
Opening a new tab is something most Microsoft Edge users do without thinking. You open one to search the web, check an email, launch a work app, or move on to the next task.
But the default Microsoft Edge New Tab page does not have to remain just a search box, news feed, and a few shortcuts.
Edge already allows you to change the page layout, background, theme, quick links, and content settings. However, if you use your browser for work, study, project management, communication, or dozens of web apps, you may want something more organized and useful.
That is where Microsoft Edge New Tab extensions come in.
A good New Tab extension can turn every new browser tab into a personalized dashboard, giving you faster access to websites, apps, tasks, and useful information.
We compared three Microsoft Edge New Tab extensions using five practical criteria:
- Organization: How well can you arrange apps, links, folders, pages, and workspaces?
- Focus: Does the extension help you prioritize tasks and reduce distractions?
- Minimalism: Is the interface clean and easy to scan?
- Privacy: Does it require an account, sync personal data, or emphasize local use?
- Customization: How much control do you have over backgrounds, layouts, widgets, and shortcuts?
Each extension makes a different trade-off:
- WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab — best overall for organization, web apps, and customization
- Momentum — best for focus and daily planning
- Bonjourr — best for minimalism, privacy, and visual customization
Here is what makes each one worth considering and which type of user should choose it.
Why Replace the Default Microsoft Edge New Tab Page?
Microsoft Edge’s standard New Tab page is already customizable to a degree. You can choose different page layouts, adjust quick links, change the background, and control how much content appears on the page.
For light browsing, that may be all you need.
The limitations become more obvious when the browser is also your main workspace.
You may use Outlook for email, Microsoft Teams for communication, OneDrive for documents, Notion for notes, Figma for design, GitHub for development, ChatGPT for AI tasks, and several other web apps throughout the day.
Keeping all of these tools in bookmarks or permanently open tabs can become difficult to manage.
A New Tab extension gives that frequently opened page a more practical purpose. Instead of starting from an almost empty screen, you can create a central place for the websites and tools you use most.
The right choice depends on what you value most. WebCatalog offers the strongest organization, but its broader feature set can feel busier than a minimalist start page. Momentum provides clearer daily focus, but it is less suited to managing a large app library. Bonjourr offers a clean, privacy-conscious experience with extensive visual controls, but it does not provide the same workspace structure as WebCatalog.
Best Microsoft Edge New Tab Extensions at a Glance
| Extension | Best for | Key strengths |
|---|---|---|
| WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab | Organization and customization | Folders, pages, Spaces, widgets, wallpapers, cross-device sync |
| Momentum | Focus and daily planning | Daily focus, to-do lists, inspirational backgrounds, weather |
| Bonjourr | Minimalism and privacy | Clean interface, dynamic backgrounds, quick links, Pomodoro, privacy-focused design |
Quick decision guide
- Choose WebCatalog if you manage many web apps and want folders, pages, Spaces, widgets, and extensive customization.
- Choose Momentum if your main goal is to focus on one important task and maintain a simple daily plan.
- Choose Bonjourr if you want a clean, minimalist New Tab page with strong visual customization and a privacy-conscious design.
- Choose the default Edge New Tab page if you only need basic shortcuts, themes, backgrounds, and content controls.
If you want your New Tab page to work more like a home screen for everything you do online, WebCatalog is the most complete option of the three.
Let’s look at it first.
1. WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab: Best Overall Microsoft Edge New Tab Extension
WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab is designed for people who want more than a beautiful background every time they open Microsoft Edge.
It turns the New Tab page into a visual home for your websites and web apps, combining a traditional speed dial with tools for organization and productivity.
Instead of navigating through bookmarks or searching for the same apps repeatedly, you can put the services you use every day directly on your New Tab page.
The extension supports folders, multiple pages, separate Spaces, wallpapers, productivity widgets, and synchronization across supported browsers and devices.
That combination makes WebCatalog particularly useful for people whose daily workflow already happens largely inside a browser.
Put Your Favorite Web Apps One Click Away
The main idea behind WebCatalog Speed Dial is simple: the websites you use most should be easy to reach.
You can add popular web apps from WebCatalog’s app catalog or add virtually any website yourself.
That means your New Tab page could include:
- Outlook
- Microsoft Calendar
- OneDrive
- Microsoft Teams
- Gmail
- Slack
- Notion
- Trello
- Asana
- Figma
- Canva
- GitHub
- ChatGPT
Instead of typing URLs, opening a bookmarks folder, or searching through browser history, you simply open a new tab and select the app you need.
It is a small change, but it can make Microsoft Edge feel much more organized when you switch between web apps throughout the day.
Organize Apps Into Folders
A speed dial becomes less useful if you fill it with dozens of unrelated icons.
WebCatalog solves this with folders.
For example, you could create a Communication folder containing Outlook, Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Discord.
