Chrome’s desktop New Tab Page lets you click and drag existing shortcut tiles to change their order. It is not a general drag-and-drop canvas: the reliable way to create a shortcut is Customize Chrome → Shortcuts → My shortcuts. Dragging an arbitrary URL onto the shortcut grid is not documented as a universal native feature.
How to drag and reorder Chrome New Tab shortcuts
- Open Chrome on a computer and create a new tab with the + button, Ctrl+T on Windows, Linux or ChromeOS, or Command+T on macOS.
- Find the shortcut tiles below the search box.
- Click and hold the tile body or icon, rather than its three-dot menu.
- Drag the tile horizontally or vertically until the intended insertion position is visible.
- Release the mouse or trackpad button.
Chromium describes these New Tab tiles as reorderable shortcuts, and the tile should remain in its new position after the drag. This changes only the New Tab shortcut grid; it does not reorder browser tabs, the bookmarks bar, browsing history or Chrome apps. See the Chromium New Tab Page implementation and Google’s New Tab help.
How to add a website shortcut
If dragging a URL from the address bar, a webpage or the bookmarks bar does not create a tile, use Chrome’s documented controls:
- Open a new tab.
- Select Customize Chrome in the bottom-right corner.
- Choose Shortcuts.
- Select My shortcuts.
- Use the add-shortcut control when it is offered, then enter the site name and URL and save.
- Drag the new tile into the position you want.
My shortcuts is for a manually selected collection. Most visited sites lets Chrome generate tiles from browsing activity, so the set and ordering can change as that activity changes. Google’s controls and availability can vary with Chrome release, platform, account state, default search engine and device configuration.
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How to edit, remove or hide shortcuts
Edit or remove one tile
Hover over a shortcut, select its three-dot More button, then choose Edit shortcut or Remove. Editing changes the displayed name or URL; removing deletes that tile from the New Tab collection.
Hide the shortcut area
Open Customize Chrome → Shortcuts and turn off Show shortcuts. The search area and other New Tab elements can remain visible.
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Can you drag a link, tab or file onto Chrome’s New Tab Page?
| Drag action | Native Chrome behavior |
|---|---|
| Reorder existing New Tab shortcut tiles | Yes. Click and drag the tile. |
| Reorder browser tabs | Yes. Drag a tab along the tab strip. |
| Pull a tab into another window | Yes. Drag it outside the Chrome window to create a new window; Chrome also provides a move-to-another-window option in the tab context menu. |
| Open a file in Chrome | Yes. Drag a file from the desktop or a folder into a Chrome tab. |
| Drag a link onto the tab strip | Supported in documented contexts. Google documents dragging a link to a blank tab-strip area on Chromebook. |
| Drag any link directly onto the New Tab shortcut grid | Do not treat this as universally supported. Use the customization panel to create a shortcut. |
These are separate drag-and-drop features. Google’s tab-management help documents tab, window, file and tab-strip actions, while its New Tab instructions use the customization controls for shortcuts.
Why drag-and-drop may not work
You are using Most visited sites
Automatically generated tiles are not the same as a deliberately maintained shortcut list. Switch to Customize Chrome → Shortcuts → My shortcuts when you need stable, intentional ordering.
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The grid is full
The current desktop Chromium implementation describes up to 10 New Tab tiles. If no add control appears, remove an unused tile or use bookmarks or an extension. This is a current implementation detail, not a permanent rule; Chrome versions, experiments, platforms and policies can change it.
You grabbed the menu button
Dragging the three-dot control opens the menu. Start on the tile body or icon, hold, then move until the insertion position appears.
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Trackpad, pointer or zoom interference
Use a deliberate click-and-hold, try a mouse if available, and return browser zoom to 100% if the tile is difficult to select. A touch-oriented or unusual input device may not provide the same gesture as a mouse.
An extension replaced the New Tab Page
Open chrome://newtab and compare the page with Chrome’s standard layout. Extensions can replace the New Tab Page; inspect chrome://extensions and temporarily disable the relevant extension. The Chrome Web Store policy FAQ recognizes extensions that modify this page.
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Account, search-engine or policy restrictions
Google’s current customization instructions describe availability in the context of a supported default search engine and a signed-in Google Account, but installations do not all expose identical controls. A managed computer may receive administrator-controlled New Tab content, including organization or Drive-related shortcuts. On an enterprise device, chrome://policy can help reveal applied policies; contact the administrator before changing anything.
You are on a phone or tablet
The cited Google instructions are for Computer. Android and iOS use different New Tab implementations, so do not assume that desktop tile dragging or the same customization controls exist on mobile.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to use when native shortcuts are not enough
| Option | Best for | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| Native New Tab shortcuts | A small set of frequently used sites and simple reordering. | Current desktop Chromium supports up to 10 tiles; organization is limited. |
| Bookmarks bar | Many persistent links and folders that should remain available in every window. | Uses browser-window space and is less dashboard-like than a New Tab page. |
| Chrome bookmark manager | Larger collections, folders, renaming, deletion and long-term maintenance. | Less immediate than a visual New Tab grid. |
| New Tab extension | More tiles, groups, widgets, notes, wallpapers, imports or richer drag-and-drop layouts. | It replaces Chrome’s page and may request access to bookmarks, history or other data. |
When an extension is justified
Choose an extension only after the native page no longer meets the need. Infinity New Tab Pro offers a dashboard with speed-dial shortcuts, bookmarks, widgets and optional sync features; its listing also discloses optional partner shortcuts and affiliate relationships. LaunchPad advertises a free version with unlimited shortcuts, groups, drag-and-drop organization, bookmark import and local backup, with separate Pro features. The pages accessed for these products did not establish a current monetary Pro price, so check the vendor’s present upgrade screen.
Before installing any New Tab replacement, review requested permissions, privacy disclosures, developer identity, update history, partner links and advertising practices. A third-party dashboard is unnecessary if all you need is reordering a handful of native tiles.
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Quick diagnosis
- Need to move an existing tile? Click and drag its body.
- Need to create a tile? Use Customize Chrome → Shortcuts → My shortcuts.
- Tiles keep changing? Check whether Most visited sites is selected.
- No add control? You may have reached the current 10-tile desktop capacity.
- Page looks unfamiliar? Check
chrome://extensionsfor a New Tab replacement. - Computer is managed? Check with the administrator; policy may control the page.
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