chrome flags experimental localhost

• Mobile Computing

• Good to know
• VPN for streaming
• VPNs for gaming
• Privacy news
• VPN reviews
• Windows 11 News
• Windows 11 Help
• Windows tips
• Windows Update
• Data Recovery
• File Sharing
• Microsoft Office
• Firefox add-ons
• Chrome Extensions
• Internet Explorer
• Microsoft Edge
• Google Maps
• Google Android
• Thunderbird
• Crypto & Blockchain
• Development
• Music and Video

How to use Google Chrome Flags to enable experimental features

Google Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers work out of the box for the most part. All versions of Google Chrome come with support for "Chrome flags", which unlocks a treasure trove of features, many of which are considered beta or experimental.

Google uses different Chrome editions for development purposes, including Chrome Canary and Beta. Some features are introduced as flags, and users need to enable them to make them work in the browser. While it is often not recommended to do so, especially in work environments, it may sometimes unlock useful features that would not be available for weeks or months otherwise.

Many features of Chrome's flag page are integrated natively in the browser at one point in development, but it may also happen that some are removed without further notice.

How to access Chrome Flags

All users may access experimental flags in Chrome. All that is required for that is to type chrome://flags in the browser to get started.

Google Chrome displays a warning at the top and the list of flags below that on the page. The list begins with flags that are user-enabled, and then the remaining flags. The unavailable tab lists flags that are not available, e.g. because they are not supported on a platform or setup.

Each flag is listed with its name, a short description, platform availability, and status. There is also a handy link to jump to that flag right away in the browser.

Title and description are often enough to figure out what a particular flag does. Sometimes, you may need to run a search for the name of a feature to find out more before changing its status.

An example: If you load chrome://flags/#enable-tab-search in Chrome, the Tab Search experiment is displayed. You may select the box on the right to change the status of the flag to Enabled or Disabled. Changes require a restart of the browser before they take effect. Chrome will display a relaunch button

You may encounter different statuses when you work with the chrome://flags page. The most common ones are:

• Default -- this is the default value as set by Google. Its value can be Enabled or Disabled, or it may have another value.
• Enabled -- the experimental Chrome flag is enabled.
• Disabled -- the flag is disabled in the browser.

Closing Words

Chrome Flags opens a world of configuration options. You may use them to enable features that are not ready for inclusion in Chrome Stable, or disable features that Google is testing currently.

Ultimately, it is not as great of a configuration tool as Firefox's about:config page, but it gives Chrome users temporary control over some features of the browser.

All other Chromium-based browsers, including Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi, support flags as well. You may open them using  a different address, e.g. edge://flags instead of chrome://flags in Microsoft Edge, but the available experiments are mostly the same.

Now You : do you tweak flags in your browser?

Related content

Chrome sends AI history search data to Google

How to Stop Automatic Google Chrome Updates on Windows

Google will disable classic extensions in chrome in the coming months.

Chrome extensions may slow down browsing significantly

Another Google Chrome 0-day vulnerability fixed: update asap

Google Chrome 123 launches with security fixes and Google Update changes on Windows

Developers need to get this page in order! Too many flags have accumulated there … IMHO.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Advertisement

Spread the word, hot discussions.

Recently Updated

Latest from Softonic

About ghacks.

Ghacks is a technology news blog that was founded in 2005 by Martin Brinkmann. It has since then become one of the most popular tech news sites on the Internet with five authors and regular contributions from freelance writers.

• Legal Information
• Terms of use
• Privacy Policy
• Cookie Policy
• Cookie settings
• Advertise with Us
• Martin Brinkmann
• Mike Turcotte

Your changes have been saved

Email Is sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

This Is TikTok’s Instagram Clone

1password adds account recovery codes to curb lockout, today's nyt connections hints and answer for june 20 (#375), key takeaways.

To test out Google Chrome's beta features, enter "chrome://flags" into the address bar, search for the flag you want, and set it to "Enabled." You’ll need to relaunch Google Chrome for the changes to take effect.

The Google Chrome browser has tons of great features, but many of them are not available by default. Chrome "flags" can enable experimental and beta features if you know where to find them. It's surprisingly easy to do.

Google will often put features behind flags before they are ready for prime time. Sometimes these features make their way to stable releases , but they can also disappear without warning. That's the nature of using experimental and beta features.

Related: The Best Chrome Flags to Enable for Better Browsing

There are flags available for different platforms as well. For example, there are certain flags for Chrome on Android, Chrome on Windows, etc. The process for enabling these flags is very simple.

These features are not available to everyone for a reason. They may not work correctly and they can negatively impact your browser's performance. Enable flags at your own risk.

First, open the Chrome browser on your computer, smartphone, or tablet. Flags are available for Chrome on almost every platform, including Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad, and Android.

 in the address bar and hit enter.

You will now be on a page titled "Experimental." It's divided into two columns: Available and Unavailable. You can scroll through the "Available" list or search for a specific flag.

When you find a flag to turn on, select the drop-down menu (It will usually say "Default.") and choose "Enabled."

After enabling a flag, you'll need to restart the browser to apply the change. You can enable multiple flags before relaunching. Select the blue "Relaunch" button when you're ready.

That's all there is to it. You've entered a larger world of browser customization. Now go out there and test out potentially upcoming Chrome features!

Related: 10 Useful Flags to Enable in Chrome for Android

• Web Browsers
• Google Chrome

How to set Chrome flags

Here's how to set Chrome flags, unlocking the hidden features tucked away in Google's popular browser.

Learning how to set Chrome Flags will enable you to use loads of hidden, experimental features that the standard Chrome experience just doesn’t have.

Admittedly, many of these features aren’t much use to the everyday user, often being designed to solve very specific issues, or for power users to bend Chrome to their will. Some of them will even likely break your browser, as they’re essentially add-ons or extensions that are in beta (or even alpha) testing. Some of them can be super useful, though: being able to for dark mode on every website, for example.

Due to Chrome’s ubiquitous nature, it’s possible to enable Chrome flags on Windows , macOS , Android and iOS . You just need the Chrome browser and a little bit of bravery.

Before you learn how to set flags in Chrome, it’s worth us once again reiterating that these are meant for testing purposes. That means they could break your browser. It’s easy to reset everything and, in the worst case scenario, you could reinstall Chrome. But our advice when learning how to set Chrome flags would be to not set any flags you’re unsure about.

With that all out of the way, here’s how to set Chrome flags.

On a Chromebook, PC, Mac, iOS or Android device:

• Open the Chrome browser
• Enter chrome://flags/ into the address bar
• Select or search for the flags you want to enable
• Click or tap on the flag
• Select Enabled
• Select Relaunch

Read on to see detailed instructions for each step.

Sign up to get the BEST of Tom’s Guide direct to your inbox.

Upgrade your life with a daily dose of the biggest tech news, lifestyle hacks and our curated analysis. Be the first to know about cutting-edge gadgets and the hottest deals.

Note: although the screenshots shown below are taken on a Windows PC, the steps to set Chrome flags should look more or less the same on any of the devices mentioned in Step 1.

1. Go to chrome://flags/

If you're using Chrome on a Chromebook, Windows PC, Mac, iOS, or Android device, open your Chrome browser . Next, enter chrome://flags/ into the address bar at the top to enable flags in Chrome. Hit enter .

2. Find a flag you want

You'll now see a rather long list of every Chrome flag. Scroll through and find any you want to enable. Alternatively, search for specific flags using the search box at the top of the page.

3. Enable via the dropdown

To enable or disable flags, simply click/tap the drop-down menu and click/tap Enabled or Disabled . Finally, click/tap Relaunch to restart Chrome and apply the changes.

How to disable Chrome flags

Given their advanced nature, it's easy to enable a flag that can cause unwanted results, such as webpages not rendering correctly. Fortunately, it's also easy to disable any previously set Chrome flags, putting everything back to default. Here's how to reset any Chrome flags.

1. Go to chrome://flags/ and select Reset all

Enter chrome://flags/ into the address bar and hit Enter . Next, click/tap Reset all in the top-right, then click/tap Relaunch . Chrome will now restart with all flags set to their default value.

Which Chrome flags to enable/disable: Tom's Guide best picks

Since there are so many Chrome flags, it's difficult to say which ones you should enable or disable. However, here are three handy ones we'd suggest you check out if you don't have the patience to scroll through the hundreds that are available.

1. Faster downloads using Parallel Downloading

This flag effectively works as a download booster for large downloads, and works across all platforms. It forces Chrome to break downloads into three smaller "jobs," before combining them into one file when the downloads are complete.

1. To get faster downloads on Chrome, search "Parallel Downloading" in the flag search bar. Click/tap Enabled next to the flag, then click/tap Relaunch .

2. Dark mode on every website

This flag forces pages to render in dark mode, and works great on most websites. If you notice some websites look a bit janky, though, it's easy to disable this flag and go back to default.

1. To enable dark mode on every website with Chrome, search " Auto Dark Mode for Web Contents " in the flag search bar. Click/tap Enabled next to the flag, then click/tap Relaunch .

