How to save tab groups in Chrome
Saving a Chrome tab group means recording more than its member URLs. A native group has a title, a Chrome color, a collapsed flag, and a relationship to the tabs in the current window. Tabwell reads those fields through chrome.tabGroups and writes them into a local snapshot, so its restore has the data needed to rebuild the recorded arrangement. The snapshot covers the current window; create separate snapshots for other windows. Chrome's own recovery behavior can vary with version, settings, and shutdown conditions, so this guide does not claim that the browser will always discard or always preserve a group. Instead, it shows a reproducible check: create a disposable group, save it, restore the snapshot, and compare the visible title, color, collapsed state, tab membership, order, and pinned tabs. A verified manual snapshot is the right checkpoint before a planned relaunch, while periodic auto-snapshots provide a recent but potentially older recovery point.
Fields that define a native Chrome group
- The group title.
- One of Chrome's supported group colors.
- Whether the group is collapsed.
- Which tabs belong to the group and their order.
Tabwell records these fields for the current window through chrome.tabs and chrome.tabGroups, then stores the snapshot in IndexedDB.
Save and verify a group
- Install Tabwell from the Chrome Web Store.
- Create a disposable current window with two groups, different colors, one collapsed group, and a pinned tab.
- Save the current window from the side panel, shortcut, or context menu.
- Restore the snapshot into a clean window.
- Compare group title, color, collapsed state, membership, tab order, and pinned state.
Do not infer behavior from another product's badge
When evaluating a browser or another session tool, repeat the same dated restore test with its current release and documentation. Store counts, ratings, and old comparison claims do not establish whether native group fields are saved today.
Plans and privacy
Group metadata is included in every Tabwell snapshot regardless of tier. Free keeps up to five snapshots total and one 60-minute automatic recovery slot; Pro adds unlimited history, search, importers, and configurable intervals. Current prices, purchase options, and terms are listed on the pricing page.
Snapshots, tab titles, and URLs stay in local IndexedDB. Billing and license requests use Tabwell's billing service and Polar without sending tab data. Optional redacted crash diagnostics can be enabled; they are off by default. See the privacy policy.
FAQ
Which Chrome group fields does Tabwell save?
It records group title, color, collapsed state, membership, and the related tab order for the current window.
Does one snapshot cover multiple Chrome windows?
No. Save each current window as a separate snapshot and use clear names when you need to preserve several windows.
How can I verify group restoration?
Use two disposable groups with different colors and collapsed state, save the window, restore it, and compare every recorded field.
Will Chrome itself always keep or lose my groups?
Do not assume either result. Native recovery can vary with Chrome version, settings, and shutdown conditions, so test the current browser behavior.
Do group fields require Pro?
No. Native group fields are recorded in Free snapshots too. Current prices, purchase options, and terms are listed at https://tabwell.org/pricing.html.