How to always open Microsoft Edge InPrivate mode on Windows 10

Yes, you can configure Microsoft Edge to always launch InPrivate mode to prevent online activity tracking, and here's how to do it.

Microsoft Edge always InPrivate
Microsoft Edge always InPrivate

Microsoft Edge always tracks online activities. If you want to prevent this behavior from happening, you can configure the browser to always start with the InPrivate mode. In this guide, you will learn how.

The InPrivate mode is a feature that loads Microsoft Edge with a specific set of settings that do not track your activities, including browsing history, site data, and cookies, and it does not save any information you enter in forms. However, it does not prevent sites, your company, your internet service provider (ISP), and other third-party entities from tracking your online activities.

In this guide, you will learn the steps to configure Edge always to run using the InPrivate mode on Windows 10.

Always launch Edge InPrivate mode on Windows 10

The most convenient method to configure Microsoft Edge to always start using InPrivate mode is appending a command option to the app button in the taskbar. If you do not have the browser already pinned to the taskbar, locate the app in the Start menu, right-click it, and select the “Pin to taskbar” option, and then you can continue with the steps below.

To configure Edge to always open InPrivate, use these steps:

  1. Right-click the Microsoft Edge icon in the taskbar.

  2. Right-click the Microsoft Edge item in the jump list.

  3. Select the Properties option.

    Microsoft Edge app properties option
    Context menu
  4. Click the Shortcut tab.

  5. In the “Target” field, append the following command at the of the line followed by an space:

    -inprivate

    The command should look like this:

    "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\msedge.exe" --profile-directory=Default -inprivate

    Microsoft Edge always InPrivate command
    Shortcut settings
  6. Click the Apply button.

  7. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, the browser will always open in its privacy mode. However, since you modify the taskbar button, only when using the taskbar option, Microsoft Edge will launch InPrivate. If you open the app from the Start menu, for example, Edge will continue to open in regular mode.

Disable Edge InPrivate mode on Windows 10

To prevent Edge from always starting InPrivate mode, use these steps:

  1. Right-click the Microsoft Edge icon in the taskbar.

  2. Right-click the Microsoft Edge item in the jump list.

  3. Select the Properties option.

    Microsoft Edge app properties option
    Context menu
  4. Click the Shortcut tab.

  5. In the “Target” field, remove the following part of the command:

    -inprivate

    Microsoft Edge always InPrivate command
    Shortcut settings
  6. Click the Apply button.

  7. Click the OK button.

After you complete the steps, Microsoft Edge on Windows 10 will once again start in normal mode.

Create new Chrome profile on Windows 10

You could also create a new profile and set it to always open in private mode instead of modifying the main profile. The benefit is that you will be keeping everything even more separate. You can have a different set of bookmarks. You can configure other browser settings. And you can pin the app to the taskbar for quicker access to the browser InPrivate mode.

To create a new profile on Edge, use these steps:

  1. Open Microsoft Edge.

  2. Click the profile menu from the top-right corner.

  3. Under the “Other people” section, click the Add profile option.

    Microsoft Edge new profile option
    Profile menu
  4. Click the Add button.

  5. Click the Continue without signing in option.

    Microsoft Edge setup new profile
    Setup wizard

Once you complete the steps, you can use the previous steps to configure the new profile to always open Edge InPrivate mode. While in the new profile, you may want to pin the app to the taskbar. Also, you can add a name and change the picture of the profile in the “Profiles” settings page (edge://settings/profiles).

About the author

Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me.