Chrome Newtab Mostvisited9 Updated Page

The new shortcut will occupy the first available slot. If all nine slots are full, it will push the least visited tile off the grid (don’t worry—it will reappear if you visit it again).

The Problem it solves: You just updated Chrome, switched devices, or cleared your cache, and your carefully curated Top 9 Most Visited sites are gone or replaced with generic links. The old list is lost forever.

The Feature: A new section/button below the Most Visited 9 called "View Vault" or "Show Replacements" .

How it works:

Why this is a great feature:

Bonus micro-feature within this:

"Pin to Permanent Slot" – Right-click any of the 9 tiles and choose "Lock this slot through all future updates". That specific site will always reappear in its position # (e.g., slot #3 is always "Gmail"), even after clearing history or updating Chrome. The other 8 slots continue to rotate dynamically.

In many cases, seeing specific strings like "mostvisited9" in your URL bar or settings indicates one of two things: 

Experimental Flags: Google often uses chrome://flags to test new layouts. For instance, recent updates have experimented with a single row of 10 tiles versus the traditional 4x2 grid. chrome newtab mostvisited9 updated

Browser Hijackers: If your New Tab page has changed to an unfamiliar search engine or a page titled "chrome://newtab" that looks like a fake Google clone, you may have a browser hijacker. These often use internal-sounding names to appear legitimate while redirecting your traffic for ad revenue.  Review of Current Chrome New Tab Updates (2026) 

The official "updated" experience for Chrome's New Tab Page as of early 2026 focuses on several key UI shifts: 

Material You Integration: The design features thicker search bars and more prominent "rounded cards" for the most visited tiles, replacing the flatter, older grid style.

Shortcut Prioritization: Chrome now uses a more aggressive weighted algorithm to rank tiles. Daily visits carry the highest influence (roughly 85%), followed by Recency (70%), ensuring your morning routine sites are always visible. The new shortcut will occupy the first available slot

The "One-Row" Layout Controversy: A recent update changed the default layout for many users from a 2-row grid to a single horizontal row. Users generally find this less efficient as it hides more shortcuts off-screen.  How to "Fix" or Customize the View 

If you are unhappy with the "updated" look of your most visited sites, use these steps to revert or manage them:  How to Enable Most Visited Sites Shortcut On Google Chrome

With great AI comes great responsibility. The mostvisited9 updated service now communicates more frequently with Google’s servers unless you disable it.

What data is sent?

How to disable all NTP cloud features (including Most Visited syncing):

Alternatively, if you want the Most Visited tiles to exist only locally (never backed up to Google), enter this in Chrome Flags: chrome://flags/#ntp-remote-suggestions → Set to Disabled.