How to Fix Black Screen at Boot in Windows 10 & 11?

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In This Guide

Main Reasons Why Your Screen is Black During Windows Startup

Method 1: Make Sure Your Windows is Booting & Is Responsive

Method 2: Check All the Cables Are Correctly Plugged In

Method 3: Unplug All the Peripherals

Method 4: Reinstall the Display Drivers

Method 5: Use the Startup Repair Tool

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When you boot your Windows PC and come across a black screen, it can be surprising and quite scarry. The black screen when bootin up Windows doesn’t come with any information or instructions, leaving simple users just like you confused and not knowing what to do.

Main Reasons Why Your Screen is Black During Windows Startup

• Most commonly — corrupted system files
• Failed Windows update
• Incorrect BIOS version or settings
• Faulty display drivers

These issues are also common culprits to other errors like ‘automatic repair loop’, when Windows is stuck on ‘getting Windows ready’ as well as ace.base.sys BSOD and Event ID 1000 error.

If your PC is also displaying a black screen at boot, it is a sign that you need to troubleshoot it. 

Below, we have discussed a few methods that you can apply to fix the black screen problem at boot in Windows 10 and 11. 

So without further ado, let’s not waste time and try to fix your error.

How to Fix Black Screen At Boot in Windows?
[4 Beginner-Friendly Ways]

Sometimes, the black screen that appears when you start your PC may be caused by minimal issues. These issues can be resolved by following our beginner-friendly ways:

Method 1: Make Sure Your Windows is Booting & Is Responsive

Before you apply any fixes, make sure to check whether your Windows is responsive. To do so, press ‘Win + Ctrl + Shift + B‘ on your PC. 

Pressing these buttons will restart the graphic designer. If you hear a beep sound, it indicates that the Windows is responsive. But if you don’t hear a beep sound, it means that your PC is not booting at all. 

Method 2: Check All the Cables Are Correctly Plugged In

If your Windows is booting, you may need to check your cables as a black screen can be caused by faulty or loose cables.

Unplug all of the display cables and then carefully plug them back to make sure they are secured. Now turn on your monitor to see if your screen is working fine. 

Also, try using a new cable to see whether your old cables are the culprit. It is also recommended to connect your monitor to another computer to see if it is working fine. 

Method 3: Unplug All the Peripherals

Sometimes, a faulty external device can cause your screen to go black at boot. You can determine if this is the case by following these steps:

• Turn your PC off.
• Unplug all of the external devices, including the hard drive, keyboard, mouse, and any other peripherals.

• Now restart your PC.

If the black screen is gone, plug each device back one by one to find the culprit. Once you have identified the faulty device, make sure it is updated with the latest drivers. If it is a hardware problem, replace the device. 

How to Fix Black Screen When Starting Windows? [2 Advanced Ways]

If applying the above-mentioned fixes doesn’t resolve the problem and you’re still getting a black screen at boot, it’s time to apply our expert-recommended fixes:

Method 4: Reinstall the Display Drivers

Reinstalling the display drivers can help your screen go back to normal. To do so, you will need to boot into safe mode. 

First, let’s take a look at how to boot into safe mode, depending on your specific situation:

When the Login Screen Is Visible:

• Restart your PC.
• When you see the login screen, hold ‘Shift’ on the keyboard and click on the “Power” icon.
• Next, select “Restart”.

• Now go to “Troubleshoot” > “Advanced options” > “Startup settings” > “Restart”. Your system will restart again and display a number of options.

• Now press ‘F5’ on your keyboard to select “Safe Mode with Networking“. If pressing F5 doesn’t work, repeat all the steps and then press F3 instead of F5.

When Nothing Is Visible and You Have a Recovery Drive:

• Turn off your PC and connect the recovery drive.

• You will see a “Choose an option” screen. Here, go to “Troubleshoot” > “Advanced options” > “Startup settings” > “Restart”

• Once your PC has restarted, press ‘F5’ on your keyboard to select “Safe Mode with Networking”. If pressing F5 doesn’t work, repeat all the steps and then press F3 instead of F5.

When Nothing Is Visible and You DON’T Have a Recovery Drive

If nothing is visible on your screen and you don’t have a recovery drive, you will need to use another computer to create Windows 10/11 installation media. To do so, download Windows 10 or 11 on a different PC and create installation media.

• Once done, change the boot order in the “BIOS” to read the installation media first.

Once on the installation screen, follow these steps:

• Click on “Repair your computer“.

• Now go to “Troubleshoot” > “Advanced options” > “Startup settings” > “Restart”

• Once your PC has restarted, press ‘F5’ on your keyboard to select “Safe Mode with Networking”. If pressing F5 doesn’t work, repeat all the steps and then press F3 instead of F5.

Reinstalling Display Drivers

Now that you’re in the safe mode, follow the steps below to reinstall the display drivers:

• On your keyboard, press ‘Win + X’.
• Select “Device Manager”.

• Now double-click on “Display Adapters”.
• Next, right-click on your graphics card and select “Properties”.

• Now go to the “Driver” tab, click on “Roll Back Driver”, and select “Yes”.

• If you don’t see the Roll Back Driver option, click on “Uninstall”. This will remove the display driver. Now go to the manufacturer’s website to reinstall the driver. 

Method 5: Use the Startup Repair Tool

The Startup Repair Tool allows you to fix any issues that may arise when booting up. Run this tool to automatically identify and fix any underlying issue by following these steps:

• Go to “Start” and type “Settings”.
• Go to “Update & Security” > “Recovery”.
• Now select “Restart now” below “Advanced Startup.” Once your Windows boots up, your PC will open in the “Windows Recovery Environment”. 

• Select “Troubleshoot” > “Advanced Options” > “Startup Repair”.

The “Startup Repair Tool” will automatically resolve any underlying issues that occur at startup.
For a full system repair, check our Windows 11 repair/install guide.

We hope that at least one of the methods has helped you resolve the issue.
However, we recommend downloading the tool mentioned below for automatic fixes.
Good luck!