Microsoft is winding down the Edge sidebar app list, a feature that let users pin shortcuts to web apps and services directly in the browser’s side pane. The change began rolling out to Microsoft account users in early 2025 and will eventually remove existing pinned apps altogether. The sidebar itself isn’t going anywhere—Copilot will remain as a persistent option—but the ability to build a personal app tower of pinned shortcuts is being dismantled.

The move marks another step in Microsoft’s effort to streamline the Edge experience around its AI assistant. For users who relied on the sidebar for quick access to tools like OneNote, Outlook, or third-party services, the retirement means finding alternative workflows. Here’s what’s happening, why, and how to adapt.

What the Sidebar App List Actually Did

The Edge sidebar launched in 2022 as a persistent panel on the right side of the browser window. It housed a few built-in tools—search, shopping, and later Copilot—but its flexibility came from the “app list.” Users could click a plus icon to pin websites as apps, turning them into sidebar shortcuts that opened in a narrow pane without leaving the current tab. Office web apps, social media, Slack, Spotify, and countless other services could live there, accessible with one click.

The app list appeared as a vertical column of icons, often called the “app tower,” running along the sidebar’s edge. Pinning was simple: visit any site, open the sidebar settings, and add it. Over time, Microsoft integrated dedicated sidebar versions of its own services, like the Microsoft 365 app launcher, making it a lightweight productivity hub.

The Retirement: Phased Removal Starting Now

According to the update now reaching Microsoft account holders, the ability to pin new apps to the sidebar is being disabled immediately. Users who already have pinned apps will see them continue to work temporarily, but the option to add more is gone. In a subsequent phase, Microsoft will strip out existing pinned shortcuts entirely, removing the app tower from the sidebar interface.

Copilot remains untouched. Its icon stays fixed at the top of the sidebar, and the panel will still open for AI interactions. The built-in tools like search and shopping will also persist, but the custom app list—the part users configured themselves—is being retired.

Why Microsoft Is Killing the App List

Microsoft hasn’t published a detailed rationale, but the change aligns with a broader pivot toward Copilot as the central sidebar experience. When the sidebar first appeared, it was positioned as a multitasking aid, letting users juggle web apps alongside their main browsing. Since then, the company has poured resources into integrating Copilot across Windows, Edge, and Microsoft 365. The sidebar is now primarily a vessel for the AI assistant, and maintaining a separate app-pinning infrastructure likely drew resources away from that vision.

There’s also the matter of user behavior. While the app list had its fans, many Edge users never customized it. For them, the sidebar was cluttered with unused empty slots or Microsoft’s default shortcuts. Sunsetting the app list reduces complexity and lets Microsoft focus on delivering Copilot features like page summarization, content generation, and cross-tab context.

What Happens to Pinned Apps

If you’re among the users who built a sidebar shortcut collection, your pinned apps won’t vanish overnight. The first stage only blocks new additions. Eventually, though, the app tower will be removed, and those shortcuts will disappear. They won’t be lost entirely—the underlying websites can still be opened in regular tabs or bookmarked—but the convenience of the side pane access will end.

For services that offered a dedicated sidebar experience—for example, the Microsoft 365 hub that opened a mini-dashboard—that functionality will no longer be launchable from the sidebar. Users will need to visit office.com or open the full web apps in the main browser window.

Copilot Remains—and May Get More Real Estate

Copilot’s survival in the sidebar is no surprise. Since its debut, Microsoft has treated the AI assistant as the sidebar’s cornerstone. Copilot is already deeply integrated into Edge, capable of summarizing pages, answering questions about on-screen content, and even composing text in the side pane. With the app list gone, Copilot could occupy the full sidebar space without competition for vertical real estate. Future updates may expand its capabilities further, possibly incorporating persistent chat or document interaction directly in the panel.

The message is clear: the sidebar is now Copilot’s home, not a general-purpose app dock. Microsoft wants users to turn to the AI for tasks that might previously have been handled by opening a pinned app—like checking email, drafting a note, or looking up information.

Impact on Productivity Workflows

The removal of pinned apps will hit users who adopted the sidebar as a micro-dashboard. Many had pinned Office apps, task managers, or communication tools, enabling quick jumps to specific services without leaving the active tab. This was particularly useful on smaller laptop screens where maximizing the main content area mattered. Opening a full tab for every quick action adds friction, and some users will miss the compact sidebar access.