A Design folder might contain Figma, Canva, Adobe Express, and other creative tools.
Your Productivity folder could include Notion, Trello, Asana, Microsoft Calendar, and Todoist.
This makes the New Tab page easier to scan because you are organizing websites according to their purpose instead of displaying everything in one large grid.
It is particularly helpful for users who depend on many SaaS and web-based tools.
Create Multiple Pages
Folders are useful for grouping related apps. Pages give you another way to control your workspace.
Your first page could contain only the services you use every day. Another could contain marketing tools, another research resources, and another personal websites.
For example:
Page 1: Daily
Outlook, Calendar, Teams, Notion, ChatGPT, and OneDrive.
Page 2: Marketing
Google Analytics, Search Console, HubSpot, Mailchimp, and social media tools.
Page 3: Personal
News, entertainment, shopping, and travel websites.
Instead of trying to fit your entire online life onto one screen, you can create a structure that matches how you actually work.
Separate Work and Personal Browsing With Spaces
One of WebCatalog’s more useful organizational features is Spaces.
Pages help organize apps inside a setup. Spaces allow you to create separate setups for different parts of your life or work.
You could have:
- Work
- Personal
- Study
- Client A
- Client B
- Side Project
For someone who uses the same browser for both professional and personal activity, this provides a cleaner separation between contexts.
A freelancer, for example, could create different Spaces for different clients. A student could keep university resources separate from personal websites. A small business owner could maintain one workspace for administration and another for marketing.
WebCatalog also allows Spaces to be used for work, personal, and shared setups, giving users more flexibility as their browser workspace grows.
Add Productivity Widgets
WebCatalog is not limited to app shortcuts.
It also includes widgets that can bring frequently needed information directly onto the New Tab page.
Current options include tools for:
- To-do management
- Weather
- World clocks
- Currency rates
- Focus mode
These widgets can be especially helpful if the information is something you normally check several times during the day.
Someone working with an international team, for instance, could keep clocks for multiple cities on the dashboard. Someone dealing with international pricing could have currency information within reach.
The goal is not to turn your New Tab page into a complicated control center. It is to keep small, useful pieces of information available without requiring another website or browser tab.
Customize the Look of Your New Tab Page
A productivity dashboard does not need to look boring.
WebCatalog lets you choose from curated wallpapers or upload your own background. You can then adjust the layout to create a workspace that feels more personal.
A simple background works well for users who want a distraction-free interface, while photos or illustrations can create a more visually interesting start page.
This gives WebCatalog a useful balance between the two main types of New Tab extensions: visual customization and practical organization.
You do not have to choose between a good-looking New Tab page and a functional one.
The trade-off is that more options can create a busier experience. Users who prefer a single clock, one background, and almost no interface controls may find Bonjourr more comfortable.
Sync Your Workspace Across Browsers and Devices
Once you spend time arranging apps, folders, pages, widgets, and Spaces, rebuilding everything on another computer would be inconvenient.
WebCatalog allows signed-in users to synchronize apps, pages, widgets, Spaces, and settings across supported browsers and devices.
This is especially valuable if you switch between computers or use more than one supported browser.
Your New Tab setup becomes a persistent workspace rather than a layout tied to one installation.
However, synchronization usually means accepting an account-based workflow. If avoiding accounts and keeping your setup as local and simple as possible is more important than cross-device access, Bonjourr may be the better fit.
Who Is WebCatalog Speed Dial Best For?
WebCatalog is a particularly strong choice if:
- You use many web apps every day.
- Your bookmarks are becoming difficult to manage.
- You want folders instead of a flat collection of shortcuts.
- You need different work and personal setups.
- You want multiple pages instead of one crowded dashboard.
- You would use widgets such as weather, clocks, currency rates, or to-dos.
- You work across more than one supported browser or device.
- You want productivity features without giving up visual customization.
For users who only want a large clock and an attractive photo, simpler extensions may make more sense.
But if you want your Microsoft Edge New Tab page to become an organized web app dashboard, WebCatalog is the most versatile choice in this list.
2. Momentum: Best Microsoft Edge New Tab Page for Focus
Momentum takes a different approach.
Rather than turning your New Tab page primarily into an app launcher, it tries to create a calmer space that helps you focus on what you need to accomplish.
Every new tab can display an attractive background alongside tools such as your main focus for the day, a to-do list, weather information, website shortcuts, and search.
Its features include daily backgrounds and quotes, Focus Mode, to-do lists, website shortcuts, local weather, and customizable dashboard elements.
This makes Momentum a strong choice for people who want the New Tab page to feel less like an application dashboard and more like a personal productivity companion.
The interface is also one of its biggest strengths. Rather than putting a large number of controls on the screen, Momentum emphasizes photography, simple information, and a clear daily goal.
