Can I uninstall Groove Music?
What is Groove Music?
Groove Music is a discontinued audio player and media management application that was included with the Windows 10 operating system. It served as the default music player app on Windows 10 devices and allowed users to play locally stored music files as well as stream songs from their OneDrive accounts.
Originally named Xbox Music when it launched in 2012, the app was rebranded to Groove Music in 2015 to coincide with Microsoft’s shift towards tying together the Xbox and Windows platforms [1]. The Groove Music app provided features such as playlist creation, radio streaming, and the ability to browse, organize and edit music metadata.
As the built-in music player for Windows 10, Groove Music aimed to provide a seamless experience for managing and playing audio files across Windows devices. It allowed users to easily access their personal music libraries in OneDrive without having to upload songs separately. However, Microsoft discontinued Groove Music in 2017 in favor of partnering with Spotify as part of Windows 10.
Reasons to uninstall Groove Music
There are a few common reasons why someone may want to uninstall Groove Music on their Windows device:
Prefer using a different music player app – Many users find they prefer using a different built-in or third-party music player app like Windows Media Player, iTunes, Winamp, etc. Uninstalling Groove Music clears up space if you don’t need it.
Want to free up storage space – The Groove Music app takes up storage space on your hard drive. Removing it can free up a small amount of disk space, especially helpful if your storage is limited. According to Reddit, Groove Music takes up about 100-200 MB.
Find the app confusing or unnecessary – Some users report finding Groove Music confusing to use or unnecessary since other better music apps exist. It can simplify things to remove software you don’t need.
How to uninstall Groove Music
There are a few different ways to uninstall Groove Music in Windows 10:
Use the Settings app:
- Open the Settings app and go to Apps > Apps & features
- Find Groove Music in the list of installed apps
- Click the Groove Music entry and then click Uninstall
- Confirm you want to uninstall Groove Music
Use Control Panel:
- Open Control Panel and go to Programs > Programs and Features
- Find Groove Music in the list of installed programs
- Right-click on Groove Music and select Uninstall
- Follow the on-screen prompts to confirm uninstalling Groove Music
Use Powershell:
- Open Powershell as an administrator
- Run the command:
Get-AppxPackage *zunemusic* | Remove-AppxPackage - Restart your PC
Uninstalling through any of these methods will completely remove Groove Music from your Windows 10 computer.
What happens when Groove Music is uninstalled?
When Groove Music is uninstalled from a Windows PC, the application itself is removed from the computer and no longer takes up storage space. According to Microsoft Support, uninstalling Groove Music frees up about 100 MB of storage on the hard drive.
Importantly, uninstalling Groove Music does not delete or remove any of your music files stored on the computer. The actual song files, whether in MP3, WMA, or other formats, will remain untouched in their original locations such as the Music folder. So you don’t have to worry about losing your music library when getting rid of the Groove app.
With Groove Music gone, Windows will set a different default program to handle music playback. You can choose which audio player to use instead, like Windows Media Player or a third-party option. Overall, the main effects of uninstalling are removing the app itself while retaining your music collection intact.
Alternatives to Groove Music
There are several popular music player alternatives to Groove Music on Windows. Some top options include:
iTunes – Developed by Apple, iTunes is a free music player, media library, and media store compatible with Windows. It organizes your music library allowing you to browse by playlists, artists, albums, songs, genres, etc. iTunes also has built-in support for purchasing and downloading media from the iTunes store (https://www.apple.com/itunes/).
Windows Media Player – Microsoft’s default music and media player that comes pre-installed on Windows. It provides functionality to play audio CDs, rip music, manage metadata, and sync content to portable devices. Windows Media Player has integration with other Windows services and the Microsoft Store (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-media-player-in-windows-10-c1c8f578-d69e-4de6-7096-aa93fa6c9ac0).
VLC Media Player – An open source, free media player that plays a large variety of audio and video file formats. It provides advanced playback controls, audio visualizations, playlist creation, media library management and internet streaming capabilities (https://www.videolan.org/vlc/).
