Key insights
- The Paint 3D app was removed from the Microsoft Store on November 4th, but a trick allows it to be downloaded.
- When you use the Start menu search bar, despite its removal, you may see a link to install Paint 3D from the Microsoft Store.
- If the previous trick doesn't work, a third-party source like icedrive.net offers the Paint 3D app as a ZIP file for download.
Microsoft removed the Paint 3D app from the Microsoft Store on November 4th, although the app will still work for those who installed it before that date. Those who did not install the app before it was removed need not feel like they missed the opportunity. That's because I just figured out a trick that allows you to get the Paint 3D app from the Microsoft Store even though it's not officially available.
Here's how to download and install Paint 3D from the Microsoft Store
I opened the Microsoft Store app and searched for the Paint 3D app using the search bar. To my surprise, I couldn't find it. I don't know what made me do this, but I used the search bar in the Start menu to find the Paint 3D app even though it wasn't there on my PC before I removed it. A link to download the app from the store then appeared in the Start menu. I clicked on the link and discovered the Paint 3D app with the option to install it from the Microsoft Store. This is how you can now install the Paint 3D app on your Windows PC.
However, this is likely a gap that Microsoft will close in the future. In other words, while the trick works for now, you probably won't be able to use it to restore the Paint 3D app forever. If the trick doesn't work, you have the option to get it back from third-party sources.
Here's how to download and install the Paint 3D app without the Microsoft Store
The Microsoft Store is the safest way to download and install apps on Windows PCs, but it's certainly not the only way. For those who don't see success installing Paint 3D using the Start Menu trick, there is another method that is more future-proof than the other trick. As @TheBobPony discovered, someone archived the files for the Paint 3D app on icedrive.net. So you just need to click on the download option to get the Paint 3D zip file which also contains installers for the older version of the app. After unzipping the file, you can install the desired version.
Regardless of how you get the Paint 3D app, however, it's important to note that you won't receive updates to the app from Microsoft. This essentially means new features for the app.
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