How to put Gmail on the desktop

Your main email address is hosted on Gmail and, therefore, you often find yourself accessing the well-known Google Webmail service to consult the messages received and send new ones. Nothing to complain about its operation, however the fact of having to open the browser every time having to type the URL of Gmail to access it, makes everything particularly tedious.

For this reason, you are looking for a way to speed up access to the service: more in detail, you would love to know how to put Gmail on your desktop and thus have the possibility to access it with a simple double click. That’s the way it is, am I right? Then you will be happy to know that you have come to the right place, at the right time.

In today’s guide, in fact, you will find all the information you need to add a quick link to Gmail on the desktop of your computer and, if you are interested in it, also on the Home screen of your smartphone or tablet. Having said that, I just have to wish you a good reading and a good job!

Index

• How to put the Gmail icon on the desktop
  • Google Chrome
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Internet Explorer
  • Safari
• How to put the Gmail icon on the Home screen
  • Android
  • iOS / iPadOS

How to put the Gmail icon on the desktop

If you want to know how to put the Gmail icon on your computer desktop , in the next chapters I will explain how to easily do this with the most popular Internet browsers.

Google Chrome

If you want to add a link to Gmail on your PC desktop and use the Google Chrome browser , connect to Gmail via the latter.

Now, click on the ⋮ icon located at the top right and, in the menu that opens, click on the items Other tools> Create shortcut . Now, in the section at the top of the browser, indicate the name you want to give to the quick launch icon to create on the desktop (for example “Gmail” ) and click on the Create button .

If you have followed the instructions I have given you to the letter, you can quickly access your email inbox on Gmail by double clicking on the newly created icon on the desktop. Easy, am I right?

Microsoft Edge

Are you using Microsoft Edge in its most recent version, based on Chromium (the one with the green and blue icon)? In that case, you can create quick shortcuts on the desktop to access your Gmail mailbox in a very simple way.

First, start Microsoft Edge and access your mailbox on Gmail through it. Now you have two possible ways to follow: if you want to use the functionality integrated in Edge to create a quick link to a site (in this case Gmail) on the taskbar, click on the icon (…) located at the top right and, in the pane that is shown to you, select the items More tools> Pin to taskbar . In the section at the top, then type the name to be assigned to the icon (for example Gmail ) and press the Add button to complete the operation.

Alternatively, you can create a Gmail login icon directly on the desktop by proceeding as follows: click on the lock icon located on the left in the address bar, hold down and drag the mouse pointer on the desktop, then release the pressure .

By doing so, a quick launch icon will be generated on the desktop, which will allow you to quickly access your Gmail inbox. Convenient, right?

Firefox

If you use Mozilla Firefox as your browser for browsing the Internet, I am sorry to tell you that, unlike the other software examined so far, you cannot count on a feature that allows you to create quick launch icons for web pages.

However, you can still create a Gmail icon on your desktop by dragging the site URL out of the browser’s address bar to place it on your desktop.

Therefore, after starting Firefox , connected to Gmail via the latter, click and hold the left mouse button on the lock icon in the address bar and drag the mouse pointer to the desktop, then release the pressure .

Internet Explorer

For one reason or another, you still use Microsoft’s old Internet Explorer browser and, therefore, would you like to know how to put the Gmail icon on your desktop through it? No problem.

First, connect to your mailbox on Gmail from the browser in question, then press the Alt key on your keyboard to display the menu bar at the top and select the items File> Send from the latter.

Finally, choose the Desktop Shortcut option and a Gmail Quick Launch Icon will be created on your desktop, which will lead you to the main screen of Google’s Webmail service.

Safari

If you use a Mac and you usually surf the Internet with the integrated web browser, Safari , you can very well create an icon to place on the desktop .

Connect, therefore, to Gmail using Safari, highlight the URL in the address bar and drag it out of the Safari screen, placing it in an empty area of ​​the desktop.

If you do not succeed in this operation, you can also click on the small Gmail icon on the left, in the address bar, and drag it to the macOS desktop.

This will create an icon on the desktop that will allow you to quickly access the Google Webmail. I would say it was easier than you expected, am I right?

How to put the Gmail icon on the Home screen

Do you want to put the Gmail icon on the home screen of your smartphone or tablet? In this case, in the next chapters I will explain how to do this on both Android and iOS / iPadOS .

Android

If you want to know how to put the Gmail icon on the home screen of your Android smartphone or tablet , you can easily proceed using the pre-installed Google Chrome web browser . How? I’ll explain it to you right away.

If you want to put the Gmail Webmail service icon on the home screen, first, start the Chrome app and connect to your mailbox on Gmail with the latter.

At this point, press the ⋮ icon located at the top right and press the Add to Home screen item , in the box that is shown to you. Now, in the screen in the center of the screen, type the name you want to give to the icon (or leave the one already present) and press the Add button to complete the operation.

I remind you that, in addition to viewing the Google Webmail from the browser, you can also install the appropriate Gmail app , which should already be pre-installed on the device, which allows you to manage the e-mail of this Google email service and, of course, adds an icon to the mailbox on the Home screen (and / or in the app drawer). I told you about it in detail in my guide dedicated to the subject.

iOS / iPadOS

If you use an iPhone or an iPad and want to put the quick access icon to the Gmail Webmail, you can use the special feature built into Safari . To do this, launch Safari and use it to access your Gmail mailbox .

Once this is done, press the share button located at the bottom (the square with the arrow inside) and, in the new box that is shown to you, scroll through the different items, until you locate and press the one called Add to the Home screen .

Well: we’re almost there! In the section to which you are directed, enter a name to assign to the icon or leave the one already indicated and then confirm the whole operation by pressing the Add button at the top. The new icon will now be available on the iOS / iPadOS home screen to allow you to access Google Webmail.

Alternatively, you can clearly install the Gmail app for iPhone and iPad , which also adds a quick launch icon to Google’s Webmail service on the Home screen. More info here .