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How do I toggle back to the last tab used in Chrome on Mac? Ctrl-Tab and Ctrl-Shift-Tab navigates the tabs in order. But I want to switch back and forth between two tabs similar to how how Cmd-Tab switches between the last two apps. There's a way to do this on Firefox but is there a solution for Chrome?

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  • 12
    Also consider using either Opera or Vivaldi which are both chromium-based browsers that support last used tab via ctrl-tab
    – User
    Jun 25, 2016 at 12:36
  • 6
    This is a known issue that Chrome does not value. I switched to Opera solely for this issue and it's wonderful. Here's the thread on the issue going back to 2009: bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=5569 It's marked as "won't fix". Do you really still want to use Chrome???
    – User1
    Mar 24, 2019 at 0:32
  • 31
    Oh yeah, 23 answers (at the moment) to try to solve a simple task that must be provided by the product out-of-the-box from the day one. Google, WHY..?!
    – RAM237
    Sep 19, 2019 at 13:02
  • 5
    Lovely, so many people have the habit with me.
    – Zhang
    Feb 2, 2020 at 8:43
  • 6
    For those using Windows, this extension is the definitive solution to the problem.
    – Mercalli
    Mar 12, 2021 at 17:28

25 Answers 25

117

Chrome has no native keyboard shortcut for this, but there's an extension you can use:

Recent Tabs (Chrome Web Store)

Features

  • You can specify any keyboard shortcut you like (default: Ctrl + Q).

  • You can configure it to

    • show a list of the most recent tabs (much like Alt + Tab).

    • toggle between the last 2 tabs.

    whenever you press the keyboard shortcut.

Screenshot screenshot

16
  • 37
    Any way this can override Ctrl+Tab?
    – Joe
    Aug 20, 2012 at 1:50
  • 16
    Just using an extension, no. The extensions web store page says You may ask why didn't I use Ctrl+Tab instead, that's cause Chrome does now allow extensions to map this shortcut key. If you insist in this shortcut, you could assign a different key to it and do a remapping with AutoHotkey.
    – Dennis
    Aug 20, 2012 at 2:04
  • 29
    Thanks. +1 for AutoHotKey. Shame Chrome has us jumping through hoops for such basic functionality.
    – Joe
    Aug 20, 2012 at 12:18
  • 13
    You can bind to Ctrl+Tab by manually editing the Preferences file. Instructions here: superuser.com/questions/104917/chrome-tab-ordering/…
    – GDorn
    Oct 27, 2016 at 2:05
  • 11
    The AutoControl extension for Chrome can redefine native shortcuts like Ctrl+Tab and others. No need for sneaky hacks or manual edits.
    – GetFree
    Apr 3, 2019 at 2:42
132

I really wanted this feature myself, I have tried most existing extensions already available but none of them worked properly.

I went ahead and tried my hand at developing one myself and it seems to be working for me. The project is now open source on GitHub. Figured it might help others, too.

Here is the link: CLUT: Cycle Last Used Tabs

Keys can be changed in keyboard shortcut settings on the Chrome extensions page: enter image description here enter image description here enter image description here

Or, for older versions of Chrome: enter image description here

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  • 19
    I don't know how you did it better than everyone else, but I want to give you major props here and hope the whole world finds out about this extension. For many people, this is literally a dealbreaker that prevents them from switching to Chrome.
    – Neil Traft
    Apr 19, 2017 at 1:03
  • 4
    Also, for people who want to map this to Ctrl+Tab, the Ctrl+Tab MRU plugin page has instructions for manually editing your preferences file (you don't need to install that plugin, you just need to follow their instructions). It really works!
    – Neil Traft
    Apr 19, 2017 at 1:06
  • 22
    be aware that this extension tracks your usage with Google Analytics github.com/harshayburadkar/clut-chrome-extension/blob/…
    – mark
    Apr 28, 2017 at 18:48
  • 3
    Harshay, could you comment on mark's comment? The tracking code is still present at master... Jul 25, 2017 at 11:02
  • 27
    @BorislavIvanov Its usual Google Analytics which every website anyways already uses. It is to see how many people actually use the extension as opposed to install to try out but don't remove the extension even if it they don't like it. It is anonymous tracking and it just shows for e.g. 3000 users used it in the last week and so on. None of any private data is tracked. I added it to see how much is people's interest towards the extension and to decide if I should invest in improving the extension further. Mark's comment is just creating a little unnecessary scare. Jul 26, 2017 at 7:38
124

Press Ctrl+Shift+A and then press Enter.