3. Touch-friendly UI on Windows

This gives Chrome a more touch-friendly UI, including a bigger search bar, which is great if you're rocking a touchscreen PC such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 .

If you want to make Chrome on your touch-enabled PC more user friendly, search " Touch UI Layout " in the flag search bar. Click Enabled next to the flag, then Relaunch .

Now you know how to enable flags in Chrome, you may want to check out some other Chrome guides, such as how to block ads on Chrome , how to install Chrome extensions , how to lock incognito tabs on Chrome mobile and how to block a website on Chrome . Of course, you'll also want to set a custom splash page for every time you open Chrome, so discover how to set a homepage in Google Chrome . If you're up for a little light gaming on your break, learn how to hack the Chrome dinosaur game . We also have plenty of other computing guides, so why not get started with how to open HEIC files on Windows . Want to find out where the image came from? Learn how to do a reverse image search using Google . Fancy talking to nobody? Learn how to use ChatGPT .

On top of our helpful tutorials, we also have a range of buying guides, crafted by product experts to help you make the right purchase. If you're looking to make a tech purchase soon, make sure you check out our guides to the best phones , best laptops and best tablets .

Dale Fox is a freelance journalist based in the UK. He's been a tech nerd ever since childhood, when he used the money from his first job as a paperboy to buy a subscription to GamesMaster magazine. Dale was previously a presenter and editor in China, where he also worked as a copywriter for OnePlus at its Shenzhen HQ.  

Android apps that open Chrome just got a new picture-in-picture feature

Gotta collect 'em all — Opera adds Gemini AI to its browser

ChatGPT-4o vs Gemini Pro 1.5 — 7 prompts to find the ultimate AI chatbot

Most Popular

• 2 Runway’s ‘better and faster’ Gen-3 AI video model is coming in the ‘next few days’
• 3 Forget the gym — build upper body strength with this 10-minute dumbbell workout
• 4 This AI-powered iPhone feature will identify flowers for you — and I'm hooked
• 5 YouTube is experimenting with Twitter-esque Community Notes

Technical How-tos, Tips, and Tricks

Unlocking the power of chrome flags: a guide to experimental features, what are chrome flags, how to access and use chrome flags, considerations and cautions, chrome beta: an alternative for testing new features, final thoughts.

Whether you’re a developer, a programmer, or simply a technology enthusiast, Chrome Flags lets you peek into the future of Google Chrome. Just remember to navigate this playground with an awareness of the risks involved.

Save on Samsung's tiny 512GB USB drive

Chrome Flags: What are they and how to enable them

advertisement

Why use Chrome Flags?

Again, Chrome flags are experimental, and yes, occasionally enabling a flag can result in a buggy user experience and even crashes. That said, no need to panic. Resetting finicky flags is relatively quick and easy. More on that in a minute. First, let’s look at why you’d want to enable a flag in the first place. Then, we’ll take a look at the ins and outs of using flags in Chrome and ChromeOS.

It was nearly a year and a half before the experimental flag became a full-fledged, baked-in feature for Chrome, and today, PiP is commonplace for embedded video content. This is but one of many features that are now part of the Chrome browser and operating system that began life as an experimental flag. Other features once hidden behind flags include ChromeOS dark mode UI, webcam support for screen recordings , live captions, and the list goes on and on. Long story short, enabling flags can give your Chrome browser or Chromebook superpowers and who knows, maybe even impress your coworkers.

How to enable Chrome flags

WARNING: EXPERIMENTAL FEATURES AHEAD! By enabling these features, you could lose browser data or compromise your security or privacy. Enabled features apply to all users of this browser. If you are an enterprise admin you should not be using these flags in production. chrome://flags

How to enable Chrome Flags Open Chrome Go to chrome://flags Search for the flag you want Flip drop-down to “enabled” Relaunch Chrome

The flags available to you will vary between Chrome and ChromeOS and will also look different depending on which version of Chrome you have. I stay in the Canary channel most of the time and therefore, see new flags weeks before stable builds of Chrome. My advice to you, if you are daring, is to fiddle around with different flags and see what you discover. Some flags are fairly self-explanatory while others are quite cryptic. You never know what they may actually do until you give them a try.

Join Chrome Unboxed Plus

Plus monthly, plus annual, our newsletters are also a great way to get connected. subscribe here, about gabriel brangers.

• Help Center
• Google Chrome
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Service
• Submit feedback

Test experimental features in Chrome

You can test features before they’re added to Chrome and give feedback.

Turn features on or off

To use experimental features, download Chrome Beta .

• Open Chrome.

• Restart your browser.

Give feedback on features

If you test any features, you can give feedback about:

• Your experience with the feature
• Issues or problems
• Suggested improvements

To give feedback:

• Next to the feature’s name and description, select Send Feedback .

To send general feedback about Chrome, learn more about how to report an issue or send feedback in Chrome .

Related resources

• Customize Chrome themes with AI
• Get started with Tab organizer in Chrome
• Try Experiments in Search Labs

Was this helpful?

How to Enable and Use Google Chrome Flags

By timothy tibbetts.

oTechWorld » Browsers Guide » Chrome Flags – How to Access, Enable, and List of Best Flags

Chrome Flags – How to Access, Enable, and List of Best Flags

You can enable and use flags in the Google Chrome browser on your PC (Windows, Mac, Chrome OS, and Linux) and Android. Here is how to access, enable, and use Chrome Flags for PC to get more features and enhance your browsing experience.

When it comes to the best web browser, Google Chrome is the first choice for most people. It comes with tons of features that give you an amazing browsing experience. Well, some of its features are hidden in flags and settings. Every tech geek loves to find and use hidden features.

No doubt, a Web Browser is a must-have software or app on a PC and smartphone to access the internet. The web browser allows us to access websites and web pages.

Google Chrome is one of the best, most popular, fast, most secure, and powerful browsers for PC and smartphone users.

Chrome app is pre-installed on Android devices, so you don’t need to install it manually from Play Store. Recently, I’ve also shared how to use Chrome flags on Android . You can’t use extensions on Android, that’s why flags are most useful for Smartphone users.

Well, all web browsers offer basic features for browsing. If you are a normal user, you don’t need advanced features.

On Chrome, you can extend the features by installing extensions from the store. But, what if you don’t want to install extensions? The web browser also has some features that are hidden from normal users. You cannot access some features directly from settings. You can simply enable and use flags.

What are Chrome Flags?

Chrome://flags  are experimental features that are under development. These features are not enabled by default, and you can’t find them from settings. Because these settings are completely hidden and can be accessible by typing chrome://flags in the Omnibox. This works on both Windows and Mac versions.

You can add additional features using flags that allow you to improve your browsing experience and performance.

However, in-development features are unstable. But, some stable flags are enabled by default.

Google added new features in the Chrome browser regularly, and developers continuously make changes in in-development features. That’s why flags (in-development features) may remove by developers at any time. Moreover, you can see the constant changes in it.

If you are a Chrome user, you should know that there are two ways to use these features before enabled for normal users. You can either use Chrome Beta or Chrome Flags.

You can download the beta version from www.google.com/chrome/beta/ . The beta version is updated weekly and you can preview new features. Moreover, you can give your feedback.

If you don’t want to install the Beta version and want to use new and experimental features in the normal and stable version, you can enable flags.

Note: Chrome flags are unstable and experimental features, thus affecting program functionality. You may need to compromise your security and privacy by enabling the flags. Also, you may lose (rare chances) your browsing data like history, cookies, and cache. Also, note that the browser may crash or shows some errors after enabling it. But, you can reset and disable the flags at any time.

Read Also –  Best Edge Flags

How to Enable Chrome Flags on Windows and Mac?

To enable the Chrome flags, you need to open the flags menu which is hidden by default. The steps are given below to open the menu. Also, note that the steps are the same for Chrome for Windows and Mac OS.

Steps to access the menu:

• Open Chrome browser on Windows or Mac machine.

• You’ll see the menu screen with the list of functions.

After opening the Menu, Chrome shows the Warning message “By enabling these features, you could lose browser data or compromise your security or privacy. Enabled features apply to all users of this browser.” on the top.

On the menu page, you’ll see the Available and Unavailable tabs. By default, the Available tab will be opened and shows the features that are available for your PC or platform. On the Unavailable tab, you‘ll see the features that are not available on your platform due to hardware or other limitations. You can’t enable anything from the unavailable tab.

Steps to Enable and Disable the Flags:

• After opening the menu, you’ll see the all functions that you can enable or disable.
• Find the feature/function by scrolling or searching.

• After selecting the Enabled or Disabled option, the browser shows the “Relaunch” button. Click on it to restart the browser to see the changes.

Now, you know to enable and disable these additional functions. Well, there are chances you face some problems. You can simply disable the enabled flag that causes the problem. But, in case you forget about which function you enable, then you need to reset the flags.

Open the menu and click on the “Reset All” button from the top right and relaunch the browser. This will reset all functions to their original and default state.

Best Chrome Flags to Enable on PC

You’ll see more than two hundred functions in the menu to extend Chrome functionality. You can find the best and most suitable functions for yourself. But, few functions are useful that everyone can use. So, the list is given below.

