In 2025, Google pulled the plug on a bunch of popular Chrome extensions. I didn’t expect it, and I bet you didn’t either. If some of your go-to tools vanished overnight, this is why—and the best Chrome extensions we’re saying goodbye to.
uBlockOrigin
uBlockOrigin was one of the many Manifest v2 plugins that disappeared from Chrome, though Google has been clamping down on ad-blockers for a while. The main purpose of this tool is to stop users from seeing ads on websites they visit, whether on YouTube or news sites (although YouTube has been restricting ad blockers).
uBlock Origin is open-source and free. However, Google removed it because the webRequest API forms a key part of the extension. This API was responsible for blocking certain web elements and was one of the main features blocked with the Manifest v3 update.
Many people are leaving Google Chrome because of these changes, and you may want to consider doing the same if uBlockOrigin was an important part of your web browsing experience. You can, fortunately, still use the tool on Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Opera. Edge has some cool features that Chrome doesn’t!
Ghostery Private Search
While you can use Google Search more effectively, it’s not perfect. Several factors determine Google Search results, such as website pages you’ve visited. Ghostery Private Search sought to provide recommendations without these algorithms controlling what you see.
When using Ghostery Private Search, you could see the number of trackers used on different website pages. You’d receive a breakdown of what these were used for, allowing you to control your privacy more effectively.
Ghostery also said that its searches didn’t track your personal information. Compared to many alternative search tools, it had a pretty good user experience. The good news is that you can still use the search feature; rather than utilizing the extension, you now have to go to its website or download extensions for your mobile browser. You’ll still see the number of trackers being used when you do.
You could also browse Google in Incognito Mode as another alternative. However, you still can’t trust Google’s private browsing; internet service providers (ISPs) can still track you with this tool, for example.
Duplicate Tabs Closer
How many times have you opened the same tab multiple times and not realized until later? Probably more times than you care to admit. You’ll know all too well how annoying it can become when you see multiple tabs open; it’s hard to concentrate and equally as difficult to find the information you want when you need it.
Duplicate Tabs Closer solved that problem and made it easy for you to keep only one version of each tab open. Rather than automatically closing them, you could see the duplicates in a small window. If you noticed any, you could easily shut these down and focus just on the main one.
Google has killed many other extensions that perform similar tasks. However, you can still find a few that replicate the functionality. The Close Duplicate Tabs extension is one example. You can follow many other Chrome tab management tips to organize everything more effectively, too.
Social Blade
Social Blade was a must-have Chrome extension for anyone with a creative hobby relating to social media. You could see a profile grade for creators in your niche and where they rank in a specific category. If you were thinking about monetization, this tool was ideal for seeing estimated earnings, allowing you to determine if you were on the same level.
The extension was handy for helping you see how many views competing creators’ content were getting. Even if you didn’t have a creative outlet, it was still cool to understand how your favorite creators were doing. Besides YouTube, you could view statistics for TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, and Facebook.
While you can no longer use the Social Blade Chrome extension, you can still use the tool. Instead of accessing statistics through the extension, you now have to go to the official website. Here, you can still see all of the metrics you’re looking for.
Papaly
Chrome has some useful bookmarking tools, but they don’t always offer the most flexibility. Papaly was one extension that could combat Chrome’s limitations. The software could categorize your extensions, making it easier to access everything.
When using this extension, you could drag and drop your browsers into the order you wanted them to be (along with moving them into different columns). Moreover, you could use the same boards with others you knew; you could see each of their tabs in different colors. Everything would be stored in a cloud.
You can still use Papaly, but you have to use the website instead. However, the site uses a lot of ads, and it sometimes glitches when you want to create new boards.
