Looking for the best Google Chrome Extensions? You’ve come to the right place! So many people nowadays use Google Chrome as their favourite web browser. Easy to understand. It is super fast and powerful. But what makes it even better, is the enormous amount of extensions and add-ons, giving it a huge variety of functions. In this article, you will find the best Google Chrome Extensions for blocking ads, privacy, shopping, causes and sustainability, tab management, and students.
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Causes and Sustainability
1. TreeClicks
Who says shopping is bad for the planet? Well, a lot of people actually. And it is. Just think about all of the carbon dioxide, toxins, and pollution coming from the production, transportation, packaging, and waste production of your stuff. Fortunately, there is an extension that you can use for free to reduce your carbon footprint while you shop! It’s called TreeClicks. Whenever you purchase something at their 50.000+ stores (including Amazon), TreeClicks receives an ad fee and with it, trees are planted – absorbing carbon dioxide.
Install TreeClicks for Chrome >>
2. Tab for a Cause
What better way to contribute to a good cause than doing almost nothing?! Tab for a Cause raises money for charity whenever you open a new tab in Google Chrome. Free to use, it receives ad revenue from banner ads in the tabs, that they donate to human rights, environmental, educational, water or health charities.
Install Tab for a Cause Chrome Extension >>
3. Colorblind – Dalton for Chrome
Colour blindness is more common than most people think. Up to 1 in 10 individuals can have some form of colour blindness, which can make it sometimes complicated to perceive a website’s user interface.
The Colorblind- Dalton extension comes to the rescue and can provide tests for the most commonly found types of colour blindness. The extension will automatically adjust the browser’s colour settings according to the test results. With the extension colour-blind persons will be able to see more colours and this will improve user accessibility.
The extension comes with a solution to some of the daily issues experienced by colour-blind people. People who are affected by Tritanopia (blue colour vision deficiency), Deuteranopia (green), and Protanopia (red) could benefit from this extension.
People often believe that if someone suffers from blue-yellow colour blindness, the person only has trouble seeing these colours. However, that is untrue; it’s the whole colour spectrum which is affected.
The extension is free, and the main goal is to help colour-blind people to see the world more colourful.
Install Colorblind – Dalton for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Blocking Ads
Ads and cookies are not only annoying when they pop up on your screen, but they also slow down your online activities and endanger your privacy. Use these top-rated ad-blockers to prevent this from happening. Note that if an extension excessively blocks ads, some websites may not work properly.
4. AdBlock
Advertising and the internet are inextricably connected. Many websites bombard us with banners, text ads and other advertisements (targeted or not). With AdBlock, you can block (almost) everything automatically, so you can enjoy looking at a clear, decluttered webpage. You can choose and update filters, but the extension is basically ready to go.
Install AdBlock for Google Chrome >>
5. AdBlock Plus
This is one of the best-known Google Chrome extensions for blocking ads. You install it within seconds, and it works straight away. What gives AdBlock Plus the Plus, is that there are more blocking options to choose from than with AdBlock. This way, you can configure it to your own liking.
Install AdBlock Plus for Google Chrome >>
6. Ghostery – privacy ad blocker
Ghostery is a free extension that is developed to easily detect and block web trackers that tag your movements across the Internet. Besides, the extension makes it possible to find out more about companies using these tracking systems. Ghostery is the perfect privacy extension. It will stop trackers, block ads, and speed up websites. When removing advertisements, you will be able to completely focus on the information that is useful for you. By blocking trackers, you have the power to control who is watching your movements and collecting your information. Thanks to the extension your data will be anonymized to take a step further in protecting your privacy. Ghostery will even ensure to optimize page performance by (un)blocking trackers. You will immediately notice that pages load quicker. Lastly, Ghostery has several dashboards available for its users so you can access the information that is relevant to you.
Install Ghostery – privacy ad blocker for Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Privacy
Google Chrome isn’t exactly the best browser to use if you want to protect your privacy. It remembers your settings and favourite websites on all of your computers. The browser also automatically updates itself in the background. One solution is to switch browsers, but another one is to install an extension.
7. Privacy Badger
Privacy Badger lets you block third party advertisements. The service is super smart: every time the server thinks that an advertiser is about to violate any privacy laws, it blocks that advertiser from retrieving your personal information.
Install Privacy Badger extension for Google Chrome >>
8. DuckDuckGo
If you want to try a different search engine than Google, you can use DuckDuckGo. This search engine doesn’t trace, save or use any information for commercial purposes. The DuckDuckGo extension integrates with Chrome and makes searching easy. Of course, it’s not as good as Google, but if privacy is your priority, DuckDuckGo is the way to go!
Install DuckDuckGo extension for Google Chrome >>
9. Unshorten.link
Link shorteners are convenient because they make it easier to manage unhandy URLs. The bad news is that you never know where a shortened link can take you. Are you a frequent user of Twitter, Digg, or other services that expose their users to shortened URLs? If yes, you may be concerned that these links may not lead you to where they are supposed to, and that they will damage your device.
