How to Show the Home Button in Google Chrome

Customize your Chrome browser with the Home button

What to Know

  • In Chrome, select Menu (three dots) > Settings. Under Appearance, toggle on Show Home button, then enter a URL for your Home page.
  • If you want your Home and Startup pages to be the same, go to Settings > On Startup. Select Open a specific page or set of pages.
  • Then, select a page or choose Add a New Page and enter the URL of your Home screen.

This article explains how to display the Google Chrome web browser's Home button, which isn't shown by default because Chrome aims to present a clutter-free interface.

Display the Home Button in Chrome

When you use a Home button, you'll instantly return to a predetermined web page that you select.

  1. Open the Chrome browser.

  2. Press the More menu, denoted by three dots located in the upper right corner of the browser window.

  3. Choose Settings in the drop-down menu. You can also enter chrome://settings in Chrome's address bar instead of choosing the menu option to open Chrome's Settings interface in the active tab.

    Settings menu item in Google Chrome browser
  4. Locate the Appearance section, which contains an option labeled Show Home button.

  5. To add the Home button to your Chrome toolbar, click Show Home button to toggle the slider next to it to the On position.

    Show home button toggle switch set to ON

    To remove the Home button at a later time, click Show home button again to toggle the slider to the Off position. 

  6. Click one of the two radio buttons beneath Show home button to instruct the Home button to direct to a new blank tab or to any URL you enter in the field provided.

  7. This process places a small house icon just to the left of the address field. Click on the house icon at any time to go to the Home screen.

    Home button on Google Chrome

Difference Between the Home Screen and the Startup Screen

If you opt to enter a URL for your Home screen, whenever you click the small house icon to the left of the address field, Chrome opens a tab with that URL.

If you opt to direct to a new blank tab, you'll see the Startup screen on the tab.

The Home screen is not the same as the Startup screen (unless you make them the same in the settings). The Startup screen is the one you see when you first launch Chrome. You can personalize it with Themes downloaded from the Chrome Web Store by clicking Themes in the same Appearance section where you opt to show the Home button.

How to Make the Startup Screen and Home Screen the Same

If you prefer that Chrome always opens on the specific URL that you entered for your Home screen, instead of the Startup screen:

  1. In the Settings section, under On Startup, select the radio button next to Open a specific page or set of pages.

    

    Open a specific page or set of pages radio button
  2. Select one of the pages displayed, which may include your Home screen already, or choose Add a New Page and enter the URL of your Home screen.

  3. The Startup screen and Home screen now both open on your specified URL.

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