On Mac it is Command+Shift+A then Enter.

Uses Chrome's native tab history feature and does not require any extensions or registry hacks. When you hit Ctrl+Shift+A it will list your tabs with the last used highlighted ready for you to press Enter.

This is pretty convenient fast once you have done it a few times to get used to it. Also means you can use that muscle memory on someone else's computer and all Chrome based browsers. You can also search the list by typing 😉.

If you really must use Ctrl+Tab then here is an AHK script for you:

; Ctl+Tab in chrome to goto recent
#If WinActive("ahk_exe Chrome.exe")
    prevChromeTab()
    {
        send ^+a
        SetKeyDelay, 50
        send {BackSpace}
        send {Enter}
    }
    ^Tab::prevChromeTab()
    return
#If

Took a while for me to tune that SetKeyDelay to be as short as possible.

The additional backspace key is just a garbage key to trigger a response from the UI to speed up the animation. The result makes it so fast you can't see the UI popup. (normally there is a slow fade-in animation).

If it doesn't work for you try increasing the SetKeyDelay to allow the UI more time to appear.

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  • 3
    yup, it sure is. If you are on Mac try command+shift+a. Otherwise, no idea why it's not working for you. Jan 11, 2022 at 21:55
  • 3
    Thanks! This is IMO the best answer here. Usually i just need the last tab used to go back to. With this approach i can do it easily. command+shift+a than and enter, as the last one is already selected. You can also use down arrow to walk further in the history. No extension needed. Really helpful!
    – Shirane85
    Feb 27, 2022 at 16:21
  • 2
    you can also search that list by typing 😉 I should add that to my answer Mar 15, 2022 at 1:31
  • 7
    I'm very happy I scrolled down far enough to see this answer. Jun 13, 2022 at 1:20
  • 5
    This should be the accepted answer @Sajee Oct 24, 2022 at 18:31
27

There's finally a Chrome extension that solves this for good.

It's called Tab Thumbnails Switcher.

It supports Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab out of the box for switching between tabs in last used order.

enter image description here

From the extension's page:

A tab switcher menu with thumbnail previews similar to Windows 10 task switcher.

➭ Tabs are in recently used order.

➭ You can use Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab to select the desired tab or choose a different shortcut.

➭ Mouse-only method: Click on the toolbar button and then click on the desired tab.

➭ It doesn't interfere with the web page you are viewing.

➭ The tabs menu pops up instantly for a fast tab switching.

➭ Works offline. No need for an internet connection.

➭ Tab Thumbnails Switcher does not access or collect your personal data.
...

✔ The tab menu is implemented in machine code, which allows it to pop up instantly without annoying loading delays.

✔ It can redefine Ctrl+Tab shortcut for switching between tabs.

✔ It doesn't inject code into every page you visit, thus avoiding sluggish page loads and conserving CPU and memory.

✔ It works on ALL tabs. Either PDF documents, the New Tab Page, extension pages, Chrome pages, you name it.

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  • 4
    the problem is you have to install an exe file in your computer which I can't for security resons
    – derloopkat
    May 10, 2019 at 9:46
  • 1
    @derloopkat, distrust by default should always be the norm. However, in this case the executable comes from the Chrome Web Store. There's no way Google is going to distribute malware. I myself was quite wary so I installed it on a VM and monitored its activity. Only then I came here and posted it.
    – HrW
    May 12, 2019 at 0:17
  • 4
    This seems to be a derivative of another one called AutoControl Shortcut Manager which can do this too.
    – GetFree
    Jun 9, 2019 at 8:25
  • 6
    Here is how to do it without thumbnails: Switch to last used tab in chrome
    – Tim
    Oct 25, 2019 at 5:31
  • This one doesn't work on macOS, but found a good one that does: tabappswitcher.com
    – blub
    Jul 23, 2020 at 14:04
20

I finally found a REAL Ctrl-Tab solution and not just an "use an alternative keyboard shortcut"-solution!

