Saving Time with Web Shortcuts

Introduction

Web Shortcuts streamline the process of navigating to websites by making them behave more like apps. Instead of users having to open a browser and search or type in a URL to reach a specific page, they can simply click on an app icon and be taken there directly.

Web Shortcuts are created via web browsers like Chrome, Safari and Edge. They work best with sites that have been designed for PWA (Progressive Web App), such as Outlook, Word and OneDrive 365, but will work with any web page.

Web Shortcuts can be extremely for users who know what functioality they want, but can't remember the steps to get it. For example, Word 365 has a great dictation function, but it is time consuming to open a web browser, find the Microsoft 365 URL, go to it, open Word, open a blank document and then click on dictate. Clicking on a PWA shortcut can take users directly to Word 365, where they can open a document and start dictating.

Windows (laptop)

Installing a PWA shortcut on Windows (laptop) using Chrome

  1. Open Chrome web browser
  2. Navigate to the site that you are interested in like Outlook or Word.
  3. Click on the 3 vertical dots at the top-right of screen.
  4. Select 'More Tools' and then 'Create Shortcut...'.
  5. Give the shortcut a name, e.g. 'Excel | Microsoft 365', and check the box 'Open as window'.
  6. Click 'Create'..
  7. A new app shortcut be added to the Desktop.
  8. Drag the icon onto the Taskbar for easy access in the future.
  9. Click on the icon and the app will launch.

Installing a PWA shortcut on Windows (laptop) using Edge

  1. Open Edge web browser.
  2. Navigate to the site that you are interested in like Outlook or Word.
  3. Click on the 3 horizontal dots at the top-right of screen
  4. Select 'Apps' and then 'Install this site as an app'
  5. Give the shortcut a name, e.g. 'Excel | Microsoft 365', and check the box 'Open as window'
  6. Click 'Install'
  7. You will be given the option to pin the app to the Taskbar, create a Desktop shortcut or Auto-start on device login. The Taskbar and Desktop are the two best places to add the app.
  8. Click 'Allow'
  9. Click on the icon and the app will launch

Uninstalling a PWA shortcut on Windows (laptop) using Chrome

  1. Open the app that you want to delete
  2. Click on the 3 vertical dots at the top-right of screen
  3. Select 'Uninstall [app name]'
  4. Click 'Remove'

Uninstalling a PWA shortcut on Windows (laptop) using Edge

  1. Open Edge
  2. Type in 'edge://apps' into the address bar and press enter
  3. A list of installed apps will be displayed
  4. Click on the three dots to the right of the app and then select 'Uninstall'
  5. Click 'Remove'

macOS (laptop)

Installing a PWA shortcut on macOS (laptop) using Chrome

  1. Open Chrome web browser
  2. Navigate to the site that you are interested in like Outlook or Word.
  3. Click on the 3 vertical dots at the top-right of screen
  4. Select 'More Tools' and then 'Create Shortcut...'
  5. Give the shortcut a name, e.g. 'Excel | Microsoft 365', and check the box 'Open as window'
  6. Click 'Create'
  7. A new app will be added to the Chrome Apps folder
  8. Drag the icon onto the Finder bar for easy access in the future
  9. Click on the icon and the app will launch

Safari for macOS doesn't support the installation of PWAs.

Uninstalling a PWA shortcut on macOS (laptop) using Chrome

  1. Open the app that you want to delete
  2. Click on the 3 vertical dots at the top-right of screen
  3. Select 'Uninstall [app name]'
  4. Click 'Remove'

iOS (iPhone and iPad)

Installing a PWA shortcut on iOS (iPhone and iPad) using Safari

  1. Open the Safari app
  2. Navigate to the site that you are interested in
  3. Click on the Share up arrow button at the bottom of the screen
  4. Scroll down and select 'Add to Home Screen'

To Uninstall a PWA on iOS

  1. Touch and hold the app icon
  2. Select 'Delete Bookmark'

Note: Chrome for iOS (iPhone and iPad) does not support PWAs.

Android

Installing a PWA shortcut on Android using Chrome

  1. Open the Chrome app
  2. Go to a website that you are interested in
  3. Click on the 3 vertical dots at the top-right of screen
  4. Scroll down and click 'Add to Home Screen'
  5. Follow the instructions

To Uninstall a PWA on Android

  1. Go to Apps & Notifications > See all apps
  2. Find the PWA that you want to remove and click on it
  3. Click Uninstall

Additional information