How to Customise the New Tab Page Background and Shortcuts in Google Chrome

Personalising Your Browsing Hub in Google Chrome

The New Tab page is the most frequently viewed screen in any web browser, serving as the launching pad for your daily internet tasks. By default, Google Chrome displays a minimalist layout featuring a white background, the standard search bar, and a grid of your most visited websites. However, Chrome includes extensive built-in customisation controls that allow you to transform this utilitarian screen into a tailored dashboard. You can upload custom wallpaper, select dynamic thematic colour palettes, curate specific website shortcuts, and hide distraction-inducing card feeds.

Accessing the Chrome Customisation Drawer

Google Chrome features a dedicated slide-out side panel specifically designed for tailoring the New Tab page without navigating through the comprehensive browser settings menu.

1. Launch Google Chrome on your computer.
2. Open a new tab by clicking the + (New Tab) button along the top tab strip or pressing Ctrl + T (or Command + T on macOS).
3. Look toward the bottom-right corner of the window and click the Customise Chrome button (represented by a pencil icon).
4. A configuration drawer will slide open along the right-hand edge of your browser window, displaying real-time preview options.

Changing the Background Image and Theme

Chrome provides curated artistic galleries alongside the ability to set your own photography as the backdrop.

1. Within the Customise Chrome panel, click Change theme.
2. To upload a personal photo or high-resolution graphic from your local storage drive, click Upload an image. Browse to your image file, select it, and click Open.
3. Alternatively, select from Google’s curated collections, such as Landscapes, Textures, Art, or Seascapes.
4. If you choose a curated gallery, you can toggle on Refresh daily at the top of the collection window to enjoy an automatically rotating background every 24 hours.
5. To revert to the classic clean interface at any time, select the Classic Chrome tile.

Synchronising Browser Accent Colours

When you select a new wallpaper, Chrome can automatically extract the dominant hue and apply it across your tabs, address bar, and bookmarks toolbar.

1. Scroll down to the Colour section of the Customise Chrome panel.
2. Click the eyedropper icon to sample a precise custom hex colour, or choose from the predefined colour swatches to complement your background art.
3. Toggle on Follow device colours if you want Chrome to dynamically synchronise its window tint with your operating system’s dark or light theme preferences.

Managing and Curating Website Shortcuts

The grid of icons below the search bar can be adjusted to display either sites you intentionally curate or pages Chrome algorithms calculate you visit most frequently.

1. In the Customise Chrome panel, scroll down to the Shortcuts section.
2. Choose your preferred shortcut display mode:
   • My shortcuts: Curated exclusively by you. This option allows you to pin permanent links that never change regardless of your browsing history.
   • Most visited sites: Dynamically populated by Google Chrome based on your recent browsing frequency.
3. If you prefer a distraction-free New Tab screen, switch on the toggle for Hide shortcuts to remove all icon grids entirely.

Adding and Removing Custom Shortcuts

If you selected the My shortcuts mode:

1. Click the Add shortcut button (the circle with a plus sign) on the New Tab page grid.
2. Enter a descriptive title in the Name field and paste the full web destination into the URL field.
3. Click Done.
4. To remove or edit an existing shortcut, hover over its icon, click the three-dot More options button in the corner, and select Remove or Edit shortcut.

Toggling Content Cards and Feed Modules

Modern versions of Chrome occasionally display informational cards beneath your shortcuts, including Google Drive recent files, recipe suggestions, and shopping carts from online retailers.

1. In the Customise Chrome drawer, scroll down to the Cards section.
2. Review the list of available modules (such as Drive files or Cart contents).
3. Toggle off individual categories, or turn off the master toggle labelled Show cards to ensure your New Tab page remains clean and uncluttered.