How to add Gmail shortcut on Windows Taskbar (QUICK GUIDE)

Despite some industry swings regarding pwas (progressive web applications), building apps from websites is a promising prospect for many platforms. google services like gmail are precursors, but we can expect many more services soon. To make the service as convenient as possible, some users were wondering if they can add gmail to the taskbar or as a desktop shortcut in windows and we tried to answer this in today’s article.

index:

1. use google chrome
2. use microsoft edge
3. optional: enable offline mail

how do i add gmail to my taskbar in windows 10 and windows 11?

you can add gmail to your taskbar in windows 10 or windows 11 by creating a shortcut/installing pwa with chrome or microsoft edge. Everything you need to know is below, so be sure to check out the instructions we provide.

1. use google chrome

To add google gmail to a windows 10/windows 11 taskbar, you will first need to create a shortcut and then pin it to the taskbar. this will work like a pwa (progressive web apps), but not the one that can be installed via edge. This is not unexpected considering that Microsoft invested heavily in revamping Edge to make it more competitive and it looks a lot like Chrome these days. so the gmail shortcut you create with chrome and pin to the taskbar is just that, a shortcut.

here is how to add gmail to windows taskbar with chrome:

1. On your computer, open Google Chrome and navigate to Gmail, here.
2. Click on the 3-dots menu at the top right corner and open More tools > Create shortcut… You should check the “Open as window” box.
3. Click Create. You should see the shortcut on your desktop.
4. Right-click on the newly-created Gmail shortcut and choose Pin to taskbar. If you don’t see this option on Windows 11, click Show more options at the bottom.
5. Open Gmail from the taskbar and click on the 3-dots menu.
6. Click App info and make sure that Gmail is allowed to send notifications.

If you want to remove Gmail PWA, delete shortcuts and unpin Gmail from the taskbar. Then open App Management ( copy-paste chrome://apps/ in the Address bar), right-click on Gmail, and select Remove from Chrome.

to receive notifications, open gmail > settings > view all settings and generally search for desktop notifications. enable notifications for all emails or just important emails. make sure notifications are allowed in windows system settings.

2. uses microsoft edge

but chrome is not your only option as you can also use chrome based microsoft edge to do the same. edge is doing better. If nothing else, edge is a preferable option when it comes to adding gmail (or other pwas) to your desktop.

Because of the resemblance between the chrome and the rim, the procedure is almost the same. edge adds an option to change the icon before installing gmail as pwa and automatically prompts you to add the app to the taskbar or start menu. Along with a few other configuration features, using edge over chrome is tempting. we are talking about a pwa and not a mere shortcut.

here is how to add gmail pwa shortcut to windows taskbar with microsoft edge:

1. Open Microsoft Edge and navigate to Gmail, here. Sign in with your Gmail/Google account.
2. Click on the 3 parallel dots in the top right corner.
3. Select Apps and click Install this site as an app. You can rename the app or click Edit under the icon to change it.
4. Click Install and the Gmail PWA should open. You should see a pop-up menu where you can check different boxes and allow Gmail to create Start, Taskbar, or desktop shortcuts. In addition, you can allow the app to auto-start with Windows.
5. Check the Taskbar box and click Allow.
6. If you click the 3 parallel dots and open App permissions, you can enable Notifications.

if you want to remove gmail pwa from your taskbar and your computer, open edge once again. click the 3 parallel dots andchoose apps > manage applications. click the x sign next to gmail and then click delete. optionally, you can clear all local application data.

3. optional: enable offline mail

once you set up gmail as an application on your windows, you should probably make it more like other programs that work offline. the thing with pwas is that they depend on the network connection to work, as they are just extensions of the browser experience. Fortunately, Gmail offers an offline mode, so you can create and organize your mail even if your computer is offline by letting Gmail cache data locally.

Here’s how to enable offline mode in gmail for web:

1. Open Gmail from the taskbar.
2. Click on the cog icon and then click See all settings.
3. Open Offline.
4. Check the “Enable offline mail” box.
5. After that, toggle the “Keep offline data on my computer” option and then click Save changes.

that’s it. This is the closest thing to having a Gmail app or client installed on your Windows 10 or Windows 11 and right where you want it: on your taskbar for easy access. Please note that the shortcut (and the app itself) will be gone if you uninstall chrome. this doesn’t apply to microsoft edge which fully adopted pwas and yes it can’t be removed.

thanks for reading and don’t forget to share your questions or suggestions with us. you can do so in the comments section below.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in February 2022. We made sure to update it to be fresher and more accurate.