  1. Install this extension: CLUT: Cycle Last Used Tabs
  2. Then go to the chrome extensions (chrome://extensions or newer Version: chrome://extensions/shortcuts) and scroll down to the Keyboard shortcuts
  3. Enter a keyboard shortcut, e.g. Ctrl+A for "Quick switch"
  4. Close Chrome completely
  5. Open the Chrome preferences file:
    • Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/Preferences
    • Windows: C:\Users\YOUR_USERNAME\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Preferences
    • Ubuntu: ~/.config/chromium/Default/Preferences
  6. Search for the previously set keyboard shortcut inside the file, e.g. Ctrl+A and replace it with Ctrl+Tab.
  7. Save and close the file
  8. Reopen Chrome and be finally a happy Chrome user!
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  • 7
    This doesn't work for me on the latest version. Whenever I close Chrome and change Ctrl+A to Ctrl+Tab, and restart Chrome, the browser changes it back to Ctrl+A.
    – Sheen
    Jan 8, 2018 at 9:58
  • Are you sure, that Chrome is completely closed when you edit the preferences file?
    – mchief90
    Jan 8, 2018 at 9:59
  • For which OS is it not working?
    – mchief90
    Jan 15, 2018 at 19:46
  • 3
    @Sheen and @DarkCowboy, here is a simpler way to use ctrl-tab as a shortcut without editing the prefs file: superuser.com/a/1326712/736443 It sidesteps the checking Chrome does to block ctrl-tab, so it's Chrome itself that saves the shortcut to its prefs file. That means it will survive restarts of the app.
    – jdunning
    Jun 9, 2018 at 22:06
  • 1
    This worked for me, but, before closing Chrome, I had to copy all the contents of the Preferences file to clipboard. Had to do this because, somehow, when restoring my windows from the previous session, chrome was replacing the Preferences content with something else. So: copy Preferences content to clipboard, quit chrome, paste back the content from clipboard to Preferences, do the key replacement, save the file and start Chrome. Worked fine for me Jan 9, 2019 at 11:05
19

Recent Tabs has a serious problem of interfering with keyboard events handling. It slows down the whole browser key handling. For example, after enabling the extension, go visit http://fullscreenmario.com and try to control Mario with keyboards. FPS goes rapidly down to 5 or 6.

Not a problem, but a limitation with the extension is it can't move between chrome://* pages or blank page.

There is a working alternative : Toggle Switch Recent Last Tabs. It doesn't slow down the browser. It can switch between any pages.

5
  • Imho not any, but only between two. But it has useful option(only one option :) ) - go to recent on close. So it is very useful
    – Gennady G
    Nov 5, 2015 at 16:36
  • 2
    The link is dead
    – User
    Dec 19, 2016 at 4:18
  • @User which one,link to alternative is ok at the moment...
    – Betlista
    Jan 9, 2019 at 12:10
  • Toggle Switch Recent Last Tabs. works well, but seems to not be able to switch tabs across chrome windows.
    – Siddhartha
    Jun 14, 2019 at 18:30
  • You now have to pay $1 to use it. Jul 4, 2022 at 7:25
11

Vimium is really cool. i.e. ^ (Shift + 6) to switch to previous tab https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/vimium/dbepggeogbaibhgnhhndojpepiihcmeb?hl=en

2
  • Pity it doesn't switch between the previous and current tab, so that you can use it to go back to the previous tab and then return to your current tab.
    – SabreWolfy
    Aug 9, 2018 at 9:53
  • I wish Vimium add the support for cycling through the tab
    – rbansal
    Jul 16, 2021 at 8:40
8

I created a minimalist Chrome extension called Previous Tab (PreviousTab.com) to solve this problem. This extension requires no permissions at all.

