show favorites bar in safari

How to turn on and edit the Favorites bar in Safari

A few weeks ago, I received a panicked call from my sister. "My Favorites are gone! I don't know where they went and I don't know how to get them back." The favorites in question weren't Instagram likes or Twitter stars — no, her new work Mac had come with its Bookmarks favorites bar disabled.

It's not uncommon to see this in new OS X Yosemite Macs; Safari's default view sports as few buttons and switches as possible, so as to immerse yourself in the Web browsing experience. But it's an easy fix to reenable the Favorites bar and even edit it.

How to turn on and edit the Bookmarks bar in Safari

Turning the Bookmarks or Favorites bar on is a relatively simple process.

• Open Safari .
• Select the View menu
• Find Show Favorites Bar

(If you like keyboard shortcuts, you can also use Command-Shift-B to show or hide the bar.)

How to add new sites to your Favorites bar in Safari

Once your Favorites bar is visible, there several ways to add new sites and folders to it.

The easiest way to add a website is to drag its icon from the status bar to the Favorites bar; you'll see a green plus button to let you know it's safe to drop it onto the bar.

You can also add or edit favorites by doing the following:

Master your iPhone in minutes

iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!

• Click on the Sidebar icon in the upper left corner of Safari.
• Select the bookmarks icon .
• Open the Favorites section by clicking on the arrow.
• Click Edit .

Inside the Bookmarks editing screen, you can add folders to group bookmarks together, or simply drag bookmarks from their current location into the Favorites toolbar.

How to quickly edit your Favorites bar in Safari

If you'd prefer not to launch the full Favorites editor, you can tweak your favorites in a few different ways.

Rename them or their website: Want a different name for your new bookmark or need to update the address? Control-click (or right click) on a bookmark in the Favorites bar and select Rename Bookmark or Edit Address .

Delete: Don't want a bookmark on your Favorites bar anymore? Just drag it off the toolbar and it'll disappear in a cloud of pixel smoke.

Copy for later: Need to share an address with someone? Control-click on a bookmark and select Copy to save it to your clipboard.

Serenity was formerly the Managing Editor at iMore, and now works for Apple. She's been talking, writing about, and tinkering with Apple products since she was old enough to double-click. In her spare time, she sketches, sings, and in her secret superhero life, plays roller derby. Follow her on Twitter @settern.

There's now a free way to use Windows 11 on your Mac — Here’s how to take advantage of VMware's Fusion Pro 13's price cut

Limitless is a Mac app that hopes to succeed where Humane failed by using AI to turn your computer into a personal assistant

The Zens Office Charger Pro 3 is a well-made MagSafe charging stand that lacks some much-needed features to make it your go-to desk buddy

Most Popular

• 2 Did you know you can teach Apple Pencil Pro to do anything your iPad can?
• 3 Apple Music announces the best album of all time: Final 10 revealed, and you might be surprised by the top pick
• 4 Desperate to see the Northern Lights? You need this iPhone app
• 5 iOS 18 leak reveals new Apple Music features coming to your iPhone

How-To Geek

How to show or hide the favorites bar on safari for ipad.

Safari on iPad lets you select a handful of important bookmarks that always appear onscreen in a Favorites bar. If you'd like to enable (or disable it), we'll show you how.

If you'd like to keep some of your favorite Safari bookmarks a quick tap away on your iPad, Safari lets you enable an on-screen Favorites bar. Once it's enabled, you'll find it under your address bar. Here's how to turn the Favorites bar on (or off, if you want to hide it).

First, launch Settings. Locate the grey "gear" icon on your iPad and tap it.

In Settings, scroll through the list and tap "Safari."

In Safari settings, find the "General" section. In that section, you'll see a switch labeled "Show Favorites Bar." Flip the switch beside it to turn it on.

(If it's already enabled and you want to hide the Favorites bar, flip the switch "off.")

After that, launch Safari. If you've enabled the Favorites bar, you'll see it located just below the address bar at the top of the screen.

To use it, just tap any one of the names on your Favorites bar, and the website will load in the tab or window you're currently using.

You can change which links appear in the Favorites bar by editing your bookmarks and rearranging your "Favorites" list. Whatever is at the top of that list will appear in the Favorites bar---depending on the space available and the length of the link names. Happy browsing!

