept in one place where you can switch it off.
- Exclusion rules, so the apps you never want floating are never pinned by accident.
PinPoint runs offline with no account, and the listing gives its disk footprint as under 14 MB. Windows apps draw their windows in different ways, so test it with the specific windows you care about. For a comparison with the free Microsoft tool, see PinPoint vs PowerToys.
Frequently asked questions
What is the shortcut to turn off always on top in Windows 11?
Windows itself has no system-wide shortcut. If you use PowerToys Always On Top, the default is Win+Ctrl+T, and pressing it again on the pinned window unpins it. Other tools use their own shortcuts. Our guide to the always on top shortcut in Windows 11 covers the options.
Does closing a window remove always on top?
For pins set by PowerToys, yes: Microsoft lists closing the window as one way to unpin it. If the window comes back pinned when you reopen it, the app or a rule is pinning it at launch.
Why is Task Manager always on top?
Task Manager has its own Always on top option in its settings. Turn it off there if you want Task Manager to behave like a normal window.
Can two always on top windows overlap each other?
Yes. Topmost windows stay above normal windows, but among themselves they stack in the usual way. PowerToys notes it “can’t guarantee that the window will be above other topmost windows.”
Can PinPoint unpin windows automatically?
Yes. Its timed countdown release unpins a window after the duration you choose, which helps if you tend to forget pins.
Try PinPoint
Get PinPoint from the Microsoft Store. It is a one-time purchase with no subscription, and the Store listing shows the current price.
If you want specific apps pinned every time they open, read how to auto-pin an app always on top at launch.
Pin what you need, see what is pinned, and let timed pins release themselves.
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Microsoft, Windows, PowerToys and Windows Terminal are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. AutoHotkey is a trademark of its respective owner. PinPoint is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.
Last updated 23 October 2026. Published by Automata Labs, a software company in Canada.