Custom new tab page: from Chrome themes to a tab that does your work

A custom new tab page is whatever you see in place of the browser's default when you open a tab, set either through Chrome's own Customize panel or by an extension that takes the page over. For developers, the most useful version is a page that does work, and AyeTab is the free extension we recommend for that: it fills the new tab with local tools for JSON, JWTs, regex and more.

Three levels of customization

Think of it as a ladder. Each step gives you more control and asks a little more trust.

Level 1: Chrome's own settings

Chrome lets you change a fair amount without installing anything. On the New Tab page, click Customize Chrome at the bottom right. From there you can:

• pick a theme from the gallery or upload your own image as the background
• switch the shortcuts between your own picks and your most visited sites, or hide them
• choose light, dark or device mode and a browser color
• turn cards on or off

Google's help page notes two limits: you need to be signed in to your Google Account and use Google as your default search engine. Chrome can also build a theme with AI, if you want something generated. What you cannot do in settings is point the new tab at a page of your choice. The startup page and the homepage take a web address; the new tab does not.

Level 2: a dashboard extension

Dashboard extensions swap the whole page for photos, clocks, weather and lists. Momentum is the best known. It has a free plan and a paid Plus plan ($39.95 a year), and its plans page lists AI features such as Ask AI and notes with AI next to focus tools and task integrations. Bonjourr goes the other way: an open source, minimalist start page that lists "no generative AI" among its features and needs no account. Tabliss is another free, open source choice with lots of widgets and backgrounds.

Level 3: a page that does your work

The third option treats the new tab as a workbench. AyeTab shows a list of developer tools on the left and the open tool on the right. You press Ctrl+K to jump to a tool, or paste a JWT, JSON or Base64 string and it suggests the matching one. Everything is processed in the browser, with no account and no upload, and it keeps working offline once installed. That matters if you paste API responses, tokens or model outputs while you work on AI projects: the text stays on your machine. AyeTab also has a to-do list, kanban board, Pomodoro timer and notes that save locally.

Which level fits you

Chrome's built-in options are enough if you mainly want a nicer background. Once you want the tab to replace trips to other websites, an extension like AyeTab is the better step.

How to undo any of it

Chrome's Customize panel has a Reset to Default Chrome button for themes. If an extension controls your new tab, Chrome names it in the New Tab page footer; disable or remove it on chrome://extensions and the default page returns.