Desktop shortcuts let you quickly access your frequently used programs, apps, folders, and files.
If you use YouTube regularly, following the long manual method of opening your browser and typing the URL to access the site doesn’t make sense.
The better option is to create a shortcut on your desktop. But how do you create a YouTube shortcut desktop?
Open your Google Chrome browser and navigate to YouTube. Click the three dots at the top right corner to show the browser menu. Select “More Tools” and click “Create Shortcut.” Tick the “Open as Window” box, then select Create.
Read on to discover how to create a YouTube shortcut on a desktop.
Overview of Creating YouTube Shortcuts on Desktop
Desktop shortcuts make navigating your computer easy. Double-clicking a shortcut opens your desired destination, whether a file, program, app, or website. That way, you save the time and energy you’d spend on launching the app or program manually.
A YouTube shortcut falls under the web shortcuts category, and it’s one of the easiest to create. Being a web shortcut, creating a YouTube shortcut depends on your web browser.
We will discuss creating a YouTube shortcut on a desktop using four widely used web browsers:
- Google Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox
- Microsoft Edge
- Opera
How To Create YouTube Shortcut on Desktop
Here are the various ways to create a YouTube shortcut on your desktop.
Method #1: Using Google Chrome
- Launch Google Chrome and navigate to YouTube.
- Click the three dots at the top right corner to show the browser menu.
- Select “More Tools.”
- Click “Create Shortcut.”
- Tick the “Open as Window” box, then click “Create.”
That’s it; you’ve created a YouTube shortcut on your desktop.
Method #2: Using Mozilla Firefox
Here is the step-by-step guide for creating a YouTube shortcut on your desktop using Mozilla Firefox.
- Launch Mozilla Firefox and navigate to YouTube.
- Minimize the browser so you can drag files to the desktop.
- Navigate to the YouTube URL. You’ll see a lock icon next to the URL.
- Click and drag this lock icon, then drop it on the desktop.
You have successfully created a YouTube shortcut on your desktop.
Method #3: Using Microsoft Edge
Here is the step-by-step process.
- Launch Microsoft Edge and navigate to YouTube.
- Minimize the web browser.
- Navigate to the YouTube URL field.
- Drag the lock icon beside the URL and drop it on the desktop.
- A YouTube shortcut that opens as a window in Microsoft Edges is created.
Alternatively, follow these steps.
- Right-click anywhere on your desktop home screen.
- Select New on the menu that appears.
- Choose Shortcut.
- Under “Type the location of the item,” type “www.youtube.com.”
- Click “Next.”
- Enter “YouTube” under a name for the shortcut.
- Click “Finish.”
Method #4: Using Opera Browser
Follow these steps to create a YouTube shortcut on your desktop using the Opera browser.
- Launch Opera and navigate to YouTube.
- Minimize the browser.
- Navigate to the YouTube URL field.
- Drag the lock icon next to the URL and drop it on the desktop.
- A YouTube shortcut will be created.
Wrapping Up
Creating a YouTube shortcut is advisable if you use the platform regularly. The shortcut saves you the time and effort that goes into launching a web browser and searching for the website manually. Depending on your browser, there are different ways of creating a YouTube shortcut.
FAQs
A few desktop shortcuts don’t take up a lot of startup memory and won’t slow down your computer. However, if you add many shortcuts on the desktop to the point it looks cluttered, they will slow down the PC.
Yes, you can add a YouTube icon on your Windows 11 desktop by creating a web shortcut. You can do this using any browser, including Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Mozilla Firefox.
To pin YouTube to the taskbar, create a web shortcut on your desktop. Once you’ve created the desktop icon, right-click on it. Select “Pin to Taskbar” on the menu that appears. The icon will be pinned to your taskbar, and you can click on it once to launch YouTube.
