A Progressive Web App, or PWA, is a website that can open in its own app-like window with its own icon. It is still the website underneath, but it can live on your desktop, Start menu, Dock, app switcher, or phone Home Screen instead of being buried in browser tabs.
Does this affect you?
Use this for Chrome or Edge on Windows and Mac, Chrome on Android, and Safari on iPhone or iPad when you visit the same website often and want it to behave more like an app. Not every website supports full installation.
Install a PWA on Windows or Mac
Chrome and Edge handle website apps similarly because both are Chromium-based.
- Open the website you want to install.
- Look at the right side of the address bar for an install icon, such as a monitor with a down arrow or a plus sign.
- Click the icon.
- Click Install.
- If no icon appears, open the browser menu and look for Install this site as an app, Apps, or Save and share wording.
- Open the new app window and pin it to the taskbar, Dock, Start menu, or Applications folder if desired.
Add a site to your phone Home Screen
Mobile browsers present the same idea through menu or share controls.
- On Android in Chrome, open the site, tap the three-dot menu, choose Add to Home screen or Install app, confirm the name, and tap Add.
- On iPhone or iPad in Safari, open the site, tap Share, choose Add to Home Screen, confirm the name, and tap Add.
The icon appears like a normal app. Supported sites may open full-screen or in a simplified app-style window.
More control
Find installed web apps
On Windows, PWAs appear in Start and can be pinned to the taskbar. On Mac, they can appear in Applications and can be added to the Dock. Chrome and Edge also list them at chrome://apps or edge://apps.
Uninstall a PWA
Remove the app from its icon menu, Start menu, Dock, Applications folder, chrome://apps, or edge://apps. On mobile, touch and hold the Home Screen icon and remove it like another app shortcut.
It updates with the website
An installed PWA is not a separate offline program that you must manually update. It loads the live website in an app wrapper, so changes on the website appear automatically.
Sources
- Google Chrome Help – Install and uninstall progressive web apps (2025)
- Microsoft Support – Manage apps in Microsoft Edge (2025)
- Apple Support – Add a webpage to your Home Screen on iPhone (2025)