Spotify – A popular streaming service with millions of songs and podcasts available. The free, ad-supported version allows on-demand playback with some limitations. Spotify Premium removes ads and restrictions for offline and high-quality listening. The desktop and mobile apps synchronize playback and playlists (https://www.spotify.com/).
How to set a new default music player
There are a couple ways to set a new default music player in Windows 10 and 11. The easiest way is through the Settings app:
1. Open the Settings app and go to Apps > Default apps.
2. Under “Music player,” click on the current default and select the music player you want to set as the new default.
This will immediately change the default music player that opens when you ask Windows to play music. Keep in mind some apps may still default to Groove Music until you reopen them.
You can also change the default by editing the Windows registry. Here are the steps:
1. Open the Registry Editor app.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts\.MP3\UserChoice.
3. Modify the ProgID value to match the ID of the player you want to set as default. For example, Spotify’s would be Spotify.Player.
This method allows you to bypass the Settings UI and directly edit what Windows considers the default MP3 player. Be very careful when editing the registry.
Tips for managing music files
Properly organizing your music library can make it easier to find, play, and back up your files. Here are some tips:
Use a dedicated music library app such as MediaMonkey or MusicBee. These tools allow you to categorize files into artists, albums, genres, etc. They also often have advanced tagging and file management features.
Organize files in a hierarchical folder structure on your hard drive or external storage. You may want an overarching “Music” folder, with subfolders for each artist, and further subfolders for albums and individual tracks. This organization mirrors how you conceptually think of your library.
Back up your music library regularly to guard against data loss. You can manually copy files to an external drive or use backup software. Backups allow you to restore your files if your primary storage fails.
Extra features in Groove Music
Groove Music has a few key features that make it appealing as a music player on Windows. Some of the most popular extras include the built-in radio feature, equalizer, and OneDrive syncing capability.
The radio feature allows you to select a song, artist, or genre and Groove will generate a customized radio station playing similar tracks (Microsoft). This makes it easy to discover new music based on your tastes. You can skip songs you don’t like or fine tune the station to better match your preferences.
Groove also includes a 5-band equalizer to customize the sound quality. You can manually adjust different frequency ranges or select from a variety of presets like Pop, Classical, Hip Hop, and more. This allows you tweak the audio to best suit your listening setup and musical tastes (MakeUseOf).
The app lets you seamlessly sync your music library with OneDrive. By uploading tracks to OneDrive, you can then access your full collection from any Windows 10 device using the Groove Music app. It makes it simple to listen to your music library from different PCs, phones, and even Xbox without needing to manually transfer files.
Common problems when uninstalling Groove
Uninstalling Groove Music can sometimes lead to unexpected issues. Here are some of the most common problems users face:
Music Files Disappear
One issue some users encounter is that their music files seem to disappear or become inaccessible after uninstalling Groove Music 1. This typically happens if Groove was previously set as your default music app and the uninstallation resets file associations. Don’t panic – your files are likely still saved on your device, you just need to reinstate a different default player.
Computer Slows Down
In rarer cases, some users report performance slowdowns or crashes after removing Groove. This seems to happen most often on lower-spec machines. Try restarting your PC and running a disk cleanup to regain the lost speed.
Errors Reinstalling Groove
If you later attempt to reinstall Groove Music after uninstalling it, you may encounter cryptic errors about missing files or dependencies. Fully removing all Groove-associated Registry keys before reinstalling seems to resolve this.
Conclusion
In summar, Groove Music is the default music player in Windows 10. Although it comes pre-installed, it is safe to uninstall Groove Music if it is no longer needed or desired. Uninstalling Groove Music removes the app itself, frees up storage space, and sets the music capability in Windows back to “off” so a new default player can be chosen.
When uninstalling Groove Music, any music files stored in the Groove Music folders remain intact and accessible. So your music library will not be deleted or lost. Simply set a new default player such as Windows Media Player after uninstalling Groove Music.
Overall, you can feel comfortable uninstalling Groove Music without worry if you wish to use a different music app in Windows 10 instead.