Microsoft’s alternative is to rely on the favorites bar, tab groups, or the standard bookmarks menu. These are functional but lack the spatial persistence and one-click convenience of a customizable side panel. The sidebar itself isn’t gone, so users could theoretically open a website in the side pane using the “Search in sidebar” option, but that’s a manual process that doesn’t preserve pinned, at-a-glance shortcuts.

How to Tell If You’re Affected

The retirement is rolling out gradually, starting with Edge users signed in with a Microsoft account. If you’re on a managed device or using a work or school account, the timing may differ. The easiest way to check is to open the sidebar and look for the custom app list area. If the plus icon for adding new apps is missing or grayed out, the change has reached your browser. If you still see your pinned apps, they are safe for now, but there’s no way to prevent their eventual removal.

Community Reaction and Workarounds

Early feedback on forums shows a split. Some users welcomed the cleanup, arguing that the sidebar had become messy and that they preferred a Copilot-centric panel. Others expressed frustration, particularly those who had invested time curating their app tower. One common workaround is to pin frequently used sites to the Windows taskbar as progressive web apps (PWAs) instead. PWAs open in their own window, providing a separate, persistent tool without loading a full Edge tab. While this doesn’t replicate the in-browser side pane, it can scratch a similar itch for quick access.

For users who still want apps in the sidebar, Edge’s “Open in sidebar” context menu option remains available for individual links, but it’s not a replacement for a static shortcut bar. Until Microsoft fills the gap with something else—perhaps a Copilot-controlled quick actions panel—adaptation will require shifting habits.

The Bigger Picture: Edge’s AI-First Trajectory

The sidebar app list retirement is part of a series of changes that push Edge toward an AI-first design. Copilot is already woven into the browser’s right-click menu, address bar, and even PDF reader. Microsoft’s investments are clearly in making Copilot the default companion for browsing tasks, and non-AI features that distract from that goal are being pruned.

This isn’t the first time Edge has shed a feature to make room for Copilot. The edge bar, a detached sidebar that floated on the desktop, was deprecated last year. Features like Web Select and citation have also been scaled back or integrated into Copilot. The app list retirement follows that pattern, streamlining the user interface to highlight a single intelligent assistant rather than a collection of manual shortcuts.

What’s Next for the Edge Sidebar

With the app tower gone, the sidebar will likely evolve into a more dynamic Copilot interface. We may see persistent Copilot chat, contextual suggestions based on the active tab, and deeper integration with Microsoft 365. Microsoft has hinted at “Copilot in Edge” features that can take actions across tabs, summarize multiple pages, and even complete forms. A sidebar stripped of user-pinned apps provides a cleaner canvas for those experiences.

For developers who built sidebar-specific apps or extensions, the retirement signals that Edge’s sidebar is no longer an open platform for pinned web apps. Custom extensions that added sidebar panels might still function, but the official app ecosystem is narrowing. Going forward, third-party integrations will likely need to work through Copilot’s extensibility model—once that becomes available—or exist as standard browser extensions.

How to Prepare for the Change

If you depend on the app list, start migrating your shortcuts now. Export your pinned apps list by noting the URLs and recreate them as bookmarks, favorites bar items, or PWAs. You can also move them to Windows’ own taskbar or Start menu for desktop-level access. While it’s not a perfect one-to-one replacement, having a plan will soften the blow when the app tower disappears.

Keep an eye on Edge updates by checking the official release notes or the
Edge Insider forum. Microsoft typically documents major UI changes there, and you can revert or delay updates if you need more time to adjust. However, given the phased approach, the removal will eventually reach all Microsoft account users.

Conclusion

The retirement of the Edge sidebar app list is a strategic move that clears the way for Copilot to dominate the side panel. While it may frustrate users who relied on pinned apps for productivity, it reflects Microsoft’s conviction that AI, not a row of static shortcuts, is the future of browser assistance. Copilot stays, and everything else gives way. For Edge users, the transition means adapting to new workflows—and getting comfortable with an AI-powered sidekick that’s ready to handle more of the browsing load.