Unshorten.link is an extension that protects your privacy by preventing short link services from tracking your movements on the web. After installing the extension, you will be automatically sent to the link expansion page each time you click on a shortened link. You will get a clear view of where the links are taking you. The extension will also make sure to remove known tracking cookies from the URLs. The extension has a list of more than 300 link shortening services, and they update this list frequently.
Install Unshorten.link extension for Google Chrome >>
10. User-Agent Switcher
With the User-Agent Switcher extension you can easily and quickly swap the user-agent string, to trick your browser’s identity. It’s a useful extension for old websites that require specific browsers. Besides, you can swap between desktop and mobile views of a website.
A user-agent is a text description of your device, that is sent with every web request. Websites can recognize the browser that you are using and show different content accordingly. For example, when you are browsing the web with your iPhone, you will see a special mobile website.
The extension is the easiest way to switch between user-agents in your browser. It makes it easier to browse the net, regardless of which browser you prefer. Once you downloaded the extension it will add a toolbar button so that you can easily toggle between different user agent strings.
Changing user-agent will help you to mimic other browsers, devices, or search engine spiders.
Install User-Agent Switcher for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Shopping
Do you shop online frequently? Might be a good idea to download these useful extensions, that help save you money and make shopping online even more convenient.
11. Honey
Honey is an extension that finds and tests discount coupon codes all over the UK, Canada and the US. Once added to your browser, you can shop online like you are used to. Then, when checking out, click on the Find Savings button and Honey will try to find and apply a coupon code.
Install Honey extension for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Amazon.com
Talking about shopping, Amazon dominates the online shopping world. If you use Amazon regularly and like to know what deals are on at the moment (who doesn’t?!), the following extension will make your life a lot easier.
12. Amazon Lightning Deal Watcher
Amazon Lightening Deals offers a button in the toolbar of the extension, showing the number of current and upcoming deals. Click on the button to see what deals there are. You can view an image of the product, the price, a short description, information about when the deal is about to start and end, and the number of remaining products. Clicking on a product takes you to the designated Amazon page. If you want, you can also receive a notification on your phone when the deal is about to start.
Get the Keepa / Amazon Dealwatcher Extension for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Tab Management
Speaking of tabs, how many tabs do you have open right now? Did you know that it can actually increase your stress levels to leave too many tabs open? It’s recommended to have no more than 5 tabs open at the same time. I know, that’s easier said than done. Fortunately, you can use this extension to help you out:
13. Save my Tabs
Can’t seem to choose what tabs to close? Just save them for later. Use Save my Tabs to save all of your tabs in one go. It saves all your opened tabs as bookmarks, so you can come back to them any time you want. Tip: Create a separate folder first, so they don’t get mixed up with the tabs you want to save next time.
Install Save my Tabs for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Students
Students massively use the internet – and Google Chrome – for research and educational purposes. So, what are the two best Google Chrome Extensions students ought to have?
14. Grammarly
Grammarly is free to use and is a lifesaver for many students. Whenever you type something in Chrome, even in your email, Grammarly automatically checks the grammar and spelling. Errors are underlined in red, so it’s easy to spot them. Simply hover your mouse on the word, and it will give you several potential corrections.
Install Grammarly Extension for Google Chrome >>
15. Google Dictionary
Browsing the web with Google Chrome can have you run into quite a few unfamiliar words. Don’t have the slightest idea of what a word means? Add Google Dictionary to your browser and expand your vocabulary within seconds. Simply click on a word and Google Dictionary shows you the definition in a pop-up window. If you’re using a different language (say Dutch), then go to My Language and switch the language from English to your desired language. You can also easily launch a Google search for the word and see how the word is used in different contexts. The extension is free to use.
Install Google Dictionary for Google Chrome >>
16. Cite This For Me: Web Citer
All researchers and students know how difficult it can be sometimes to properly attribute online articles. Cite This For Me is an extension that helps you to create a formatted website citation for the APA (6th edition), Chicago (16th edition), MLA (7th edition), and Harvard citation styles. For many students this may sound like music to their ears. With only one click you can create website citations and easily save or copy them for use in your documents.
All you need to do is visit the page you would like to cite and click on the button to create a correctly formatted citation. Then you can just copy and past the citation into your document, but you can also save it to your online bibliography so you can access it again later.
The extension makes it even possible to add other sources, such as newspapers, books, and journals.
Install Cite This For Me for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions to Increase Productivity
17. CrxMouse Gestures
The CrxMouse Gestures extension will add handy mouse gesture macros to improve web navigation. Besides, it allows you to add mouse shortcuts for opening and closing new tabs, to navigate backwards and forwards in your tab history, and to copy information. The extension will also help to accelerate frequent navigation tasks. On the Settings menu you will find advanced scrolling options in order to control your scrolling speed, directions, smoothness, and more. All gestures are synced across different desktop devices, as long as you are using the same Google account and have the extension installed. CrxMouse is and will always be a free extension that makes it possible to create custom mouse shortcuts for an improved browser experience. Besides, it has no advertisements. Become more productive and effective with CrxMouse!
