Disclosure: Incognito This Tab For Chrome is made by the team behind App How To Use It.
Incognito This Tab is a small Chrome extension that opens the page you are looking at in an incognito window. Chrome can open a link in incognito from the right-click menu, but it has no button for the tab you are already on. With the extension you click its icon, or press Alt+O, and the same address opens in incognito mode.
How to use Incognito This Tab
- Install it from the Chrome Web Store and pin it from the puzzle-piece menu.
- Go to the page you want to reopen privately.
- Click the extension icon, or press Alt+O.
- The page opens in an incognito window. Anything you do from there is not saved to your history.
Extension or Chrome’s own shortcuts?
| Task | Built into Chrome | With the extension |
|---|---|---|
| New incognito window | Ctrl+Shift+N | Same |
| Open a link in incognito | Right-click the link, “Open link in incognito window” | Same |
| Reopen the current tab in incognito | Copy the address, open a window, paste | One click or Alt+O |
When is incognito mode useful?
- On a shared computer, so the next person does not see your history or stay signed in to your accounts.
- To use a second account on the same site, for example a work and a personal login, without signing out.
- To see a page as a new visitor, without your cookies, saved preferences or logged-in state.
- For one-off searches you do not want shaping your recommendations or autocomplete suggestions.
How to let other extensions run in incognito
Chrome turns most extensions off in incognito windows by default. If you want, say, your password manager or ad blocker there too:
- Open chrome://extensions.
- Click Details under the extension.
- Switch on Allow in Incognito.
Only do this for extensions you trust, because an extension allowed in incognito can see what you do there.
Is the page removed from my history?
Pages you open from the incognito window are not saved. The visit you made in the normal tab before switching may already be in your history, though. You can delete it from the history page (Ctrl+H), or let Auto History Wipe clear history automatically.
What does incognito mode not hide?
- Your internet provider, employer or school network can still see which sites you visit.
- Websites still see your IP address, and any site you sign in to knows it is you.
- Files you download stay on your computer.
To change the address sites see, you need a VPN or proxy; see our comparison of free VPN extensions.
Frequently asked questions
Is Incognito This Tab free?
Yes. The developer also states on the store listing that it does not collect or use your data.
Does it work in Microsoft Edge or Brave?
Both browsers can install extensions from the Chrome Web Store. Edge first asks you to allow extensions from other stores; after that the install works the same way.
Is incognito the same as a VPN?
No. Incognito only stops your own browser from saving history, cookies and form data after you close the window. A VPN changes the IP address that websites and your network see. They solve different problems and can be used together.
Can I change the Alt+O shortcut?
Yes. Open chrome://extensions/shortcuts and set a different key combination for the extension.
If you often find yourself wishing you had opened a page privately, Incognito This Tab saves the copy-and-paste step. It does one thing, and it does it with one click. Pair it with a history cleaner if you share your computer, and with a VPN when you also need to change the address websites see.