How to enable IE Mode on Microsoft Edge

To enable IE mode on Edge, open Settings > Default browser, select the “Allow” option for the “Allow sites to be reloaded in Internet Explorer mode (IE mode)” setting and restart the browser to apply the settings and load legacy websites correctly.
You can also set up the compatibility mode on Microsoft Edge through Group Policy. However, you need to download and install the Microsoft Edge policy settings first.

On Microsoft Edge, you can enable “IE Mode” to load websites designed for Internet Explorer in at least two ways from the browser default settings or through Group Policy, and in this guide, you will learn how.

The compatibility “IE Mode” has been designed for organizations to load internal sites without using a different browser or redesigning the legacy pages. The feature loads the pages within Microsoft Edge like a regular website without using and managing multiple browsers.

If you have to use this compatibility mode, the version of Microsoft Edge available in the stable channel includes the “Internet Explorer compatibilities” settings to quickly enable IE Mode and a separate option to open Edge when browsing an incompatible website with Internet Explorer. Alongside the settings, it is also possible to use the Group Policy Editor to configure the compatibility mode.

This guide will teach you how to enable IE Mode to load legacy websites using the Internet Explorer rendering engine on Microsoft Edge for Windows 10 on Windows 11.

Enable IE Mode on Microsoft Edge
Enable IE Mode with Group Policy on Microsoft Edge

Enable IE Mode on Microsoft Edge

To enable IE Mode on Edge for Windows 11 (or 10), use these steps:

Open Microsoft Edge on Windows 11.
Click the Settings and More (ellipsis) button in the top-right corner.
Select the Settings option.
Click on Default browser.
Under the “Internet Explorer compatibility” section, turn on the “Allow sites to be reloaded in Internet Explorer mode” toggle switch to enable IE Mode on Edge.
Click the Restart button.
(Optional) Click the Add button in the “Internet Explorer mode pages” setting.
Confirm the web page to force it to load in IE Mode.
Click the Add button.

Once you complete the steps, when sites require Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge will reload the page using IE Mode.

If you use the “Internet Explorer mode pages” setting, the sites will open in IE Mode for 30 days. Then the page will load normally again.

Open website with IE Mode on Edge

To open an incompatible website with IE Mode on Edge, use these steps:

Open Microsoft Edge.
Click the Settings and More (ellipsis) button in the top-right corner.
Click the “Reload in Internet Explorer mode” option.
(Optional) Right-click the tab and select the “Reload tab in Internet Explorer mode” option.

After you complete the steps, the website should reload in compatibility mode. The option won’t be available in the menu if the feature is not enabled.

If you want to exit IE Mode, use the same instructions, but in step 3, select the “Exit Internet Explorer mode” option.

Open Internet Explorer sites on Microsoft Edge

On Windows 11, Microsoft Edge also lets you configure the browser so that when someone uses Internet Explorer, all sites will load within Edge.

To allow IE open websites with Edge, use these steps:

Open Microsoft Edge.
Click the Settings and More (ellipsis) button in the top-right corner.
Select the Settings option.
Click on Default browser.
Under the “Internet Explorer compatibility” section, use the “Let Internet Explorer open sites in Microsoft Edge” drop-down menu and select the option to handle browsing when using Internet Explorer:
- Never – IE will never switch to Edge to load the site.
- Incompatible sites only – IE will still load sites, but websites designed for a modern browser will load in Edge.
- Always – IE will always switch to Edge to load websites.

Once you complete the steps, websites will open on Microsoft Edge, according to your configuration when surfing the web with Internet Explorer.

Enable IE Mode with Group Policy on Microsoft Edge

Alternatively, you can enable IE Mode on Edge with Group Policy. However, you will need to download and install the policy template before configuring the Group Policy settings.

1. Install Microsoft Edge policy template

To install the policy template to enable IE Mode on Edge, use these steps:

Open Microsoft Edge (business) website.
Select the version, build, and platform of the browser — for example, Windows 64-bit.
Click the “Get policy files” option.
Click the “Accept & download” button.
Double-click to open the MicrosoftEdgePolicyTemplates.cab file.
Double-click to open the MicrosoftEdgePolicyTemplates.zip file inside the CAB file.
Select the extraction location.
Click the Extract button.
Double-click to open the MicrosoftEdgePolicyTemplates.zip file again.
Click the Extract all button from the “Compressed Folder Tools” tab.
(Optional) Select the location to extract the files.
Check the “Show extracted files when complete” option.
Click the Extract button.
Browse the following path inside the (extracted) “MicrosoftEdgePolicyTemplates” folder:
```
windows\admx
```
Select the “msedge.admx” and “msedgeupdate.admx” files and click the Copy option from the “Home” tab.

Quick tip: You only need to copy the “msedgeupdate.admx” file if you want to control the update settings of Microsoft Edge.
Open the following folder path:
```
C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions
```
Click the Paste button from the “Home” tab.
In the “admx” folder, inside the “MicrosoftEdgePolicyTemplates” folder, open the language folder that represents your language — for example, en-US.
Select the msedge.adml and msedgeupdate.adml files and click the Copy option from the “Home” tab.

Quick tip: You only need to copy the “msedgeupdate.adml” file if you also copy the file on step No.12.
Browse to the following path that matches your language:
```
C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions\en-US
```
In the command, change en-US for the folder that matches your local language.
Click the Paste button from the “Home” tab.

Once you complete the steps, the new policies to enable or disable IE Mode on Edge Chromium will install in the Group Policy Editor.

2. Enable IE Mode on Microsoft Edge from Group Policy

To enable IE Mode on Chromium Edge with Group Policy, use these steps:

Open Start.
Search for gpedit and click the top result to open the Group Policy Editor.

Browse the following path:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Edge

Double-click the “Configure Internet Explorer integration” policy.
Select the Enabled option to enable IE Mode for Microsoft Edge.
Under the “Options” section, select the “Internet Explorer mode” option from the drop-down menu.
Click the Apply button.
Click the OK button.

After you complete the steps, websites will render in the Internet Explorer compatibility mode. And you’ll notice a familiar IE icon on the left side of the address bar, letting you know the website uses Internet Explorer.

These steps enable IE Mode for intranet websites. If you want to load external websites with Microsoft Edge, you will have to enable and set up the “Configure the Enterprise Mode Site List” policy, which includes creating an XML file with the list of domains you want to load automatically with the Internet Explorer mode.