How to Add New Options to the Context Menu: Windows 10 & 11

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Learn how to add new items to your Windows right-click menu
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The right-click menu of Windows is perhaps the most widely used feature of the operating system. Apart from letting you add new folders and cut, copy, and paste files from one location to another, you can add more options to the right-click menu in Windows. You can add new options such as application shortcuts, with the Registry Editor, or using a third party tool.

How to Make Right Click Menu Edit Adjustments

Open "Run" via the Start menu and type "regedit" in the search box. Go to the "ContextMenuHandlers" folder, right click on it, and hover over the "New" option. Then, select "Key" to create a subkey. From there, you can adjust the default values of the sub key.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Using the Registry Editor (Windows 10)

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  1. Press Windows key + R to open Run, type regedit into the box, and then press Enter to open Regedit . [1]
  2. This folder contains all of the applications, shortcuts, and other options that are present in your right-click context menu. There are different "ContextMenuHandlers" folders present in the registry, and you'll want to select the one that meets your needs: [2]
    • If you wish to add options to the right-click menu for files, navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\ .
    • If you wish to add options to the right-click menu for folders, navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\ .
    • If you wish to add options to the right-click menu for the desktop, navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers .
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  3. Right-click on the ContextMenuHandlers folder, move the cursor over to "New," and click on "Key." A sub-key will be created under the default name of "New Key #1."
    • Rename the new key to the name of the application or pathway you wish to add to the right-click context menu. For instance, if you wish to add a shortcut to the Command Prompt in the right-click menu, enter the name of the sub-key as "Command Prompt." You can name the sub-key however you want; it does not affect the application or the process.
  4. To change the value of the sub-key, double-click on the "Default" value inside the sub-key that you have created. In order for the computer to recognize the application, you must add the path to the executable (.exe) file of the application to the Default value.
    • To find the path of a file or folder, right-click on the address bar of the window in which the file or folder is located. Left-click on "Copy address" and paste it into Notepad to view the address. You can also directly paste the pathway as the Default Value of the key.
    • Make sure that you add the path of the file, application, or folder correctly into the value of the Default key. For instance, if you are adding Command Prompt to your right-click menu, enter the path "C:\Windows\system32\cmd.exe" as the value of the Default key.
    • Make sure you do not interfere with or edit the values of any other keys besides ContextMenuhandlers. Editing or deleting the wrong folders or keys could corrupt the operating system.
  5. Go to your desktop (or a folder or file if that's the registry value you changed) and right-click to view and confirm that the new option has been added to the right-click context menu.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Using the Registry Editor (Windows 11)

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  1. When adding items to the right-click menu, you will only be able to see them after clicking Show more options due to how Microsoft changed the context menu with the Windows 11 update. However, you can revert to the old context menu if you like to avoid this limitation:
    • Type "Command Prompt" in the taskbar search box, then right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator .
    • Copy and paste the following command into the Command Prompt interface: reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\CLSID\{86ca1aa0-34aa-4e8b-a509-50c905bae2a2}\InprocServer32" /f /ve
    • Press ↵ Enter .
    • Restart your computer to implement the change.
  2. Press Windows key + R to open Run, type regedit into the box, and then press Enter to do so.
  3. Copy and paste HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell into the address bar at the top of the Registry Editor screen. [3]
  4. The Key option is the first option on the New list. [4]
  5. For example, if you wanted to add Notepad to the right-click menu, the folder would be named Notepad' .
    • In Windows 11, you can only add programs to the right-click menu. You cannot add files or folders.
  6. It's in the right-hand pane. Ensure that the Notebook folder is selected in the left-hand pane.
  7. The value data should be a & sign followed by the name of the program. In the example, if you're adding Notepad to the right-click menu, you'd write &Notepad .
    • Click OK to confirm the change.
  8. Ensure you're still in the folder that's named after the program you want to add.
  9. A folder named Command will appear under the folder that's named after the program (which is Notepad in our example).
  10. It's in the right-hand pane. Ensure that the Command folder is selected in the left-hand pane.
  11. The value data should be the executable name of the program you want to add. [5] In the example, you would input Notepad.exe to add Notepad to the right-click menu.
    • Click OK to confirm the change.
    • If you're not sure what the executable name of the program that you're adding is, you can find it by searching for the program in your Program Files or Program Files (x86) folder.
  12. If you didn't change your right-click menu to the old style, you will be able to see the item you added to the context menu after clicking Show more options . [6]
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Using Open++

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  1. Open++ is a third-party software that makes the process of adding options to the right-click menu easier and quicker. [7]
    • Download the Open++ freeware application from any trusted website and follow the installation instructions.
    • Read each installation screen to ensure that you aren't installing additional software. This is especially important if you are downloading Open++ from a location like Download.com or Tucows.com.
  2. The Open++ software offers a simple layout and a window that displays all of the "Commands" that are currently present in the right-click menu.
    • You can scroll down the window to see all of the commands that are present in the right-click menu for files, folders, and the desktop as well.
  3. There will be a number of commands that are already present in the Open++ "Commands" window. Click the "Add" button on the right side of the window, and click on "Command" to add new commands to the Open++ context menu.
  4. A new icon will appear in the "Commands" window, under the default name of "New Command."
    • In order to change the name of the command, type the new name inside the "Title" field.
    • If you wish to use the command to open a particular program on the computer, use the "Program" field to locate the .exe file of the program.
    • You can also choose the icon for the command by using the "Icon" option. You can also associate the command with particular file types by entering their format in the "File types" field.
    • Once you have added the details of the command you wish to add to Open++, click "Apply" to save your choices.
  5. The preset commands and the commands you have added to Open++ will be displayed in the right-click context menu. When you right-click, select the "Open++" option to expand an additional menu with your Open++ commands.
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      Warnings

      • Always back up your computer's registry before editing it. Editing your computer's registry can lead to crashes, instability, and complete system failure if something goes wrong or gets edited incorrectly. If you don't have a backup, you might need to completely reinstall Windows and may lose some data.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.techradar.com/how-to/how-to-edit-the-windows-10-context-menu
      2. ↑ https://helpdeskgeek.com/windows-11/how-to-customize-the-right-click-context-menu-in-windows-11/
      3. ↑ https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/how-to-add-custom-shortcuts-to-the-windows-11-or-10-context-menu
      4. ↑ https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/how-to-add-custom-shortcuts-to-the-windows-11-or-10-context-menu
      5. ↑ https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/how-to-add-custom-shortcuts-to-the-windows-11-or-10-context-menu
      6. ↑ https://www.guidingtech.com/how-to-customize-right-click-menu-windows-11/
      7. ↑ https://github.com/stax76/OpenWithPlusPlus

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