Quick fix: Open Microsoft Store → click your profile icon (top-right) → Settings → toggle App updates Off. New versions stop downloading automatically until you re-enable. To update on demand, go to Library → click Get updates.

Microsoft Store auto-updates installed apps in the background. Sometimes you don’t want this — a specific Spotify version works better than the new one, a game you’re mid-playthrough doesn’t need patches that change content, or you’re on a metered connection. The pause is one toggle, but the Store also has multiple stale paths that re-enable it — you may need to fully disable Store automation.

Symptom: Want to stop Microsoft Store from auto-updating installed apps without uninstalling Store.
Affects: Windows 11 (and Windows 10) Microsoft Store.
Fix time: ~5 minutes.

What causes this

Microsoft Store’s default behavior is to download and install updates for installed Store apps automatically. This is handled by the Microsoft Store Install Service running in the background. The Store’s Settings has a toggle to disable this, but the scheduled task that triggers update checks runs independently — if you disable the toggle but leave the task running, updates may still occur.

For most users the Settings toggle is enough. For users who want zero update activity (truly pinning app versions), additional steps are needed.

Method 1: Toggle App Updates off in Store Settings

The standard route.

Open Microsoft Store from Start menu.
Click your profile icon (top-right corner).
Click Settings.
Find App updates. Toggle Off.
Optional: also toggle off Notify me when apps are updated if you don’t want notifications about available updates.
Close Store. Background updates stop within a few minutes.
To manually update an app later: Library → Get updates (lists pending updates). Pick which to install.

This is the cleanest path for normal use.

Method 2: Disable update orchestration via Task Scheduler

For when the Settings toggle isn’t enough — or after Windows feature updates that re-enable Store auto-update.

Open Task Scheduler from Start menu.
Navigate to Microsoft → Windows → WindowsUpdate.
Look for tasks named Automatic App Update, Scheduled Start, or similar.
For each: right-click → Disable.
Navigate to Microsoft → Windows → Store. Disable scheduled tasks here too.
For belt-and-suspenders: stop the Microsoft Store Install Service:
```
net stop InstallService
```
But don’t disable it permanently — you’ll need it when manually installing apps.
To re-enable automation later: re-enable the tasks and restart Store from Settings.

This is the right path for users who want stronger guarantees against automatic updates.

Method 3: Use Group Policy or registry to lock Store updates off

For PCs where you want the setting to persist across Windows feature updates.

For Windows 11 Pro: open Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc).
Navigate to Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → Store.
Open Turn off Automatic Download and Install of updates. Set to Enabled.
Run gpupdate /force.

For Home edition (no gpedit), use registry:

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsStore" /v AutoDownload /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f

Value 2 = Disabled. Value 4 = Enabled.

Reboot. Microsoft Store no longer auto-downloads updates.
To revert: change the value to 4 or delete the registry key.
Group Policy persists across Windows updates; the Store Settings toggle does not always.

This locks the setting in place for the long term.

How to verify the fix worked

Open Microsoft Store → Library. Below installed apps, the “Updates available” section shows apps with pending updates. They don’t install automatically.
Wait a day. Re-check Library. No apps have been updated without your action.
Run Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName "Automatic App Update" in PowerShell. State should be Disabled.

If none of these work

If apps continue to auto-update despite Settings toggle and Group Policy, the cause may be at the per-app level. Some Store apps auto-update independently: Spotify and Discord, for example, have their own internal updaters that bypass the Store. To stop those, look in the app’s own settings for update behavior. For Edge specifically: Edge updates via Microsoft Update separate from Store. Disable via Settings → Privacy and security → Performance → Get updates only when restarted. For UWP apps with critical updates pushed by Microsoft: some apps (Microsoft Authenticator, Microsoft Defender) have force-update policies for security. These can’t be blocked via user toggle — only enterprise policies via Intune or AD. If Store auto-installs new app SKUs on its own (not just updates): also disable Settings → Apps → Apps from anywhere if that option is present. For PCs that need extreme update control (factory environments, locked-down kiosks): consider Windows 10/11 LTSC (Long-Term Servicing Channel) editions, which don’t include Microsoft Store at all.

Bottom line: Microsoft Store → Profile icon → Settings → App updates: Off. For persistence across Windows feature updates, also disable scheduled tasks under Task Scheduler → Microsoft → Windows → WindowsUpdate.