Related: How to Hide Favorites on Safari's New Tab Page on iPhone and iPad

• a. Send us an email
• b. Anonymous form
• Buyer's Guide
• Upcoming Products
• Tips / Contact Us
• Podcast Instagram Facebook Twitter Mastodon YouTube Notifications RSS Newsletter

How to Show and Hide Favicons in Safari Favorites Bar

In Safari 17 and macOS Sonoma , Apple has introduced support for displaying favicons in the Favorites bar. Keep reading to learn why favicons can be useful, and how you can disable them if they aren't for you.

Favicons can usually be found next to anything in a browser's interface that identifies a website. This can include bookmarks, tabs, history results, and search bars.

In Safari 17, if you have the Favorites Bar enabled ( View -> Show Favorites Bar in Safari's menu bar) the favicon for each site will appear beside its title, allowing you to more easily spot it in the bar.

Get weekly top MacRumors stories in your inbox.

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 With Face ID Said to Be Priced Below $500

Apple Releases iOS 17.5.1 With Fix for Reappearing Photos Bug

5 Biggest Changes Rumored for iPhone 16 Pro Max

Microsoft Says New Surface Pro is Faster Than 15" M3 MacBook Air

iPhone 16 Lineup Rumored to Come in These Two New Colors

Next article.

Our comprehensive guide highlighting every major new addition in iOS 17, plus how-tos that walk you through using the new features.

Apple News+ improvements, cross-platform tracker alerts, website app downloads for the EU, and more.

Get the most out your iPhone 15 with our complete guide to all the new features.

A deep dive into new features in macOS Sonoma, big and small.

Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference will kick off with a keynote on June 10.

Expected to see new AI-focused features and more. Preview coming at WWDC in June with public release in September.

AI-focused improvements, new features for Calculator and Notes, and more.

Action button expands to all models, new Capture button, camera improvements, and more.

Other Stories

1 day ago by Tim Hardwick

2 days ago by Tim Hardwick

3 days ago by Tim Hardwick

1 week ago by Tim Hardwick

• Accessories
• Meet the team
• Advertise with us

We mostly bookmark websites in Safari to save them for visiting later. But if you visit those websites regularly, add them to your Safari Favorites instead. This way, you can quickly open a site with a click without searching.

In this blog, I’ll show you how to add Favorites to Safari on Mac, view and manage your growing list of sites, and remove unnecessary ones.

How to add Favorites to Safari on Mac

How to view favorites in safari on mac, how to manage favorites in safari on mac, how to delete favorites in safari on mac.

You have several easy ways to add websites to your Favorites in Safari on Mac. So, you can use whichever you’re most comfortable with.

Method 1: Use the Share button

• Go to the website you want to add to Favorites.

Method 2: Add via the menu bar

Like the previous method, you can customize the website title and enter a description for future reference.

Method 3: From the Bookmark sidebar

Method 4: Use the Favorites bar

• Drag the URL to the Favorites bar at the top of the Safari window.

If you have enabled the Show Favorites Bar using the fourth method above, the saved sites will appear under the address bar of any Safari window. So you can access them with just a click.

However, similar to adding a website to your Favorites, you can find your Favorites list in different ways.

Method 1: View on the Start page

• Open a new tab or window to display your Start Page. Alternatively, click the menu icon under window controls.

If you don’t see the Favorites section, right-click a blank spot on the Start page and pick  Show Favorites . 

Method 2: From the Smart Search bar

• Click the address bar at the top of the Safari window.

Note: This method doesn’t work on the Start page.

Method 3: Use the sidebar

• Click the  Show sidebar  button.

If you don’t see the sidebar, head to View in the menu bar → Show sidebar .

Method 4: Check the Bookmarks list

• Click Bookmarks on the menu bar.

Once you start gathering more websites in your Favorites list, you may want to organize them for efficiency. You can rename, reorder, sort, edit, and move Favorites to folders.

• Display your Favorites list from the sidebar or Start page. Alternatively, select  Bookmarks in the menu bar →  Edit Bookmarks and expand the Favorites list.
• Rename : Enter a new title for the website.

You may also create a folder in your Favorites list. Follow the below steps:

• Right-click a blank spot in the Favorites list on the sidebar.
• Pick  New Folder .