Press Ctrl+q to switch to the previously active tab, or click the Previous Tab icon.

You may customize the keyboard shortcut by visiting chrome://extensions/shortcuts

Note that Tab is not a supported key for Chrome extension commands.

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  • 1
    This works great with the AHK trick mentioned above (something I couldn't get to work with Quick Tabs). To use Ctrl+Tab to toggle between two tabs, just install mark's Previous Tab, set the Keyboard shortcut to Alt+S under chrome://extensions/shortcuts then use an AHK script with the following: #IfWinActive ahk_class Chrome_WidgetWin_1 ^Tab::Send !{s} #IfWinActive
    – Ryan C.
    Feb 13, 2020 at 4:27
  • 1
    This extension on it's own works great!
    – Kalnode
    Dec 18, 2023 at 19:41
6

If you have a full size keyboard, you can use CTRL+PgUp (go to prev tab) and CTRL+PgDn (go to next tab). It is not the same but close enough for me.

4
  • 1
    This works like a charm in Chrome 85! Thanks! Jun 28, 2020 at 12:29
  • 7
    On Chrome 91, this goes to the left tab or right tab, but not the last used tab as the question requires. Jun 3, 2021 at 15:31
  • 8
    This goes to the previous/next tabs in order, not to the last visited tab.
    – Tom
    Aug 22, 2021 at 12:40
  • Yes, wrong answer but you can also go Ctrl+Tab or Ctrl+Shift+Tab which I find easier.
    – Ste
    Jul 9, 2023 at 16:03
6

I've found these to work for me:

  • Command + 1-8 will select the tab at that position,
  • Command + 9 will select the last tab.

If you are like me and have more than 9 tabs open, you are left with cycling through tabs with:

  • Command + { to go back to a previous page
  • Command + } to go forward to a page that you came from (after u click back)
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  • 4
    Command + 9 select the last (right-most) tab. The question is about selecting the last used (most recently-used tab), not the last tab on the right of the tab-bar.
    – SabreWolfy
    Aug 9, 2018 at 9:50
  • 1
    This isn't helpful in making chrome act like every other subwindowed application Jul 3, 2019 at 8:13
  • This is the least intrusive working answer (i.e. no need to install an extension)! For me that want to move back and forth between two tabs, I can order one to the rightmost position and reach it with Ctrl+9 and use for example Ctrl+5 to get the other page that I use.
    – Dataman
    Feb 21, 2020 at 10:40
  • 1
    This is correct and somewhat useful, but does not answer the question (which is about navigating to the last used tab, regardless of where it's positioned).
    – Tom
    Aug 22, 2021 at 12:41
5

Update: Building on Shad's clever approach using AutoHotkey, here's how to enable ctrltab to open the QuicKey recent tabs menu, navigate within it by pressing ctrltab again to select a tab, and then releasing ctrl to switch to that tab (Windows only):

  • Install QuicKey from the Chrome webstore.
  • Download and install AutoHotkey.
  • Open your PC's startup folder by following these instructions.
  • Go to this GitHub page and click Download ZIP.
  • Unzip the archive and drag the ctrl-tab.ahk file from the ZIP into your startup folder.
  • Double-click the ctrl-tab.ahk file.

Now switch between a few different tabs in Chrome using the mouse (since QuicKey was just installed, it doesn't have any recent tab history). Then press and release ctrltab to switch to the previous tab. If you press ctrltab and keep holding ctrl, a menu of recent tabs will open. Press tab to select the next tab in the list. When the desired one is selected, release ctrl to switch to it.

The other shortcuts listed below continue to work, so you can press altQ to open QuicKey and search for a tab.


QuicKey (Chrome webstore) is another extension that provides this missing feature. It also offers a menu that's somewhat similar to the most recently used (MRU) menu you get in Firefox after pressing ctrltab and then releasing tab while holding down ctrl, which makes it easy to select any recent tab from the list.

