If you have recently set up a new computer with Windows 11, you probably noticed that you can no longer choose a local account instead of a Microsoft account. Previous workarounds, such as entering an invalid email address or disconnecting the internet, no longer seem to work.
There are benefits to using a Microsoft account with your PC, but you might still want to use a local account. Some people prefer using a local account for administrative or privacy reasons. Also, you can always sign-in to a Microsoft account at a later time.
You can still create a local account during initial setup, but it’s harder than before. Here are the steps for creating a local account in newer versions of the Windows 11 Home out-of-box experience.
1. Disconnect the Computer from the Internet
The problem is that newer versions of the Windows 11 setup force you to connect to the internet before creating an account. For this trick to work, you need to disconnect from the internet. Otherwise, you will be greeted with the Microsoft account login page during account creation with no way to skip it.
If your computer has Wi-Fi, don’t select a network on the following screen! Go straight to step 2.
If you’ve already connected to a Wi-Fi network on the screen above, you can see if your keyboard has an airplane mode or Wi-Fi toggle button as one of its function keys to disable the Wi-Fi. However, if you’ve already done this on a laptop, sometimes it can be a challenge to disconnect. You may need to factory reset the laptop to restart the setup wizard.
If your computer has ethernet, make sure it is unplugged.
2. Open Command Prompt from Setup with SHIFT+F10
Once you’re in the initial setup wizard (or on the screen above), press SHIFT+F10 on your keyboard. This will open a command prompt window.
3. Type oobe\bypassnro and Hit Enter
Click inside of the command prompt window and type oobe\bypassnro.
Hit Enter. The computer will take a minute to reboot.
4. Click “I don’t have internet” on Network Screen
Go through the prompts again, until you get to the network selection screen.
This time, you’ll have a new option, I don't have internet. Click it.
5. Click “Continue with limited setup”
You’ll get another confirmation screen. Click Continue with limited setup.
6. Create a Local Account
You’ll finally get to the screen to create a local account. Pick a username, password and proceed as you normally would!
Remarks
It’s safe to connect to the internet once you’ve completed the initial Windows 11 setup wizard and are on the desktop.
As of now, you can still create a local account on Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise versions from the setup wizard.
In my opinion, having to do this clearly shows the direction Microsoft is headed with their consumer line of products. They want us to be reliant on their cloud as much as possible!
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