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How to choose a private new tab extension

A new tab page sees you more than any other page. What to check before you install one, and how Pax keeps your day on your device.

Updated · 3 min read

Your new tab is the page you see most. If an extension owns it, it can see a lot. Pew Research Center found in 2023 that 81% of Americans are concerned about how companies use the data they collect about them. Here’s how to pick a new tab extension that deserves that spot.

Check before you install

  • Permissions: does it ask to read every site you visit? A new tab page rarely needs that.
  • The privacy section on the store listing: what does the developer say it collects?
  • Where your notes and to-dos live: on your device, in storage you control, or on their servers?
  • Accounts: is one required just to use it?

Why it matters more for a new tab

An extension that owns your new tab runs dozens of times a day. If it shows your calendar, it holds your meetings and who they’re with. If it keeps your to-dos and journal, it holds your thoughts. In January 2026, an Incogni study of 442 AI-powered Chrome extensions found that about half collected at least one type of user data. Not all of that is bad, but you should know where it goes.

How Pax handles your data

  • No account needed. Install it and it works.
  • On your device. To-dos, notes, habits, journal and settings live in your browser.
  • Calendars talk to their provider directly. Your events come straight from Google, Apple or Microsoft to your browser.
  • Sync through your own Drive. With Plus, your data syncs between computers through a private folder in your own Google Drive that only Pax can open. None of it is stored on our servers.
  • Permissions when you need them. Extras like the tab stash or your bookmarks ask for access only when you switch them on, and you can revoke them from the Privacy page in Settings.

Open source helps, too

Open-source start pages like Bonjourr let anyone read the code and check the claims. If that matters most to you, it’s a great choice. Pax isn’t open source, so we keep our promises simple and checkable: no account, your data on your device, and a Privacy page in Settings that lists every permission and outside service it uses.

Questions people ask

Do new tab extensions collect data?

Some do. A 2026 study by Incogni found that about half of the AI-powered Chrome extensions it examined collected at least one type of user data. Check each extension’s listing for its privacy section and permissions.

Does Pax need an account?

No. Everything works without one. Your to-dos, notes, habits and settings live in your browser.

How does sync work without your servers?

With Plus, Pax syncs through a private folder in your own Google Drive that only Pax can open. Your data never sits on our servers.

Which permissions does Pax ask for?

Only what it needs to show your new tab and store your data. Extras, like reading your open tabs for the tab stash, are asked for only when you turn that feature on.

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