Let’s assume you’re using windows and, like us monkeys in the pink eye charts, you also use gmail for email. If so, you might want to have a convenient shortcut to Gmail on your desktop, you know, like the one that used to go to Outlook Express, all those years ago? In fact, for those switching to an online email system like Gmail from Windows Mail or a similar desktop email application, having an email icon on the taskbar is a great convenience. even though it only opens one browser, it still retains some of that offline look and feel that’s reassuring and easy to use.
Discover below how to make this happen with a few short mouse clicks. this should work for windows 11, windows 10 and all previous versions. we are using gmail as a common example but this will also work if you are using outlook online. This will work on any windows desktop or laptop, but not phones or tablets.
If you don’t know what browser you’re using, find out in the “what browser am I using?” section. website.
making a shortcut to gmail using chrome, firefox or edge
first of all, if you use chrome, firefox or edge browsers, almost everything is ready for you.
if you are using chrome
- go to gmail homepage,
- choose ‘more tools’ from the chrome dropdown menu.
- in the tools menu you will see ‘add to desktop‘ or ‘create shortcut‘. click on that option and follow the quick instructions there; the icon should appear on your desktop automatically.
If your version of windows supports it, you can also right-click the icon and get the option to “pin to taskbar” or “pin to start menu” if you wish to do so. or you can just drag the new icon to the taskbar and it will stay there.
if you are using firefox
you can use firefox to create a shortcut on your computer desktop to any web page like gmail. this method also works in chrome.
- go to gmail home page
- resize firefox window so you can see both your computer desktop and firefox window on the same screen.
- click the icon to the left of the address bar (where the url is displayed – see below for details on where it is). it will usually be a lock icon.
- while holding down the mouse button, drag the pointer to the desktop and then release the mouse button.
- an icon should appear where you left it fall. right click the icon if you want to change its name to gmail (or any other).
if you are using microsoft edge
- go to gmail homepage
- open edge dropdown menu.
- there are two options, ‘pin this page to toolbar tasks‘ or ‘pin this page to get started‘. choose one of those options and gmail should appear on the taskbar or start menu automatically.
- if you want the shortcut on the desktop, just drag it from the top “recently added” section of the start and put it where you want.
what is the taskbar? the taskbar is the line of icons that is usually at the bottom of the screen. you can add things to the taskbar so you can find them easily.
what is the start menu? the start menu is the list of programs and applications at the bottom of the screen. If you can’t see it, it should appear when you click the windows icon at the bottom left of your screen, or press the windows key on your keyboard.
If you’re not using chrome, firefox or edge, or if the above methods didn’t work for you, don’t worry, you can still have an icon. there are two stages, and you don’t even have to do the second if you don’t want to. here is the first.
making a shortcut to gmail using any other browser
You can put a shortcut to any web page on your desktop or taskbar, so gmail, being just a web page, is a piece of cake. this will work with any website, but we’re using gmail as an example.
- Go to your gmail inbox using the browser of your choice
- Copy the text that is in the address bar (see below if you don’t know what it is)
- go to desktop and right click, then select new>shortcut
- paste the web page address you copied into the ‘create login’ dialog direct‘ . click ‘next’
- type a name for the shortcut. ‘gmail’ is the obvious one. click ‘finish’.
- test your new shortcut and make sure it works. a window or tab should open showing gmail. if not, delete it and try again.
- the shortcut is now on your desktop. leave it there, or we suggest dragging it to the taskbar (the taskbar is the row of icons at the bottom of the screen that’s always there), and that’s where it will stay. or if your version of windows supports it, sometimes you can just right-click the icon and get the option to ‘pin to taskbar’ or ‘pin to start menu’.
what is the address bar? it’s the box at the top of the browser window that has the address of the web page you’re looking for. for this post for example it will read something like pinkeyegraphics.co.uk/putting-gmail-shortcut-desktop/ if you can’t find that or it doesn’t work just type “https://mail.google .com” in the box ‘create shortcut‘ dialog.
that’s the basic part done. now it will work, and if you’re happy with how it looks, stop now.
customize your new shortcut
but there’s more! still want more? ok, here is the second part, if you need it. you may notice that the icon is not the pretty gmail icon you usually see. so if that applies to you, you’ll want to change that. here is a file to download: gmail icon file. it’s called gmail-new-icon.ico. If you know how to do it, go ahead. if not, follow these instructions (it’s the same file, so you only need to make one). to download the file, right-click the file icon. in edge or internet explorer, choose ‘save target as‘; or in chrome or firefox ‘save link as‘. other browsers have similar options.
once you’ve downloaded the file, here’s how to use it.
- save the gmail-icon.ico file to your computer. anywhere is fine, but a good place is c:/windows/system32 on many windows systems, as that is where many other icon files live. you probably shouldn’t save it to your desktop as while it will work, you could confuse the icon file with your new shortcut, because they will look the same. the icon file has a version of the icon for gmail.
- right-click the new shortcut you created earlier and select properties>change icon
- select ‘browse…‘ and navigate to where you saved the gmail-new-icon.ico file
- select the file and you should see the icon. choose it! click accept and then click accept again.
Your icon now has an authentic gmail look.
oh, and you preferred the old red and white gmail icon? we have that too, right here. use this link to download as above, then follow the same instructions.
why stop there? make a shortcut to outlook instead.
ok, if you got it, you can do something else. why not make a shortcut to facebook on your desktop? or twitter? or your local newspaper? The first few steps above will work for any website, so go ahead and give it a try.
if you prefer to use microsoft outlook, this will also work if you are using the online version (office 365). just follow the instructions above, using your outlook email inbox page instead of gmail. We’ve even found a free Outlook icon that you can download here.
If you want to change the look of your new shortcuts, you’ll need to download icons that look good, otherwise all shortcuts will look the same. however, it’s not hard to find them, just use google!
good luck!