Tabwell vs Tab Session Manager: which really restores tab groups?
A Chrome tab group carries three things that define it — a title, one of nine colors, and a collapsed or expanded state — and Tab Session Manager keeps all three only as ad-hoc metadata, not a group it can rebuild. The Tabwell vs Tab Session Manager choice turns on exactly that gap: when you save a session in Tab Session Manager and restore it later, your groups come back as loose tabs you have to re-color and re-collapse by hand, because the tool never recreates the group structure through Chrome's own API. Tabwell takes the opposite approach. A snapshot records each tab's group assignment through the chrome.tabGroups MV3 API, and restore rebuilds every group with its original title, its original color, and its original collapsed state, so the round trip is lossless. Every snapshot stays local in IndexedDB on your device via dexie — no account, no telemetry, no server by default. And if you already run Tab Session Manager, Tabwell Pro ships a built-in importer that reads its native export, so moving your history across takes two clicks.
The core difference: groups survive the round trip
Tab Session Manager saves the tabs in a window, but it records group membership as ad-hoc metadata — a label hung on a tab, not a Chrome tab group it can recreate. A Chrome tab group is structural: it has a title, one of nine colors, and a collapsed or expanded state. When the session is restored, the tabs reopen without that structure, so you are left re-grouping, re-coloring, and re-collapsing by hand. Tabwell snapshots the group structure alongside the tabs and rebuilds each one through chrome.tabGroups, so three collapsed colored groups come back as three collapsed colored groups.
Feature comparison
| Capability | Tab Session Manager | Tabwell |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome tab groups on restore (title, color, collapsed) | Saved as ad-hoc metadata, not rebuilt | Rebuilt via chrome.tabGroups |
| Tab data location | On your device | On your device, in IndexedDB via dexie |
| Move your existing history across | n/a | Built-in importer, two clicks |
Where your data lives
Tabwell writes every snapshot to IndexedDB on your device via dexie. Tab URLs and titles never leave the machine, and the only network request is to Polar to verify a license key — never your tab data. There is no account and no cloud by default; optional sync is opt-in. Free keeps your latest 5 snapshots and auto-snapshots every 60 minutes; Pro lifts the cap, indexes the title and URL of every saved tab for full-text search, and auto-snapshots every 5 minutes.
Switching from Tab Session Manager
Tabwell Pro includes a built-in Tab Session Manager importer that reads its native export format. Export your sessions from Tab Session Manager, open Tabwell, and import the file in two clicks — your saved tabs come across without manual copy-paste.
When to choose Tab Session Manager instead
If you do not use Chrome tab groups and only need to reopen sets of loose tabs, Tab Session Manager's metadata approach already covers how you work, and the round-trip gap Tabwell closes will not affect you. Tabwell earns its place when group titles, the nine Chrome colors, and collapsed state are part of how you organize — research tracks, per-project tabs, anything color-coded. If that is not your workflow, there is no reason to switch.
FAQ
Does Tab Session Manager restore my Chrome tab groups?
It records group membership as ad-hoc metadata rather than rebuilding a Chrome tab group, so on restore your tabs reopen ungrouped and you re-color and re-collapse them by hand. Tabwell records each tab's group assignment and rebuilds it through the chrome.tabGroups API, so group titles, the nine Chrome colors, and collapsed state come back intact.
Can I import my Tab Session Manager sessions into Tabwell?
Yes. Tabwell Pro ships a built-in importer that reads Tab Session Manager's native export. Export your sessions, open Tabwell, and import the file in two clicks; your tabs come across without manual copy-paste.
How much does Tabwell cost?
Every install includes a 14-day Pro trial, no credit card required. After that, Free keeps your latest 5 snapshots; Pro is $3.99/month, $29/year, or a one-time $19 Founders license for the first 1000 buyers ($59 after). Refunds are 30-day, no questions asked.
Which Chrome version do I need to run Tabwell?
Chrome 114 or newer, because Tabwell uses the chrome.sidePanel API introduced in that release. It is built for Chrome on Manifest V3; Edge and other Chromium browsers may work but are not the supported target, and Firefox and Safari are not supported.
Where does Tabwell keep my tabs, and does it send telemetry?
Every snapshot is stored locally in IndexedDB on your device via dexie, and tab URLs and titles never leave the machine. The only network request is a license check to Polar that carries no tab data. There is no account and no telemetry by default; cross-device sync is opt-in.