Window management has come a long way (especially in Windows 11), but I still don’t like having two browser windows open side-by-side, which effectively replicates the entire browser experience. It’s easy to forget which window you’re in and where you have a particular tab open – it’s a real headache. I’m not the only one suffering here: many browsers are rushing to build a native split-screen experience where you can view two tabs in one browser window at the same time. If you’re not already browsing the web in split-screen mode, start now.
In my opinion, the Arc browser currently has the best split-screen user experience. It allows you to open a new tab from the right-click menu and use gestures (you can choose between horizontal and vertical splitting) to split the view. The pair of windows is then displayed in the sidebar, and you can use drag and drop to replace each tab. At the time of writing, Arc is still in restricted, invite-only beta, so let’s focus on other browsers that support split-screen tabs.
Enabling the hidden split screen feature in Microsoft Edge
Split tab in Arc browser (currently in invite-only phase).
The split tab in Arc Browser (currently in the invite-only phase).
Screenshot by Khamosh Pathak
Microsoft Edge currently offers the best split tab solution for the public, made possible by a hidden feature flag. (Hopefully it will make its way to Chrome soon as well.) Open Edge, then type “edge://flags/#edge-split-screen ” in the URL bar. Switch to the Enable option, then restart the browser.
You will see a new Split View button in the toolbar next to the extension screen. Open the tab you want to split and then tap the “Split Window” button in the toolbar. The current tab will be docked to the right and you will see all available tabs on the right. Select the tab you want to use and voila: two tabs running side by side in the same window!
Image of the article titled “You should browse the web in split screen”
Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak
At the same time, there will be some interesting UI changes: the URL bar will be split in two and the currently active tab will be highlighted in the URL bar. By default, links will open in the same tab. When you are ready to exit, click the Split Window button in the top toolbar again and the tabs will return to their original positions.
Sidekick Browser is the second best choice for split tabs
Image from the article titled “You should browse the web in a split screen”
Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak
You will find many Chrome extensions for split-screen multitasking, but all they do is create new windows. If you want a true split-screen experience in a Chrome-like setup, you’ll need to use Sidekick Browser.
It’s a new privacy-first browser built on Chromium that looks like Chrome and supports all existing extensions. It also happens to have a clean split-screen feature similar to the Edge feature we discussed above.
With both tabs open, click the Split View button in the toolbar, then select the tab you want to dock on the right. That’s it. No fancy UI features like Edge. The two tabs will still be displayed separately, and the active tab will be highlighted. Click the Split View button again to unpair the tabs at any time.