Let’s get started.

1. Enable Reader Mode

Nowadays most websites and web pages are loaded with a lot of ads and pop-ups. However, ads are necessary to run any website. But, too many ads and popups put disturbance while reading.  So, it may be hard to read the posts from an annoying web page.

So, you can view simplified web pages by enabling this function. On a simplified web page, there will not be any ads, pop up, or banners. Moreover, you can change the text color, background, and fonts. This will increase your reading experience.

#enable-reader-mode

2. Quieter notification permission prompts

Nowadays, every website and blog uses a web push notification service. When you open any web page, it prompts the notification dialog box to enable the service. If you’re fed up with the unwanted dialog box, you can use this function.

By Enabling Quieter notification permission prompts, the modal dialog is replaced with the quieter version for the website that wants to show notifications.

#quiet-notification-prompts

3. Show Autofill predictions

While filling out the web forms online, you need to enter your basic information again and again in the fields. However, browsers are smart enough to save your information while filling out the form, and the next time shows the prediction.

But, when you enable the Show Autofill predictions, it annotates the forms with autofill field type predictions as placeholder text.

So, it can autofill your name, phone number, email, address, and other details automatically. You just need to verify your information.

#show-autofill-type-predictions

4. Parallel downloading

Are you regularly download the files on your PC? Well, if yes, then you should enable this flag. This will increase and accelerate the download speed.

Most PC users use IDM (Internet Download Manager) app to accelerate the download speed. You may be happy to know that, this flag or function works as same as IDM.

It split or breaks down the single file into multiple chunks/parts and downloads all parts simultaneously. While downloading, all parts are saved temporarily. In the end, it joined the file into a single one.

#enable-parallel-downloading

5. Enable lazy image loading

This is the best function to save data or bandwidth. A single web page contains HTML, CSS files, JavaScript files, and images. By default, when you open any web page, the browser loads all files from the server. Well, images use more bandwidth, if a web page contains more images.

So, Enable lazy image loading function defers the offscreen images until the page scrolls down to the near them. The browser loads the images when you scroll.

It helps to increase the web page load speed and save your data. It also helps to reduce the server load.

Nowadays, most of the blogs and websites enabled this feature from the server end. But, you can enable this feature for all websites from your Chrome browser.

#enable-lazy-image-loading

6. Heavy Ad Intervention

Showing ads is the most common way of generating revenue from websites. But, if the website/web page shows a lot of ads, it affects the user browsing experience.

A web page with heavy ads takes more time to load and uses too many PC resources. That’s why you may see lag while scrolling.

So, you can use the Heavy Ad Intervention function to unload the ads that use too many PC resources. This will help to improve your browsing experience.

Note that, the function doesn’t unload all ads. It just unloads the ads that eat up too many resources. However, you can install extensions to block the ads.

#enable-heavy-ad-intervention

7. AutoDark Mode for Web Contents

Now using Auto Dark Mode for Web Contents flag, you can render all web contents using a dark theme. So, you can view the web pages in the dark theme.

You can also change the browser theme color from the appearance settings. But, this function is different. The browser theme changes the UI color. But, this function changes the web content theme.

It helps to reduce eye strain while reading the content at night on a PC. You can also enable “Web Platform Controls Dark Mode” to render forms controls and scrollbars with a dark theme.

#enable-force-dark

8. Read Later

Read Later enables the new functionality of the browser. By default, you can save a tab or link by bookmarking the page. But, it allows you to save tabs for later.

After enabling, a new button and menu will be added to Chrome. You can save any tab by clicking on the Read Later button. Also, you can access your saved tabs from the menu.

#read-later

9. Enable sharing page via QR Code

You can easily share web page URLs on the internet. But, it is difficult to share long URLs on newspapers, posters, or anywhere else from where users need to type the URL manually.

So, you can use the “Enable sharing page via QR Code” function to generate a QR code to share the web page URL. You can download the QR code and send it to anyone or print it on paper.

The user can open the URL by scanning the QR code from a Smartphone or PC.

#sharing-qr-code-generator

10. Latest stable JavaScript features

Mostly all websites use JavaScript. It is a programming language that makes web pages interactive and allows to add of more functionality.

Some websites use legacy or non-standard JS extensions that conflict with the latest JS. This function disables the support of non-standard JavaScript and enables new and stable JS features.

#disable-javascript-harmony-shipping

11. NoScript Previews

A normal web page contains many files i.e. HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, and others. Corrupted & poorly coded JavaScript files, or on a slow internet can affect your experience. The browser may lag or crash due to faulty JS.

So, if you have a slow internet connection or think that the website uses malicious JavaScript, you can enable “NoScript Previews” to turn off or disable the JavaScript on some web pages.

#enable-noscript-previews

12. Smooth Scrolling

A web page can lag while scrolling due to many reasons. When you open a web page that holds too much content, you may face a scroll lag issue.

If you face any issue while scrolling page content, you should enable a smooth scrolling function or flag. It gives you a smooth scrolling experience.

#smooth-scrolling

13. Run Video Capture Service in Browser

By enabling this flag, you can run a video capture service in the browser using API. So, you can record videos in a browser.

The capture service will run in the Chrome browser services. You can see the service in the task manager by pressing Shift + Esc from the keyboard. The function is available only for Windows platforms.

#run-video-capture-service-in-browser

14. Previews Allowed

On the internet, links with false anchor text may lead you to malicious websites. Previews Allowed functions can prevent you from clicking on those links.

Well, after enabling it, you’ll see the web page thumbnail when you hover the mouse on the link. However, it may consume your data but prevent you from going to the wrong page.

The function can also be used as a kill switch to turn off all preview types.

#allow-previews

15. Hardware-accelerated Video

You can see the high CPU usage in the task manager when you play the video and play the games on the web. You can reduce CPU usage by enabling the Hardware-accelerated Video function. This will also reduce the CPU power.

This flag forces the Graphic/Video card to encode or decode the video. You can enable/disable the function separately for both encode or decode the video. Well, both functions increase the encoding and decoding performance in H.264 AVC and HEVC codecs.

#disable-accelerated-video-decode

#disable-accelerated-video-encode

16. Fill Passwords on Account selection

This will enable filling the passwords when the account is selected by the user rather than auto-filling credential on page load.

This will help you when you use multiple accounts for the same website or service. You can select the account for login. After selecting the account, the browser fills in the password automatically.

#fill-on-account-select

17. Password Import

Google Chrome already offered export password functionality. But, if you want to import the passwords from other services, you need to enable Password Import.

If you came from another web browser, at first, you may need to import your existing passwords. So, with this function, you can add your existing password to Chrome safely.

After enabling, open Settings > Passwords > More options (three dots) from the saved password, and open the “Import Password” option from the context menu.

#PasswordImport

18. Treat risky downloads over insecure connections

If your PC is used by someone who doesn’t have much knowledge about the internet, you can use the “Treat risky downloads over insecure connections as active mixed content” function. This will prevent downloads of unsafe files.

Unsafe files are those files that can execute and may be harmful to your device. It also blocks downloads from an insecure origin.

Nowadays, it is common that some websites to show pop-ups and force us to download malicious software. Some people accidentally click on the download button and malicious software can run automatically.

#treat-unsafe-downloads-as-active-content

19. Tab Groups

While browsing and working online, everyone opens multiple tabs in the browser. For some users, it may hard to find a specific tab. So, the Tab Group flag can solve your problem.

It allows us to organize tabs into visually distinct groups, and we can set a specific color for each group.

You can also use Tab Groups Auto-Create, Collapse, and Collapse Freezing functions. Auto-create automatically creates groups for users. And Collapse allows a tab group to be collapsible and expandable.

#tab-groups

20. Tab Hover Cards

By default, Chrome uses a tooltip for tabs. When you open multiple tabs, you can’t see the tab titles. You need to hover the mouse on any tab and Chrome shows the tooltip with the web page title.

Tab Hover Cards replace tooltips for tabs and show the popup cards with tab information when you hover the mouse on the tabs.

You can also enable “Tab Hover Card Images” to see the preview image in the tab hover cards.

#tab-hover-cards

21. Pull-to-refresh Gesture

Well, the Pull-to-refresh gesture is most commonly used on smartphones while browsing the internet. Now it comes to Laptop users.

Now you can refresh or reload the web page by swiping down on the trackpad.

#pull-to-refresh

22. Enable Media Feeds

Some websites offer media feed features and recommend videos to the users. Now the feature is also offered by Chrome browser too. So, you can enable the media feeds option to fetch the media feeds from websites that provided this feature.

You can also fetch the feeds in the background also.

#enable-media-feeds

23. Edit Passwords in Settings

Google allows you to keep your passwords safe in your Google account. You can access and make the changes in your password by opening the passwords.google.com URL.

This flag allows you to edit the passwords directly in Chrome settings. You must be logged in to your Google account to use this feature.

So, you don’t need to open the passwords.google.com URL to make the changes in passwords.

