Opening URLs

Opening URLs

bulkU’s core feature is opening multiple URLs efficiently. Configure batch settings, delays, and opening modes to match your workflow and prevent browser overload.

Smart opening: bulkU opens URLs in controlled batches with delays to prevent overwhelming your browser and system resources.

Basic Opening

The simplest way to open URLs in bulkU.

1

Select URLs

Check the boxes next to URLs you want to open. Use “Select All” to check all URLs at once.

Screenshot: URL list with checkboxes and “Select All” option
2

Click “Open Selected”

Click the “Open Selected” button to start opening URLs.

3

Watch Progress

A progress indicator shows how many URLs have been opened. URLs open in batches with delays between them.

Screenshot: Progress indicator showing “Opening 15/50 URLs…”

Tip: Only checked URLs are opened. Use filters to narrow down your list, then select all filtered results.

Opening Settings

Customize how bulkU opens URLs to match your system capabilities and workflow needs.

Screenshot: Settings panel showing delay, batch size, and limit options

Delay (Seconds)

Time to wait between opening batches of URLs.

  • Default: 2 seconds
  • Range: 0-60 seconds
  • Purpose: Prevents browser overload and gives pages time to load

Recommended settings:

  • 0-1 seconds: Fast systems, simple pages, small batches
  • 2-3 seconds: Most users (default, balanced)
  • 4-5 seconds: Slower systems, complex pages, large batches
  • 6+ seconds: Very slow systems or when you need time to review each batch

Too fast? If your browser freezes or crashes, increase the delay and reduce batch size.

Batch Size

Number of URLs to open at once before waiting for the delay.

  • Default: 10 URLs
  • Range: 1-100 URLs
  • Purpose: Controls how many tabs open simultaneously

Recommended settings:

  • 1-5 URLs: Slow systems, heavy pages, careful review
  • 10-20 URLs: Most users (default, balanced)
  • 25-50 URLs: Fast systems, simple pages, quick browsing
  • 50+ URLs: Very fast systems, lightweight pages only

Example: With batch size 10 and delay 2 seconds, bulkU opens 10 URLs, waits 2 seconds, opens the next 10, waits 2 seconds, and so on.

Limit

Maximum number of URLs to open from your selection.

  • Default: 0 (no limit)
  • Range: 0-1000
  • Purpose: Useful for testing or sampling

Use cases:

  • 0 (no limit): Open all selected URLs
  • 5-10: Quick testing or spot checking
  • 25-50: Sample review of large lists
  • 100+: Controlled opening of very large lists

Testing tip: Set limit to 5 when testing new URL lists to avoid opening hundreds of tabs accidentally!

Open Modes

Choose how URLs are opened in your browser.

New Tabs (Default)

Opens each URL in a new tab in the current window.

  • Best for: Most use cases, general browsing
  • Behavior: Tabs open in the background (configurable)
  • Pros: Easy to navigate, familiar, keeps everything in one window
  • Cons: Can clutter tab bar with many URLs

New Window

Opens all URLs in a new browser window.

  • Best for: Separating work, presentations, multi-monitor setups
  • Behavior: Creates a new window with all URLs as tabs
  • Pros: Keeps URLs separate from current work
  • Cons: Multiple windows can be harder to manage

Tab Group

Groups opened tabs together with a colored label (Chrome feature).

  • Best for: Organization, visual separation, project work
  • Behavior: Tabs are grouped and can be collapsed
  • Pros: Visual organization, easy to close all at once
  • Cons: Only available in Chrome/Edge
Screenshot: Open mode dropdown showing New Tabs, New Window, Tab Group options

WordPress Mode

Special feature for WordPress users to open post/page edit URLs directly.

1

Add WordPress URLs

Add your WordPress post or page URLs (public URLs, not edit URLs).

Example: https://yoursite.com/blog-post-title/

2

Click “Open WP Edit”

Instead of “Open Selected”, click the “Open WP Edit” button.

Screenshot: “Open WP Edit” button in toolbar
3

Edit URLs Open

bulkU automatically converts public URLs to edit URLs and opens them.

Converts: https://yoursite.com/blog-post/
To: https://yoursite.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=123&action=edit

Use cases:

  • Bulk editing blog posts
  • Updating multiple pages
  • Adding featured images to posts
  • Fixing typos across content
  • Updating meta descriptions

Note: You must be logged into WordPress for edit URLs to work. Learn more in the WordPress Users Guide.

Advanced Options

Additional settings for fine-tuning URL opening behavior.

