Every time you double click a file or click on a link, the default app will be used to open it.
This is fine in many cases: it makes sense for a PSD file to open in Adobe Photoshop or PDF downloaded from the web to be available within that same browser, for example.
But if you’re opening something in File Explorer, the default app might not be right for you. Microsoft understandably prioritises its own apps in Windows 11, but what if you want to change it to a third-party option?
Fortunately, this process is relatively simple. Within a few clicks, you can set default apps for all the files and links you open most commonly. Here’s how it’s done.
How to set Windows 11 default apps by file or link type
The first method involves choosing a specific type of file or link, then selecting the app you’d like to use for it. It’s the best option if you only have a few annoying default apps that you want to change:
- Open Settings
- Head to Apps > Default apps
- In the search bar under ‘Set a default for a file type or link type’, type anything you’d like to change. ‘Jpg’ and ‘pdf’ are usually a good place to start
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
- Click the relevant search result, and you’ll see the current default shown on screen. Click anywhere in the box to bring up the default app selection window
- Choose any of the available apps, then ‘Set default’ to confirm. ‘Suggested apps’ will work best, but you can choose something from ‘More options’, download something new or even choose your own from File Explorer
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
- Repeat for all file or link types you’d like to change
You’ll need to do this for every variation of file type you use. Jpg and jpeg are separate here, while the Adobe-specific version of pdf (pdfxml) is different to the regular one.
All web links will use either ‘http’ or ‘https’.
How to set Windows 11 default apps by app
But the method above can soon become tedious, and it’s easy to forget a file type you only use occasionally. If you have an app that you’d like in every available scenario, it’s best to focus on that instead.
The most common application for this is for changing the default browser, but there are plenty of other situations where it can be useful:
- Open Settings
- Head to Apps > Default apps
- Scroll or use the search bar to find the specific app you’re looking for
- Click it, and you’ll be taken to a screen which looks like the below. Click the bar below all file types you’d like to change, then choose the relevant app
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
- Repeat for all apps you’d like to use as defaults
How to open a Windows 11 file in an app that’s not the default
But what if there’s a situation where you’d rather use an app that’s not the default? This happens most commonly in File Explorer, where there are often lots of different eligible apps, each with their own set of features. Here’s how to use a specific app as a one-off:
- Open File Explorer and locate the file you’d like to open
- Right-click it, then hover over the ‘Open with’ option
Anyron Copeman / Foundry
- A list of all eligible apps will open. Click any of these to open it
Will setting a default app become easier soon?
The process of setting default apps in Windows 11 can still feel clunky at times, but that might change soon. In a March 2023 blog post titled ‘A principled approach to app pinning and app defaults in Windows’, Microsoft confirmed the following:
“For defaults, we will soon introduce a new Settings deep link URI for applications to take their users directly to the appropriate location in Settings for the user to change their defaults.”
Essentially, this means third-party apps would be able to take you straight to the relevant default apps section of the Windows 11 Settings menu with a single click, allowing you to set it as a default much quicker.
When the feature will begin rolling out will depend on individual app developers, with no timeline provided. Hopefully it’ll be before the 23H2 update later this year.
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Author: Anyron Copeman, Senior Staff Writer
As the resident expert on Windows, Senior Staff Writer Anyron’s main focus is PCs and laptops. Much of the rest of his time is split between smartphones, tablets and audio, with a particular focus on Android devices.