diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 2c3a17ab1..95a8a0a99 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -4755,9 +4755,9 @@ dependencies = [
  "config",
  "log",
  "luahelper",
- "open",
  "smol",
  "wezterm-dynamic",
+ "wezterm-open-url",
  "winapi",
 ]
 
@@ -5987,7 +5987,6 @@ dependencies = [
  "mux",
  "mux-lua",
  "once_cell",
- "open",
  "ordered-float",
  "parking_lot 0.12.1",
  "portable-pty",
@@ -6024,6 +6023,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "wezterm-font",
  "wezterm-gui-subcommands",
  "wezterm-mux-server-impl",
+ "wezterm-open-url",
  "wezterm-ssh",
  "wezterm-term",
  "wezterm-toast-notification",
@@ -6102,6 +6102,14 @@ dependencies = [
  "winapi",
 ]
 
+[[package]]
+name = "wezterm-open-url"
+version = "0.1.0"
+dependencies = [
+ "open",
+ "winapi",
+]
+
 [[package]]
 name = "wezterm-ssh"
 version = "0.4.0"
@@ -6175,8 +6183,8 @@ dependencies = [
  "futures-util",
  "log",
  "objc",
- "open",
  "serde",
+ "wezterm-open-url",
  "windows 0.33.0",
  "xml-rs",
  "zbus",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 66684ef8f..984711bda 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ members = [
   "wezterm-dynamic",
   "wezterm-gui",
   "wezterm-mux-server",
+  "wezterm-open-url",
   "wezterm-ssh"
 ]
 resolver = "2"
diff --git a/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/Cargo.toml b/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/Cargo.toml
index 9f6ac7416..64788a750 100644
--- a/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/Cargo.toml
+++ b/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/Cargo.toml
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ log = "0.4"
 luahelper = { path = "../../luahelper" }
 smol = "1.2"
 bstr = "0.2"
-open = "4.0"
+wezterm-open-url = { path = "../../wezterm-open-url" }
 
 [target."cfg(windows)".dependencies]
 winapi = { version = "0.3", features = ["winuser"]}
diff --git a/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/src/lib.rs b/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/src/lib.rs
index 1eae1f661..e3f3ea349 100644
--- a/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/src/lib.rs
+++ b/lua-api-crates/spawn-funcs/src/lib.rs
@@ -18,13 +18,9 @@ pub fn register(lua: &Lua) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
 
