--- url: https://findutils.com/guides/webloc-to-url title: "Move Mac Website Shortcuts to a Windows PC" description: "Take a folder of Mac .webloc links to Windows: zip it, convert every file to a .url Internet Shortcut in your browser, and unzip. What survives, what is renamed, what is skipped." category: converters content_type: guide guide_type: subtopic cluster: bookmarks locale: en read_time: 6 status: published author: "olgunozoktas" published_at: 2026-09-25T12:00:00Z excerpt: "A Mac desktop collects .webloc files every time a link is dragged out of Safari. Copied to a Windows PC, they stop being shortcuts and become files nothing opens. Converting the whole folder to .url Internet Shortcuts takes one ZIP and one download." tag_ids: ["bookmarks", "browser", "mac", "windows", "productivity"] tags: ["Bookmarks", "Browser", "Mac", "Windows", "Productivity"] primary_keyword: "move webloc files to windows" secondary_keywords: ["mac website shortcuts on windows", "convert webloc folder to url", "webloc files on windows pc", "transfer safari desktop links to windows", "bulk webloc to url"] tool_tag: "webloc-to-url" related_tool: "webloc-to-url" related_tools: ["webloc-to-url", "url-to-webloc", "internet-shortcuts-to-csv", "plist-json-converter", "csv-to-bookmarks-html", "merge-bookmarks"] og_image: "/images/content/guides/webloc-to-url-cover-20260925.webp" image_alt: "A brushed aluminium cube and a glossy cobalt-blue cube on grey stone, joined by a thin red thread that runs on to a plain frosted glass sphere." updated_at: "2026-09-25T12:00:00Z" --- To move Mac website shortcuts to a Windows PC, convert each `.webloc` file into a `.url` Internet Shortcut, which Windows opens in the default browser with a double-click. FindUtils [Webloc to URL](/convert/webloc-to-url/) converts a whole ZIP of weblocs at once in your browser and gives you a ZIP of `.url` files with the same names. The files are not uploaded and no link is opened. This guide covers what the two formats are, how to move a folder of them in one pass, what happens to names and folders on the way, and when a CSV or a bookmarks file is the better destination. ## What a .webloc and a .url Actually Are Both files hold one web address. They differ in how they store it: | | Mac .webloc | Windows .url | |---|---|---| | Format | Property list with a `URL` key | INI text with a `URL=` line under `[InternetShortcut]` | | Encoding | XML, or binary on some older files | Plain text | | Created by | Dragging a link or address to a Finder window or the desktop | Dragging a link to the desktop, or creating a shortcut to a web address | | Opened by | Finder, in the default browser | File Explorer, in the default browser | Apple documents that a property list can be stored ["in an XML representation, in a binary format, or in an old-style ASCII format"](https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/PropertyLists/AboutPropertyLists/AboutPropertyLists.html), and a webloc uses the dictionary and string types from that list. Microsoft describes an Internet shortcut as a desktop icon whose ["URL path is opened by the handler application, typically the user's default web browser"](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/lwef/internet-shortcuts). Windows has no handler for `.webloc`, so the file needs converting rather than renaming. ## How to Move a Folder of Weblocs in One Pass ### Step 1: Zip the folder on the Mac Put the weblocs in one folder, Control-click it in Finder and choose Compress. A single ZIP survives email, chat and cloud drives better than hundreds of loose files. ### Step 2: Drop the ZIP on the converter Open [Webloc to URL](/convert/webloc-to-url/) on either computer and drop the ZIP, or the loose `.webloc` files. Every `.webloc` inside the ZIP is read. The `__MACOSX` folder and the `._` files that a ZIP made on a Mac can carry are ignored, and so are `.DS_Store`, `Thumbs.db` and `desktop.ini`. ### Step 3: Check the converted and skipped lists Each converted file is listed with its URL. Each skipped file is listed with its reason, and the rest of the batch still converts. ### Step 4: Download and unzip on Windows Download `webloc-url.zip` (or the single `.url` file when there is only one) and extract it where you want the shortcuts, such as the desktop or a Links folder. ## What Happens to Names and Folders - **Names are kept.