How to Enable and Use Super Drag and Drop in Microsoft Edge for Fast Browsing

Modern web browsing frequently involves opening multiple links in adjacent tabs and running contextual web searches on selected phrases. While traditional methods rely on right-click context menus, middle-clicking mouse wheels, or copy-pasting strings into address bars, Microsoft Edge includes a high-speed productivity gesture called Super Drag and Drop. This feature allows users to drag any link, image, or highlighted block of text a fraction of an inch to trigger immediate actions.

Understanding Super Drag and Drop in Microsoft Edge

Originally popularised by third-party browser extensions, native Super Drag and Drop integrates mouse and trackpad gestures directly into Edge’s core rendering engine. When active, dragging elements performs two primary functions:

• Instant Link Launching: Clicking and dragging any hyperlink slightly in any direction opens the destination page in a new tab without requiring keyboard modifiers like Ctrl or Cmd.
• Direct Text Searching: Highlighting words, terms, or phrases and dragging the selection executes an immediate web search in a new tab using your preferred search provider.

Enabling Super Drag and Drop in Edge Settings

Microsoft has integrated Super Drag and Drop into the standard browser preferences on current desktop versions of Edge for Windows and macOS.

1. Accessing Appearance Settings

1. Launch Microsoft Edge.
2. Click the three dots (Settings and more) in the top-right corner or press Alt + F.
3. Select Settings from the drop-down menu.
4. In the left sidebar, click Appearance.

2. Activating the Feature Toggle

1. Scroll down through the Appearance settings to locate the Super drag and drop section.
2. Switch the toggle beside Super drag and drop to On.

Note: If the setting does not appear in your regional release, navigate to edge://flags/#edge-super-drag-drop in your address bar, set the flag to Enabled, and click Restart to refresh the browser.

Configuring Tab Behaviour and Focus Preferences

Once enabled, you can tailor how Super Drag and Drop opens new pages to fit your multitasking habits:

• Open in Background (Default): New tabs open quietly alongside your active page without shifting window focus, allowing you to queue up multiple articles or search queries while reading your primary page.
• Open in Foreground: Edge immediately shifts active focus to the newly spawned tab as soon as you release the dragged element.
• Drag Direction Behaviour: By default, dragging in any direction activates the feature, eliminating the need to memorise directional gestures.

Using Super Drag and Drop in Daily Workflows

Applying the gesture requires minimal physical movement, enhancing browsing speed on both physical mice and laptop trackpads:

Opening Webpages with a Slight Drag

1. Hover your cursor over any hyperlink on a webpage.
2. Click and hold your left mouse button (or press down on your trackpad).
3. Drag the link approximately 10 to 20 pixels in any direction. You will observe a small drag icon appear next to your cursor.
4. Release the mouse button. The link opens instantaneously in a new tab according to your focus preference.

Searching Text Selections Instantly

1. Highlight any sentence, product name, or unfamiliar term on a webpage.
2. Click and hold anywhere over the highlighted text block.
3. Drag the selection outward slightly and release.
4. Edge launches your default search engine with the selected query pre-filled in a fresh tab.

Preventing Conflicts with Web Applications

Certain interactive web applications, such as Trello boards, Kanban project managers, Figma, and online document editors, rely on internal drag-and-drop operations for moving cards or rearranging canvas elements. To prevent Super Drag and Drop from interfering with these platforms:

• Configure Site Exceptions: In Settings > Appearance > Super drag and drop, click Manage exceptions.
• Add Work Domain URLs: Input domains where you regularly drag UI elements (such as trello.com or figma.com) to disable browser gesture capture on those specific origins.