How to Reopen a Closed Tab in Safari on a Mac

Reopen a Closed Tab in Safari on a Mac

Closed a tab accidentally? Bring it back immediately: find out here how to reopen a closed tab in Safari on a Mac (this also works for tabs closed before the last).

First, New Sights for Old Browsers

Old web browsers open—only old web sites. How many pages can you really open in HotJava, SlipKnot or WebExplorer?

With and through wrp (Web Rendering Proxy), it’s all of them.

Wrp turns even the most complex pages into simple animated GIFs, which you can view and use in even the most basic historic browser.

Want to reopen a historic page in Safari on your Mac, too? You can do that easily:

How to Reopen a Closed Tab in Safari on a Mac

Using a Safari Keyboard Shortcut

Time needed: 1 minute

To reopen the most recently closed tab in Safari on a Mac:

  1. Press Command Shift T.

    Alternative: You can also press Command Z; this undoes the most recent action, though, so it will undo later typing, for example.

  2. To re-open the tab closed before that, press Command Shift T again.

    Earlier tabs: Continue pressing the keyboard shortcut for even earlier tabs; you can also pick the tab to reopen from a menu (see below).

On an iPhone? How to Reopen Recently Closed Tabs in Safari for iPhone

Reopen a Closed Tab Using the Safari for Mac Tab Bar or Menu

To reopen one of the twenty most recently closed tabs using the Safari tab bar:

  1. Click and hold in the Safari tab bar.
    Alternative: You can also right click on .
  2. Select the tab you want to re-open from the Recently Closed Tabs menu.
    Menu bar alternative: You can find the same menu under History | Recently Closed.
    Reopen one of the 20 most recently closed tabs in Safari for Mac

Using the Safari Browser History

You can always also select pages from your browsing history, of course.

To revisit a page from your history:

  1. Press Command Y to open your full Safari history.
    In the same tab: Note that the history will open in the current window and tab.
  2. Double-click any page from your history to open it.
    New tab: You can also right-click, of course, and select Open in New Tab or a new window, of course, or a tab group.

How to Reopen a Closed Tab in Safari on a Mac: FAQ

Can I reopen tabs in private browsing?

No.

Tabs in Safari private browsing mode are not part of your browsing history and not part of the closed tab history either.

If you press Command Shift T in a private browsing window, the last closed non-private tab will reopen.

Will tabs reopen in a new tab… or window?

If you reopen a tab using the keyboard shortcut or Recently Closed Tabs menu, they will always open

  • in the topmost non-private window and
  • in a new tab.

They will never replace content in an active tab. If no Safari window is open, the recently closed tab will reopen in a new window.

(How to reopen closed tabs on a Mac tested with Safari 15–18; first published October 2021, last updated October 2024)

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