How to: Place Microsoft Edge Shortcut on the Desktop

Infopackets Reader Susan K. writes:

" Dear Dennis,

I recently upgraded to Windows 10. When my computer booted into the desktop for the first time, I immediately unpinned the Windows Store and Microsoft Edge icons from my taskbar; the reason being is that I prefer to have my taskbar completely empty and reserved only for running tasks. Anyhow, the problem is that now I can't seem to find Microsoft Edge using the Start Menu (I'm using Classic Shell). Ideally I'd like to have a shortcut to Microsoft Edge on my desktop. Any ideas how to achieve this? "

My response:

I was wondering the same thing. In the past, you could simply click Start and then type in the name of the program you're looking for, then right click it (once it appears in the Start Menu), then select "Send to -> Desktop". Unfortunately this no longer applies to some apps in Windows 10, though it does work for other programs just fine.

For what it's worth: if you're using the standard Windows 10 Start menu, finding the Microsoft Edge Browser is easy -- just click Start, then type in "Edge" and it will appear. If you right click Edge from there, you will only have the option to "Pin to Start" or "Pin to taskbar", which doesn't solve our problem. For Classic Shell (based on my own experience), you may need to type in "microsoft edge" for it to appear; once it appears in the list, you can right click it and select "Create shortcut", which will effectively place a shortcut onto the Desktop -- problem solved.

With that said, there are a few other ways to create a shortcut to Edge on the desktop.

How to: Place Microsoft Edge Shortcut on the Desktop

The method below uses a shortcut link to launch Microsoft Edge in one of two ways. To do so:

1. Highlight either one of the following using your mouse.
   
   To have Microsoft Edge open a blank page when you click on it, highlight this text:
   
   %windir%\explorer.exe shell:Appsfolder\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe!MicrosoftEdge
   
   To have Microsoft Edge open Google (for example) when you click on it, highlight this text:
   
   %windir%\system32\cmd.exe /c "start microsoft-edge:https://google.com"
    
2. Right click over top of the text above and select Copy from the dialogue menu.
    
3. Go to the desktop and right click on an empty space, then select "New -> Create Shortcut" from the dialogue menu.
    
4. The "Create Shortcut" window will appear. Look for the heading which reads: "Type in the location of the item", right click into the input field, and select Paste from the dialogue menu. It should output what you highlighted in Step #1, then click Next.
    
5. For the name of the shortcut, call it "Microsoft Edge", then click Finish.
    
6. Now it's time to change the icon for the shortcut as it will currently be using either the Windows Explorer icon or the Command Prompt icon, depending on which text you highlighted in Step #1. To change the icon, highlight the text below:
   
   %windir%\SystemApps\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe\MicrosoftEdge.exe
    
7. Right click over top of the highlighted text above, then select Copy from the dialogue menu.
    
8. Now, go back to the desktop and look for the Microsoft Edge shortcut you just created. Right click over top of the shortcut, then select Properties.
    
9. The "Properties" window will appear. Go to the Shortcut tab, then click on the "Change icon ..." button.
    
10. The "Change icons" window will appear; at the top of the window you will have an input field. Right click into the input field (over top of the already-highlighted text), and select Paste from the dialogue menu. It should output what you copied in Step #6.
     
11. Click the OK button; the Microsoft Edge icon should now appear in the "Change icons" window. Select the Edge icon, then press OK, then click Apply on the next window.

You should now have a shortcut to Microsoft Edge on the desktop.

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About the author: Dennis Faas is the owner and operator of Infopackets.com. With over 30 years of computing experience, Dennis' areas of expertise are a broad range and include PC hardware, Microsoft Windows, Linux, network administration, and virtualization. Dennis holds a Bachelors degree in Computer Science (1999) and has authored 6 books on the topics of MS Windows and PC Security. If you like the advice you received on this page, please up-vote / Like this page and share it with friends. For technical support inquiries, Dennis can be reached via Live chat online this site using the Zopim Chat service (currently located at the bottom left of the screen); optionally, you can contact Dennis through the website contact form.