Edge 119 no longer allows enabling or disabling the sidebar if Copilot is off

Microsoft released Edge 119 in the Stable Channel on November 3, 2023, bringing users several new features, such as Split Screen and sidebar app improvements. However, it also changes the Sidebar setting section: Microsoft quietly moved the toggle for turning the sidebar on or off, causing customers to think you can no longer disable it.

Before Microsoft Edge 119, you could turn the sidebar on or off using the "Always Show Sidebar" option on the edge://settings/sidebar page. In Edge 119, the toggle is now situated in the Copilot settings section. Moreover, turning it on or off requires enabling the Show Copilot option. Although you can keep the sidebar and toggle off the Copilot icon, doing so will remove the "Auto-hide Sidebar" option, and the browser will prevent you from turning off the sidebar in settings. The toggle description makes it clear:

Always show sidebar

 

This setting is not available when Copilot in Edge is off

This rather odd behavior might confuse some customers, especially those who prefer not to use Copilot (you still cannot turn off open on hover). Many people consider the sidebar a useful and convenient productivity tool, and welding it to Copilot feels like a strange artificial way to boost engagement with the latter.

Regardless of Microsoft's reasoning, you now know how to toggle the sidebar on or off in Edge 119. Just head to Settings > Sidebar > Copilot > Always Show Sidebar. Alternatively, you can use the Ctrl + Shift + / shortcut.

The sidebar toggle change is not the only weird behavior in Microsoft's browser. In October, we reported a new stop-gap the company implemented to prevent users from downloading another browser. Getting Google Chrome from the official website would result in Edge showing not only a massive and intrusive ad but also a poll asking customers to explain why they decided to jump-ship another browser.

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