  • To switch to the most recently used tab:
    • Press ctrlA (altA on Windows).
  • To switch to the next most recently used tab:
    • Press ctrlA again within 750ms. Press it repeatedly to navigate further back in history.
    • Press ctrlS to navigate in the opposite direction.
  • To pick a tab from the menu using just the keyboard:
    • Press ctrlQ but keep holding the ctrl key (alt key on Windows).
    • Press W to move down through the list of recent tabs.
    • Press shiftW to move up.
    • Release ctrl to switch to the selected tab.

The above keyboard shortcuts can be changed in chrome://extensions/shortcuts.

3

  Chrome on Windows (at least version 30) allows to use a Ctrl+Tab keyboard shortcut for the extensions, and some extensions do use this functionality.
  The following might work on Mac as well:

  1. Install an extension which switches to last viewed tab, like FLST Chrome (remembers only one tab into the past) or Ctrl+Tab MRU (requires a bit longer Ctrl+Tab press).
  2. Go to chrome://extensions page, click on 'Keyboard shortcuts' link at the very bottom and set Ctrl+Tab as keyboard shortcut for the extension you installed in step 1
2
  • Ctrl+Tab MRU is the closest option to what I'm used to in Opera and FF
    – KalenGi
    Oct 11, 2014 at 8:09
  • 3
    How does Chrome support Ctrl+Tab? Whenever I try to set that as a shortcut for an extension in the extension tab, Chrome switches to the next tab. From the Ctrl-Tab MRU-Extension: It seems that CHROME HAS DISABLED the possibility to use Ctrl+Tab as a shortcut :-( I'll be looking into this and if we get a workaround for this
    – flu
    Oct 17, 2014 at 9:57
3

Here is the AutoHotKey script to remap the Ctrl+Tab shortcut with CLUT (from Harshay answer) only with Chrome:

; Chrome context
#IfWinActive ahk_class Chrome_WidgetWin_1
^Tab::Send !{w}
+^Tab::Send !{s}

; Back to global context
#IfWinActive

It does not emulate exactly the real Ctrl+Tab behavior: Ctrl+Tab will switch only between the two last tabs, and Ctrl+Shift+Tab will switch through the whole history.

1
3

If you need to specifically work with 2 tabs, you can drag the tab out to create a new Chrome window.

Then you can ALT Tab on Windows and Cmd ⌘ ` on a Mac.

3

The tricky solution to achieve this on Windows is to combine Quick Tabs chrome extensions and AutoHotkey script. I've described it in details here, so here is in a nutshell:

1) Quick Tabs is an open-source, customizable extension, that allows you redefine some CSS styles and allows to setup hotkey for switching MRU tabs. Also it supports keyboard navigation (move to next/previous tab). However chrome doesn't let you bind Ctrl+Tab as a keyboard shortcut, so you need to register another one (for example Ctrl+Shift+S) and then use AutoHotkey script to "remap" Ctrl+Tab for chrome into Ctrl+Shift+S.

2) I won't put here the AutoHotkey script, you can find it here. It covers Ctrl+Tab remapping and handle all the keyboard navigation.

As a result you will see something like that when press Ctrl+Tab in active chrome window:

Arrows navigation, Esc, both Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab are working the way you expected.

3
  • 1
    That's some serious AHK wizardry! You may want to check out my QuicKey extension: fwextensions.github.io/QuicKey It looks much like your styling of Quick Tabs without any custom CSS. And by slightly modifying your AHK script, I was able to get ctrl-tab working nicely with it: gist.github.com/fwextensions/511e0f6886eac3d07cf7a21fbb10a6c7 Quickly pressing ctrl-tab to toggle between tabs seems much faster and more reliable than when I was testing with Quick Tabs.
    – jdunning
    Jun 9, 2018 at 22:26
  • It's not that complicated, press ctrl-e to open the quicktab list and press enter to go to that last one which is the one that is selected by default, want the one before, just press down. Also, no need to keep holding down two keys to navigate bacwards Sep 27, 2018 at 13:11
  • This is the one I used, and on Ubuntu, I didn't have to use AutoHotKey (or maybe that's no longer required anywhere now?)
    – Wilson F
    Mar 22, 2020 at 23:23
3

