Open the Downloads Folder with shell:Downloads
Use the shell:Downloads shortcut with start (or the Run dialog) to jump straight to known folders like Downloads, Desktop or Startup.
01Command
$ start shell:Downloads02What it does
Windows keeps a list of shell: aliases that always point at the right folder even if you moved it to another drive, so shell:Downloads beats typing the full path or digging through This PC. The same syntax works in the Win+R Run dialog, in File Explorer's address bar and after the start command in any terminal. Handy siblings: shell:Desktop, shell:Pictures, shell:Documents, shell:Startup (per-user startup folder) and shell:Common Startup.
03Risk
04Undo
✓No undo needed — this command does not change persistent state.
05Sources
- Start - Start a program or command - SS64Evidence: start launches a program, document or shell folder, making it the standard way to open shell: locations from cmd.
- Windows shell: commands - SS64Evidence: Lists the shell: constants such as shell:Downloads, shell:sendto and shell:startup that open known Windows folders.
Last verified: 2026-09-18 · Category: Files & Folders
06Related solutions
Diagnose NTFS file system errors and bad sectors on any volume — including the system drive while Windows is running — before committing to a repair.
Robocopy is Windows' built-in robust file copier: use /MIR to keep a destination folder as an exact one-way mirror of a source, resumable and restartable.
One command that shows OS version, install date, boot time, memory, network adapters and installed hotfixes.