What Happened: Google has finally added a new vertical tabs feature to Chrome’s experimental Canary version for desktop.
- This is something users have been asking for forever (including me). Now, you can move your tabs from the crowded bar at the top of the browser to a clean, vertical sidebar on the left side.
- To turn it on, you just right-click the traditional horizontal tab bar and select “Show tabs to the side.”
- Once activated, your tabs stack up neatly, making much better use of wide screens. You also get helpful extras like a built-in Tab Search and controls to collapse the sidebar when you need more screen space. If you hate it, you can always go back to the classic top bar instantly.
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Why is this Important: This is a massive relief for power users.
- Competitors like Edge, Vivaldi, and Firefox have had this feature for years, often making Chrome look outdated in comparison.
- Chrome is notorious for users running dozens of tabs at once, which quickly makes the horizontal tab bar unusable and forces you into annoying horizontal scrolling.
- By offering a vertical layout, it eliminates that crowding and makes juggling tabs way easier for people who have huge monitors or just live inside their browser.
- This shows Google is finally paying attention to its power users’ demands for better scalability.
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Why should I Care: So, why does this matter to you? If your browser screen always looks like a total mess – you know, that wall of tiny tabs you can barely click – this is going to be a lifesaver.
- Vertical tabs mean way less visual clutter, and you can actually read the full title of every page you have open.
- Finding that one article you needed becomes instantly faster, especially with the search tool built right in. The best part? It’s totally up to you. It’s not mandatory; it’s there if you want it, giving you back control over your browser.
What’s Next: Right now, the feature is still experimental, hanging out in the Chrome Canary channel, so it’s definitely not finished.
- Expect Google to clean up the look, improve stability, and polish the interface over the next few weeks.
- If everything holds together during testing, Google will probably push vertical tabs out to the Beta version and eventually the main Chrome everyone uses, potentially making it a mainstream feature for millions of people later this year.
