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Permission · offscreen

What the offscreen permission means for a Chrome extension

Live Chrome Web Store extensions that declare offscreen: 13 096, which is 5% of the 270 886 whose permissions we have read. Counted after our catalog pass of 2026-10-10.

What it lets an extension do

Run work in a hidden page offscreen

Routine for an extension

Routine for an extension: on its own it does not reach your browsing data or the pages you open.

What Chrome says when you add one

We know of no install warning Chrome shows for this permission on its own. Chrome may still warn about the site access an extension declares alongside it.

How common it is in each category

How common it is in each category
CategoryShare of extensionsExtensions
Productivity · Communication9%623 of 7 120
Lifestyle · Well Being7%208 of 2 878
Lifestyle · Entertainment7%453 of 6 364
Make Chrome Yours · Privacy6%324 of 5 449
Productivity · Education6%676 of 11 519
Make Chrome Yours · Accessibility6%454 of 8 075
Productivity · Tools5%5 824 of 106 524
Productivity · Workflow5%2 385 of 45 728
Lifestyle · News5%75 of 1 631
Lifestyle · Social4%267 of 7 160
Lifestyle · Travel3%29 of 855
Productivity · Developer3%951 of 28 347
Lifestyle · Shopping3%222 of 8 710
Lifestyle · Fun2%209 of 8 489
Lifestyle · Art2%81 of 3 521
Make Chrome Yours · Functionality2%242 of 11 127
Lifestyle · Household2%9 of 492
Lifestyle · Games1%64 of 6 897

Counted over the live extensions of each category after our latest full pass of the store. A share is context, not a verdict: what is normal depends on what the extension is for.

Widely installed extensions that ask for it

  1. Adobe Acrobat: PDF edit, convert, sign tools Access to every site · 15 permissions, 1 site pattern 344.0M users ★ 4.4
  2. Google Translate No site access · 5 permissions 39.0M users ★ 4.2
  3. uBlock Origin Lite Access to every site · 8 permissions, 1 site pattern 21.0M users ★ 4.5
  4. Read&Write for Google Chrome™ Access to every site · 13 permissions, 1 site pattern 19.0M users ★ 3.4
  5. Kami for Google Chrome™ Access to every site · 9 permissions, 1 site pattern 18.0M users ★ 4.6
  6. Claude Access to every site · 16 permissions, 1 site pattern 18.0M users ★ 2.9
  7. VPN for Chrome: NordVPN proxy protection Access to every site · 16 permissions, 1 site pattern 15.0M users ★ 4.2
  8. Honey: Automated Coupons & Rewards Access to every site · 7 permissions, 2 site patterns 13.0M users ★ 4.6
  9. Tampermonkey Access to every site · 17 permissions, 1 site pattern 12.0M users ★ 4.7
  10. MetaMask Access to every site · 12 permissions, 6 site patterns 12.0M users ★ 2.7

Each links to what that extension can access and how its permissions have changed.

How to check your own extensions

  1. Type chrome://extensions in the address bar and find the extension in the list.
  2. Open its details. The Permissions section lists what Chrome granted it, in Chrome's own words.
  3. Open its details. The site access setting shows where it can run; set it to run only on click and it reaches a page only after you press its icon.
  4. To uninstall it, choose Remove on the same page.

Other permissions

Figures come from our own daily pass over the public Chrome Web Store. We do not install or audit extensions and publish no contact details for their developers. Catalog pass of .

Browse the catalog

Where the data comes from: how the catalog is built