Internet Shortcuts to CSV

The shortcuts are read in your browser and are not uploaded to FindUtils, and none of their links is opened. Analytics and ads may load on the page.

Drop .url files or a ZIP of themSelect as many as you like; you can add more later.

Output

Remove duplicate URLsHeader rowExcel BOM

Adds a UTF-8 byte order mark so Excel shows accented names correctly. Turn it off if a script reads the file.

How to Convert .url Files to CSV

Select the .url files in File Explorer and drop them on the page, or drop a ZIP that contains them
Choose CSV for a spreadsheet or URL list for one address per line, and turn on Remove duplicate URLs if you need to
Check the preview and the list of skipped files, each with its reason
Download the CSV or the list, or add more files first; they are appended to the same output

Common Use Cases

Turning a desktop or Downloads folder full of saved links into a reading list

Exporting an old Internet Explorer Favorites folder to a spreadsheet

Auditing the links in a shared folder of shortcuts before a migration

Importing link collections into a bookmark manager that accepts CSV or plain URLs

Documenting the web shortcuts deployed to users' desktops

Why Use Internet Shortcuts to CSV?

Windows saves a web link as a small .url file: drag an address from the browser to the desktop, keep an old Favorites folder, or receive a folder of links from a colleague, and you have dozens of them. Each one is a short text file with a URL= line, but Windows only opens the link when you double-click it, so turning a pile of shortcuts into a list means opening each file in Notepad and copying one line at a time. Internet Shortcuts to CSV reads all of them at once, in the browser, and writes the name, URL, working directory and icon of each shortcut to a spreadsheet or a plain list.

An Internet Shortcut is the .url file Windows creates for a web link. It is a plain text file in INI format: an [InternetShortcut] section holding a URL= line with the address, often followed by lines such as IconFile=, IconIndex= and WorkingDirectory=. Browsers on Windows write these files when you drag a link out of the address bar, and Internet Explorer stored its Favorites the same way.

Internet Shortcuts to CSV reads the [InternetShortcut] section of each file, matching key names in any letter case and accepting Windows CRLF line endings, a byte order mark and the extra sections some browsers add. It writes a CSV with the columns name, url, working_directory and icon_file, quoting any value that contains a comma, a quote or a line break, or a plain list with one URL per line. A ZIP is opened in the browser and every .url inside it is read, while __MACOSX and other junk entries are ignored.

Files that are not Internet Shortcuts are reported instead of failing the batch: a file without the section, a shortcut without a URL line, and binary .lnk shortcuts each appear in the skipped list with the reason. The URLs are copied exactly as written and are never requested, so a dead or internal link is listed like any other.

How it compares

A PowerShell one-liner such as Select-String -Path *.url -Pattern '^URL=' pulls the addresses out of one folder, but it needs a shell, does not produce the shortcut names alongside the URLs, and skips ZIP files. This page gives the same result as a CSV with names, handles ZIPs and folders full of mixed files, and runs without installing anything or uploading the shortcuts.

Tips for Internet Shortcuts

To collect shortcuts from many folders, compress the top folder into a ZIP in File Explorer and drop the ZIP; every .url inside it is read.
The name column is the file name without .url, which is the label Windows shows under the icon.
Remove duplicate URLs keeps the first shortcut for each exact address, so https://example.com and https://example.com/ are still two rows.
Shortcuts that point to file: or other non-web addresses are kept and flagged in the notes, since they open local or network locations rather than web pages.
A .lnk file is a different, binary kind of shortcut that points to a program or folder. It is listed as skipped rather than guessed at.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a .url file?

A .url file is a Windows Internet Shortcut, a small text file that stores a web address. It contains an [InternetShortcut] section with a URL= line and, often, icon settings. Double-clicking it opens the address in the default browser.

How do I see the URL inside a .url file?

Open the file in Notepad, or right-click it, choose Properties and look at the URL field on the Web Document tab. To read many at once, drop them on this page, which shows every URL in a table.

What columns does the CSV have?

Four: name, the file name without .url; url, the address from the URL= line; working_directory, from WorkingDirectory= when present; and icon_file, from IconFile= when present. Empty values stay empty.

Can I convert a whole folder of shortcuts?

Yes. Select all the .url files in File Explorer and drop them, or compress the folder into a ZIP file in File Explorer and drop the ZIP. The page reads every .url file inside the ZIP, including those in subfolders.

Why was a file skipped?

Each skipped file is listed with its reason. The usual reasons are that the file has no [InternetShortcut] section, that the section has no URL= line, that the file is empty, or that it is a .lnk shortcut rather than a .url file.

Does it work with .lnk shortcuts?

No. A .lnk file is a Shell Link, a binary format that points to programs, folders and files rather than a web address. It is listed as skipped instead of being parsed as if it were text.

What about Mac .webloc files?

A .webloc file is the Mac equivalent of a .url file, but it is stored as a property list, not in INI format. It is skipped here. To turn .webloc files into Windows .url shortcuts, or into a name and URL CSV, use Webloc to URL; to go the other way, use URL to Webloc.

Does the page open or check the links?

No. The URLs are copied as text and never requested, so no website learns about your shortcuts and a link that no longer works still appears in the output.

Can I remove duplicate links?

Yes. Turn on Remove duplicate URLs to keep only the first shortcut for each exact address. The summary shows how many duplicates were removed. For looser matching, such as ignoring tracking parameters, use Dedupe Bookmarks on a bookmarks export.

Are my files uploaded?

Not on this page. The .url files and ZIPs are read by JavaScript in your browser tab, and the CSV is created there. No request carries the files or the links in them. The API is a separate path: a call sends the input you include to FindUtils over HTTPS, where it is processed and the result returned. FindUtils does not store that input, and logs the request without its content.

Run it from code

$ curl -X POST \
  api.findutils.com/api/tools/internet-shortcuts-to-csv/execute \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"files":[{"name":"Docs.url","content":"[InternetShortcut]\r\nURL=https://example.com/docs\r\n"}]}'

$ claude mcp add findutils \
  --transport http https://mcp.findutils.com/ \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
# then call findutils:internet_shortcuts_to_csv

Running a tool needs an API key. Keys are not for sale yet: ask for early access. About API keys

The REST API and the MCP tool are a separate path from this page: a call sends the input you include to FindUtils over HTTPS, where it is processed and the result returned. FindUtils does not store that input, and logs the request without its content.

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