#edit-passwords-in-settings

24. Enable Media History

By default, Chrome stores browsing history. This will help you to find the web pages you opened recently.

If you regularly play multimedia files (music, podcasts, and videos), you can use the Enable Media History function. This will record your media playbacks.

So, you can see the history of media files played on the browser anytime.

#media-history

25. Passwords weakness check

When it comes to online security, passwords are the most important thing. Weak passwords lead to security risks and are guessed by executing a brute-force attack. So, you always need to use a strong password.

This function enables checking passwords for weaknesses. After enabling this function, go to Settings > Passwords and click on the check passwords. Chrome will warn you if any weak passwords are found.

#passwords-weakness-check

26. Enable Incognito Desktop Shortcut

Incognito mode allows you to browse privately. Chrome won’t save your browsing history, cookies, site data, and the information you entered in forms.

By default, you can open a new incognito window on Chrome by pressing Ctrl + Shift + N or by clicking on the three dots (Customize and control Google Chrome) from the top right of the window.

With this Chrome flag, you can create the shortcut to open an incognito window directly.

#enable-incognito-shortcut-on-desktop

27. Use the Windows OS spell checker

Windows 10 OS offers language packs and you can add/install any language from the settings. Each language pack comes with a spell-checker tool.

Now, you can enable and use the Windows OS spell checker tool in Chrome. Currently, the feature is in the testing phase, but, you can use it by enabling it from Chrome flags.

#win-use-native-spellchecker

28. Treat Force color profile

This function forces the Google Chrome browser to use a specific color profile. It prevents the color specified by the OS and current monitor.

The available color profile are – sRGB, Display P3 D65, Color spin with gamma 2.4, scRGB Linear (HDR where available), and HDR10 (HDR where available). Note that, after selecting the profile, you’ll see all web pages in the selected color profile.

#force-color-profile

29. PDF Viewer Update

Chrome browser comes with an inbuilt PDF viewer. However, there are limited features in it, but, you can add more by updating it.

To use the updated viewer version, you need to enable the PDF Viewer Update function. After that, you’ll see the new updated UI, features, and options in the inbuilt PDF Viewer.

#pdf-viewer-update

30. Copy Link To Text

This is an amazing feature by Chrome. Now you can copy a link to the page with the selected highlighted text. Now, you don’t need to install any extension to use this feature.

When you enable the Copy Link to Text, you’ll see the new option in the right-click context menu. After that, when you select the text and click on the option, the link will be copied.

So, when the recipient or you open the link, the browser will scroll the selected text and highlight it in view.

#copy-link-to-text

31. Experimental QUIC protocol

Chrome Flag QUIC (Quick UDP Internet Connection) is an experimental and new encrypted transport layer network protocol. It supports set multiplexed connections over UDP.

It is a low-latency transportation protocol that makes HTTP traffic faster. So, you can increase your browsing speed.

#enable-quic

32. Global Media Controls

You can add global media controls UI on the toolbar to control the media playback and allows you to play, pause, forward, backward, and change track options. The modern UI is also rolled out by Google.

You can also use media controls cast and picture-in-picture. You’ll see the controls on the top right of the browser.

#global-media-controls-modern-ui

Chrome Settings Vs Chrome Flags

Chrome settings and Chrome flags are different. Settings allow the users to customize the browser features. On the other hand, Flags allow the users to activate or deactivate experimental features.

You can access the Chrome settings by type chrome://settings/ URL in Omnibox. Alternatively, click on the Customise and control Google Chrome (three dots) icon from the top right of the browser and select Settings option from the list.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is it safe to use Chrome Flags?

Well, flags are safe to use, but you could lose your browsing data. You may face some errors because these features are under-development. If you are worried about your privacy and security, stay away from that.

2. I forgot flags enabled by me, what to do?

Enabled too many flags may lead to unexpected errors. So, you need to disable all features enabled by you. You can reset all flags at once. Open Chrome://flags and click on the Reset All button. That’s it.

3. Are some features affect performance?

Yes, some experimental features can decrease browser performance. For example, you can see the lag by turning on the force color profile.

Final Words

Now you know the best Chrome Flags to enable . Official beta and experimental features are added in flags. But, you can also try the Beta Version to get more under-development features.

Well, you know that you can add additional functionality to Chrome with extensions and flags. There are more than two hundred flags available on the menu. I’ve listed the best 30 that you can try.

Also, note that these features are not stable. Chrome developers team regularly make changes in all experimental features. That’s why you can see frequent changes in the menu. You may face some errors after enabling too many functions. But, the reset option will help to solve your problem.

Popular on OTW Right Now!

my google screen is invisible after using forced colors, have to access this site via bing. tried uninstalling and reinstalling but still invisible. how do I fix this? thanks

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Address: *

• Privacy Policy

Everything you need to know about Chrome's flags

WARNING: Experimental Features Ahead!

One of the cool things about Chrome is that we're able to play with experimental features. That means we can install beta or even alpha versions, but we can also try some of the truly experimental things that haven't been included on even the most alpha of alpha builds through what are called "flags."

Let's have a look at what they are, and how to get started breaking things.

What are Chrome Flags?

Flags are experimental features, as well as features most users will not need that are buried in a place where they won't be accidentally enabled.

Some are features Google is working on implementing, some are just things being tested to know if it even should work on making a stable feature, and some are there because some obscure use case means there needs to be a way to do a thing.

Experimental things are cool when they are cool, but not so much when they aren't.

Flags can improve your experience using Chrome or make it worse — that's how things go with anything still in its experimental phase. They can also let you have access to content that you wouldn't normally be able to see or use, like VR websites or features in other Google products like YouTube that aren't quite yet ready for the general public.

They can also change the way Chrome itself runs by changing settings for hardware acceleration or memory management, which can lead to problems. These problems can be simple and solved by reverting a setting, or made significantly worse. I've never heard of someone ruining a computer by changing a Flag, but there's a first time for everything, so you need to be careful.

Most people probably aren't interested in changing any Chrome Flags, and that's probably for the best. But if you're the type who can't leave well enough alone, Chrome has you covered.

Be an expert in 5 minutes

Get the latest news from Android Central, your trusted companion in the world of Android

How to access Chrome's Flags

To change any Flags , you need to know where they are. They aren't exactly out in the open, but thankfully they also aren't hard to uncover. Whether you are using one of the best Chromebooks , Chrome on another computer, or even Chrome on your phone, you get to them the same way.

• In the Omnibox (Chrome's address bar) on a blank tab, type the following: chrome://flags/

You'll be greeted with a message warning you that these can be experimental settings, and that things can go horribly wrong. It's true — you can make Chrome unusable if you change the wrong thing, and you can do worse things, too. This is more than Google covering themselves in case you break something, and it's a warning you should pay attention to.

At the top of the page, you'll see a search box where you can look for a specific Flag that someone or a website might have told you about. Google is pretty good at search.

You'll also see a list of the Flags themselves. Each entry has a short description of what the setting changes, a button to enable or disable the Flag, and a hyperlink so that you can get to that flag through the Omnibox without searching. Such as chrome://flags/#enable-parallel-downloading which takes you to the Flag that makes it so Chrome will download multiple files at the same time as opposed to just one by one. This is a good example of a Flag that won't harm anything if you want to try it.

There's always a way to go back unless you change a Flag that takes the reset button away.

To change a Flag, click or tap the button in its listing. You'll see three choices: Default, Enable and Disable. Enable and Disable are simple enough to understand, but Default may throw you. it simply means that you want the setting to go back to whatever it was before you started changing things. it's handy because it means you don't have to remember if you enabled it or disabled it.

The most important button is at the very top of the page next to the search box: Reset all to default. That's your get-out-of-jail-free card, and as long as you can still start Chrome and get to it, you'll be able to go back to where you were before you broke anything.

Some helpful flags to try out

You might have landed on this page with the hope of seeing what different flags you should try. As we've reiterated throughout this post, not all flags are the same, and unless you know what you're doing, you might want to just avoid messing with them altogether. 

But we've compiled a list of some flags that could help improve your Chrome browsing experience. Just as a reminder, while you can access Chrome Flags from a Chromebook, the best Android phones , or the Chrome browser on your computer, it doesn't mean that enabling a flag will actually work. It's also important to know that some flags you see mentioned online aren't available, while others are limited to the version of Chrome you are using (stable, beta, dev, canary). 

• chrome://flags#enable-parallel-downloading - Enable parallel downloading to accelerate download speed.
• chrome://flags/#show-autofill-type-predictions - Annotates web forms with Autofill field type predictions as placeholder text.
• chrome://flags/#enable-gpu-rasterization - Use GPU to rasterize web content.
• chrome://flags/#enable-reader-mode - Allows viewing of simplified web pages by selecting 'Customize and control Chrome'>'Distill page'.
• chrome://flags/#smooth-scrolling - Animate smoothly when scrolling page content.

While it's possible to go through and enable a bunch of flags at the same time before hitting the Relaunch button, we don't recommend doing so. Instead, make sure you hit the button after enabling each flag, just to ensure that Chrome loads properly and the feature you enabled actually works. Otherwise, you could end up with a broken experience until you go through and reset everything.

