3 Quick Ways to Permanently Stop Chrome from Opening Old Tabs

Don't hesitate to disable the Continue Where You Left Off option

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Key notes

  • Chrome has settings for allowing the browser's applications to run in the background, or to always start the browser with tabs from your last session.
  • You can stop Chrome from opening old tabs each time you restart the browser by making the changes listed in this guide.
  • Also, find out how to reopen a closed tab in Chrome and other browsers.
Fix chrome keeps opening old tabs

You are probably wondering why Chrome keeps opening old tabs, especially when you launch the browser.

While the problem is not major, it will force you to close the tabs manually before you can start working again. Some users experienced the reverse of this issue, i.e., Chrome automatically opens new tabs.

In this article, we’ll examine why Chrome keeps opening old tabs and how to stop the browser from doing that.

Why does Google Chrome keep opening old tabs?

Google Chrome keeps opening old tabs on startup, most likely, because of a setting called Continue Where You Left Off. It aims to preserve your last browsing session to enable you to start off from where you left, in the next session.

Also, certain extensions and other misconfigured settings in Chrome too can lead to the problem. Though in most cases, troubleshooting things shouldn’t take much time.

Let’s now find out how you can stop Chrome from opening old tabs.

Quick Tip:

Use a customizable browser like Opera One. Using a Chromium engine as well, it lets you set up exactly what you want it to display on startup. You can create workspaces, integrate social media, and more.

It also has a built-in adblocker which makes your browsing experience seamless without annoying ads and pop-ups interfering.

Opera One

Create the perfect workspace with intuitive customization features!

How do I stop Chrome from opening old tabs?

1. Disable the Continue Where You Left Off option

  1. Paste the following path in Chrome’s address bar and hit Enter:chrome://settings/onStartup
  2. Select the Open the New Tab page option.open in a new tab to fix chrome keeps opening old tabs

You can also use the Open a specific page or set of pages option if you want Chrome to start a particular website, for instance, Google.

2. Disable Chrome from running in the background

  1. Launch Chrome, paste the following path in the address bar, and hit Enter:chrome://settings/system
  2. Toggle off the Continue running background apps when Google Chrome is closed switch.disable
  3. Restart Chrome for the changes to come into effect.

If Chrome keeps reopening tabs from previous session, head to the last method.

3. Remove the Google Hangouts extension

  1. Click on the ellipsis near the top-right, hover the cursor over More tools, and select Extensions from the menu.extensions
  2. Find the Google Hangouts extension, and click on the toggle to disable it.Disable to fix chrome keeps opening old tabs
  3. Restart the browser and check the problem is resolved. In case it is, hit the Remove button for the Google Hangouts extension.remove
  4. Again, click Remove in the confirmation prompt to confirm.remove

What was intended to be a feature turned out to be annoying for many users. From now on, Chrome wouldn’t keep opening old tabs, and you can enjoy the seamless experience Chrome was designed to deliver.

Also, find out how you can reopen a closed tab in Chrome and other browsers in case it was closed inadvertently.

If you have a query or know of methods not listed here, drop them in the comments section below.

More about the topics: Google Chrome Errors