Add a website shortcut to your Chrome home screen in three steps

Open Chrome on your Android phone and navigate to the website you want to pin. Tap the three-dot menu in the bottom right corner, then select Add to Home screen. Chrome will create a shortcut icon on your home screen that opens that website directly when you tap it.

The shortcut appears as a separate icon outside of Chrome itself — tapping it launches the website in a new Chrome window. You can rename the shortcut before confirming, and Android lets you move or delete it like any other home screen icon.

Key Takeaways

  • The Add to Home screen option in Chrome's three-dot menu creates a direct shortcut to any website on your Android home screen.
  • You can rename the shortcut before saving it, and the name appears below the icon on your home screen.
  • Shortcuts open websites in Chrome but exist as separate icons outside the app itself.
  • You can rearrange, delete, or move shortcuts to folders just like any other Android app icon.

Where to find the Add to Home screen option

The menu location depends on which version of Chrome you have, but the process is consistent. Open the website you want to pin, then look for the three vertical dots (called the menu button) in the bottom right corner of your screen. Tap it to open a dropdown menu with several options.

Scroll down in this menu until you see Add to Home screen. If you do not see this option, your version of Chrome may be outdated — updating from the Google Play Store usually adds it back. Some websites also block this feature, though most do not.

Renaming your shortcut before you save it

After you tap Add to Home screen, a dialog box appears with a text field showing the website's name. You can edit this text to anything you want — shorten it, use a nickname, or replace it entirely. The name you enter here is what appears below the icon on your home screen.

Keep the name short if you want the icon to display clearly without text wrapping. Once you are happy with the name, tap Add or Install (the button label varies by Android version). The shortcut appears on your home screen immediately.

Moving and organizing shortcuts on your home screen

After the shortcut is created, you can treat it like any other Android icon. Long-press the shortcut to drag it to a different location on your home screen, move it to a different screen, or place it in a folder. Android's home screen organization works the same way whether you are moving app icons or website shortcuts.

To delete a shortcut, long-press it and select Remove or drag it to a trash icon if one appears at the top of your screen. Deleting a shortcut does not affect the website itself or your Chrome bookmarks — it only removes the home screen icon.

The difference between shortcuts and bookmarks

A home screen shortcut is different from a Chrome bookmark. A shortcut is a direct icon on your home screen that opens the website immediately. A bookmark is saved inside Chrome and accessed through the Chrome menu or address bar. You can have both for the same website.

Shortcuts are faster to access if you visit a website frequently, because they skip the step of opening Chrome and finding the bookmark. Bookmarks are better for organizing many websites within Chrome itself. Most people use shortcuts for their most-visited sites and bookmarks for everything else.

What to do if Add to Home screen does not appear

If you tap the three-dot menu and do not see Add to Home screen, first check that you are on the website itself — the option does not appear if you are viewing a search results page or Chrome's home screen. Navigate to the actual website URL and try again.

If the option still does not appear, update Chrome from the Google Play Store. Open Play Store, search for Chrome, and tap Update if available. Some older Android versions or custom Android builds may not support this feature, but it works on Android 5.0 and newer. A few websites also disable this feature in their code, though this is uncommon.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I change a shortcut's icon after I create it?

No, Chrome does not let you change the icon after creation. The icon is pulled from the website itself. If you want a different icon, delete the shortcut and create a new one, though it will use the same website icon. Some third-party launchers let you customize icons, but that is outside Chrome's built-in features.

Do website shortcuts work if I am offline?

Tapping a shortcut will try to open the website in Chrome, but you will see an error page if you have no internet connection. Shortcuts do not save website content for offline use — they are just quick links. If you need offline access, you would need to use a different method like downloading a file.

What happens if the website changes its name or icon?

The shortcut keeps whatever name and icon you gave it when you created it. If the website updates its branding, your shortcut will not change automatically. You can delete it and create a new one to pick up the updated name and icon, or simply rename it yourself by editing the home screen icon.

Can I create shortcuts to specific pages within a website?

Yes. Navigate to the specific page you want — not just the homepage — and then use Add to Home screen. The shortcut will open that exact page when tapped. This works for product pages, account dashboards, or any other URL within a website.