Open Tabs in Background

Controls whether new tabs steal focus or open quietly in the background.

  • Enabled (default): Tabs open without stealing focus, you stay on current tab
  • Disabled: Each tab opens and becomes active (not recommended for bulk opening)

Recommendation: Keep this enabled for bulk opening. Disable only if you want to review each URL immediately as it opens.

Auto-Close Tabs After X Seconds

Automatically closes tabs after a specified time (Pro feature).

  • Default: Disabled (0 seconds)
  • Range: 0-300 seconds (5 minutes)
  • Purpose: Useful for quick checks or automated workflows

Use cases:

  • Quick visual checks (5-10 seconds)
  • Triggering page loads for analytics (15-30 seconds)
  • Automated testing workflows

Pro feature: Upgrade to Pro to unlock auto-close functionality.

Practical Workflows

Real-world examples of effective URL opening strategies.

SEO Audit Workflow

  1. Import 500 URLs from Screaming Frog
  2. Filter by “404” tag
  3. Settings: Delay 3s, Batch 5, Limit 20
  4. Open first 20 to verify issues
  5. Adjust settings based on system performance

Content Review Workflow

  1. Add all blog post URLs
  2. Tag as “To Review”
  3. Settings: Delay 5s, Batch 3, No limit
  4. Open in batches of 3 for careful review
  5. Tag reviewed posts as “Done”

WordPress Bulk Edit Workflow

  1. Get all post URLs
  2. Filter by category or tag
  3. Settings: Delay 2s, Batch 10
  4. Click “Open WP Edit”
  5. Edit posts in batches

Quick Testing Workflow

  1. Add test URLs
  2. Settings: Delay 1s, Batch 5, Limit 5
  3. Open first 5 for quick check
  4. Adjust and open more if needed

Research Workflow

  1. Filter by “To-Read” tag
  2. Settings: Delay 3s, Batch 5, Limit 10
  3. Open 10 articles for reading session
  4. Tag as “Read” when done
  5. Repeat for next batch

Performance Tips

Optimize settings for your system and use case.

For Slow Systems

  • Increase delay to 4-5 seconds
  • Reduce batch size to 3-5 URLs
  • Use limit to test before opening all
  • Close other applications
  • Consider upgrading RAM

For Fast Systems

  • Reduce delay to 1-2 seconds
  • Increase batch size to 20-30 URLs
  • Open in new window to keep organized
  • Use tab groups for visual organization

For Heavy Pages

  • Increase delay to 5+ seconds
  • Reduce batch size to 3-5 URLs
  • Let pages fully load before next batch
  • Monitor memory usage

For Simple Pages

  • Reduce delay to 1 second
  • Increase batch size to 20+ URLs
  • Open quickly and efficiently

Best Practices

Get the most out of URL opening:

✅ Do:

  • Start with default settings (2s delay, 10 batch size)
  • Test with small limits before opening all
  • Adjust settings based on system performance
  • Use filters to narrow down before opening
  • Open tabs in background for bulk operations
  • Use tab groups for organization
  • Monitor browser memory usage

❌ Don’t:

  • Open hundreds of URLs without testing first
  • Set delay to 0 with large batch sizes
  • Open heavy pages with small delays
  • Forget to check which URLs are selected
  • Ignore browser performance warnings
  • Open more URLs than your system can handle

Troubleshooting

Browser Freezes or Crashes

Possible causes:

  • Too many URLs opening at once
  • Delay too short
  • System resources exhausted

Solution: Increase delay to 5s, reduce batch size to 3-5, close other applications, restart browser.

URLs Not Opening

Possible causes:

  • No URLs selected (checkboxes unchecked)
  • Browser popup blocker active
  • Extension permissions not granted

Solution: Check URL selection, disable popup blocker for bulkU, verify extension permissions.

WordPress Edit URLs Not Working

Possible causes:

  • Not logged into WordPress
  • URLs are not WordPress posts/pages
  • Custom WordPress structure

Solution: Log into WordPress first, verify URLs are posts/pages, check WordPress guide.

Tabs Opening Too Slowly

Possible causes:

  • Delay set too high
  • Batch size too small
  • Slow internet connection

Solution: Reduce delay, increase batch size, check internet connection.

What’s Next?

Now that you know how to open URLs effectively, explore these features:

💾
Import & Export

Save and share your URL lists.
📝

WordPress Guide

Master WordPress bulk editing workflows.

⏰

Scheduled Opening

Automate URL opening with schedules (Pro).

⌨️

Keyboard Shortcuts

Open URLs faster with shortcuts (Pro).