Windows 10 and Windows 11 ship with hundreds of generic drivers that allow you to connect and use common devices without installing additional device drivers.
Although Windows 10/11 recognizes most of the devices out of the box, at times, you might need to install third-party or OEM drivers to use all the features offered by a device. For instance, most printers can be installed without installing OEM drivers, but you will need OEM drivers when you want to access all the features offered by the printer.
Over time, users install tens of drivers, including display, Wi-Fi, audio, Bluetooth, and printer. After installing all these drivers, you might want to view all installed drivers on your Windows 10/11 computer.
Until now, getting a list of installed drivers was not a straightforward job. Luckily, you can now view a list of installed drivers with ease. All you need is the built-in Device Manager.
The Device Manager in Windows 10/11 now offers a “View” called Devices by drivers. This view lists all installed drivers. This view can also be used to quickly uninstall or update drivers. In addition to the Device Manager, one can also use Command Prompt or a free third-party utility to view all installed drivers.
Tip: How to delete old drivers in Windows 10/11.
Method 1 of 3
View all installed drivers in Windows 10/11 via Device Manager
Step 1: Open the Device Manager. There are multiple ways to open it. The easiest way is to right-click on the Start/Windows logo button and then click the Device Manager option.
Step 2: Once the Device Manager is launched, click on the View menu and select Devices by driver. That is it! The Device Manager will now display all installed drivers. Once done, you may right-click on a driver entry (.inf file) to see the Install driver option.
To get back to the default view, click on the View menu and select the Devices by type option.
Method 2 of 3
View all installed drivers via Command Prompt in Windows 10/11
We will use the classic Command Prompt to get a list of all installed drivers on your Windows 10/11 PC in this method.
Step 1: Open the Command Prompt by typing CMD in the Start/taskbar search field and then hitting the Enter key.
Step 2: On the Command Prompt window, type the following command and hit the Enter key to view a list of installed drivers.
Driverquery
To back up installed drivers, refer to our how-to back up installed drivers using the PowerShell guide.
Method 3 of 3
Use third-party software to view installed drivers in Windows 10/11
There is a free utility out there to help you view all installed drivers on your Windows 10/11 PC. The program is called InstalledDriversList from the popular free software developer NirSoft. Visit this page to get the InstalledDriversList. The software is easy to use. All you need to do is run it.
To know more about an installed driver, right-click on its entry and then click the Properties option.
Our how-to view recently installed/updated drivers in Windows 11/10 guide might also interest you.
Sam says
Thanks. Great Information.
George says
Most helpful in tracking down extra installed drivers from some time ago
RC says
Thanks!
Kenneth Rawlins says
all windows info is no good
Pamela Marquis says
I agree, I am using windows 10, and there is no View Devices by Driver option in the Device Manager
Andrew Brooks says
This is incorrect. I am using windows 10, and there is no View Devices by Driver option in the Device Manager