 fn open_with<'lua>(_: &'lua Lua, (url, app): (String, Option<String>)) -> mlua::Result<()> {
     if let Some(app) = app {
-        open::with_in_background(url, app);
+        wezterm_open_url::open_with(&url, &app);
     } else {
-        std::thread::spawn(move || {
-            if let Err(err) = open::that(&url) {
-                log::error!("Error opening {}: {:#}", url, err);
-            }
-        });
+        wezterm_open_url::open_url(&url);
     }
     Ok(())
 }
diff --git a/wezterm-gui/Cargo.toml b/wezterm-gui/Cargo.toml
index 5a6b9f6f4..2eaf29328 100644
--- a/wezterm-gui/Cargo.toml
+++ b/wezterm-gui/Cargo.toml
@@ -67,7 +67,6 @@ mlua = {version="0.8.3", features=["send"]}
 mux = { path = "../mux" }
 mux-lua = { path = "../lua-api-crates/mux" }
 once_cell = "1.8"
-open = "4.0"
 ordered-float = "3.0"
 parking_lot = "0.12"
 portable-pty = { path = "../pty", features = ["serde_support"]}
@@ -102,6 +101,7 @@ wezterm-dynamic = { path = "../wezterm-dynamic" }
 wezterm-font = { path = "../wezterm-font" }
 wezterm-gui-subcommands = { path = "../wezterm-gui-subcommands" }
 wezterm-mux-server-impl = { path = "../wezterm-mux-server-impl" }
+wezterm-open-url = { path = "../wezterm-open-url" }
 wezterm-ssh = { path = "../wezterm-ssh" }
 wezterm-term = { path = "../term", features=["use_serde"] }
 wezterm-toast-notification = { path = "../wezterm-toast-notification" }
diff --git a/wezterm-gui/src/termwindow/mod.rs b/wezterm-gui/src/termwindow/mod.rs
index 12868f48b..fd8509ee6 100644
--- a/wezterm-gui/src/termwindow/mod.rs
+++ b/wezterm-gui/src/termwindow/mod.rs
@@ -2810,12 +2810,7 @@ impl TermWindow {
                 )]);
             }
             OpenUri(link) => {
-                let link = link.clone();
-                std::thread::spawn(move || {
-                    if let Err(err) = open::that(&link) {
-                        log::error!("Error opening {}: {:#}", link, err);
-                    }
-                });
+                wezterm_open_url::open_url(link);
             }
             ActivateCommandPalette => {
                 let modal = crate::termwindow::palette::CommandPalette::new(self);
@@ -2832,7 +2827,7 @@ impl TermWindow {
         // triggering our WndProc recursively.
         // We get that assurance for free as part of the async dispatch that we
         // perform below; here we allow the user to define an `open-uri` event
-        // handler that can bypass the normal `open::that` functionality.
+        // handler that can bypass the normal `open_url` functionality.
         if let Some(link) = self.current_highlight.as_ref().cloned() {
             let window = GuiWin::new(self);
             let pane = MuxPane(pane.pane_id());
@@ -2856,12 +2851,8 @@ impl TermWindow {
                     None => true,
                 };
                 if default_click {
-                    std::thread::spawn(move || {
-                        log::info!("clicking {}", link);
-                        if let Err(err) = open::that(&link) {
-                            log::error!("Error opening {}: {:#}", link, err);
-                        }
-                    });
+                    log::info!("clicking {}", link);
+                    wezterm_open_url::open_url(&link);
                 }
                 Ok(())
             }
diff --git a/wezterm-open-url/Cargo.toml b/wezterm-open-url/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..102c8fd1f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wezterm-open-url/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[package]
+name = "wezterm-open-url"
+version = "0.1.0"
+edition = "2021"
+
+# See more keys and their definitions at https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/manifest.html
+
+[dependencies]
+open = "4.0"
+winapi = {version="0.3", features=["shellapi"]}
diff --git a/wezterm-open-url/src/lib.rs b/wezterm-open-url/src/lib.rs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d8ef32547
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wezterm-open-url/src/lib.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+#[cfg(not(windows))]
+pub fn open_url(url: &str) {
+    let url = url.to_string();
+    std::thread::spawn(move || {
+        let _ = open::that(&url);
+    });
+}
+
+#[cfg(not(windows))]
+pub fn open_with(url: &str, app: &str) {
+    open::with_in_background(url, app);
+}
+
+#[cfg(windows)]
+fn shell_execute(url: String, with: Option<String>) {
+    use std::os::windows::ffi::OsStrExt;
+    use winapi::um::shellapi::ShellExecuteW;
+    /// Convert a rust string to a windows wide string
+    fn wide_string(s: &str) -> Vec<u16> {
+        std::ffi::OsStr::new(s)
+            .encode_wide()
+            .chain(std::iter::once(0))
+            .collect()
+    }
+    std::thread::spawn(move || {
+        let operation = wide_string("open");
+
+        let url = wide_string(&url);
+        let with = with.map(|s| wide_string(&s));
+
+        let (app, path) = match with {
+            Some(app) => (app.as_ptr(), url.as_ptr()),
+            None => (url.as_ptr(), std::ptr::null()),
+        };
+
+        unsafe {
+            ShellExecuteW(
+                std::ptr::null_mut(),
+                operation.as_ptr(),
+                app,
+                path,
+                std::ptr::null(),
+                winapi::um::winuser::SW_SHOW,
+            );
+        }
+    });
+}
+
+#[cfg(windows)]
+pub fn open_url(url: &str) {
+    shell_execute(url.to_string(), None);
+}
+
+#[cfg(windows)]
+pub fn open_with(url: &str, app: &str) {
+    shell_execute(url.to_string(), Some(app.to_string()));
+}
diff --git a/wezterm-toast-notification/Cargo.toml b/wezterm-toast-notification/Cargo.toml
index 7bc5857de..5c1a4bf1c 100644
--- a/wezterm-toast-notification/Cargo.toml
+++ b/wezterm-toast-notification/Cargo.toml
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ build = "build.rs"
 # See more keys and their definitions at https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/manifest.html
 
 [dependencies]
-open = "4.0"
+wezterm-open-url = { path = "../wezterm-open-url" }
 log = "0.4"
 
 [target.'cfg(all(not(windows), not(target_os="macos")))'.dependencies]
diff --git a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/dbus.rs b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/dbus.rs
index 8061b16f5..2ae2a2afe 100644
--- a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/dbus.rs
+++ b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/dbus.rs
@@ -126,10 +126,7 @@ async fn show_notif_impl(notif: ToastNotification) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::er
                 let args = signal.args()?;
                 if args.nid == notification {
                     if let Some(url) = notif.url.as_ref() {
-                        let url = url.clone();
-                        std::thread::spawn(move || {
-                            let _ = open::that(url);
-                        });
+                        wezterm_open_url::open_url(url);
                         abort_closed.abort();
                         break;
                     }
diff --git a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/macos.rs b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/macos.rs
index 9d1844230..a2ada6a45 100644
--- a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/macos.rs
+++ b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/macos.rs
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ impl NotifDelegate {
             if !url.is_null() {
                 let url = std::slice::from_raw_parts(url.UTF8String() as *const u8, url.len());
                 let url = String::from_utf8_lossy(url);
-                let _ = open::that(&*url);
+                wezterm_open_url::open_url(&*url);
             }
             let () = msg_send![center, removeDeliveredNotification: notif];
         }
diff --git a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/windows.rs b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/windows.rs
index bc5fc7f77..5e6a8165c 100644
--- a/wezterm-toast-notification/src/windows.rs
+++ b/wezterm-toast-notification/src/windows.rs
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ fn show_notif_impl(toast: TN) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
 
             if args == "show" {
                 if let Some(url) = toast.url.as_ref() {
-                    let _ = open::that(url);
+                    wezterm_open_url::open_url(url);
                 }
             }