Keyboard tab switchers for Chrome compared
Updated 5 November 2026. User counts and ratings as shown on the Chrome Web Store that day.
Chrome's Ctrl Tab moves to the next tab along the strip. What most people want is the tab they were just on, the way Alt Tab works between apps. Chrome has no setting for that, so it takes an extension. They fall into two kinds: recent-tab switchers (flip back through tabs in the order you used them) and tab search (type to find a tab). A few do both.
Disclosure: I make Tab Launcher, one of the extensions below. I've tried to describe the others fairly, from their own store listings; check them yourself before choosing.
Built into Chrome
- Ctrl Shift A (⌘ Shift A on Mac) opens tab search across all windows.
- Type
@tabsin the address bar to search only open tabs. - Ctrl 1–8 jump to a tab by position; Ctrl 9 to the rightmost.
Good for finding a tab; no help for flipping back to the last one.
The extensions
| Extension | Kind | Users / rating | Last updated | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recent Tabs | Recent-tab switcher | 20,000 · 4.2 (387) | Aug 2026 | Cycles most-recently-used tabs like Alt+Tab; the longest-running of the group. |
| CLUT: Cycle Last Used Tabs | Recent-tab switcher | 20,000 · 4.4 (295) | Mar 2025 | Popular for a quick double-tap to the second-to-last tab. |
| Previous Tab | Recent-tab switcher | 20,000 · 4.7 (152) | Jul 2024 | Does one thing: back to the previous tab. Asks for very few permissions. |
| Quick Tab Switch | Recent-tab switcher | 10,000 · 4.9 (131) | Aug 2025 | Flips between your two most recent tabs; praised for its guide to binding Ctrl+Tab. |
| QuicKey | Both | 10,000 · 4.4 (156) | Oct 2024 | Search plus a most-recently-used list in a popup; open source. |
| Tab Launcher (mine) | Both | new (Nov 2026) | Nov 2026 | Command bar over the page (Alt+K) with open tabs first, plus hold-Alt+Q recent-tab cards; actions like copy URL or reopen closed tab; no access to all sites needed. |
How to choose
- You only want "back to the last tab": Previous Tab or Quick Tab Switch. Small, single-purpose, few permissions.
- You want Alt+Tab-style cycling through several recent tabs: Recent Tabs or CLUT.
- You want to type to find tabs as well: QuicKey, or Tab Launcher if you'd rather have a bar over the page than a popup.
- You care about permissions: check the "read and change all your data on all websites" warning before installing. Some switchers need it to work on every page; others ask only when you turn on extras.
Making any of them use Ctrl+Tab
Chrome won't let an extension claim Ctrl Tab on install. Most of these extensions explain how to assign it yourself from chrome://extensions/shortcuts plus a line pasted into the developer console. Chrome can reset it after an update, so keep the instructions handy.
About Tab Launcher
Tab Launcher is free. Press Alt K to search open tabs (most recent first), hold Alt and tap Q to flip through recent tabs. It's new, so it doesn't have the track record of the others yet. More in how to switch back to your last tab.