Windows 10 Black Screen After Login: 7 Ways to Fix it

Booting in safe mode may be an option

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Key notes

  • The Windows 10 black screen after login usually occurs after upgrading your OS.
  • The solutions for fixing the black screen after login starts with installing dedicated repair software.
  • If the computer screen goes black after login, you can also try to log in without seeing what you type.
  • Another solution is to tweak some start-up options in Windows 10.

You have found this guide because you are experiencing the Windows 10 or 11 black screen after login in. We will show you how to fix it.

A free upgrade for your Windows is quite possibly the best thing that Microsoft could give you – and that is exactly what they did with Windows 10 and 11.

However, the free upgrade did not go smoothly for every. As you would expect, Microsoft software does not always work as intended for all the thousands of different hardware combinations.

Today we attempt to fix one such problem, which might have been caused by the massive diversity of hardware components Windows operates.

Why is my screen black after I log in?

You upgraded your Windows 10, and it worked brilliantly – until you restarted and hit the login screen.

All you can see is a black screen with your cursor, there are multiple causes for this problem, but the most common reason involves you having an Intel on-chip GPU and a standalone AMD/Nvidia GPU combination. Such combinations are usually found in laptops due to their battery-saving advantages.

In other cases, it is a problem with your Windows OS preventing your desktop and icons from loading if you get a black screen after logging in. Typically, it’s a program that starts up automatically.

Additionally, it’s possible that the crucial procedures required to load the computer’s display are not loaded properly at startup.

Furthermore, it may occur if your computer is short on storage space or malware has compromised the firmware.

Here are a few variations to this error:

  • Windows 10 black screen after login no desktop show up – In this case, you will not be able to view your desktop after logging in. you should drain the battery and restart the computer.
  • Computer screen goes black but computer still running – If it does not come up after a few minutes, press the power key for about 10 seconds, then restart the computer.
  • Windows 10 black screen for 5 minutes after login – You may wait it out in this case. Then try and update all your drivers as soon as the screen turns on.
  • Windows 10 black screen with cursor after login – In case of this issue, try restarting the computer after disconnecting all non-critical peripherals and try disabling the startup apps.
  • Windows 10 black screen before login – When getting a black screen before login, booting into Safe Mode will allow you to fix things.

Let us now show you some of the best resolutions.

How do I fix a black screen on Windows 10 after login?

1. Use a third-party repair solution

Black screen errors are less common and dangerous than blue screen errors but have similar behavior and manifestation.

You can treat and troubleshoot them with the same tools and procedures. That is why you can use a professional system repair solution to solve the black screen.

2. Try to log in blindly

  1. When you are on the black screen, wait for your mouse cursor to appear.
  2. Once you have the cursor, press Control on your keyboard – this will put the focus on the login password field.
  3. Now type your password. You can’t see it, but you must do it anyway.
  4. Once typed, hit Enter, and voila, you are logged into Windows.
  5. If your desktop does not appear after 30 seconds, try pressing Windows Key + P, press the Down Arrow key twice, and hit Enter.

After that, you should be logged in to Windows, and your screen should appear.

3. Disable Fast Boot on your PC

3.1 Enter Safe Mode

  1. Restart your PC several times during the boot sequence.
  2. Now choose Troubleshoot.
    windows 10 black screen after login
  3. Select Advanced options, click on Startup Settings, and click Restart.
  4. Once your PC restarts, you’ll be presented with options. Select any version of Safe Mode by pressing the appropriate key.

3.2 Disable Fast Boot

  1. Press Windows Key + S and type power settings.
  2. Now select Power & sleep settings from the list.
  3. Scroll down to the Related settings section and click Additional power settings.
  4. When the Power Options window appears, click Choose what the power button does option from the left pane.
    Windows 10 black screen before login
  5. Now click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
    Windows 10 black screen with cursor after update
  6. Uncheck Turn on fast startup (recommended) option and click Save changes.
    Black screen after restart

After disabling this feature, restart your PC and check if the problem is still there. Remember that disabling Fast Startup might cause your PC to boot slightly slower, but at least the issue should be resolved.