Momentum’s main trade-off is depth versus focus. It gives you enough organization for daily priorities and a small set of links, but it is not designed to manage a large collection of apps across multiple folders, pages, or Spaces.
Momentum is best for:
- Users who want help staying focused
- People who like daily goals and to-do lists
- Users who prefer large photography backgrounds
- Anyone who wants a simpler productivity dashboard
- People who only need a small number of website shortcuts
The main difference from WebCatalog is organization.
Momentum can provide quick links to favorite websites, but WebCatalog is better suited to users who want to manage a larger collection of web apps using folders, pages, and separate Spaces.
If focus is your priority, choose Momentum. If organizing your online workspace is the bigger problem, WebCatalog provides more structure.
3. Bonjourr: Best Minimalist Microsoft Edge New Tab Extension
Bonjourr is another strong alternative, particularly if your priority is minimalism.
Its New Tab page takes inspiration from Apple’s design language and puts visual simplicity at the center of the experience.
By default, you get a clean interface with changing backgrounds, but there are several productivity features available when you want them.
Bonjourr includes Quick Links for bookmarks, customizable search, Markdown notes and checklists, a Pomodoro timer, weather, quotes, customizable clocks, dark mode, and extensive appearance controls.
It is also open source, requires no account, and is designed with privacy in mind.
Bonjourr’s trade-off is that its clean, flexible interface prioritizes the New Tab experience over deep workspace management. You can customize the page extensively, but users who need structured app libraries, multiple work contexts, or cross-device workspace synchronization may prefer WebCatalog.
Bonjourr is best for:
- Users who prefer minimalist interfaces
- People who care about extensive visual customization
- Users looking for a simple start page
- Anyone who wants built-in Pomodoro and notes
- Privacy-conscious users who prefer an extension without an account
Bonjourr can certainly help with productivity, but its philosophy is different from WebCatalog.
WebCatalog puts your apps and workspace organization at the center of the New Tab page.
Bonjourr puts the New Tab experience itself at the center, with a strong emphasis on appearance, simplicity, and privacy.
Which Microsoft Edge New Tab Extension Should You Choose?
The best option depends on which problem you want to solve.
Choose WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab if organization is your top priority. It is the strongest choice for managing many web apps, grouping them into folders, separating contexts with Spaces, and customizing a larger browser workspace.
Choose Momentum if focus is more important than app management. Its daily focus, to-do list, calm backgrounds, and limited visual complexity make it a good choice for people who want a productivity prompt every time they open a tab.
Choose Bonjourr if you value minimalism and privacy. It offers a clean interface, strong visual controls, useful lightweight tools, and a no-account approach, but it is less suitable for users who need a structured web app dashboard.
Use the default Microsoft Edge New Tab page if you only need basic shortcuts, backgrounds, themes, and content settings. Installing an extension is most worthwhile when you need features Edge does not provide natively.
In short:
- Best for organization: WebCatalog
- Best for focus: Momentum
- Best for minimalism: Bonjourr
- Best for privacy-conscious users: Bonjourr
- Best for broad customization: WebCatalog or Bonjourr, depending on whether you want workspace controls or visual controls
- Best overall for heavy web app users: WebCatalog
Can You Customize Microsoft Edge’s New Tab Page Without an Extension?
Yes.
Microsoft Edge lets you customize the page layout, quick links, background, theme, and content settings without installing an extension.
Those options are enough if you only want basic customization.
A New Tab extension becomes useful when you want additional features such as folders, advanced shortcuts, to-do lists, multiple pages, productivity widgets, or different workspaces.
Microsoft Edge handles the basics well. Extensions are for users who want the page to do more.
Conclusion
The best Microsoft Edge New Tab extension is not necessarily the one with the most features. It is the one that matches the way you use your browser.
If you manage a large collection of web apps, need separate workspaces, and want extensive layout and shortcut controls, WebCatalog – Speed Dial New Tab is the best overall choice. Its folders, pages, Spaces, widgets, wallpapers, and synchronization make it the strongest option for organization and broad productivity customization.
If your main challenge is staying focused, Momentum is the better fit. It keeps the experience centered on one daily priority, a manageable to-do list, and a calmer visual environment.
If you want a clean interface, strong visual customization, and a privacy-conscious setup without an account, Bonjourr is the better choice. Its minimalist design reduces clutter, although it does not offer the same depth of app and workspace organization as WebCatalog.
The main trade-off is straightforward:
- More organization and customization usually mean more interface complexity.
- More focus usually means fewer workspace-management features.
- More minimalism and privacy usually mean less cross-device structure and app organization.
Choose the extension that solves your biggest problem. For most Microsoft Edge users who work across many web apps, WebCatalog offers the most complete balance. For focused daily planning, choose Momentum. For minimalist, privacy-conscious browsing, choose Bonjourr.