Should you change any Flags?

Ahh. That's the meat of it all, isn't it? These experimental things are right there, and we get to try them as we please, knowing the risks involved. As long as you understand those risks — you could lose browser data or compromise your security or privacy — there's nothing wrong with trying things.

You'll see tips about changing Flags online whenever someone finds a good one, but you probably shouldn't just start jamming on buttons just because you can. An example of a Flag you might have heard about was the QUIC Flag — chrome://flags/#enable-quic . QUIC is Google's experimental protocol, and it stands for Quick UDP Internet Connection .

Its goal is to provide secure web browsing faster than the existing TLS/SSL protocols and in some ways, it's pretty good. One way that it isn't so good is that most Mitmproxy servers are unable to filter websites that serve you pages using QUIC. If you need to use a mitmproxy (you would know if you did) you can disable the QUIC Flag so it's never used and every site serves you using TSL/SSL.

Never change a Flag for something you don't understand. Trust me, because I push buttons before I read them.

Of course, there are a lot of other Flags that can make everything worse, which are the ones you need to look out for. I'm not going to start talking about the ones I've tried and made everything worse other than to say Web Assembly Flags will break your browser, and NaCI plugin Flags are things you should know what they are before you just press buttons. Trust a person who just pushed buttons and was sorry.

Jerry is an amateur woodworker and struggling shade tree mechanic. There's nothing he can't take apart, but many things he can't reassemble. You'll find him writing and speaking his loud opinion on Android Central and occasionally on Twitter .

• Andrew Myrick Senior Editor - Chromebooks and tablets

Chromebooks are borrowing tech from Android to unlock even more AI features

Now's the best time to ditch Windows and switch to Chromebooks

The next Motorola Razr foldables will launch very soon in the US

Most Popular

• 2 Walmart is kicking off its own version of Prime Day — top deals and how to sign up for free
• 3 Ask Jerry: Can my phone give me cancer?
• 4 Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra design leaks along with its hefty price
• 5 Qualcomm admits the ‘new’ Snapdragon 6s Gen 3 is really from 2021, and that’s a problem

Search results for

Affiliate links on Android Authority may earn us a commission. Learn more.

Here are 12 Chrome Flags that will improve your web-browsing experience

Published on March 12, 2024

Chrome is known for its simplicity and speed. Despite this, there are a lot of extra tools under the hood. This includes several experimental features that can be accessed through special Chrome Flags.

Considering these are all test features that might not even make it to the stable version of Chrome, bugs are expected. Nonetheless, if you are willing to go through the occasional hiccup, some enable an improved browsing experience. Let’s take a look at some of our favorites.

What is a Chrome Flag?

Chrome Flags are experimental features Google hasn’t released yet, but you can access and try. Just remember these aren’t ready for an official release just yet. This means they may not work very well all of the time. You may encounter the occasional hiccup, bug, or crash.

How do you access Chrome Flags settings?

No matter how much you dig into menus and options, you won’t find them in the settings unless you know how to access this section. You need to know your way in!

How to access the Chrome Flags page:

• Open Chrome .
• Click on the address and delete any URL that might be in it.
• Type the following in the address bar: “chrome://flags/” (without quotation marks).
• Press Enter .
• You are in!

By the way, these steps work both on mobile and desktop. That said, not all Chrome Flags are available for all platforms. There are two primary tabs on the page: Available and Unavailable. Some of these experimental features are only available on specific devices. You can’t use features made for Android on devices like a laptop, for example.

How to enable a Chrome Flag:

• Once you find yourself within the page, go ahead and search for the Chrome Flag you want to try out.
• Select the drop-down menu under the Flag you want to use. It usually reads either Default or Disabled .
• Select Enabled .
• You’ll need to relaunch Chrome most of the time. Hit Relaunc h if the option shows up.

Note: These instructions were assembled using a Google Pixel 7 running Android 14. These steps are identical across all Chrome browsers, though. The same steps will work on desktop and iOS.

Are Chrome Flags safe?

Once in the Chrome Flags settings, you will see a warning message telling you about the dangers of using them. This is because experimental features can cause issues and hiccups in the browser. They are usually not too unstable, but some can be. Regardless, you can easily disable them.

How to disable Chrome Flags:

• Access the Chrome Flags settings as directed in the previous section.
• Find the experimental Chrome Flag you want to disable.
• Select the drop-down menu and select Disabled .
• Alternatively, you can press the button in the top-right corner that says Reset all to deactivate all of them.
• You’ll need to relaunch Chrome most of the time. Hit Relaunch if the option shows up.

The best Chrome Flags

Smooth scrolling, touch ui layout.

• QUIC Protocol
• Zero-copy rasterizer
• Force Dark Mode
• Parallel Downloading

Show autofill predictions

Live caption.

• GPU rasterization

Chrome Refresh 2023

Override software rendering list, partial swap.

Editor’s note: We’ll regularly update this list with new Chrome Flags. All instructions moving forward were put together using a custom PC running Windows 11 and Chrome version 122.0.6261.129, unless otherwise specified.

Ever notice your scrolling stutter or that it can get a bit sluggish? There could be many reasons it’s happening, but this Chrome Flag will likely improve the situation. Search for “Smooth Scrolling” in the search bar and enable the feature. It’s a great feature Android users should enable, but you can also use it on Windows, Linux, and Chrome OS.

Many convertible laptops, Windows tablets, and other devices now come with capable touch screens. This makes it possible to interact with content more naturally. Sometimes, the desktop interface doesn’t work well with touch commands, though. The browser has a touch-optimized UI hidden in the Chrome Flags.

In the search bar, search for “Touch UI Layout.” Click on the drop-down menu next to it and select Enabled .

Experimental QUIC Protocol

Certain Chrome Flags speed up your browsing experience. QUIC is Google’s protocol, and it’s designed to make the web faster. Enabling this one will speed things up, but only when websites have been optimized for it. Something is better than nothing, though!

On the main page, search for “Experimental QUIC Protocol.” Click on the drop-down menu next to it and select Enabled .

Enable Zero-copy rasterizer

If you want Chrome’s general performance to be faster, one neat trick is to enable Zero-copy rasterizer. This will allow Chrome threads to write directly to the GPU for tile management. In turn, Chrome should operate faster, at least theoretically. Whether you’ll actually notice a difference is another story. Also, it makes Chrome more prone to crashes. You can definitely give it a try, though.

Search for “Zero-copy rasterizer” and enable it in the drop-down Chrome Flags menu.

Auto Dark Mode for Web Contents

Dark Mode is pretty cool, both aesthetically and for eye comfort reasons . If you are also a fan of it, you want all website content to support it. Sadly, not all websites cooperate, but a secondary option forces the option on all websites.

Open the Chrome Flags page and search for “Auto Dark Mode for Web Contents.” Enable the feature through the drop-down menu next to it.

Parallel Downloading Chrome Flag

Waiting for large files to download can be a hassle. Let’s cut delays by dividing downloads into multiple files to be downloaded simultaneously.

Search for “Parallel Downloading” and enable the feature using the drop-down menu to the right.

Nobody likes filling out forms, so Google simplifies this process using autofill. Still annoying? You can automatically have Chrome autofill form information by enabling the “Show autofill predictions” feature.

Search for “Show Autofill Predictions” and enable the feature using the drop-down menu to the right.

Some video players and websites offer captions, but this isn’t a universal feature. Those who want transcripts for all recognized words in media can use the Live Caption Chrome Flag.

Search for “Live Caption” and enable it.

GPU Rasterization

Is Chrome simply not fast enough for you? We know how you can harness the full power of your computer to speed things up. There’s a trick, though; you need to have a dedicated GPU for this one to make any improvements to Chrome’s performance. GPU Rasterization allows Chrome to take some of the workload off the CPU and have your GPU take care of it.

Here’s how to do it. Search for “GPU rasterization” and enable the feature using the drop-down menu.

Chrome is starting to look a bit outdated, right? Everything is kind of square and dull. If you want a more modern design, go into the Chrome Flags and enable “Chrome Refresh 2023.” The new design hasn’t been pushed out to all users, but Google has been working on it. It resembles Material You, with more colorful and playful hues and rounded corners. Additionally, it will feel better on touchscreen devices, as Material You is a mobile-focused design language.

GPU acceleration on Chrome is usually only available for supported devices. But, of course, there is a Chrome Flag for nearly everything. You can force Chrome to use GPU acceleration, even on unsupported devices. Just be warned that this may cause compatibility issues, as systems are often not supported for a reason.

Just look for “Override software rendering list” and enable the Chrome Flag.

Partial Swap improves memory management, and can supercharge your browser’s performance. It basically swaps memory usage, prioritizing tabs and tasks you are using at the moment. The thing is, this can also cause issues from time to time.

Partial swap comes enabled by default, so search for “Partial swap” to disable it. Or, if it’s disabled, you can try to enable it and see if it helps.

Using Chrome Flags is safe, but it can make your experience a bit buggy. The team also warns you could lose data and compromise privacy. This is just Google being careful, though. The worst that can usually happen is that you’ll need to relaunch Chrome and turn off the Chrome Flags, if anything goes wrong.

