How to restore tabs in Microsoft Edge on Windows

We’ve all been there: you close a tab in Microsoft Edge by accident, or you shut down the browser too quickly, only to realize you needed those pages. The good news is that Edge offers several ways to bring them back, whether it’s a single tab you closed a moment ago or the entire session from your last browsing spree. In this guide, I’ll show you everything you can do on a Windows PC to restore tabs in Microsoft Edge, from simple shortcuts to startup settings that reopen everything automatically.

How to reopen recently closed tabs from the History menu

The most straightforward way to get your tabs back is through Edge’s History menu. In the browser’s top-right corner, click or tap the ellipsis (...) that opens the Settings and more menu, then choose History. Open History in Microsoft Edge A panel appears with a Recently closed section. That’s where Edge keeps track of the tabs and windows you’ve closed not long ago. If you just want one page back, click its name and it will open again in a new tab. Reopen a recently closed tab If you just closed an entire window with multiple tabs, Edge groups them together, and you can restore the whole window at once with a single click. Reopen a recently closed window This is especially handy if you realize too late that you didn’t mean to close an entire series of tabs. Instead of trying to remember every page you had open, you can simply restore the session directly from here. TIP: You may also want to learn how to group tabs in Microsoft Edge.

How to restore tabs with a right-click

If you prefer quicker actions, right-clicking the tab bar is another option. Just place your mouse on the empty space next to your open tabs, right-click or press-and-hold, and you’ll see the Reopen closed tab option in the menu. Click or tap it, and the last page you closed will come back instantly. Reopen closed tab with a right-click What’s neat is that you can repeat this command multiple times. Each time you do it, Edge brings back the next closed tab in order, even whole windows if those were the last things you closed. Restore window with a right-click It’s a bit like walking backwards through your browsing history. TIP: Do you know how to work with Microsoft Edge Collections?

How to use keyboard shortcuts to bring tabs back

For me, the fastest method is the keyboard shortcut. Press… …and Edge will reopen your last closed tab on the spot. Press it again, and another tab reappears. Use this keyboard shortcut to reopen the last closed tab Keep pressing, and you’ll restore more and more of your browsing session, including windows you closed earlier. It works like an undo button for tabs, and once you get used to it, you’ll probably find yourself using it without even thinking. Another useful keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + H opens your History directly, where you can find the Recently closed section I told you about earlier. In it, you can simply select the tab or window you want restored, like I showed in the first chapter of this tutorial. Use this keyboard shortcut to access History in Edge It’s a good backup method if you don’t remember the shortcut or want to look through a longer list of sites.

How to automatically restore tabs when you start Edge

If you don’t want to worry about restoring tabs manually, you can make Edge reopen everything automatically when you start it. To do so, first go into Settings: click or tap Settings and more (the ellipsis button in the top-right corner of the window), then choose Settings in the menu displayed. Go to Settings In the Settings tab that just opened, find the Start, home, and new tab page section. Under On startup, select Open tabs from the previous session. Choose to Open tabs from the previous session From now on, if you close Edge normally, all your tabs will be waiting for you the next time you launch it.

Do you find yourself restoring tabs often?

As you’ve seen, restoring tabs in Microsoft Edge is easier than you might have thought. Whether you prefer clicking through History, using the right-click menu, pressing a keyboard shortcut, or letting Edge reopen everything automatically when you start it, the browser gives you plenty of options. Personally, I rely on Ctrl + Shift + T most of the time, but I also have Edge set to continue where I left off, so I never really lose my tabs. Next time you close something by mistake, remember these tricks and you’ll have your browsing session back in seconds.