A lightweight Chrome extension to manually manage and discard tabs to free up browser memory. Take control of your browser's resource usage with an easy-to-use interface.
- One-click tab discarding - Discard individual tabs instantly to free up memory
- Right-click context menu - Quick access to discard options directly from any tab
- Bulk discard - Discard all tabs except the current one with a single action
- Automatic reload - Discarded tabs automatically reload when you switch back to them
- Pinned tab protection - Prevent pinned tabs from being automatically discarded
- Media protection - Never discard tabs playing audio or video
- Domain whitelist - Protect specific domains (Gmail, Google Docs, etc.) from auto-discard
- Active tab safety - Currently active tabs are always protected
- Status indicators - Instantly see which tabs are active or discarded
- Badge counter - Real-time display of discarded/total tabs on the extension icon
- Clean popup - Browse all tabs with their status in an intuitive interface
- Flexible sorting - Sort by browser order, active status, or alphabetically
- Toggle badge - Show or hide the tab counter on the extension icon
- Protection rules - Configure which tab types should be protected
- Domain whitelist - Create a custom list of domains to never discard
- Keyboard shortcuts - Assign custom hotkeys for common actions
- Quick discard - Discard current tab (default:
Ctrl+Shift+D/Cmd+Shift+D) - Bulk discard - Discard all except current (customizable)
- Fully configurable - Set your own shortcuts in browser settings
- ✅ No data collection or tracking
- ✅ All settings stored locally
- ✅ Open source code
- ✅ Works completely offline
- ✅ No external server communication
(Coming Soon)
- Visit the Chrome Web Store page
- Click "Add to Chrome" or "Add to Brave"
- Confirm the installation
- Download the extension git clone https://github.com/daermond/tab-memory-manager.git cd tab-memory-manager
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- Load in Chrome/Brave
- Open your browser and navigate to
chrome://extensionsorbrave://extensions - Enable Developer mode (toggle in top right corner)
- Click Load unpacked
- Select the
tab-memory-managerfolder - The extension is now installed! 🎉
- Click the extension icon in your browser toolbar
- Browse the list of open tabs
- Click Discard next to any tab
- Or click Discard All to discard all except the active tab
- Right-click on any tab in your tab bar
- Select "Discard tab" to discard that tab
- Or select "Discard all tabs except this"
- Press
Ctrl+Shift+D(Windows/Linux) orCmd+Shift+D(Mac) to discard current tab - Configure more shortcuts at
chrome://extensions/shortcuts
In the extension popup:
- Active tabs: Normal appearance, ready to be discarded
- Discarded tabs: Grayed out with italic text
- Counter: Shows "X Active / Y Discarded (Z total)" in header
- Badge: Displays discarded/total count on icon (if enabled)
Discarded tabs automatically restore when you:
- Click on the tab in your browser
- Click on it in the extension popup
- Switch to it via keyboard (
Ctrl+Tab, etc.)
The tab reloads its content automatically - no manual action needed!
Access settings by clicking the gear icon (⚙️) in the extension popup.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Show badge counter | Display discarded/total count on the extension icon |
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Protect pinned tabs | Pinned tabs won't be discarded with "Discard All" (manual discard still works) |
| Protect media tabs | Never discard tabs playing audio/video |
| Protect form data | Prevent discarding tabs with unsaved form input (experimental) |
Add domains to never auto-discard (one per line):
gmail.com docs.google.com calendar.google.com localhost
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Note: Whitelisted domains are protected from "Discard All" but can still be manually discarded.
- Go to
chrome://extensions/shortcuts - Find "Tab Memory Manager"
- Set your preferred key combinations
Available commands:
- Discard current tab
- Discard all tabs except current
Choose how tabs are displayed in the popup:
| Sort Mode | Description |
|---|---|
| Browser Order | Same order as your browser tab bar (default) |
| Active First | Active tabs first, then discarded tabs |
| Alphabetical | Sorted by tab title A-Z |
Your sorting preference saves automatically.
