How to customize the system tray clock on Windows

The system tray clock located to the right of the Windows taskbar is a bit boring.Wouldn't it be nice if you could choose from a variety of different skins for your system tray clock to make it more dynamic?Unfortunately, Windows doesn't let you do this by default, instead forcing you to use a bland base clock.

However, you can use Free Desktop Clock and ElevenClock to customize the Windows system tray clock. Free Desktop Clock is a program that includes nine system tray clock skins to choose from. The ElevenClock application adds more customizable clocks to the Windows system tray area.

How to install Free Desktop Clock

To download Free Desktop Clock, open it in your favorite browser Free Desktop Clock page.Then, click the blue "Download" button to save the program's installation wizard.

After downloading the file, double-click the freeclock.exe file to open the installation wizard and install the software.

How to choose a new system tray clock skin

When everything is ready, open the "Free Desktop Clock" window.Click on the skin on the left side of the window.Select the "Enable tray clock" option if it is not already checked.Then select one of the skins on that tab and click "OK" to add it to the system tray clock, as shown in the screenshot below.

You can add more detail to the system tray clock with additional settings.Click Show Date and Show Day to display date and day of the week details next to the clock.

To change the background color of the clock, click the Default background drop-down menu.Select a background color option.Then click on the color palette box to choose a different color from it.You can also add some transparency to the clock by adjusting the value of the Transparency setting.

How to add clocks with different time zones

Free Desktop Clock includes options to display clocks in different time zones.These clocks come in handy if you need to check the time in another country before making an international call.Click the Time Zone tab to view these options.

To enable a time zone clock, select the Show this clock check box.Select a time zone from the time zone drop-down menu.You can also enter a title for the clock in the Enter a display name box.

How to create hourly time announcements

Free Desktop Clock also has an hourly chime setting.When this option is enabled, the time will be chimed every hour.This is a great way to keep track of the passage of time without looking at the clock.

The Customize tab contains this setting. Click the Hourly Time Announcement checkbox on this tab to select that option. Then press the button next to the Sound box to select an audio file for the announcement.

Other features of Atomic Alarm Clock

You may notice the Alarm Clock label on the Free Desktop Clock window.These are additional features found in the more advanced Atomic Alarm Clock software, which currently retails for $14.95.Through this software, you can set an alarm for a specific time and have more system tray clock skins to choose from.In the paid version, you also have the option to synchronize your clock with an Internet time server.

How to use ElevenClock to customize the Windows 11 system tray clock

If you want to customize your system tray clock without adding a new skin, try the ElevenClock app. ElevenClock is an app that gives you more customizable Windows 11/10 clocks that overlap with the existing system tray clock.The app includes customizations for clock appearance, tooltips, position, size, date and time format, and functionality.

To add this app to Windows 11/10, open the Microsoft Store ElevenClock page; click Get in Store App, and then select Open in Microsoft Store to open the app where you can install the software.Select the installation option of ElevenClock in the small Microsoft Store window that opens.

Then a window welcoming ElevenClock will pop up.Click "OK" in the window to set the selected system language options for ElevenClock.Select "Skip" to go directly to the application without viewing the wizard.Press the "Open" button to pop up the ElevenClock window.Now, you can start customizing the system tray clock.

Click Clock Position and Size to see options for resizing and moving the clock.Drag the sliders on the "Change Height" and "Change Width" bars to make the clock larger or smaller.Select "Show clock on left side of screen" or "Force clock on top of screen" to move the clock to the left or top of the screen.

To customize the clock's font, click the Clock Appearance category.Click the Use Custom Font checkbox and then press the Select Custom Font button.You can then select the font, style (italic and bold) and size options in the second window that opens and click OK to set them.

You can change the font color by selecting the Use custom font checkbox.Then click the "Select Custom" button to pop up the "Select Color" window.Select a base color on the palette and click OK to apply it.You can also modify the background color of the clock by selecting the Use custom background color option.

Click the "Date and Time Settings" category to expand the options for changing the clock format.Here, you can choose the option to display seconds, date, day of the week, and weekdays on the clock.If you choose to display all content on the clock, you may need to expand the height and width of the clock to accommodate all content.Or, reduce the font size of the clock.

The tooltip is the text you see when you hover your cursor over the clock.To customize it, click the Tooltip Appearance category.You can then choose custom font, size, and color settings for the tooltip text that match the appearance of the clock.Select the Disable Blurred Background setting for tooltips to remove the background box for tooltips.

Customizable system tray clock defaults to showing calendar/notifications when clicked.However, you can change the click behavior of this clock.To do this, click on the clock function in the ElevenClock settings window.Then click the drop-down menu of the selected "Change Action" checkbox to select a different action for the clock.You have options to open Task Manager, Start Menu, Search Menu, Run, and more.

ElevenClock has a wizard that guides you through customizing your system tray clock.To view ElevenClock's Welcome Wizard, click the "General Settings" category and press the "Open" button to expand the category; click the "Start" button in the welcome window that opens.Then select a setting for each wizard step and click the > arrow button.

Update the system tray clock using Free Desktop Clock or ElevenClock

As you can see now, in Windows 11/10/8/7/XP, you don’t have to stick to the boring old system tray clock.Instead, you can use Free Desktop Clock (or Atomic Alarm Clock) to quickly and easily choose a different skin for it.Once you become proficient with this software, you can add more visually appealing clocks to the Windows system tray and customize them further with additional settings.

ElevenClock is also a great new app for customizing the Windows 11 system tray clock.The app lets you make more subtle changes to the fonts, colors, functionality, and formatting of your system tray clock without overhauling it with a new skin.Please choose your favorite software to customize the system tray clock.