You came across a link to an interesting article from your friend while using the Discord app. You clicked on the link, and surprisingly, nothing happened; no website popped up on your browser like usual!
Sounds familiar? Yes, It happened to me too. I can feel your anger and concern about what might be wrong.
Why Won’t Discord Open Links?
After spending many hours researching this issue, I finally found a solution myself.
Keep Reading to find out the exact solution to your problem.
How to Fix Discord not Opening Links
I’ve explained to you the main reasons why the Discord app won’t open links. Now I’ll give you the solution to these issues and help you run the Discord app smoothly again.
Find the reason for this issue from the above discussion first, then apply the solution accordingly.
As there are several reasons for this problem, the solutions I’m showing you will fix every one of them. You just have to go through every step and follow the instructions there to fix it by yourself.
Here are the steps to fix the Discord not opening links:
1. Assign a Default Browser
For the first solution to apply, assign a default browser on your device. The issue solves for most people by doing this step.
Suppose you assign a default browser for opening a hyperlink from any of the other softwares. In that case, Discord will have no problem identifying the default browser to open it’s links, and the issue is more likely fixed.
Follow these steps below to assign a default browser in Windows:
- Click on the search icon in the taskbar.
- Type Default apps.
- Click on Default Apps.
- Scroll down to the Web browser.
- Choose the browser you want as your default.
Now, your default browser is set.
2. Remove Duplicate Browser
Now, if you’ve already assigned a default browser and the Discord app still won’t open links, then look if there’s a duplicate browser installed.
If you find a duplicate browser installed on your PC, you’ve to uninstall one of them and assign the other one as your default browser.
If the issue still occurs, then uninstall that browser too and re-install it. Then assign it as your default browser again.
Note: Backup all your browsing credentials on the cloud before uninstalling a browser.
3. Clear Discord’s Cache Files
If following the upper solutions doesn’t solve the opening link issue of the Discord app, try to clear the cache files of it.
Before deleting the cache files, make sure the Discord app is appropriately closed. Follow these steps to quit the Discord app correctly:
- Right-click on the taskbar.
- Click on the Task Manager
- Search for all Discord processes.
- Select the process and click on End Task on the down-right corner.
Also, check out our separate post on how to stop an echo in Discord voice and stream.
After closing Discord, follow these steps to clear Discord’s cache files:
- Press Win+R keys to open the Run dialog box.
- Type %appdata%/discord/cache in the box and hit Enter
- Press Ctrl+A keys to select all files.
- Press the Del key to delete the files.
You’ve successfully deleted the cache files of the Discord app. Now rerun Discord and see if the issue still occurs.
4. Run Discord As Administrator
Sometimes Discord can’t start it’s mandatory processes after rebooting your PC. Detecting and opening hyperlinks are two of them.
If you can’t open links inside the Discord app after a reboot, try running it as administrator.
It’ll help run the Discord processes again and hopefully fix the link not opening problem in Discord.
5. Avoid Spam Links
Avoid clicking on a random link in Discord. Discord is not entirely spam-free though it removes any kind of suspicious link within a short time.
But, it is not a full-proof system, and some of the spam links might get through the spam filter algorithm of Discord.
It can take you to a harmful website or hack your data if you click on a random link. So, avoid clicking on this kind of link for your safety.
6. Use Stable Internet Connection
Always make sure to use the Discord app on a stable wi-fi or cellular connection. If you face any inconvenience using the Discord app on your network, contact your internet service provider and ask to solve the issues.
Don’t use Discord on a public network like a school or cafe network as there are many other users connected to one network, and the quality of these networks is usually very unstable.
Using the Discord app in such a network will not only arise the inability to open links, but it’ll also cause RTC Connecting and compressing media files forever issues.
So, use the Discord app with a stable internet connection and see if the issue still appears.
7. Re-install Discord After Windows Update
Discord app would conflict with newer Windows versions if it were installed on older Windows versions and hasn’t been updated ever since.
That is, if you install Windows updates on your PC, you should also update the Discord app too. Updated Windows OS is most likely to have newer settings and processes to perform a task.
The Discord app installed through an older version will perform well on specifically that OS. It’ll face various issues on the newer system.
So, after installing Windows updates, also check updates of the Discord app on their official website.
You may also like to read: fix Discord Entry Point Error.
How do I open Discord links in Chrome
Like most other communication platforms and softwares, Discord also allows its users to share hyperlinks.
When you share any hyperlink through Discord, it shows a small preview of the website with the respective link.
Sometimes it works alright and shows previews like the usual, but when you click on the link, Discord won’t ask if you want to open the website or not. It just stays still; everything else seems to work just fine.
Several reasons might cause the Discord app not to open hyperlinks from chats. I’ve identified and explained them below one by one.
Here are the reasons that cause Discord not to open links:
Not Assigning a Default Browser
Discord uses the default browser on your PC to open any kind of links or web actions.
As Discord is only a communication platform, for Windows, it doesn’t have any built-in browser like the android version of the app. So, it only uses the browsers installed on your device.
If you don’t have a default browser assigned, Discord can’t decide which one to use for opening a link. So, it takes no action after clicking on the link.
Read more on how to Fix Spotify Listen Along Not Working on Discord.
Duplicate Browser
If you have two of the same browser installed on your PC, Discord won’t open a link despite your actions.
The same thing happens here, like not assigning a default browser. Two of the same browser hampers Discords processes for opening a link in the browser.
The same goes if there’s a duplicate of the default browser installed on your device.
Deleting Discord’s Data
If you choose to clear some storage from your C: drive and delete some files from the AppData folder, this issue will occur.
Discord always runs it’s process in the background to be ready when you choose to open it. Deleting the application data without closing Discord properly or during an active session will make it misbehave.
Thus, the Discord not opening link problem occurs.
Updating Windows
Sometimes updating Windows also causes the Discord app not to open links.
Installing the new updates messes up the settings of the Discord app and scatters it’s files. Then the updated Windows processes conflict with the Discord app built for the old Windows OS.
If you degrade from an updated version of Windows to an older one, you’ll face this issue too.
Spam Link
Another reason for this problem is spam links. Like any other social communication platform, Discord is also vulnerable to spam.
So, Discord continuously monitors spam links and quarantines them. If someone sends you a spam link and it flags the Discord spam filter, it’ll quarantine it as soon as possible.
There won’t be any action if you click on that link after it’s quarantined.
Connectivity Issues
If there are any issues with your internet connections, it hampers the process that detects any hyperlink.
If the Discord app fails to recognize a hypertext link, it will treat that link as an ordinary message and won’t take action after clicking it.
Discord won’t run smoothly on an unstable internet connection as it requires constant internet access to perform without any issues.
Follow our guide on how to Fix Discord NOT Working Without a VPN.
FAQ
Question: Why won’t Discord allow me to open links?
Answer: If Discord won’t allow you to open a random link, it’s because Discord thinks the link is a spam or phishing link and not safe to open in a browser. Clicking the link could hack your data or take you to an illegal website.
Final Thoughts
I’ve shown you all the reasons and explained the solution for them to fix the Discord won’t open link issue above.
I’ve covered all the potential reasons that might cause this issue. Read them sincerely and apply the solutions carefully to fix the issues.