Chrome Flags are experimental features the Google team is testing. The team will make these official Chrome features once they are in good working order, if they are deemed worthy. This isn’t always the case, though. Additionally, Chrome Flags are often killed.

You can use Chrome Flags on both mobile and desktop browsers, but not all Chrome lags are available on every device. Some are desktop or mobile-specific. However, Chrome will separate unavailable Flags and put them into the Unavailable tab.

You might like

Press ESC to close

Or check our popular categories....

How to Enable and Disable Google Chrome Flags

Google Chrome has several hidden features and experiments that can be enabled using special flags. These flags allow you to test upcoming features or tweak Chrome’s behavior. Enabling or disabling flags can help improve Chrome’s performance, accessibility, security, and more. Here’s a guide on how to enable and disable Google Chrome flags:

Key Takeaways

• Chrome flags are hidden experimental features that let you test upcoming additions to the browser.
• To enable a flag, go to chrome://flags, set it to “Enabled,” and restart Chrome. Disable flags by setting them back to “Default.”
• Valid flags include tab hover previews, scrollable tab strips, dark mode, and reader mode. Avoid too many flags at once.
• Flags can introduce bugs or instability, so don’t rely on them for mission-critical browsing. Disable any problematic flags.
• You can back up enabled flags or sync settings across devices. Resetting flags gets Chrome back to a stable default state.

What are Google Chrome Flags?

Chrome flags are experimental features under development but not yet ready for prime time. They allow developers and early adopters to test-drive new functionality. Flags can enable useful new tools or optimizations but may also have bugs or stability issues since they haven’t completed testing.

Flags are “hidden” because they are unavailable in Chrome by default. You have to enable them to turn on their functionality specifically. Once enabled, flags will remain active until you disable them or do a clean reinstallation of Chrome.

How to Open Chrome Flags?

To open the flags page:

Open Google Chrome.

Type chrome://flags into the Omnibox and hit Enter. This will open the “Experiments” page.

The flags page lists available experimental features you can enable or disable.

How to Enable a Flag?

To enable an experimental flag:

Find the flag you want to test. You can explore or scroll through the list.

Next to the flag, click the dropdown box and select “Enabled.”

Restart Google Chrome by closing all tabs and windows. This will activate the flag. Test the experimental feature. Provide feedback if possible.

For example, to enable tab hovering, find the “Tab Hover Cards” flag, set it to Enabled, and restart Chrome. Now, you can hover over a tab to preview the page.

How to Disable Flags?

To turn off a flag:

Go back to chrome://flags.

Change the dropdown box from “Enabled” to “Default” or “Disabled.”

Restart the Chrome browser. The flag should be deactivated. Make sure to disable non-functioning or problematic flags. Leaving them on may cause issues.

Resettings Google Chrome Flags

To reset flags to their default settings:

Click the “Reset all to default” link at the bottom of the flags page.

Confirm you want to reset the flags. Relaunch Chrome.

Resetting removes any customizations and restores flags to their default state.

Useful Flags to Enable

There are some cool and valuable flags you can try out in Chrome. One is Tab Hover Cards, which allows you to preview tabs by hovering over them. Another is the Scrollable tab strip, which lets you scroll through open tabs horizontally.

Chrome also has flags for Touch Screen overlays that improve touch controls, Dark mode that enables a black UI theme, Reader mode that simplifies web pages for distraction-free reading, and Quieter audio muting that mutes tabs even when not the active tab. 

Flags can let you customize and optimize your Chrome browsing experience, but use them judiciously.

When to Avoid Using Flags

Sometimes, it is best to avoid enabling experimental flags in Chrome. If you need stability more than early access to new features, it is wise not to risk bugs from unfinished flags and instead stick to the stable Chrome build.

On shared or work devices, experimental features enabled through flags may get turned on accidentally, so keeping flags at default prevents confusion. If you are uncomfortable tinkering with browser settings, unused flags are best left disabled, as changing defaults unnecessarily increases the chance of issues arising. 

Chrome OS devices used in schools or businesses should generally not activate flags, as admins need consistency across the machines relying on Chrome. Before big presentations, interviews, travel , or other significant events, when you want reliability, it is best to use a normal Chrome build without flags enabled – experimental features can wait for less critical times. 

If you prioritize having a smooth, predictable browsing experience, minimizing flags is a wise approach. However, they do provide early access for those comfortable testing new features.

Backing Up Google Chrome Flags

If you have enabled several flags to customize Chrome’s behavior, it can be hard to remember your settings if you need to reset or reinstall the browser.

Back up your list of enabled flags to avoid losing your flag setup. One way is to manually copy or screenshot the chrome://flags page to note the active flags. You can also right-click on the flags page and save it as an HTML file to store and refer back to later.

Some extensions, like ChFlags , can export your enabled flags as a file for safekeeping. Another option is to sync Chrome settings via your Google account, which retains flag statuses across devices and reinstalls.

With a backup of your flags on hand through one of these methods, you can easily replicate your flag setup if needed after resetting Chrome. Taking a few minutes to back up your enabled experimental flags will give you peace of mind that you can restore your custom Chrome configuration.

Crazy Facts

• A flag called “Force Dark Mode” will force dark mode on every website, even ones that don’t support it natively. It’s excellent for night browsing but can make some sites hard to read.
• Enabling the “Tab Grid Layout” flag makes Chrome display open tabs in a grid layout instead of a single row. It’s handy for tab hoarders but easy to get lost.
• The “Read Later” flag adds a new right-click option to save tabs for reading offline later. It’s great for catching up on articles, but it’s buggy.
• Turning on “Maximum Zoom” removes the default zoom limit so sites can be zoomed 5000% or more. Extremely impractical but fun for wasting time.
• There’s an option to make Chrome super lightweight via the “Chromium Diet” flag. It disables non-essential features and resources – speedy but barebones.

Chrome flags allow you to trial-run new features before they get officially launched. Enable them with care and reboot Chrome to start testing. Make sure to disable flags that cause problems or are no longer needed.

Resetting flags gets Chrome back to a clean, stable state. With some prudent experimentation, flags can give you early access to tools that boost your browsing experience.

FAQs about Enable and Disable Google Chrome Flags

Do flags drain the battery or slow down chrome.

In most cases, no. Flags are designed to have minimal impact on Chrome’s performance. However, some experimental features may use more resources. Monitor any change after enabling a flag. Disable it if Chrome seems sluggish.

Will flags alter my browser data or settings?

Flags are isolated from your browsing data and should not affect saved settings, bookmarks, history, etc. However, some flags may change Chrome’s appearance or defaults.

I hope you enjoy our article. Do check out more of our  amazing articles .

Categorized in:

About the Author

As a passionate educator, I unravel the complexities of learning and share insights to inspire curiosity. Join me on this journey of knowledge and discovery, where every post is a step toward a more enlightened mind. Let's embark on a transformative educational adventure together! 🌍✨

Check latest articles from this author:

Mastering microsoft teams whiteboard: tips & tricks, planning & creativity: top 12 comic ideas to consider, grammarflip: personal grammar and writing solution, leave a reply cancel reply.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Related Articles

Gentle rejection: how to tell someone they didn’t get the job, how to fix pitted chrome wheels | a detailed guide, how to reboot centurylink modem: a quick step-by-step guide, how to reboot snapchat on android and iphone, previous article, guide to waterfall quest osrs, next article, how to find your wifi password on windows 10.

Chrome Flags: what they are, and how to use them for better web browsing

Boost your browser with experimental features

Chrome Flags are experimental features that aren't yet part of the browser by default, but can be enabled with a couple of clicks. They're simple to use and can transform the way you browse the web.

To access the Flags menu, type chrome://flags into the address bar and hit Enter. Here, you'll see a long list of options, each of which has a drop-down menu that can be set to Default, Enabled or Disabled. There are lots of them, so the best way to find the one you want is to hit Ctrl+F and search for it.

Once you've enabled a Flag, you'll be prompted to re-launch your browser to activate it. This will close and re-open all your current browser windows, so make sure you've saved anything you're working on.

The tools here are still in testing, and aren't necessarily stable. There's also a possibility, however small, of security issues. If that's something you can live with, there are some real gems on offer. Here's our pick of the best...

1. Picture-in-picture video

Many of the big browsers are starting to experiment with picture-in-picture video, and you can enable it in Chrome right now by activating the flags #enable-surfaces-for-videos and #enable-picture-in-picture.

With these enabled, you can right-click twice on a YouTube video and select 'Picture-in-Picture' to make it pop out in its own little window. You can drag this around your screen anywhere - even outside your browser.

2. Show autofill predictions

Unless you've disabled it, Chrome will store data like addresses that you often enter in forms, and offer to autofill it for you. With the Flag #show-autofill-type-predictions activated, such forms will be pre-filled automatically, saving you a few valuable seconds. Handy!

Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox

Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.

