How to Create a Chrome Shortcut

Lee Stanton June 18, 2021

Everyone has a favorite website. Whether it’s for playing music, reading the news, or watching funny videos, your favorite website becomes a part of your routine. So, why not save time and create a shortcut that will take you to your favorite link in just a few clicks? Keep reading this article, and you’ll learn how to create a Chrome shortcut.

How to Create a Shortcut to Google Chrome?

Before creating shortcuts for different websites in Google Chrome, let’s discuss creating a shortcut for Chrome itself. Google Chrome is one of the most popular browsers today, and since it’s available across different operating systems, many people use it as a default browser. So, let’s see how you can add a Chrome Shortcut to your desktop in Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Make sure you have Google Chrome installed. You can check this if you go to your search bar and search for Google Chrome. If you don’t have it installed, you can download it here: https://www.google.com/chrome/.
Once you install it, locate the icon on your computer, and drag it to your desktop.
If you’re a Mac user, you can also add the Chrome icon to your App dock. If you own a Windows, you can add it to your taskbar. Both of these are at the bottom of your screen.

That’s it! Now you have easy access to your Google Chrome browser.

How to Create a Chrome Shortcut?

There are various ways you can create Chrome Shortcuts. You can add the shortcut to your desktop, your folder, or your taskbar. Depending on your preference, you can choose the option that best suits your needs.

How to Create a Chrome Shortcut on Desktop?

You can choose to add a website shortcut to your desktop. There are two ways how you can manage your desktop shortcut. By clicking on the shortcut icon, you can open the web page in a separate window without any additional tabs and menus, or open it as a separate tab. If you’d like to add a website shortcut to your desktop using Google Chrome, follow these steps:

Open Google Chrome.
Go to the website you would like to create a shortcut for.
Go to the three dots icon (Customize and control Google Chrome) located at the top-right corner.
Tap “More tools.”
Tap “Create shortcut.”
Specify the title of the web page.
You will see a checkbox called “Open as window.” If you’d like to open the web page as a separate window without additional tabs, mark the checkbox. If you’d like to open it as a separate tab, leave the checkbox unmarked.
Tap “Create.”
If you’re a Mac user, you will see a window pop up after clicking “Create.” When this shows up, select the icon and drag it to your desktop.

This will automatically create a web page shortcut on your desktop. By clicking the icon, you will be transferred to the page without having to separately open Google Chrome.

How to Create a Shortcut on Desktop With URL?

You can also create a desktop shortcut to your favorite website by using the web page URL. Here is how you can do this:

Open Google Chrome.
Go to the website you want to make a shortcut for.
Select the URL of the website.
Drag the URL from the browser to the desktop to create a shortcut. You can also use the icon to the left of the URL.
This icon will have a generic icon and name. If you’d like to change it, right-click on the icon.

It’s important to note that this method of creating desktop shortcuts will apply to your default browser. So, if you open a website in Google Chrome, but your default browser is Microsoft Edge, the shortcut will be created for Microsoft Edge. If this has happened, make sure you change the default browser on your computer.

Changing the Default Browser on Your Computer

Windows

Open the Start menu.
Start typing “Default apps” and open it.
Scroll down to “Web browser.”
Select the browser you’d like to be your default; in this case, it’s Google Chrome.

Mac

Tap the Apple icon at the top-left corner.
Tap “System preferences.”
Tap “General.”
Under “Default web browser,” select the browser you’d like to be your default; in this case, it’s Google Chrome.

Linux

Tap the Cog icon or Arrow pointing down at the top-right corner.
Tap “System settings.”
Scroll down and tap the “Details” menu.
Tap “Default applications.”
Select the browser you’d like to be your default; in this case, it’s Google Chrome.

How to Create a Website Shortcut in Folders Using Google Chrome?

Besides adding a shortcut to your favorite websites to your desktop, you can add them in a particular folder. To do this, follow these steps:

Open Google Chrome.
Go to the website you want to create a shortcut for.
Select the link and drag it to a folder of your choice.

How to Create Chrome Shortcuts on Phones?

Android

If you own an Android phone, you can add a shortcut to your favorite website to your home screen. This way, you will have easy access to a website without opening the Chrome browser first.

Open Google Chrome on your phone.
Go to the website you want to create a shortcut for.
Tap the three dots icon at the top-right corner.
Tap “Add to Home screen.”
You can change the name of your shortcut.
Now, you can drag the icon to your home screen or tap “Add.”

iPhone

iPhone users can’t add Google Chrome shortcuts to the home screen directly from Google Chrome. This option is offered by Safari – the phone’s default browser. However, there is an app you can use to create Chrome shortcuts. This app is called “Shortcuts,” and it comes pre-installed on newer phones. Here is how you can use this app to help you with creating website shortcuts in Google Chrome:

Open “Shortcuts.”
Go to “My shortcuts.”
Tap the “+” icon at the top-right corner.
Tap “Add action.”
Type “Safari.”
Tap “Open links.”
Tap “URL.”
Type “googlechromes://” and add a website URL you’d like to create a shortcut for.
Tap the three dots icon at the top-right corner.
You can change the name of your shortcut.
Tap “Add to Home Screen.”
Tap “Add.”

You will see your shortcut on your home screen. By tapping it, the link will open in Google Chrome instead of Safari.

Bookmarks in Google Chrome

You can also save your favorite websites by creating bookmarks. The main difference between shortcuts and bookmarks is that bookmarks are saved within the browser, while shortcuts are separate icons.

Creating Bookmarks in Google Chrome

If you want to learn how to create bookmarks in Google Chrome, check out the steps below:

Open Google Chrome.
Go to the website you’d like to create a bookmark for.
Tap the star sign (Bookmark this tab) right next to the URL.

Finding Bookmarks in Google Chrome

Open Google Chrome.
Click the three dots icon (Customize and control Google Chrome) at the top-right corner.
Tap “Bookmarks.”
Here you will see a list of all your bookmarks.

Another way of finding bookmarks is by looking at your bookmarks bar. Once you open Google Chrome, you will see the bookmark bar right below the address bar.

Editing Bookmarks in Google Chrome

Open Google Chrome.
Click the three dots icon (Customize and control Google Chrome) at the top-right corner.
Tap “Bookmarks.”
Tap “Bookmarks manager.”
Select the bookmarks you’d like to edit and tap “Edit.”
You can change the name and the URL of your bookmarks and organize their order.

You can also edit your bookmarks directly from the bookmarks bar:

Open Google Chrome.
Right-click on the bookmark you’d like to edit and tap “Edit.”
You can also organize the bookmarks in your bookmarks bar by pressing on the bookmark you’d like to move and dragging it across the bookmarks bar.

Deleting Bookmarks in Google Chrome

Open Google Chrome.
Click the three dots icon (Customize and control Google Chrome) at the top-right corner.
Tap “Bookmarks.”
Tap “Bookmarks manager.”
Find the bookmark you’d like to delete, tap the three vertical dots right next to it, and tap “Delete.”

You can also delete your bookmarks directly from the bookmarks bar:

Open Google Chrome.
Right-click on the bookmark you’d like to edit and tap “Delete.”

Tip: Once you delete a bookmark, you can’t get it back. So, make sure you’re careful when deleting your bookmarks since it’s easy to accidentally delete the wrong one.

Take a Shortcut to Your Favorite Website

Website shortcuts are a great way to save time and get to your favorite pages without opening your browser first. They’re easy to create, manage, and saves some time. So, if you’d like to learn how to create a Chrome shortcut in just a few clicks, make sure you read this guide, and you’ll become a master of shortcuts.

Do you often use website shortcuts? Tell us in the comment section below!