- ✅ Google Chrome 88+
- ✅ Brave Browser (all recent versions)
- ✅ Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based)
- ✅ Any Chromium-based browser with Manifest V3 support
| Permission | Purpose |
|---|---|
tabs |
Access tab information and use discard API |
storage |
Save user settings locally |
contextMenus |
Add right-click menu options to tabs |
<all_urls> |
Required for context menu to work on all pages |
Root Files:
manifest.json- Extension configurationbackground.js- Background service workerREADME.md- Documentation
popup/ - Extension popup interface
popup.html- Popup interfacepopup.js- Popup logicpopup.css- Popup styling
settings/ - Settings page
settings.html- Settings pagesettings.js- Settings logicsettings.css- Settings styling
icons/ - Extension icons
icon16.png- Toolbar icon (16x16)icon48.png- Extension management (48x48)icon128.png- Chrome Web Store (128x128)
When a tab is discarded:
- ✅ Tab remains visible in your tab bar
- ✅ Tab content is unloaded from memory
- ✅ Tab appears grayed out or dimmed
- ✅ Memory is freed for other applications
- ✅ Clicking the tab automatically reloads content
- ✅ Browsing history and tab position preserved
Memory Limitation: The extension uses Chrome's native chrome.tabs.discard() API. Actual memory savings depend on tab content and browser implementation. Memory usage display is not available in stable Chrome/Brave (requires Dev channel).
- ✓ Verify you're using a Chromium-based browser
- ✓ Check extension is enabled at
chrome://extensions - ✓ Try reloading the extension (click reload button)
- ✓ Check browser console for errors (F12)
- ✓ Wait 1-2 seconds after clicking the tab
- ✓ Manually refresh if needed (this is normal browser behavior)
- ✓ Check background script console for errors
- ✓ Right-click directly on a tab (not page content)
- ✓ Verify extension has all required permissions
- ✓ Restart browser if issue persists
- ✓ Ensure badge is enabled in settings
- ✓ Some browsers may not support badges in all modes
- ✓ Try disabling/re-enabling the setting
- ℹ️ Memory display requires Chrome Dev/Canary channel
- ℹ️ Stable browsers (Chrome/Brave) don't support the
chrome.processesAPI - ℹ️ This is a browser limitation, not an extension bug
This extension:
- ✅ Does NOT collect any user data
- ✅ Does NOT track browsing history
- ✅ Does NOT send information to external servers
- ✅ Stores all settings locally on your device
- ✅ Works completely offline
- ✅ Is open source and auditable
Data Storage: Settings are saved using Chrome's chrome.storage.sync API, which synchronizes across your devices if signed into Chrome/Brave. This is handled entirely by the browser - the extension never accesses external servers.
Contributions are welcome! Here's how you can help:
- Fork the repository
- Create a feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add amazing feature') - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/amazing-feature) - Open a Pull Request
Clone the repository git clone https://github.com/daermond/tab-memory-manager.git cd tab-memory-manager
Load in browser as unpacked extension Make your changes Test thoroughly Submit PR! text
Found a bug? Please open an issue with:
- Browser name and version
- Extension version
- Steps to reproduce
- Expected vs actual behavior
- Screenshots (if applicable)
MIT License
Copyright (c) 2025 [Daermond]
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
- 🐛 Bug Reports: Open an issue
- 💡 Feature Requests: Start a discussion
- 📧 Email: daermond@gmail.com
- 🌐 Website: your-website.com
- Built with the Chrome Extensions Manifest V3 API
- Icons: [Design credits or "Custom designed"]
- Inspired by the need for better tab management in modern browsers
If you find this extension helpful, please:
- ⭐ Star this repository
- 🐛 Report bugs or request features
- 🤝 Contribute to the code
- 📢 Share with others who might find it useful
Made with ❤️ for tab hoarders everywhere
