Internet Explorer: Adding and Managing Favorites

Lesson 5: Adding and Managing Favorites

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Favorites

Have you ever found a website you wanted to view later, only to realize that you didn't remember the URL? Favorites (called bookmarks in most browsers) are a great way to save and organize websites so you can revisit them.

In this lesson, we'll discuss how to add favorites in Internet Explorer and how to manage and organize your favorites and folders.

To add a favorite:

  1. With the desired website open in your browser, select the Favorites button, then click Add to favorites. You can also press Ctrl+D on your keyboard.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  2. A dialog box will appear. To choose a folder for your favorite, click the drop-down menu in the Create in: box, then select a folder.


    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  3. Click Add to save the website as a favorite.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

Using favorites

Once you've added a website to your favorites, there are several ways to open the website.

  • The address bar: As you begin typing in the address bar, any favorites matching the text will appear under Favorites. Click a favorite to open it.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  • The Favorites button: Click the Favorites button, then select the Favorites tab to see your favorites.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  • The Favorites bar: If you have certain sites you use frequently, you can save them to the Favorites bar for quick access. To show the Favorites bar, right-click the top of the browser window, then select Favorites bar. To save the current website to the Favorites bar, click the star in the left corner of the bar.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  • Favorites folders: If you have a few favorites on one topic, you might consider creating a folder for them. We'll discuss various ways to organize your favorites into folders on the next page.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

Managing favorites

If you're going to use favorites regularly, you may want to learn how to organize them so they're easy to access. Grouping favorites into folders will make it easier to find the one you need.

To create a folder:

  1. Click the Favorites button, then select the Add to favorites drop-down menu.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  2. Select Organize favorites.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  3. The Organize Favorites dialog box will appear. Select the New Folder button at the bottom-left.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  4. A new folder will appear. Type a name for the folder, then press Enter.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  5. The new folder will now appear in the Favorites menu.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

To move a favorite into a folder:

  1. From the Organize Favorites dialog box, click and drag a favorite into the desired folder.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  2. The favorite will appear in the folder.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

To move a folder:

  1. From the Organize Favorites dialog box, click and drag a folder to the desired location. A black line will appear.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  2. The folder will appear in the new location.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

To add tabs to favorites:

If you're viewing multiple websites on one topic, you can save them all with the Add current tabs to favorites function. The open tabs will be saved as favorites in a new folder, which will allow you find them easily.

  1. Right-click the top of the browser window, then select Menu bar. The menu bar will appear.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  2. Click Favorites, then select Add current tabs to favorites...
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  3. A dialog box will appear. Choose a name and location for the new folder, then click Add.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11
  4. A new folder will appear in the selected location. Select the new folder to access the saved tabs.
    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

To delete favorites and folders:

  1. From the Organize Favorites dialog box, select the favorite or folder you want to delete, then click the Delete button in the bottom-right. You can also press Delete on your keyboard.

    screenshot of Internet Explorer 11

  2. The favorite or folder will be deleted.

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