A List Of Start Menu Replacements for Windows 8

FREE

Power8:
http://code.google.com/p/power8

StartMenu8:
http://www.iobit.com/iobitstartmenu8.php

Start Menu X:
http://www.startmenux.com/index.html

Classic Shell:
http://classicshell.sf.net

Spesoft Windows 8 Start Menu:
http://www.spesoft.com/free-windows-8-start-menu.aspx

Taskbar Classic Start Menu:
http://www.desktopapps.org/

ViStart:
http://lee-soft.com/vistart

BringBack 8:
http://www.revel-software.it/BringBack.aspx

Handy Start Menu:
http://www.handystartmenu.com/

Start Button 8:
http://www.startbutton8.com/index.html

Pokki:
http://www.pokki.com/windows-8-start-menu

Win8StartButton:
http://www.quadsoft.org/moredownloads.php

Windows 8 Start Menu:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/w8-start-menu/

Tweaks.com Start for Windows 8:
http://tweaks.com/windows/63691/tweakscom-start-for-windows-8-restore-start-button/

Start Button for Windows 8:
http://windows8startbutton.com/

8StartButton:
http://www.totalidea.com/8startbutton/index.php

StartMenuPlus8:
http://www.winok-msixray.com/

Viva Start Menu:
http://www.vivastartmenu.com/

Win8Starter:
http://www.win8starter.com/index-en.html

Wentutu Start Menu for Windows 8:
http://www.wentutu.com/

StartW8:
http://www.areaguard.com/startw8

Classic Start 8:
http://www.classicstart8.com/

Start Menu Reviver:
http://www.reviversoft.com/start-menu-reviver/

PAID

Start8 (30-day trial):
http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/

StartIsBack (30-day trial):
http://startisback.com/

StartFinity:
http://www.winability.com/startfinity/

8StartButton:
http://www.totalidea.com/8startbutton/index.php

RetroUI Pro (7-day trial):
http://www.retroui.com/default.asp

Win8Starter:
http://www.win8starter.com/index-en.html

 

Classic Shell the best of them all. I can customize just about everything with it and it is free.

 

Have you tested them all? If so, can you provide reasons for your assessment?

 

I hear good things about Classic Shell, but I seem to notice more people praise StartIsBack - especially when they compare it to Classic Shell and the competition.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/windows-os-software/705935-windows-8-best-start-menu-replacement-2.html

Start8 as well seems to have garnered a lot of favor.

 

Added Start Menu Reviver.

 

Add Windows 8 Blue to the list.

 

You sure about that? Last thing I heard was that all it does is bring the Start Button back, but not the menu. That's pure idiocy, of course, which is bound to backfire badly. But, hey, look what they did with all the comments they had received on the Win8 previews...

 

Having both Start Menu and Start Screen would be kinda stupid.

 

From what I read, all that the Start Button will do is launch the stupid Start Screen, unless they decide within the next few weeks to fully bring back the Menu.

 

Sure, so let's get rid of that inane Start Screen. Oh, and let's get rid of that "Charms Bar", too. And bring back all of the Settings stuff into the Control Panel, where it belongs.

By the way, you do realize that we are talking about options here? Options to allow people using classical PC hardware to be as productive as they were before? If you have a touchscreen device, or even if, for some unfathomable reason, you actually like that Metro stuff on a classical PC, by all means, you should have the option to use it.

 

Wow! I did not realize there were that many apps. I heard that poki & stardock have 8 million for those 2 alone. What percentage are using these apps on W8 now? MS keeps saying people don't know how to navigate. But I expect its because W8 is not intuitive and breaks all the rules for what a OS is intended for. Right now Ballmer thinks he is safe. But the instant windows blue has the start button taking the user to metro start it will be too late for Ballmer boy. Even Gates won't be able to save him then.

 

Not direct a start menu, but the fastest program launcher: Launchy: The Open Source Keystroke Launcher