3. Automatically reload offline tabs

Your Wi-Fi connection has dropped and all your tabs need to be reloaded. Normally you'd have to go through clicking each one to make that happen, but with #enable-offline-auto-reload enabled, all your open tabs will be reloaded automatically when you're back online.

4. Show saved copy button

You now the feeling – you need some information from a webpage that you've visited before, but now the page is gone.

Worry not, with this Flag enabled, you won;t have to resort to trawling through the Internet Archive for a copy of the missing page. If it's been cached by your browser, you'll be presented with a button offering to load that 'stale' saved copy instead. Look for #show-saved-copy and turn it on.

5. Lazy image loading

A particularly useful feature for viewing photo-heavy sites on mobile devices, the Flag #enable-lazy-image-loading speeds up page loads by not loading pictures until you've scrolled down far enough to see them.

• Check out our ultimate guide to the best web browsers

Cat is the editor of TechRadar's sister site Advnture. She’s a UK Athletics qualified run leader, and in her spare time enjoys nothing more than lacing up her shoes and hitting the roads and trails (the muddier, the better)

Microsoft could be bringing more AI to the Edge browser - this time with website suggestions

Chrome on Android just got a time-saving feature that you’ll definitely want to use

Sonos updates its iOS and Android app again, but some key features are still missing

Most Popular

• 2 IKEA solves your charging headaches with its new cheap, colorful USB-C accessories
• 3 7 new movies and TV shows to watch on Netflix, Prime Video, Max, and more this weekend (June 14)
• 4 Truist Bank confirms data breach after stolen data appears online
• 5 I tested a premium and budget mini-LED 4K TV side-by-side – here are the real-world differences
• 2 ChatGPT has caused a massive drop in demand for online digital freelancers — here is what you can do to protect yourself
• 3 Mini PC newcomer takes market by storm with socketable CPU — and, surprise, surprise, a mysterious direct PCIe connection, that's faster than Thunderbolt 4 and no, it's not OCuLink
• 4 Instagram is tagging real photos as 'Made with AI' – and photographers aren't happy
• 5 A walking expert says walking 10,000 steps a day is 'irrelevant' if you’re not doing this one thing

• Skip to main content
• Skip to primary sidebar
• Skip to footer

Thetechhacker

Simplify your tech life.

Rahul Vithala / Jan 11, 2019

What are Chrome Flags? How to use Them for Better Browsing Experience?

Chrome Browser: A powerful name in the browsers and one of the best product from Google. Google Chrome is fully power packed browser with exclusive Google features enabled. Features like easy search including voice and manual type, Incognito browsing , tabs support, easy history management, vast support of extensions and much more.

Wait, that’s not over. Google Chrome has more secret features than you think.

Yes, pretty interesting secret features you are not aware of.

These secret features are called as Chrome flags .

What are Chrome flags?

Chrome flags are experimental features from developers which are available for public but not officially launched in consumer build.

Chrome flags offer most advanced features and customizations which are under development and testing. Most flags unstable and they may crash your browser.

Sounds interesting? Are you ready to get the most interesting experience from Chrome Browser?

For those people who are ready to get hands on the Chrome flags, this article is for you.

This article covers Chrome flags usage, best chrome flags for regular users and developers list and many more.

Before going to start, read this clear note from Google.

How to enable Chrome Flags?

As I said above, Chrome flags are most unstable and it may crash your browser. If any flag you enabled crash the settings and data you can reset it. But this thing can delete all your Chrome related data and settings permanently.

So, these are the warnings before enabling a Chrome flag.

As you now aware of flags, here are the steps to enable them.

1. Open Google Chrome and type the following in the search bar .

chrome://flags/” or “about://flags/”

When you hit enter after typing the above command, you will see a complete Chrome flags list. In that list, some flags are useful for everyone and some are designed for developing purposes. You can check the description below the every Chrome flag to check the usage.

To simplify the list, I’ve chosen the best working and fewer buggy flags for all types of Chrome users.

Consumer Friendly Flags for Everyone

1. Smoother Scrolling: Everyone wants a smooth browsing experience. Change Smooth Scroll is a flag which enables smooth scrolling effect on your Google Chrome. To enable this, search for “smooth scroll” and set “default” option in the drop-down menu.

2. Material Design: Material Design flags are for user interface customization. Search for “material design” in the Chrome flag search bar to tweak the options. Here you can set as you want by modifying the drop-down menu options.

3. Reduce Microphone Echo: If you voice or video chat regularly on Chrome or any other video calling options you may experienced microphone echo problem. During the call when the mic picks up the sound coming from the speaker it repeats on your speaker again and again.

It is a quite irritating effect usually happens during online calling. This Chrome flag: WebRTC Echo Canceller 3 will reduce the microphone echo up to a good extent. Enable this on your Chrome by searching in the Chrome flags search bar.

4. Automatic Password Generation: This feature comes handy when you create a new account in any service. Online security is crucial these days and it is always advisable to use strong passwords. Users usually use easy to remember passwords which are vulnerable to hack if the hacker uses a brute force attack. The Automatic Password Generation chrome flag helps you to generate secure passwords while browsing.

5. Omnibox UI Max Autocomplete Matches: This flag lets you change the maximum number of autocomplete matches displayed in the Omnibox UI. It means after enabling this flag, you will get more keyword suggestions than the URL. This flag works with only desktop platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome OS.

6. Automatic Tab Discarding: It is one of the best and handy features for every Google Chrome user. Have you ever experienced 25+ tabs open and only one is you are using? Google Chrome is a RAM hungry browser and eats up your system memory when you open many tabs. This flag will put asleep the tabs you are not using for a certain period of time. Automatically you system resources will free up.

7. Parallel downloading: Another feature which is useful for everyone. This flag enables the parallel downloading in Chrome. We usually see this feature in third-party download manager for Windows, Mac and other desktop platforms. Just search #enable-parallel-downloading flag and enable it.

8. Emoji Context Menu: This feature is, particularly for regular emoji users. Emoji Context Menu flag enables to pick up the emojis from editable text areas. This feature works on platforms like Chrome OS, Windows, and Mac.

9. Top Sites from Site Engagement: If you want to improve your reading productivity on Chrome, you must install this Chrome flag. It enables the top sites on the new tab page with detailed sorting. You don’t need to type the regularly visiting URL in the bar, the sites are available with thumbnails in the new tab page.

10. Fast tab/window close: It helps you to close the tab window fastly. This feature works on Android, Windows, Mac, and Linux.

These are the best user-friendly Chrome flags for everyone. They will improve your browsing experience to the next level.

Developer Friendly Flags

Apart from improving user experience, there are many flags are available designed for developers. These Chrome flags will let you do experiments for various means. Some are for JavaScript enabling and some are API related. Here are the few developers friendly flags listed below.

1. Experimental JavaScript: This flag enables you to do JavaScript experiments on Google Chrome browser. It is a pretty useful flag for developers testing on their latest app builds.

2. 3D software rasterizer: This will stop the use of 3D software rasterizer in case of GUP stops working or system failure.

3. FPS Counter: FPS Counter flag lets you check the frame rate on every web page you open. This flag is useful for game and video content developers.

So these are the useful Chrome flags with lesser known bugs and performance issues. These come in handy when you are using a low-end machine with limited system resource. They can improve the performance a lot when you compare with default build performance.

Try the Chrome flags today and tell your experience story in the comment box below.

• Español – América Latina
• Português – Brasil
• Tiếng Việt
• Chrome DevTools

Experiments

To enable an experiment:

• Open Settings .
• In the Experiments tab, search for the experiment you would like to try in the Filter textbox.
• If required, click Reload DevTools in the prompt at the top.

The next time you open DevTools, the experiment is enabled. To disable an experiment, clear the corresponding checkbox.

Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License , and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License . For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies . Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Last updated 2023-02-16 UTC.

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

By signing up, you agree to the our terms and our Privacy Policy agreement.

Microsoft added New Account Manager in Windows 11 Start Menu

Windows 11 Settings app Crashing when changing Lock Screen Status

Windows 11 KB5037853 is Causing Error 0x800f0845 on Parallels Desktop

Enable “allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost” flag in chrome v81.

Enable “Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost” flag in Chrome. Want to know why? Keep reading the blog post.

If you’re a developer and test websites offline, then you might have noticed an error message “Your connection is not private” in Chrome browser. If you have made so far, then chances you also seeing a same error message.

Normally this error flash up when because of two reasons: first it’s a client-side issue and second there’s problem with website certificate. Since you’re testing offline with Chrome browser it’s possible to get rid of this error message using an “ allow-insecure-localhost ” experimental feature available in the Chrome browser.

Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost

Here’s how you can enable the above discussed experimental feature and get rid of “Your connection is not private” in Chrome for local host.

Launch Chrome browser and then visit: chrome://flags/#allow-insecure-localhost

Using “ Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost ” drop-down change the setting from Disabled to Enabled .

Relaunch Chrome browser to enable the feature.

Doing this will “Allow insecure connections on localhost in Chrome” and fix the issue.

