A powerful, privacy-first tab manager for Chrome
Organize all your tabs and bookmarks in one place — no server, no account, fully local.
Installation • Features • Usage • Tech Stack • 한국어
Modern browsing means dozens of open tabs across multiple windows. Smart Tab replaces your new tab page with a clean dashboard where you can visually organize, search, and access everything — without sending a single byte to any server.
Section-based Bookmark Management — Group bookmarks into custom sections. Rename, reorder, collapse, or delete sections freely with drag & drop.
Drag & Drop Everything — Drag tabs from the side panel directly into any section to save them as bookmarks. Reorder bookmarks and sections by dragging.
Multi-Window Tab Overview — See all open tabs across every Chrome window in one panel, grouped by window. Click to jump to any tab instantly.
Smart Side Panel — The tab panel auto-opens when you hover near the right edge and auto-hides when you move away. Pin it to keep it always visible.
Grid & List Views — Switch between a compact grid view and a detailed list view. Your preference is saved automatically.
Search — Instantly filter bookmarks by title, URL, or description.
Real-time Sync — Open Smart Tab in multiple new tabs — changes sync instantly between all of them via chrome.storage.onChanged.
Export & Import — Back up your entire collection as a JSON file and restore it anytime. Works great for migrating between machines.
Favicon Caching — Favicons are served from Chrome's local cache (_favicon API), so icons load instantly without network requests.
Privacy First — All data lives in chrome.storage.local. No external server, no analytics, no tracking. Your data never leaves your browser.
Coming soon
- Download or clone this repository
git clone https://github.com/user/smart-tab.git
- Open
chrome://extensions/in Chrome - Enable Developer mode (top-right toggle)
- Click Load unpacked and select the
smart-tabfolder - Open a new tab — Smart Tab is now your new tab page
Drag any tab from the right panel and drop it onto a section. That's it.
- Click "+ New Section" to create a section
- Click the section title to rename it
- Drag section headers to reorder
- Use the collapse button to save space
- Open: Click a bookmark card to open it in a new tab
- Edit: Click the pencil icon to modify title, URL, or add a description
- Move: Drag a bookmark to another position or a different section
- Delete: Click the X icon on any bookmark
- Auto-open: Hover near the right edge of the screen
- Pin: Click the pin button to keep the panel always visible
- Switch tabs: Click the arrow button next to any tab to jump to it
- Export: Click the Export button to download a
.jsonbackup - Import: Click Import and select a previously exported file
| Layer | Technology |
|---|---|
| Runtime | Chrome Extension (Manifest V3) |
| Language | Vanilla JavaScript (zero dependencies) |
| Storage | chrome.storage.local |
| Favicon | Chrome _favicon API (local cache) |
| Styling | CSS3 with dark theme |
| DnD | HTML5 Drag and Drop API |
smart-tab/
├── manifest.json # Extension configuration (Manifest V3)
├── index.html # Main dashboard page
├── app.js # Core application logic
├── styles.css # Dark theme styles
├── icons/ # Extension icons (16, 48, 128px)
├── README.md # English documentation
└── README_KO.md # Korean documentation
Smart Tab requests only the minimum permissions needed:
| Permission | Purpose |
|---|---|
tabs |
Read tab titles and URLs for the side panel |
windows |
Access all browser windows |
storage |
Save bookmarks and preferences locally |
favicon |
Load favicons from Chrome's local cache |
No host_permissions are requested. Smart Tab cannot read or modify any web page content.
- All data is stored in the browser's local storage — nothing is transmitted externally
- No analytics, telemetry, or tracking of any kind
- No external network requests (favicons are loaded from Chrome's local cache)
- Export your data anytime as a portable JSON file
- Open source — audit the code yourself
This project is maintained with the support of our sponsors. Thank you!
Contributions are welcome! Feel free to open an issue or submit a pull request.
- Fork the repository
- Create your feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add amazing feature') - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/amazing-feature) - Open a Pull Request
This project is licensed under the MIT License.
Built for better tab management.