Easy Tech TutsHow to Use Vertical Tabs in Chrome (Tab Overload Fix) Easily 2026
By Impran M NLast checked against official docs
If your Chrome window is a wall of tiny, unreadable tabs, vertical tabs fix it by using the height of your screen instead of the width. Chrome shipped this natively in April 2026, so for most people it's a right-click away instead of something to install.
This guide covers turning the feature on, collapsing the panel down to icons, and organizing tabs into groups once it's on. It also covers what to do on an older or enterprise-managed version of Chrome, where the native option hasn't landed yet.
01Turn on vertical tabs
Right-click any blank space on the tab strip, or right-click a single tab, and choose Show Tabs Vertically. The horizontal strip disappears and your open tabs move into a resizable panel down the left edge of the window, each one wide enough to show its full title instead of just a favicon.
The same toggle sits in Settings, under Appearance, as Tab position; set it to Vertical there if you'd rather not right-click. On a Mac, the equivalent option is under the View menu. To switch back, right-click again and choose Show Tabs Horizontally, or flip the setting back.
02Collapse the panel when you want the space back
The vertical panel can shrink down to a narrow strip of favicons only, useful on a smaller laptop screen where a full-width tab list eats into the page. Right-click inside the panel and turn on Expand Collapsed Tabs by Hovering, so the full list slides out temporarily whenever your cursor passes over it, then tucks itself away again once you move on.
03Show the tab search button and saved tab groups
In Settings, under Appearance, two more toggles control what appears at the top of the vertical panel: Show tab search button, which adds a quick way to jump to any open tab by typing part of its title, and Show saved tab groups, which keeps groups you've saved for later visible in the same list as your currently open tabs. Turn on whichever ones you'll use day to day. A panel with every option enabled gets nearly as cluttered as the wall of tabs you started with.
04Group related tabs once they're vertical
Tab groups work the same way vertically as they do horizontally, and they're easier to scan in this layout since each group's tabs sit stacked under its colored label instead of squeezed into a shrinking strip. Right-click a tab and choose Add tab to new group to start one, then drag other tabs into it directly in the vertical list.
05If your Chrome doesn't have this option yet
The native feature ships from Chrome 146 onward. If Show Tabs Vertically doesn't appear when you right-click, you're on an older version, the browser hasn't finished updating, or you're on a managed work or school install where an administrator has disabled it. A side-panel extension from the Chrome Web Store gets a similar scrollable vertical list in the meantime: install it, pin it to the toolbar from the extensions puzzle-piece icon, and open it from that icon or a keyboard shortcut set at chrome://extensions/shortcuts.
When it doesn't work
Show Tabs Vertically doesn't show up in the right-click menu
Why: Chrome is on a version older than 146, still finishing an update, or running under a managed policy that disables the feature.
Fix: Check chrome://settings/help to confirm the version and let it finish updating. On a work or school device, ask an administrator whether policy is blocking it; a side-panel extension works as a stand-in either way.
The vertical panel keeps popping open when you don't want it to
Why: Expand Collapsed Tabs by Hovering is turned on, so the panel expands every time the cursor crosses it.
Fix: Right-click inside the panel and turn that option off, leaving it collapsed until you click it directly.
Frequently asked questions
Does every version of Chrome have vertical tabs?
No. It's native from Chrome 146 onward, released in April 2026. Older or enterprise-managed installs may not show the option yet, and a side-panel extension is the workaround until they update.
How do I turn vertical tabs off?
Right-click the vertical panel and choose Show Tabs Horizontally, or switch Tab position back to Horizontal in Settings, under Appearance.
Can I collapse the panel to save space?
Yes. Turn on Expand Collapsed Tabs by Hovering and the panel shrinks to favicons only, expanding temporarily when your cursor passes over it.
Do tab groups still work with vertical tabs?
Yes, groups display the same way, just stacked in the vertical list instead of squeezed into a horizontal strip.
What if I'm stuck on an older Chrome version?
A side-panel extension from the Chrome Web Store gives a similar vertical, scrollable tab list until your version updates.
Sources and last check
The original recording predates Chrome's native vertical tabs, which shipped from Chrome 146 in April 2026. This rewrite replaces the extension-only advice with the built-in Show Tabs Vertically toggle and its Settings equivalents, re-checked against Google's official Chrome Help article and its April 2026 announcement post in September 2026. The side-panel extension route is kept as a fallback for older or managed installs.
About the author
Impran M N
I've been hooked on technology for as long as I can remember — especially the new tools and AI apps that seem to land every other week. Easy Tech Tuts is where I write up whatever I've just worked out: I do the task in the real product, record the screen, and turn it into the guide I wish I'd found first.