The issue might be the Fast Boot feature if you get a black screen after sign-in on Windows 10. This is a valuable feature since it will allow you to start your PC faster, but sometimes this feature can cause problems.

To fix the issue, you need to disable Fast Startup. However, since you can’t access Windows, you’ll have to do that from Safe Mode.

4. Try your hand at Startup Repair

  1. Restart your PC a couple of times during the boot sequence.
  2. Go to Troubleshoot, select Advanced options and click on Startup Repair.
  3. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the process.

Once the process is finished, the problem should be resolved.

If you’re stuck on a black screen after sign-in in, you might be able to solve the problem simply by performing a Startup Repair, so follow the steps above.

5. Disable App Readiness service

  1. Press Windows Key + R, and enter services.msc, then press Enter, or click OK.
    Black screen after restart
  2. Locate the App Readiness service on the list and double-click it to open its properties.
    Windows black screen with cursor after login
  3. Set Startup type to Disabled and click Apply and OK to save the changes.
    Windows 10 black screen before login

After disabling this service, restart your PC and check if the problem is still there. Remember that this is just a workaround, so you’ll probably have to enable this service someday.

As you know, Windows uses various services to work correctly, but sometimes certain services can cause a black screen after sign-in.

Usually, the App Readiness service is the culprit, and to fix the problem, you need to disable it.

6. Remove your laptop battery (if possible)

  1. Disconnect your laptop from the adapter and remove the battery. Check the laptop manual if you don’t know how to remove the battery.
  2. Once the battery is removed, hold down the power button for 30-60 seconds, or even more.
  3. Now put the battery back in your laptop and start it again.

Several users reported a black screen after signing in on their laptops, but you can quickly fix this annoying issue. According to users, you must remove your laptop battery and drain the remaining power.

This is a relatively simple procedure, and several users claim it works, so try it out. But, of course, this is only if your laptop has a removable battery.

7. Remove the problematic update

  1. Use Windows Key + I shortcut to open the Settings app.
  2. Go to the Update & Security section.
  3. Now select View update history.
  4. A list of recent updates will appear. Memorize a couple of recent updates and click Uninstall updates.
    Windows 10 black screen before login
  5. Double-click the update you want to uninstall and follow the instructions on the screen to complete the process.
    Windows 10 black screen with cursor after update

After you remove the problematic update, check if the problem is still there.

If this issue started after a Windows Update, the update is likely causing a black screen after sign-in.

To fix this issue, you must go to Safe Mode and remove the problematic update.

Keep in mind that Windows tends to install the missing updates automatically, so if the update was the problem, be sure to block Windows from installing the automatic updates.

How can I fix Windows 11 black screen after login?

We recommend starting in safe mode and trying a Startup repair. However, most of the solutions that work in Windows 10 will fix a Windows 11 black screen after the login issue.

The UI may differ slightly in a few cases, but generally, it should be about the same process. So pick what solution you prefer from those mentioned above and try on Windows 11.

How do I fix a black screen on startup?

Remove your laptop battery following the steps in solution six above.

Alternatively, you should shut down your computer and unplug any external devices. This applies to your mouse, keyboard, external hard drive, and other devices. Check if you still receive the black screen after restarting your computer. If not, try plugging every device individually until you identify the issue.

Also, note that before exploring anything complicated, you should verify that the monitor is responsive since you may not have powered it on in the first place.

Finally, if you have a PC, ensure the monitor cables are connected since this could easily be overlooked while powering up your computer.

Sometimes, your monitor may be damaged, and you will need a new monitor.

The black screen can be a big problem on your PC since it will prevent you from accessing Windows. However, we hope that you managed to solve this issue by using one of our solutions.

In the comments section below, let us know what worked for you (not necessarily from our list).

More about the topics: Black screen issues