This article explains how to allow pop-ups on your PC in Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, and Opera. It also includes information on why you might want to unblock pop-ups and how to test the blocking on your your computer.

What to Know

  • Chrome: Select the 3-dot menu > Settings > Advanced > Privacy and security > Site settings > Pop-ups and redirects. Toggle off Blocked.Edge: Select 3-dot menu > Settings > Privacy & security. Scroll to Block pop-ups and toggle to off.Internet Explorer: Select the Settings cog. In the Internet Options box, choose the Privacy tab. Uncheck Turn on Pop-up Blocker.

How to Enable Pop-Ups in Chrome

Users typically want their browsers to block pop-ups, but there are times when pop-ups are necessary. When web-based forms try to open a dialog box that your browser views as a threat, the browser prevents it from getting to you. In cases like this, the only way to complete the task is to dig into the browser settings and disable pop-up blocking.

Here’s how to enable pop-ups in the Chrome browser.

  • Open Chrome and select the three vertically aligned dots in the upper right corner. Then select Settings.
  • Scroll down and select Advanced at the bottom.
  • Select Privacy and security in the left panel followed by Site settings in the main window.
  • Select Pop-ups and redirects in the Contents section.
  • Select the Blocked (recommended) toggle and switch it to “Allowed.”

How to Enable Pop-Ups in Opera

Opera, being a fork of the same underlying browser that Chrome is, has a similar settings structure to Chrome.

Open Chrome and select the three vertically aligned dots in the upper right corner. Then select Settings.

Scroll down and select Advanced at the bottom. 

Select Privacy and security in the left panel followed by Site settings in the main window.

Select Pop-ups and redirects in the Contents section.

Select the Blocked (recommended) toggle and switch it to “Allowed.”

  • Select the menu icon at the top of the Opera browser.
  • Scroll down in the menu and select Go to browser settings.
  • Scroll down and select Advanced at the bottom of the screen Settings screen.
  • Select Site settings.
  • Scroll down and select Pop-ups and redirects.
  • Select the Allowed toggle to turn it off.

How to Allow Pop-Ups in Microsoft Edge

The process of unblocking pop-ups is similar in Microsoft Edge.

Select the menu icon at the top of the Opera browser.

Scroll down in the menu and select Go to browser settings.

Scroll down and select Advanced at the bottom of the screen Settings screen.

Select Site settings.

Scroll down and select Pop-ups and redirects.

Select the Allowed toggle to turn it off.

  • Select the three horizontal dots icon and choose Settings in the menu that opens.
  • Select Privacy & security.
  • Scroll down and select the Block pop-ups toggle to disable it.

How to Allow Pop-Ups on Internet Explorer

Follow these steps to allow pop-ups in Internet Explorer:

Select the three horizontal dots icon and choose Settings in the menu that opens.

Select Privacy & security. 

Scroll down and select the Block pop-ups toggle to disable it.

  • Open Internet Explorer and select the Settings cog at the top of the screen.
  • Select the Privacy tab in Internet options dialog box.
  • Select Turn on Pop-up Blocker to uncheck it and disable it.

Why Allow Pop-Ups?

It might seem like there’s no reason to ever want pop-ups, but there are definitely times when you need them to be active. Some websites surface their login dialog boxes using a pop-up. Others use pop-ups as components for web-based forms or survey pages, but often the form can’t be properly completed if these pop-ups aren’t allowed to emerge.

Microsoft no longer supports Internet Explorer and recommends that you update to the newer Edge browser. Head to their site to download the newest version.

Open Internet Explorer and select the Settings cog at the top of the screen.

Select the Privacy tab in Internet options dialog box.

Select Turn on Pop-up Blocker to uncheck it and disable it. 

If you use the Firefox browser, you can disable your pop-up blocker there, too.

For all of these, allowing all pop-ups is the best way to ensure the correct pop-up dialog boxes appear so you can accomplish whatever you’re there to do.

How to Test Pop-up Blocking

There are a number of websites dedicated purely to testing your browser’s handling of various kinds of pop-up dialog boxes.

Since we’re trying to ensure they do appear, you can use the simplest version of this test, which is to see if a small separate browser window with no address bar appears.

You can select any pop-up test website you prefer, but for the purposes of this walkthrough, we’ll use PopupTest’s first test: “Multi-PopUp Test.”

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