Mailto link not working in Chrome

How a mailto link opens

A mailto link isn't a web page. When you click one, Chrome hands it to whatever is registered for email links. That can be:

• a website, such as Gmail or Outlook on the web, allowed through Chrome's Protocol handlers setting;
• a desktop app, such as Outlook, Thunderbird or Apple Mail, set as your computer's default email app.

If neither is set, or the default is an app you never signed in to, the click seems to do nothing, or a mail app you don't use opens and asks you to set up an account.

Open mailto links in Gmail (Chrome)

Google's Chrome Help describes Protocol handlers as the setting that lets sites "handle tasks when you select certain links, like create a message in your email client". To check it:

1. Open Chrome on your computer.
2. At the top right, select More, then Settings.
3. Select Privacy and security, then Site settings.
4. Open Protocol handlers (it may be under Additional permissions).
5. Make sure sites can ask to handle protocols, and that Gmail (mail.google.com) is allowed and not blocked.

If Gmail isn't listed, open Gmail in Chrome while signed in. If Chrome asks whether Gmail may open email links, allow it. After that, a mailto link opens a new Gmail draft with the address, subject and body filled in.

Set the default email app on Windows

If you'd rather use a desktop app, set it in Windows. Microsoft's steps for Windows 11 and 10:

1. Open Settings, then Apps, then Default apps.
2. In the search box, type MAILTO. Microsoft's help says you can search for a file type or a link type here.
3. Select the result and choose the app that should open email links, for example Outlook.

Chrome follows this setting when no website is handling email links.

Set the default email app on a Mac

On a Mac, the default is chosen inside Apple Mail, even if you want a different app:

1. Open Mail.
2. Choose Mail > Settings, then click General.
3. Pick your app under Default email reader. Apple notes that Mail is the default until you change it.

Test the link itself

If other mailto links work but yours doesn't, check the link. The tool below starts with a test link to you@example.com. Change the address to yours, copy the link into Chrome's address bar or click it from a page, and check what opens.

Look for these problems:

• The subject or body is cut short. A &, ? or # in your text wasn't encoded. Paste your text into the tool and use its link.
• Line breaks show as odd characters. RFC 6068, the mailto standard, says line breaks in the body must be written as %0D%0A.
• A plus sign instead of spaces. The standard says to write spaces as %20; some apps show a + literally.
• A very long link. Some apps cut links that are thousands of characters long. Shorten the body.

Links inside web apps and emails

A mailto link in a page that opens in a new tab, or inside a sandboxed frame, can be blocked by the page itself, not by Chrome. If the link works when you paste it into the address bar but not on the page, the page's code is the cause. Ask the site owner, or copy the address instead.

In an email, some mail apps show mailto links as plain text, or ask before opening them. That's a safety step: RFC 6068 says mail apps shouldn't send anything from a link without showing you the message first.

If you publish mailto links

Not every visitor has a mail app set up, especially on shared or work computers. Show the email address as text next to the link, so people can copy it. For a contact route that works without a mail app, a form is more reliable. To write links with a subject and body, see mailto link with subject and body. For Outlook, see email links in Outlook. Our post on mailto and SMS links covers the full syntax, with examples.