Stop Chrome Redirect Warnings When Opening Links in a New Window

You chose Open link in new window and Chrome answered with a blocked pop-up or redirect notice instead of the page. That is the browser protecting you from a site that asked for a window and then tried to send you somewhere else.

The fix is a permission change: allow pop-ups and redirects for that one trusted site, or for every site if you accept the trade-off, then test the same link again.

In this guide, I have covered:

Why Chrome shows a redirect warning when a link opens in a new window

You click a link, pick “Open link in new window,” and Chrome hands you a warning instead of the page. Usually the site asked for a separate window and then tried to send you somewhere else, so Chrome’s pop-up and redirect permission stepped in to stop it.

A normal new tab behaves differently. A link that asks the browser for its own window can count as a pop-up request, and the page that loads there may immediately try to redirect you.

The warning isn’t a Chrome bug. It’s a permission doing its job, and you can change it for one site or for all of them.

Allow pop-ups and redirects for the affected site

If you trust where the link leads and want the warning gone only for that site, a site exception is the right tool. Every other website stays on Chrome’s default block.

1. Open the page that produces the warning in Chrome.
2. Click the tune icon beside the address bar to open the site controls.
3. Find the pop-up or redirect permission listed for the current site.
4. Change the permission so Chrome allows pop-ups and redirects for that site.
5. Close the site controls and open the link in a new window again.

You’ll know it worked when the same link opens in a fresh window with no blocked pop-up or redirect notice. The exception stays in effect until you remove it or reset the site’s permissions.

Allow this exception only on a site you trust. A redirect can land you on a sign-in page, an ad page, or a file download you never asked for.

Change the pop-up and redirect setting for all sites

When the warning follows you across several websites, one exception at a time gets old fast. Change Chrome’s main permission instead.

1. Click the menu in the top-right corner of Chrome.
2. Select Settings.
3. Open Privacy and security.
4. Select Site settings.
5. Open Pop-ups and redirects.
6. Choose the option that allows sites to send pop-ups or use redirects.
7. Check that the settings page shows your new choice.

Close the affected link and open it again. If the warning is gone, the global permission was what blocked it.

ALERT: Allowing pop-ups and redirects for every site removes a real safeguard. Make this change only if you understand that any site you visit can then open windows or send you elsewhere.

Reset the permission if the site behaves differently

Sometimes the notice disappears and the site still does something you didn’t ask for. Removing the exception puts the guardrail back, and it’s the first thing to try when a page keeps jumping to unexpected places.

1. Click the menu in Chrome.
2. Select Settings.
3. Open Privacy and security.
4. Select Site settings.
5. Open Pop-ups and redirects.
6. Find the affected site in the list of exceptions.
7. Select the site and remove its permission change.

Open the link in a new window again and watch for the original warning. If stale site data is still interfering, clear cookies and cache from Chrome before you test once more.

Open the link in a background tab instead

If you only want the page queued up for later, you don’t need a second window at all. A background tab never asks Chrome for a new window, so the pop-up check stays out of the way.

1. Hold Ctrl while clicking the link on Windows, or Cmd on macOS.
2. Click the new tab when you’re ready to read the page.

TIP: Middle-clicking a link on Windows also sends it to a background tab.

RELATED: Enhance the Privacy Settings in Chrome browser on Android

Confirm the warning has stopped

Go back to the page with the original link and repeat the exact action that set the warning off. Test the same link rather than a different one, because the permission you changed applies to that site.

The fix worked if the link opens in a new window and the destination loads with no blocked pop-up or redirect message. Still seeing it? Open the site controls again and check that the permission saved for the exact domain that opens the link.