Install CrxMouse Gestures for Google Chrome >>
18. Any.do
Work smarter, not harder!
Do you need an extension that helps you organizing to-do lists? Any.do makes it possible to sync your tasks and checklists to and from all your devices. With the extension you can create new lists, reminders, add notes, share tasks, and more. You will get your things done better thanks to this extension and you will never lose track of your agenda again. Any.do can also help teams hit their goals and increase productivity. You will have access to your to-do’s, reminders, and calendar on any mobile device, desktop, and web to keep track of your agenda wherever you go.
Make sure to set reminders to avoid forgetting important events. You can create one-time, recurring, and location-based reminders. Even grocery shopping lists can be created with this extension, and you can share them with family and friends. Besides, you can import online recipes and it works with Siri and Alexa as well.
The extension comes with amazing themes and powerful features. If you are a busy bee and love to save time while achieving great things, this extension is for you!
Install Any.do for Google Chrome >>
Best Google Chrome Extensions for Fun
19. Pablo
Pablo is an extension developed to create artful images that fit every social network. For example, you can add the images to Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. The extension has more than 500.000 images to choose from. It allows for highlighting texts and selection of images that you can then customize the way you want to. You can change typography, font sizes, and formatting. The extension will help you to quickly increase the engagement on your social media posts. It has been found that blog posts with images have 94% more views than blog posts without images. Pablo is totally free, and you don’t need to create an account. Besides, there is no design experience needed; the extension can be used by anyone. You can choose images from the extension or upload your own images. Type a text in the text box and choose your favourite image as background. When you’re ready, you can share the image to any social media that you like or download it to your computer.
Install Pablo for Google Chrome >>
20. Wikiwand
Thanks to Wikiwand, Wikipedia’s content can be optimized for a better reading experience. You will get clean, organized text columns with an integrated side menu including the table of contents, a better media gallery with larger photos, and other great features that make reading easier and quicker. The extension replaces each Wikipedia link with a link to the same article on Wikiwand. You can even personalize colour, font, and layout.
Wikipedia is the greatest curator of knowledge; we are all Wikipedia fans! It helps people worldwide to freely access millions of articles in 288 languages. The only problem with Wikipedia is that it was built a long time ago, and it has not changed much over time. Wikiwand was created to optimize Wikipedia’s fantastic content for a better reading experience. It’s all about providing users a modern and enjoyable interface to the human knowledge.
If you would like to upgrade your Wikipedia experience, Wikiwand is the perfect solution.
Install Wikiwand for Google Chrome >>
21. Stylish
Tired of boring websites? Stylish helps you to customize various websites by applying custom themes, changing the colour scheme, or adjusting fonts. There are themes available for everything, including Gmail, Yahoo, Facebook and even WhatsApp. With the extension you can apply themes from the database to your favourite websites or create your own theme for other users to apply. You can adjust any website according to your personal taste.
Stylish is an amazing platform for developers to test their creative skills, share their knowledge and experience and receive credit for their unique work. You can find tutorials that will help you with installing the extension, and how to create and upload themes to the library.
With Stylish you can also easily disable, edit or delete any of your themes. Create your own beautiful theme and share it with millions of other users!
Install Stylish for Google Chrome >>
22. TinEye Reverse Image Search
Have you ever come across an image online that you wanted to use, but did it have, for example, a low resolution? With TinEye you can find other versions of any image. With only one click you will find where else on the Internet the image has been used. TinEye is the first image search engine to use image identification technology, and not keywords or watermarks.
Once you submit an image to the extension, it will create a unique digital signature for it and then compares this to other images to find matches. The great thing is that TinEye finds exact matches, even if an image is resized, edited, or cropped! The extension adds tens of millions new images to its database on a weekly basis.
You can use the extension by uploading an image or searching by URL, or by dragging and dropping your images to start your search.
Install TinEye Reverse Image Search for Google Chrome >>
23. Screencastify
The Screencastify extension allows you to easily create recordings. The extension also has annotation tools to spotlight your mouse cursor, highlight mouse clicks or draw with a pen. In this way, you can keep your audience focused on what matters. Once you are done recording, it will automatically save to your Google Drive account. You will have a shareable link, or you can decide to upload your video directly to YouTube. You can export your recording as an MP4, animated GIF, or MP3.
If you want to use the free version of Screencastify, your videos will have a maximum duration of 10 minutes. Besides, you can’t create more than 50 videos per month, and all the videos are provided with a watermark. For only $29 per year you can use the extension without limitations, and you will also have access to expanded export options.
Whether you are an experienced or brand-new video creator, Screencastify can be used by anyone. You can choose to capture your webcam only, your whole screen, or just your tab. You can insert your webcam anywhere in your recording and you can use your microphone to narrate. No Internet? No problem, because there is also the possibility to record offline.
Install Screencastify for Google Chrome >>
So to summarize, in our opinion, the best Google Chrome Extensions are:
