How to restore Chrome tabs after a crash
Chrome crashed, restarted for an update, or you closed the wrong window. Here's how to get your tabs back, in the order most likely to work.
Quick answer: press Ctrl+Shift+T (Windows, Linux, ChromeOS) or Cmd+Shift+T (Mac) straight away. Chrome reopens the last closed window or tab. Keep pressing it to step further back. If that doesn't bring everything back, work through the steps below in order.
1. Stop restarting Chrome
Chrome keeps your open tabs in session files inside your profile. Each time Chrome starts and closes, those files can be replaced. If a crash has already happened, restarting repeatedly is the fastest way to lose the session for good.
Advanced safety step: before you open Chrome again, copy the Sessions folder somewhere safe. It lives here:
- Windows:
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Sessions - Mac:
~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/Sessions - Linux:
~/.config/google-chrome/Default/Sessions
If you use a second Chrome profile, replace Default with Profile 1, Profile 2 and so on.
2. Click "Restore" on the crash prompt
After Chrome closes unexpectedly it usually shows a Restore pages? prompt near the top right when it next opens. Click Restore. If you dismissed it, go to step 3.
3. Reopen closed tabs and windows with the keyboard
Ctrl+Shift+T or Cmd+Shift+T reopens the most recently closed tab or window. Chrome works backwards through what you closed, so pressing it several times can bring back several windows.
4. Use History, then "Recently closed"
Open the three-dot menu and choose History. The Recently closed list shows windows as entries like "8 tabs". Clicking one reopens the whole window. The full History page (Ctrl+H or Cmd+Y) lists individual pages if you only need a few back.
5. Check tabs from your other devices
If you're signed in with sync turned on, the History menu also shows tabs open on your phone or other computers. That's handy if the same work was open elsewhere.
6. Make Chrome reopen tabs next time
Go to Settings, then On startup, and select Continue where you left off. Chrome will reopen your last session whenever it starts.
Why Chrome's built-in recovery sometimes fails
Chrome's recovery covers your most recent session and a short list of recently closed items. It doesn't keep dated snapshots, it can't show you what's missing, and it can be overwritten by the next restart. If you depend on a lot of open tabs, you need a separate copy.
Never lose a Chrome session again
Workspace Recovery Vault is a free Chrome extension that saves a verified restore point of your windows, tabs, pinned tabs and tab groups every 5 minutes and after changes. After a crash you pick a restore point from the timeline, preview exactly which tabs are missing, and recover only those into new windows while your current tabs stay open. Restore points stay in your Chrome profile and never include page contents or passwords.
It can only restore sessions it has already saved, so install it before you need it.