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Jun 03, 2023

How to Fix Chrome Opening New Tabs by Itself on Windows

Whether Chrome opens a new tab on a mouse click, or it opens them at seemingly random moments, here's how to fix it on Windows. Does Chrome open new tabs whenever you click a link on a search engine

Whether Chrome opens a new tab on a mouse click, or it opens them at seemingly random moments, here's how to fix it on Windows.

Does Chrome open new tabs whenever you click a link on a search engine results page or a website? If that's the case, Chrome is probably set to open every new link in a new tab.

If new tabs are opening automatically, most likely the website you're on is malicious, your keyboard manager or browser extensions are interfering with the browser's operation, or your browser or device is infected with malware.

If you'd like to open new links in the same tab or stop the browser from opening new tabs automatically, here are a few fixes you can try.

To troubleshoot the issue, perform the following fixes first, as they may resolve it right away:

If Chrome opens new tabs immediately upon launch and doesn't stop until you close the browser, the shortcut keys for opening new tabs are probably pressed down on your keyboard. You can confirm that using the onscreen keyboard in Windows.

Simply press CTRL + Win + O to open the on-screen keyboard and check whether the shortcut keys to open a new tab in Chrome (CTRL + T) are pressed. If you see them pressed, check that the keys aren't stuck. If the keys are in their normal position but appear pressed on the on-screen keyboard, there is likely a hardware issue with the keys.

If this is the case, unplug or temporarily turn off your keyboard and have it inspected. However, if no keys appear to be pressed, move on to the next step.

Chrome comes with a built-in feature that lets users open links in new tabs. This feature helps users open and go through multiple links from the search engine results page at once without having to go back and forth.

If you want Chrome to open links in the same tab, taking over the current search engine results page, you must turn off this setting. To do that, follow these steps:

If Chrome automatically launches and opens new tabs when your Windows device boots up, you probably granted it permission to do so. To turn off this permission, open Task Manager, navigate to the Startup apps tab, locate Chrome in the list of applications, right-click on it, and choose Disable.

If new tabs open up at browser startup, you've probably configured the browser to open a set of new tabs at its launch or to open the tabs you left open when you last used the browser. Follow these steps to remove these permissions:

If Chrome opens new tabs with unwanted websites whenever you click on a text, link, or area on a particular website, that site or its content is likely malicious. That might explain why it redirects you to malicious offers and landing pages run by threat actors.

There are many ways to determine whether a website is untrustworthy, so learn how to check if a site is safe for more information.

The Chrome browser can also misbehave or act strangely if infected with malware or viruses. If none of the fixes above resolve the problem, your browser could be infected with a browser hijacker.

If the problem persists despite removing the hijacker, you may have a malware infection on your device, forcing Chrome to open unwanted websites on its own. To rule out this possibility, run a full malware scan using a Microsoft Security scanner to get rid of any possible infections.

If you find that your browser doesn't have any infections and the virus scan does not detect any malware on your device, you should reset it. By resetting a browser, its settings are restored to their defaults, so you can confirm that misconfigured settings aren't the cause of your problem.

To reset Chrome, go to Chrome settings, click on Reset settings on the left-hand side, and click Restore settings to their original defaults on the right.

If resetting the browser also doesn't work, you can reinstall the browser from scratch, which is the least desirable solution. Before you begin the new installation, ensure you properly remove the old installation using our guide on uninstalling apps on Windows.

New tabs automatically opening or Chrome opening new tabs for every click can disrupt our user experience. Hopefully, you now better understand why Chrome opens new tabs and what fixes you should try to stop it.

If nothing works and Chrome keeps opening new tabs, reinstall the browser. If reinstallation also fails, scan your device for malware infection or switch to a different browser.

Shan Abdul is a Senior Writer at MUO. Having used Windows for over a decade, he's accumulated plenty of experience with the OS. He's been writing on a variety of Windows topics for over three years, incorporating his expertise to teach readers how to get the most out of their Windows devices and resolve issues with the operating system.