Quick fix: Open Windows Terminal Settings (Ctrl + ,) → Startup. Ensure “Open Windows Terminal here” option in folder context menus is toggled On. If missing or greyed out, reinstall Windows Terminal from Microsoft Store, then run wt --version in cmd to register the shell extension.

Right-click a folder, expand the context menu — “Open in Terminal” used to be there, now it’s gone. Or it’s there but opens Command Prompt instead of Windows Terminal. Or the entry disappeared after a Windows update. The Open in Terminal context menu is implemented via the Windows Terminal app’s shell extension, and any of three things can break it.

Symptom: “Open in Terminal” missing from right-click context menu on folders and desktop in Windows 11.
Affects: Windows 11 with Windows Terminal app.
Fix time: ~5 minutes.

What causes this

The Open in Terminal context menu item is provided by Windows Terminal’s shell extension. The extension is enabled by default after Windows Terminal is installed (from Microsoft Store or pre-installed with Windows 11). The entry breaks when: (1) Terminal app is uninstalled or moved, (2) the Terminal setting that controls context menu integration is toggled off, (3) Windows’s context menu extensions database becomes corrupted.

A related cause: the entry exists in the “Show more options” legacy menu (Shift+right-click) but is missing from the modern Windows 11 short menu. Two different context menus, two different registration paths.

Method 1: Re-enable the option in Windows Terminal settings

The standard route.

Open Windows Terminal (search Start menu).
Press Ctrl + , (comma) to open Settings.
In the left sidebar, click Startup.
Find the toggle “Open Windows Terminal here” option in folder context menus. (May be labeled simply “Show context menu entry” in newer versions.)
Toggle it On.
Click Save at the bottom-right.
Close Windows Terminal. Right-click a folder in File Explorer — the “Open in Terminal” entry should be visible.
If still missing, restart Explorer: Task Manager → Processes → Windows Explorer → right-click → Restart.

This is the fix for the most common case — the option was simply disabled.

Method 2: Reinstall Windows Terminal

For when the toggle exists but doesn’t restore the menu entry — indicates corrupted shell extension registration.

Open Settings → Apps → Installed apps.
Search for Windows Terminal. Click the three-dot menu → Uninstall.
Confirm. Wait for uninstall to complete (~10 seconds).
Open Microsoft Store. Search for Windows Terminal.
Click Install.
After install completes, open Windows Terminal once to trigger first-run setup.
Open Settings (Ctrl+,) → Startup → verify the context menu toggle is on.
Open File Explorer, right-click a folder — “Open in Terminal” should now appear.

Reinstalling re-registers the shell extension. This handles cases where the extension is broken due to a failed Terminal update or corrupted package.

Method 3: Manual registry/PowerShell shell extension repair

For users on older Windows 11 builds, when Terminal isn’t available, or when reinstall doesn’t fix it.

Open Terminal (Admin) — from Start menu, right-click Terminal → Run as administrator. (If Terminal won’t open, use elevated cmd or PowerShell instead.)
Check that Windows Terminal’s shell extension is registered:
```
Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.WindowsTerminal | Format-List Name, InstallLocation, Status
```
Status should be Ok. If anything else, the package needs reinstall.

Force re-register the shell extensions for the current user:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.WindowsTerminal | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

For the “Show more options” legacy menu (Shift+right-click) entry, the registration is under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell. Open Registry Editor and verify a Terminal or OpenInTerminal subkey exists with values pointing to wt.exe.
If missing, you can manually create it: New key Open in Terminal under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell. Set default value to display name. Create a subkey command with default value wt.exe -d "%V".
Restart Explorer. The Shift+right-click menu should now have the entry.

This is the deepest path. Use only when GUI methods fail.

How to verify the fix worked

Open File Explorer. Right-click any folder. “Open in Terminal” should appear in the short menu (and also in “Show more options”).
Click Open in Terminal. Windows Terminal opens with the working directory set to that folder.
Run pwd in PowerShell or cd with no args in cmd to confirm directory matches the folder you right-clicked.

If none of these work

If “Open in Terminal” still doesn’t appear after all methods, a Group Policy may be blocking shell extensions. Run gpresult /h C:\gpresult.html from elevated cmd. Look for entries under User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → File Explorer. If policies like Hides the context menu are enforced, IT controls this. For workgroup PCs not on a domain, the Group Policy editor (gpedit.msc) on Windows 11 Pro lets you verify and clear policies. For shell extensions specifically: download ShellExView from NirSoft and run as admin. Filter to context menu extensions, look for Microsoft.WindowsTerminal. Status should be Enabled and no errors. If disabled, enable. For PCs where Windows Terminal can’t be installed (some Windows 11 LTSC variants or stripped-down editions): use Windows Terminal Preview from MS Store, or fall back to the legacy “Open command window here” via Shift+right-click in cmd-only environments.

Bottom line: Toggle the context menu option in Windows Terminal Settings → Startup. If that’s not enough, reinstall Terminal from Microsoft Store to re-register the shell extension.