Retrieve a List of All Installed Programs on Windows 10

Using a simple PowerShell command will tell you everything that’s installed

There could be many reasons why you’d want a list of programs installed on your PC. Maybe you bought a new laptop and want to see what it came pre-installed with, or maybe you want to create a recovery setup. Or perhaps you’re about to reformat, and you want a list of everything you’ve installed so you can remember to download them again afterwards.

Like many things, you can use software to do this, but why download an extraneous third-party app, when you can use tools that are built into Windows?

For this one, we’ll be using PowerShell, so get that open! Open the Start menu and search, use the run command, whatever you like. When you do, you’ll be presented with the PowerShell command screen.

Windows PowerShell

From here, you’ll want to type one command, which will give you a list of all the standard 32/64 bit programs that are installed. You can type it yourself, or copy and paste the following command; make sure to replace USERNAME with the username of your PC.

Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*, HKLM:\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*, HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* |Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion, Publisher, Size, InstallDate | Format-Table -AutoSize > C:\Users\USERNAME\Desktop\software.txt

PowerShell command for retrieving installed software

This will then put a file on your desktop called software.txt, which lists everything for you. You can change this location to wherever you want, perhaps in Documents, just make sure you specify a name and extension.

This list does not include apps downloaded from the Microsoft Store, as they’re brought up by a different command. If you want to view those, then use the following:

Get-AppxPackage > C:\Users\USERNAME\Desktop\apps.txt

PowerShell command for retrieving Microsoft Store apps

Again, change USERNAME to your name, and change the location to wherever you’d like.

You now have a complete list of what’s installed on your computer! You can then print it out, put it in a cloud folder, or be a nerd and turn it into a QR code that you can then scan.

James, also known as Canuck, is a stay-at-home-dad and freelance writer, with interests in video games, technology, horror, and enjoys coffee far too much. He also runs Coffee Chat Entertainment. If you’d like to get in touch, or just chat, he can be reached at Discord, tweeting about whatever on Twitter, and pretending to work on a website at CoffeeChatGaming.com.