Chrome Tips and Tricks: 15 Hacks for Chrome, Edge and Brave

The Chrome tips and tricks that save the most time are built in: Ctrl + Shift + A to search open tabs, Ctrl + Shift + T to reopen what you closed, site search shortcuts, and the split view and vertical tabs Chrome added in 2026. If you keep 15+ tabs open all day, 13 of these 15 tips need no extension.

On a Mac, swap Ctrl for Cmd unless noted.

Which tab shortcuts save the most time?

Six built-in tricks cover finding, recovering and parking tabs.

1. Search open tabs

Press Ctrl + Shift + A and type part of the title, or type @tabs, Space, then keywords in the address bar (Google's tab help).

2. Reopen the tab you just closed

Ctrl + Shift + T reopens tabs in reverse order, including whole windows.

3. Jump to a tab by position

Ctrl + 1 to Ctrl + 8 jump to that tab; Ctrl + 9 goes to the last one.

4. Pin the tabs you never close

Right-click a tab, choose Pin. Pinned Gmail and Calendar stay at Ctrl + 1 and Ctrl + 2 with no close button (tab help).

5. Group tabs, then close the group

Add tabs to a named group like "Q4 budget". Close group saves it to the bookmarks bar. See Chrome tab groups vs saved sessions.

6. Bookmark every open tab

Ctrl + Shift + D saves the window's tabs into a new folder. See how to save all open tabs in Chrome.

How do I search sites and split the screen?

The address bar and Chrome's 2026 layout features handle both.

7. Jump to the address bar

Ctrl + L, Alt + D or F6 select the URL.

8. Make site search shortcuts

1. Open Settings, Search engine, Manage search engines and site search.
2. Next to Site search, select Add.
3. Enter shortcut wiki and the search URL with %s for the query.

Type wiki, Space, then your search (Google's help).

9. Split view

Right-click a tab, choose Add tab to new split view, or press Shift + Alt + N (help). In Edge: Alt + F, Split screen (Microsoft).

10. Vertical tabs

• Chrome: right-click the tab strip, Show Tabs Vertically; rolling out since 7 April 2026 (TechCrunch).
• Brave: right-click a tab, Use vertical tabs; since 1.52 (Brave).
• Edge: available since 2021.

11. Reading mode

Alt + Shift + R strips ads and sidebars and can read aloud (help).

How do I cut memory use and keep projects apart?

Memory Saver and Edge Workspaces are built in; tips 14 and 15 need an extension.

12. Memory Saver

Settings, Performance, turn on Memory Saver; add music players to Always keep these sites active (help).

13. Edge Workspaces

Per-project tabs and favorites in Edge 144+, with a Microsoft or Entra ID account; no sharing (Microsoft).

14. Open your morning tabs with one command

With SuperCommands, open inbox, calendar, standup doc and sprint board, press Alt + S, type c link, choose Current Tabs, save as "standup" and add the text shortcut standup. Now c standup opens all four (links docs).

15. Type a full reply with a short code

Save a reply as a SuperCommands text expander, then type c/followup in Gmail or Slack to replace it with the saved text.

Which one should you pick?

• Pick tab search and reopen first; they work in all three browsers.
• Pick a site search shortcut for the tool you search most.
• Pick Memory Saver and vertical tabs if you run 15+ tabs on a struggling laptop.
• Pick SuperCommands (free and open source; the local version is 100% free, forever) for fixed tab sets and snippets.

FAQ

How do I search all open tabs in Chrome?

Press Ctrl + Shift + A (Cmd + Shift + A on Mac), or type @tabs and Space in the address bar.

Does Chrome have vertical tabs now?

Yes, since April 2026. Right-click the tab strip and choose Show Tabs Vertically; update Chrome if it is missing.

Do Chrome shortcuts work in Edge and Brave?

Most do, because both are Chromium-based. Edge's Split screen and Workspaces have their own menus.