How To Pin Extensions To The Bar In Chrome

With new Chrome extensions being released all the time, one could easily end up with an extensive collection, a cluttered toolbar, and difficulty locating an extension quickly. Luckily, Chrome has offered a way to resolve this with their pin extensions feature.

With this feature, you get to pin the extensions you often use or want quick access to, hide the ones you don’t, and rearrange them for a more organized toolbar.

In this article, we’ll cover how to pin your Chrome extensions on various devices. We will also go through a workaround to install extensions on your Android or iOS device.

How to Pin an Extension in Chrome on a Windows PC

Before you start pinning, ensure you’re running the latest version of Chrome on your PC. Once that’s confirmed, follow these steps to pin an extension to your toolbar:

1. Open Google Chrome.
   
2. Click the “Extensions” button (jig-saw icon) beside your profile pic.
   
3. The drop-down will list the Chrome extensions installed and enabled. They’ll be divided into two categories: “Full Access” and “No Access Needed.”
   
4. Beside each extension, you’ll see a Pushpin icon. Click the “Pushpin” icon to pin the extension to your toolbar, and it will turn blue. Push it again to unpin it. When the extension is hidden, the Pushpin will be white.
   
5. Now you can click and drag the icons to the order you wish.
   

Unpinned extensions are not inactive. To use an unpinned extension:

1. Click the “Extensions” button.
   
2.  Select an extension to activate it.
   
3. The extension icon will temporarily appear in your toolbar. You can use all its elements via the drop-down menu.
   

How to Pin an Extension in Chrome on a Mac

Once you have the latest version of Chrome installed on your Mac, follow these steps to pin an extension to your toolbar:

1. Launch Google Chrome.
   
2. Click the “Extensions” button next to your profile pic.
   
3. The pull-down will list the Chrome extensions installed and enabled. They’ll be separated into two groups: “Full Access” and “No Access Needed.”
   
4. There is a pushpin icon next to each extension. Click the “Pushpin” icon to pin an extension to your toolbar; it will turn blue. Push it again to unpin the extension. When the extension is hidden, the Pushpin will be white.
   
5. If you want to rearrange the order, click and drag the icons to move them around.
   

Unpinned extensions are not inactive. To use an unpinned extension:

1. Select the “Extensions” button.
   
2.  Click an extension to activate it.
   
3. The extension icon will temporarily appear in the Chrome toolbar. You can interact with all its features using the drop-down menu.
   

How to Pin an Extension in Chrome on a Chromebook

First, check you have the latest version of Chrome installed on your Chromebook. To pin extensions to your Chrome toolbar, do the following:

1. Open Chrome.
2. Select the “Extensions” button (jig-saw icon) next to your profile pic.
   
3. The pull-down will list the Chrome extensions installed and enabled. They’ll be split into two sections: “Full Access” and “No Access Needed.”
   
4. There’s a Pushpin icon next to each extension. Click the “Pushpin” icon to pin the extension to the toolbar; it will turn blue. Push it again to unpin the extension.
   
5. If you want, you can now click and drag the icons to change the order.
   

Unpinned extensions are not inactive. To use an unpinned extension:

1. Click the “Extensions” button.
   
2.  Select an extension to activate it.
   
3. The extension icon will temporarily appear in the toolbar. To interact with all its features, use the pull-down menu.
   

Additional FAQs

Can extensions be installed or pinned in Chrome on an iPhone?

No they do not. Chrome extensions do not work on iOS.

Organizing Your Chrome Extensions

Chrome’s pin extension feature is a godsend for those of us who can’t get enough of these extensions and find each one we install helpful in some way. Since they’re free and installing them is simple, you could end up with an extensive collection.

To help keep your toolbar in order, you can pin the extensions you want easy access to by clicking the pushpin icon beside it. Then re-position the extensions into an order that suits you.

What kind of extensions do you install? What does your favorite extension do? Let us know in the comments.