• X (Twitter)

Viney Dhiman, the mind behind GeekerMag, is a seasoned content writer with over 12 years of experience. Specializing in simplifying complex tech concepts, he covers Windows OS, Android, iOS, web apps, and product reviews. His work can be found on popular tech websites like Gizmodo and The Verge, and he has been interviewed by the Microsoft Edge team.

Related Posts

Create Custom Themes with Microsoft Edge’s AI Theme Generator

Microsoft is testing 3D Like/Dislike Buttons in Edge Canary

Microsoft Edge for Android now lets you install desktop extensions

Some one help me they using electro magnetic wave spectrum on me for past two years plz help me and holding my fiancé as hostage to clean and cook for them it’s my family my moms sister

I didn’t found any “Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost” in my Chrome Version-88.0.4324.104 (Official Build) (64-bit) is there any option to get that

https://support.google.com/chrome/a/thread/94404714?hl=en

I didn’t found any “Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost” in my Chrome Version-88.0.4324.104 (Official Build)

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Ad Blocker Enabled!

Stack Exchange Network

Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow , the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.

Q&A for work

Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.

Chrome allow insecure localhost

I have just stumbled upon what is a very helpful flag in chrome (for developers):

The flag is described as:

Having always had to generate self signed certs for multiple services this is great, but it begs the questions - is this secure? Is this secure to leave on all the time?

If this is not secure what are the attacks possible?

• web-application
• certificates
• web-browser

• For completeness, could you link to documentation about this flag? Or at least describe what it does for those who don't know? –  Mike Ounsworth Commented Nov 27, 2020 at 15:16
• 1 I cannot find any docs :( - updated with the snippet visible when visiting the page. –  dendog Commented Nov 27, 2020 at 15:24

2 Answers 2

It's most likely fine..

There are a few situations in which you want to communicate with localhost using HTTPS - such as running a local webserver for web development purposes or some other service that offers a web interface.

The way to do it "properly" is to generate a self-signed certificate, set up your web server to use that certificate, and then manually import that certificate as a trusted certificate. This is a tedious process, and in order to remove this friction, browsers give you the option of pretending like https://localhost is sending some trusted certificate, even though it's not.

So is this secure? That depends on your threat model. For day-to-day browsing activities, you'll likely be fine. It's difficult for an attacker even in your local network to impersonate localhost , since it's written directly in your hosts file, which on most setups has higher priority than DNS - which means even with a compromised DNS server, connections to localhost still would not be redirected to the attacker.

So why is this not the default if it's most likely secure? Because it's not the "expected" behavior of a browser. The expected behavior is that upon connecting to a host using HTTPS, the certificate is validated and the connection is refused if the certificate is invalid. You as end-user have to make a conscious decision to change this behavior and allow this exception.

So when would this be insecure? When would it actually pose a threat? To be honest, I struggle to think of an example that isn't completely contrived. Strange hostname resolution configurations in which localhost would be resolved via DNS and spoofed to be some host other than 127.0.0.1 would come to mind, but that is a very unlikely scenario, and one in which the user has to go out of their way to configure their system to be vulnerable. However, I don't want to say "it is perfectly fine in every possible setup", since there is always a chance I am missing something.

A similar situation is issuing a certificate (for example, from an internal corporate CA) with

I doubt any publicly-trusted CAs will issue a cert for localhost , so a setting like this is probably needed to make cert errors go away? (assuming you don't want to add the cert to your trust store, which is a way bigger risk).

I haven't yet run across a situation where this as dangerous; ie any attacks I can think of require the attacker to already be running code on the victim's computer.

One caveate I guess is if you install a lot of apps (fat clients) on your machine that host a local webserver so that browsers can interact with them. For example imagine a fat client for mikesgames.com that lets a browser game directly access your USB devices. Fine if you trust the app and know it's there, but it's hard to secure that local service properly, so you may be opening up for any random website to check for this fat client and then take control of your USB devices. I'm especially skeeved out by the idea of random websites probing localhost to see what ports you have listening and from there figuring out what fat clients you have installed.

I would prefer to see browsers by default block any connection to localhost with a popup "Do you want to allow mikesgames.com to communicate with apps on your machine?" . If you click Yes, I don't think there's that much security difference between http, https with invalid cert, https with valid cert for those localhost connections. You would hope that app vendors have a way for the website and the fat client to mutually-authenticate each other to prevent abuse of the fat client by other sites, but that's really outside the scope of browser settings.

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for browse other questions tagged tls web-application certificates web-browser chrome ..

• Featured on Meta
• Upcoming sign-up experiments related to tags

Hot Network Questions

• What is the history and meaning of letters “v” and “e” in expressions +ve and -ve?
• What does "DC" mean in gravitational physics?
• Are there any precautions I should take if I plan on storing something very heavy near my foundation?
• Non-uniform Gaussian spaced vector
• Is it a "shifting of the burden of proof" if I show evidence in favor of a position, and ask the audience to debate that evidence if they disagree?
• Should I replace my three-prong dryer outlet with a four-prong outlet since I have a ground wire?
• Split Flaps and lift?
• In "Romeo and Juliet", why is Juliet the "sun"?
• Was Croatia the first country to recognize the sovereignity of the USA? Was Croatia expecting military help from USA that didn't come?
• Workers Comp. Insurance with Regard to Single-Member LLCs in Virginia
• Article that plagiarized our paper is still available and gets cited - what to do?
• Extracting Flood Extent from raster file which has only 1 band
• How can you destroy a mage hand?
• QGIS CircularChart expression symbology
• Do rich parents pay less in child support if they didn't provide a rich lifestyle for their family pre-divorce?
• Create sublists whose totals exceed a certain threshold and that are as short as possible
• Please help me: Sending String from PyCharm via usb to NXT, which is programmed by Bricx CC
• Relevance of RFC2228
• How can the CMOS version of 555 timer have the output current tested at 2 mA while its maximum supply is 250 μA?
• What is the difference between a group representation and an isomorphism to GL(n,R)?
• John, in his spaceship traveling at relativistic speed, is crossing the Milky Way in 500 years. How many supernovae explosions would he experience?
• Should an array eat up an explicit \mskip at the end of a column if tabularx is loaded?
• How much time is needed to judge an Earth-like planet to be safe?
• Is there any piece that can take multiple pieces at once?

• Stack Overflow Public questions & answers
• Stack Overflow for Teams Where developers & technologists share private knowledge with coworkers
• Talent Build your employer brand
• Advertising Reach developers & technologists worldwide
• Labs The future of collective knowledge sharing
• About the company

Collectives™ on Stack Overflow

Find centralized, trusted content and collaborate around the technologies you use most.

Q&A for work

Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.

Get early access and see previews of new features.

How to enable insecure local host?

Chrome must relaunch after I enable Allow invalid certificates for resources loaded from localhost in chrome://flags/#allow-insecure-localhost of the Chrom emulator from Android Studio. But this setting always back to the default when I run Chrom with my project again. How to enable it?

tried temporary -unexpire -flags-m118 & m117

• google-chrome

• Please clarify your specific problem or provide additional details to highlight exactly what you need. As it's currently written, it's hard to tell exactly what you're asking. –  Community Bot Commented Apr 13 at 10:56

Know someone who can answer? Share a link to this question via email , Twitter , or Facebook .

Your answer.

Reminder: Answers generated by artificial intelligence tools are not allowed on Stack Overflow. Learn more

Sign up or log in

Post as a guest.

Required, but never shown

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy .

Browse other questions tagged google-chrome or ask your own question .

• Featured on Meta
• Upcoming sign-up experiments related to tags
• The 2024 Developer Survey Is Live
• Policy: Generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT) is banned
• The return of Staging Ground to Stack Overflow

Hot Network Questions

• Bibliographic references: “[19,31-33]”, “[33,19,31,32]” or “[33], [19], [31], [32]”?
• What was the title and author of this children's book of mazes?
• How to change the oil life **interval** in a 2012 Chevy Equinox
• Is there any way to play Runescape singleplayer?
• Create sublists whose totals exceed a certain threshold and that are as short as possible
• tnih neddih eht kcehc
• I'm a web developer but I am being asked to automate testing in Selenium
• If something happened in the past but I feel that it's still true now, can I use either past simple and present simple?
• giving variables a default value in a spec file
• How can non-residents apply for rejsegaranti with Nordjyllands Trafikselskab?
• Starship IFT-4: whatever happened to the fin tip camera feed?
• Is there any reason to keep old checks?
• Please help me: Sending String from PyCharm via usb to NXT, which is programmed by Bricx CC
• Setup for proving equation 3.4 from Grinold
• How should I interpret the impedance of an SMA connector?
• Non-standard alignment of multiline equation
• Infinitary logics and the axiom of choice
• The usage of 'otherwise'
• Extracting Flood Extent from raster file which has only 1 band
• Going around in circles
• Short story in which the main character buys a robot psychotherapist to get rid of the obsessive desire to kill
• Do rich parents pay less in child support if they didn't provide a rich lifestyle for their family pre-divorce?
• In Matthew 27:46, was Jesus fulfilling, quoting and/or citing Psalm 22?
• Why is it a struggle to zoom into smaller objects?