DEV Community

Mümin Köykıran
Mümin Köykıran

Posted on

How to Copy All Chrome Tab URLs as Markdown, JSON, or CSV — Free Extension

#javascript

Chrome has never had a built-in way to save or export your open tabs. If you've ever wanted to snapshot a research session, share a list of links, or pipe tab URLs into a script or AI assistant — you had to do it manually, one by one.

I built Safe Tab URL Lister to fix that. One click, four formats, zero tracking.

What it does

Click the toolbar icon, pick a format, click Copy. That's the entire workflow.

4 output formats

Plain text — one URL per line

https://github.com
https://news.ycombinator.com
https://example.com
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Markdown links — [Title](URL), ready for Obsidian, Notion, GitHub issues, READMEs

[GitHub](https://github.com)
[Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com)
[Example Domain](https://example.com)
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

JSON array — structured {title, url} objects for scripts, automations, or AI assistants

[
  { "title": "GitHub", "url": "https://github.com" },
  { "title": "Hacker News", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com" }
]
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

CSV — title,url with header row, opens directly in Excel or Google Sheets

Multi-window support

One checkbox collects tabs from all open Chrome windows at once.

Why I built it (privacy angle)

Before building this, I checked every popular tab-export extension. Almost all of them make network requests — analytics pings, sync calls, licensing checks. I didn't want any of that.

Safe Tab URL Lister:

  • Makes zero network requests (verify in Chrome DevTools — no outbound traffic)
  • Requests only the tabs permission — the minimum needed to read open tab URLs
  • No host permissions, no storage access, no cookies, no analytics
  • Your browsing data never leaves your device

Full source on GitHub under MIT license so you can read every line.

Common use cases

  • Snapshot a research session before closing Chrome
  • Share a reading list with colleagues as Markdown links
  • Feed your open tabs to ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini as JSON for analysis
  • Export to CSV and track links in a spreadsheet
  • Build runbooks and documentation from your browser session

FAQ

Does it track my browsing?
No. Zero network requests. You can verify this yourself in Chrome DevTools — there is no outbound traffic at all.

What permissions does it need?
Only tabs. No host permissions, no storage, no identity, no cookies.

Does it work across multiple windows?
Yes — check "Include all windows" to collect every tab from every open Chrome window.

Is the source code available?
Yes, MIT license: https://github.com/muminkoykiran/safe-tab-url-lister

Chrome Web Store: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/lfoiekncpjoomigglgjildmjodpfmoif
GitHub: https://github.com/muminkoykiran/safe-tab-url-lister

It's completely free with no monetization plans. Happy to answer questions in the comments.

Top comments (0)