How to Create Website Shortcut on Desktop for Chrome
1. Native Method
Google Chrome is highly customizable and offers a native way to create desktop shortcuts for websites in few steps. To start, open the Chrome browser and head to the website you wish to create a shortcut for. I have opened Techwiser.com in a new tab. Once you open the website, click on the three vertical dots at the top right corner of the browser. In the second step, from the pop-up menu, select More tools and click on Create shortcut. This can be done to create a shortcut for any website. Lastly, click on Create in the pop-up and you will have successfully created a website shortcut on the desktop. There is an option to rename the shortcut and also to enable opening the website shortcut in a new tab whenever you click on it.
2. Save as Shortcut (Chrome Extension)
While the native method is easy, a Chrome extension gives you some added functionality. For example, you can download more than one tab as shortcuts in a zip file, or download webpages in multiple formats. To begin, download and install Save as Shortcut Chrome extension. Simply select Add to Chrome to add the extension to your browser. Note that the extension will work on all Chromium-based browsers like Edge and Brave. Once it is successfully installed, it will show up in the extension tab on the top right corner of the browser. Click on the icon and hit Save Current to save the current webpage as a desktop shortcut. This will download the page in the downloads folder as default. In order to change the download location to desktop, click on options (as shown above) and select the settings link under the download folder setting. However, since the extension is essentially downloading the webpage, it will change the location for all our downloads. So, the best way is to enable ‘Ask where to save’ option before downloading option. Get Save as Shortcut
3. Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)
Simply put, PWAs or Progressive Web Apps are a modern blend of a website and a mobile app. So you get an app-like experience without actually installing software. The best part is that all the existing Chrome extensions remain and the app always opens in a new tab. These are also faster to load as they pre-cache resources. You can easily figure out if a webpage is PWA by looking at the + sign at the right side of the URL. If the website you are looking to make a shortcut supports it, click on the + sign to open the installation option. From the new pop-up, select Install to start the installation. As soon as the installation is complete, you will see a shortcut icon on the desktop which is in line with the website shortcut that we are trying to make. Whenever you open this shortcut, it will open in a new tab just like an individual app. It is fairly easy to uninstall it as well. All you have to do is open the app, click on the three vertical dots at the top right corner of the browser, and select uninstall. That’s it. Remember to have a lookout of the + sign on your favorite websites to create a desktop shortcut.
Closing Remarks: Create Website on Desktop
So, these were a few ways you could create a shortcut for any website on desktop using Chrome browser. Well, the native way is the easiest for sure, but then I mostly use the extension when I have too many pages open and want to maintain a folder for all. Also Read: How to Fix Chrome Keyboard Shortcuts Not Working Error
