The Sticky Keys popup appears when you press Shift five times in a row

Windows shows a popup asking whether you want to turn on Sticky Keys whenever you press the Shift key five times rapidly. This happens on Windows 10 and Windows 11. The popup interrupts what you are doing, and the easiest fix is to disable it in your accessibility settings so it never appears again.

You have two options: turn off Sticky Keys entirely, or keep the feature but silence the popup. Most people choose to disable the popup while leaving Sticky Keys available if they need it later. The steps differ slightly between Windows 10 and Windows 11, but both take less than a minute.

Key Takeaways

  • The Sticky Keys popup triggers when you press Shift five times quickly, and you can disable it without removing the feature itself.
  • On Windows 10 and 11, go to Settings > Ease of Access or Accessibility > Keyboard to find the Sticky Keys toggle.
  • Unchecking "Show notification" stops the popup from appearing while keeping Sticky Keys available if you turn it on manually.
  • If you want to disable Sticky Keys completely, toggle it off in the same menu and the popup will never appear.
  • Windows 10 lets you disable the five-Shift shortcut itself, while Windows 11 only lets you silence the notification.

Disable the popup on Windows 11

Open Settings by pressing Windows key + I. Click Accessibility in the left sidebar, then select Keyboard. Scroll down until you see Sticky Keys.

Under Sticky Keys, you will see a toggle switch and a checkbox labeled "Show notification when Sticky Keys turns on". If you want to keep Sticky Keys but just silence the popup, leave the toggle On and uncheck that notification box. The popup will no longer interrupt you, but the feature remains available if you need it.

If you want to disable Sticky Keys completely, toggle the switch to Off instead. This removes the feature entirely and stops the popup from ever appearing. You can turn it back on from this same menu anytime in the future.

Disable the popup on Windows 10

Open Settings and go to Ease of Access. Click Keyboard in the left menu. Find Sticky Keys and you will see both a toggle and a checkbox for "Allow the shortcut key to start this setting".

If you prefer to keep Sticky Keys available but stop the popup, uncheck "Allow the shortcut key to start this setting". This prevents the five-Shift trigger from activating, so you will never see the popup unless you manually turn on Sticky Keys from this same menu. Alternatively, you can toggle Sticky Keys to Off to disable the feature completely.

What Sticky Keys does

Sticky Keys is an accessibility feature that lets you press modifier keys like Shift, Ctrl, or Alt one at a time instead of holding them down while pressing another key. For example, instead of holding Shift and pressing S to type a capital S, you press Shift once, release it, then press S. The system remembers the Shift press and applies it to the next key you type.

This feature helps people who have difficulty pressing multiple keys at once or who use one hand to type. If you do not use it, disabling it entirely is the simplest solution. If you use it occasionally or think you might need it in the future, turning off only the popup keeps the feature ready without the interruption.

Why the popup keeps appearing

The five-Shift trigger is a keyboard shortcut built into Windows. If you type quickly or use Shift frequently in your work, you might hit this combination by accident. Gamers, programmers, and people who type in all caps often report this problem because their normal typing patterns accidentally activate the shortcut.

The popup is designed to confirm that you actually want to turn on Sticky Keys rather than activating it by mistake. Once you disable the notification or the feature itself, the accidental presses will no longer bother you, and you can continue working without interruption.

Other keyboard shortcuts that trigger accessibility popups

Windows has similar shortcuts for other accessibility features. Holding the right Shift key for eight seconds triggers Filter Keys, and holding the Num Lock key for five seconds triggers Toggle Keys. Both show popups the same way Sticky Keys does.

If you see other unexpected popups when you press certain key combinations, check the Ease of Access or Accessibility menu for Filter Keys and Toggle Keys. You can disable their notifications or the features themselves using the same method as Sticky Keys. Look for the same "Show notification" or "Allow the shortcut key" checkboxes in each feature's settings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will disabling the popup remove Sticky Keys from my computer?

No. Unchecking "Show notification" keeps Sticky Keys installed and ready to use — it just stops the popup from appearing. You can still turn on Sticky Keys manually from Settings whenever you need it. If you toggle off the Sticky Keys switch itself, then the feature is disabled, but you can turn it back on anytime from the same menu.

Can I disable the five-Shift shortcut without disabling Sticky Keys?

On Windows 10, yes — uncheck "Allow the shortcut key to start this setting" to disable the keyboard trigger while keeping the feature available in Settings. On Windows 11, you can only disable the notification, not the shortcut itself. If the shortcut keeps triggering on Windows 11, your best option is to turn off Sticky Keys entirely.

What if I actually use Sticky Keys and want to keep it?

Uncheck only the notification box, not the Sticky Keys toggle. This keeps the feature on and ready to use but stops the popup from interrupting you. You will still be able to press Shift five times to activate it, but you will not see the confirmation dialog.

Does this work the same way on older versions of Windows?

The steps are slightly different on Windows 7 and earlier versions. Go to Control Panel > Ease of Access > Ease of Access Center, then click "Make the keyboard easier to use" and uncheck the Sticky Keys notification box. The principle is the same across all versions.

What should I do if the popup still appears after I disable it?

Make sure you unchecked the notification box and clicked Apply or OK to save your changes. If the popup still appears, restart your computer to ensure Windows loads the new settings. If it continues after a restart, check that you are in the correct menu — Windows 10 and 11 have slightly different layouts, so verify you are following the steps for your version.