In contrast to a key combination for switching to the most recently used tab, you may like this very light and intuitive solution for tabs organizing in the most recently used order, which is supported in all major browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Opera, other Chrome-based browsers): Tab Slider. Its features are:

  • Works just like Alt+Tab on Windows or Cmd+Tab on Mac, but with browser tabs
  • Visually sorts tabs so you always see them in the MRU order (Ctrl+Tab switches to the next MRU tab)
  • Works with pinned tabs as well
  • Is customizable (however, I would advise sticking with defaults)

Try it! Hope you'll love it.

img

3
  • 1
    I've used this for years and am really surprised it is not more well-known. This gives almost exactly the behavior this question is asking about without having to do anything with key bindings or learning new keyboard shortcuts. You can take it to the next level by adding Tab Wrangler to automatically close tabs you haven't touched in a while, and then tab management is almost completely automated. chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/tab-wrangler/…
    – Mark Meuer
    Sep 13, 2023 at 13:33
  • @MarkMeuer TabSlider has a setting for keeping max N tabs on the screen (see extension settings by clicking on it). The way it works with sorting makes it close the oldest tabs - thus no tab-wrangler needed! Sep 14, 2023 at 11:06
  • Thanks, I did not know that feature. That would also do a great job of keeping the number of tabs under control. There is a subtle difference, however, that keeps me with Tab Wrangler. Sometimes when researching something I might want to open a LOT of tabs and keep them there while I'm working. If I had a set maximum number of tabs to be open then some of them would drop off too soon. With a time-based approach to closing old tabs I can open a ton of them, work for a while, and then ignore them and they'll eventually close on their own.
    – Mark Meuer
    Sep 14, 2023 at 15:28
3

At least three chromium-based browsers now have tab cycling in MRU (Most Recently Used) order via ctrl+tab:

All three allow using Chrome Extensions in the google chrome store.

2

I built this Chrome extension to do just that; Toggle between the last two active tabs using a global hotkey. This means you don't need Chrome to be focused to toggle.

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/toggletab/iblgdmlpmokbijhiebnffnffablkkedk

1

I like to toggle between two tabs when filling out forms or comparing pages, etc. As a work around to there being no hot hey for the last used tab, I drag the two tabs into their own window and use the Command+Option+right arrow to go back and forth quickly.

1

Ctrl + 1 takes you to tab 1

Ctrl + 2 takes you to tab 2 etc..

Pretty handy if you're opening multiple links from a page that doesn't support middle clicking or right click menus.

2
  • 6
    That's nice, but doesn't answer the question of how to switch to the last-used tab. If you know, please edit your answer with the "edit" link.
    – Ben N
    Jan 8, 2016 at 14:48
  • i have 100500 tabs...
    – nim
    May 25, 2020 at 18:42
0
  • Install quick tabs

  • Press ctrl+e (or +e)

    • A list of tabs shows up, that last one is already focused
  • Hit enter

If you want to go through your history, press the down arrow once to the to the tab used before the last one.

I know there's an answer using quick tabs already but it requires too much just to do it using ctrl-tab. I'd rather keep that functionality, plus, I often want to search my tabs, which is what the plugin is really designed for.

0

The one I use if Alt + Q. It costs $1; but it just works and doesn't require any configuration.

-2

There is official support for this command. Use Ctrl+9.
Please see the this link.

Or am I missing something here?

1
  • 1
    The original question meant "last" as in "most recent in time; latest." not, "coming after all others in time or order; final." Ctrl+9 does the latter
    – mark
    Apr 16, 2019 at 0:58
-2

Looks like this is standard now on Chrome - when you close a tab, the focus jumps back to the last used tab. Just noticed it this week. Version 73.0.3683.86.

2
  • If this question was not 7 years ago, or if you provived with a link to the changelog, this answer might be helpful. But this way, it is not. Apr 12, 2019 at 16:18
  • 1
    The question is about navigating to the most recently used tab without closing the current tab.
    – Tom
    Aug 22, 2021 at 12:43
-3

For me Ctrl+1 switches between two most recent tabs.

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