** `Team Wiki.webloc` becomes `Team Wiki.url`. - **Characters Windows refuses are replaced.** `<`, `>`, `:`, `"`, `/`, `\`, `|`, `?` and `*` become `_`, and trailing dots and spaces are removed, so a name that is valid on a Mac is still a valid Windows file name. - **Same names get a number.** Two files called `Docs` become `Docs.url` and `Docs (2).url`, so the ZIP never overwrites one. - **Subfolders are flattened.** Every shortcut lands at the top level of `webloc-url.zip`. If the folder structure matters, zip and convert each folder separately. ## Options Worth Turning On **Remove duplicate URLs** keeps the first shortcut for each address and counts the rest. It compares the address exactly as written, so `https://example.com` and `https://example.com/` stay separate. **Also download CSV** adds `webloc-urls.csv` with a `name` and a `url` column. Use it when the shortcuts should become something other than files, as described below. With CSV off, Copy all URLs puts every address on the clipboard, one per line. ## Why a File Is Skipped | Reason | What it means | |---|---| | The file is empty | Zero bytes, often a failed copy | | Not a readable property list | The file is damaged or is not a webloc | | The property list has no URL key | A plist, but not a website shortcut | | This is already a Windows .url shortcut | The file needs no conversion | | Windows .lnk shortcuts are not read | A `.lnk` points to files and programs, not web addresses | A shortcut to a `file:`, `ftp:` or other non-web address is converted as written, with a note, because a path that made sense on the Mac may point nowhere on Windows. ## Files, Bookmarks or a List? `.url` files are the right target when you want icons on a desktop or in a folder. When the links belong in the browser instead, turn on Also download CSV, then load `webloc-urls.csv` into [CSV to Bookmarks HTML](/convert/csv-to-bookmarks-html/), which matches the `name` and `url` columns, and import the resulting `bookmarks.html` into Chrome, Edge or Firefox. To fold those links into an existing collection, combine the exports with [Merge Bookmarks](/convert/merge-bookmarks/). If what you have on Windows is already a folder of `.url` files and you want their addresses in a spreadsheet, use [Internet Shortcuts to CSV](/convert/internet-shortcuts-to-csv/). ## Common Mistakes **Renaming .webloc to .url.** The content is still a property list, not INI text, so Windows cannot read the address. **Dropping Windows shortcuts on the Mac-to-Windows page.** `.url` files are listed as skipped here, because they are already Windows shortcuts. To go from Windows to a Mac, use [URL to Webloc](/convert/url-to-webloc/). **Expecting dead links to be caught.** No link is opened or checked. A shortcut to a page that no longer exists converts like any other. ## Tools Used in This Guide | Tool | Use | |---|---| | [Webloc to URL](/convert/webloc-to-url/) | Convert Mac .webloc files or a ZIP of them to Windows .url shortcuts | | [URL to Webloc](/convert/url-to-webloc/) | The reverse: Windows .url files to Mac .webloc | | [Internet Shortcuts to CSV](/convert/internet-shortcuts-to-csv/) | List the addresses in a folder of .url files | | [Plist JSON Converter](/developers/plist-json-converter/) | Inspect a single webloc's property list as JSON | | [CSV to Bookmarks HTML](/convert/csv-to-bookmarks-html/) | Turn the name and url list into an importable bookmarks file | ## FAQ ### How do I copy all my Mac desktop links to Windows at once? Put the .webloc files in one folder, compress it in Finder, and drop the ZIP on Webloc to URL. Download webloc-url.zip and extract it on the Windows PC. Every webloc becomes a .url shortcut with the same name. ### Will the shortcuts keep their folders? No. The converted shortcuts are placed together at the top level of the ZIP. Convert each folder separately if you need the structure. ### Can I turn Mac weblocs into browser bookmarks on Windows? Yes, in two steps. Turn on Also download CSV, then convert webloc-urls.csv with CSV to Bookmarks HTML and import the bookmarks file into your browser. ### Are the weblocs uploaded? No. The ZIP is opened and the files are read in your browser tab. No link inside them is opened. ## Next Steps Zip your weblocs and convert them with [Webloc to URL](/convert/webloc-to-url/). Moving shortcuts the other way, from Windows to a Mac, is covered in [Move Windows Internet Shortcuts to a Mac](/guides/url-to-webloc/).