Accidentally Closed a Browser Tab? Here’s How to Reopen It

You meant to click a tab, but clicked its little X instead. The webpage disappeared. In many cases, you can bring it back with one keyboard shortcut.

A tab is one webpage inside your browser window. If that word is unfamiliar, start with our simple guide to web browsers.

Try this first on your computer

• Windows, using Chrome or Microsoft Edge: press Ctrl + Shift + T.
• Mac, using Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Safari: press Command (⌘) + Shift + T.

Click inside your browser first. Hold down Ctrl (or Command on a Mac), keep it held while you hold Shift, then tap the letter T once. Release the keys. The plus signs mean “press these together”; you do not press a plus key.

The browser should reopen the last tab you closed. In Chrome, you can repeat the shortcut to bring back earlier closed tabs, one at a time.

Reopen a closed tab in Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari

Fast answer: On Windows or Linux, press Ctrl + Shift + T; on a Mac, press Command (⌘) + Shift + T. This shortcut works in current desktop versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari. Press it again to reopen additional recently closed tabs, where supported.

Using a phone? In Chrome for Android, open the three-dot menu and choose Recent tabs when available. In Safari on iPhone, open the tab overview, then touch and hold the + button to see recently closed tabs. Menu locations may vary by browser version.

Would you rather use a menu?

Chrome: click the three dots near the upper-right corner, open History, and look under Recently closed. Select the page or window you want to reopen.

Safari on a Mac: use History → Reopen Last Closed Tab in the menu bar at the top of the screen. For an earlier tab, look under History → Recently Closed.

What if you closed the whole window?

Open the browser again. In Chrome, look in the History menu for a recently closed window; it may show a number of tabs. In Safari, try History → Reopen Last Closed Window. Recovery depends on what the browser still remembers.

If the page does not come back

Open your browser’s History and look for the website’s name. You can also type the website address again or search for the page. A closed tab and a deleted browsing history are different things.

Chrome does not keep a record of visited sites after an Incognito session ends, so its normal history cannot recover those visits. Reopening a webpage also does not guarantee that an unfinished message or form will return. Check the page before continuing.

A simple habit for next time

If a page matters, save it as a bookmark or favorite before closing it. For a long message, consider writing it in a document you can save, then copying and pasting it into the website.

Need larger, easier-to-read webpages? See how to make text bigger. If you are still stuck, send us a question and include your browser and device.

Official instructions

• Google: Chrome keyboard shortcuts and restoring closed tabs and windows
• Microsoft: Edge keyboard shortcuts
• Apple: Safari shortcuts and recently closed tabs and windows
• Google: Incognito browsing

Instructions checked October 9, 2026. This guide covers desktop browsers; phone and tablet menus differ.