Microsoft Edge tests a dedicated Tab Search button with a left-side pane

Microsoft is experimenting with a new dedicated Tab Search button in Edge Canary. The compay has also moved the search panel to the left side, making it more similar to Chrome’s layout.

The Tab Search feature in Microsoft Edge helps users quickly find open tabs, especially when working with many tabs.

Till now, finding tabs in Edge required clicking the Tab Actions menu and selecting “Search Tabs” from the dropdown menu. This action opened a search pane in the center of the browser window, showing a list of all open tabs.

With the latest Edge Canary build, Microsoft has added a dedicated Tab Search button. This button is placed right after the Workspaces button (also represented by a downward arrow). It removes the need to go through menus, allowing users to access the Tab Search feature with a single click.

Additionally, the search pane has been moved to the left side of the browser window. This offers a better experience compared to the previous center-aligned design.

How to Use Tab Search in Microsoft Edge

For users not on the Canary version, the Tab Search feature can still be used in two ways:

1. Press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+A (or Cmd+Shift+A on Mac) to quickly open the tab search panel.
2. Click the Tab Actions menu in the top-left corner of the browser and select “Search Tabs” from the dropdown menu.

While the keyboard shortcut is a quick option, many users prefer using their mouse. For these users, the new Tab Search button in Edge Canary is a big improvement. It removes the extra steps of going through menus.

Comparison with Google Chrome

Google Chrome, another Chromium-based browser, has offered a similar Tab Search feature for a long time. Chrome’s Tab Search button is located on the left side of the toolbar, making it easy to use. Chrome has also tested settings that let users move the button to the right side if they want.

By combining a dedicated button with a left-aligned search pane, Edge is now following Chrome’s default layout. Adding a dedicated Tab Search button is a small but meaningful improvement for users who often handle multiple tabs.

This change not only makes the feature quicker to use but also makes it easier to find for new users. Placing the button prominently on the toolbar allows all users to easily take advantage of this handy Tab Search tool.

For now, the dedicated Tab Search button is only available in the Edge Canary build. This means it is still being tested. Microsoft has not announced when—or if—this feature will be added to the stable version of Edge.

Apart from this, Microsoft is aggressively pushing Copilot in the Edge browser by adding an AI button to the address bar. Additionally, Microsoft is testing an Add-ons Store for Edge Android extensions and experimenting with AI History Search, similar to Chrome.