To reorder or sort your Favorites:

If you no longer need a website from your Safari Favorites list on Mac, you may quickly remove it. You can delete or move the website to a different location, like your Bookmarks list.

• As described earlier, display your Favorites list in the sidebar or the Favorites bar. 

Save your online finds!

When you land on a website you want to visit regularly, adding it to your Safari Favorites is the way to go. Whether a site for work or play, you can view and visit those Favorites on Mac in a snap. 

And remember, you can sync your Safari bookmarks and manage Favorites with your iPhone and iPad for easy access on any device.

• Best Safari extensions for Mac
• How to delete frequently visited sites in Safari on iPhone or iPad
• How to clear Safari cache, history, and cookies on Mac
• How to view webpage source code in Safari on iPhone and Mac

Sandy relishes crafting how-tos, listicles, and explainers, empowering others to unlock the full potential of their Apple devices. She joined iGeeksBlog in 2023, and her decade-long experience in tech writing shines through, starting with Apple products in 2015 and further enriched by collaborations with prestigious publications like Lifewire, How-To Geek, Digital Trends, iDownloadBlog, MakeUseOf, groovyPost, and AppleToolbox.

View all posts

🗣️ Our site is supported by our readers like you. When you purchase through our links, we earn a small commission. Read Disclaimer .

LEAVE A REPLY Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Related Articles

How to fix hey siri not working on iphone (ios 17 updated), why are pictures not downloading in imessage and how to fix it, how to block websites on iphone and ipad in ios 17, how to unlink facebook and instagram (2024 guide).

How to Manage Bookmarks and Favorites in Safari on Mac: A Complete Guide

Bookmarks and Favorites in Safari help you keep track of your favorite sites and visit them instantly. Here's how to master them.

Bookmarks and Favorites in Safari are easy ways to keep track of interesting sites you want to visit again later and your favorite sites you visit often. Bookmarks and Favorites have similar, but slightly different, purposes.

Use bookmarks to save links for sites you want to visit again later. Use Favorites to store links to a select few sites you visit often or every time you open Safari.

We'll explain how to manage your bookmarks and Favorites in Safari so you can make the best use of them and keep them organized.

Managing Bookmarks in Safari

Browser bookmarks can quickly get out of hand, especially if you bookmark a lot of sites. So it's a good idea to start organizing your bookmarks into folders early on to keep them under control. But it's never too late to get organized. It just might take a while if you have a large, unorganized collection of bookmarks.

How to Create Bookmark and Favorites Folders

Before adding a bookmark for a site, create a folder to put the bookmark in. First, click Show sidebar , or press Cmd + Control + 1 .

Make sure the Bookmarks button is selected (blue) at the top of the sidebar. Either right-click or Control -click anywhere in the sidebar and select New Folder .

Your Favorites are at the top of this sidebar and you can also use this method for creating Favorites folders.

Enter a name for the folder and press Enter .

To create a new folder in the Bookmarks editor, click New Folder in the upper-right corner of the page.

If you want to add multiple existing bookmarks to a new folder, select the bookmarks and hold down Option as you click New Folder . The selected bookmarks are added to the new folder that you can rename as mentioned above.

How to Add Bookmarks

To add a new bookmark and customize the name, description, and location, click the Share button in the upper-right corner of Safari. Select Add Bookmark .

This enters a default name for the bookmark based on the website title. But you can change the name if you want.

You can also add an optional description for the bookmark, which helps you remember why you bookmarked a page in the first place.

The first time you add a bookmark in Safari, the default folder is Favorites . We'll talk about adding Favorites later. For now, we're going to add the bookmark to the new folder we created above.

Select the folder from the Add this page to dropdown list and click Add . The folder you select becomes the default folder next time you add a bookmark.

To quickly add a bookmark, move your mouse over the address bar. Click and hold the plus icon on the left side of the box.

Select a bookmarks folder from the dropdown list. Safari adds a bookmark with the default name of the page to the selected folder. We'll show you how to edit a bookmark later.

You can also add the page to your Favorites by selecting Favorites or a Favorites folder.

How to Move and Copy Bookmarks and Folders

If you already have a bunch of bookmarks , you can organize them into folders or rearrange them.

Drag the bookmark to a folder or another location on the sidebar. To copy a bookmark instead of moving it, hold down the Option key while you drag it.

This method also works for rearranging Favorites.

How to Rename Bookmarks and Folders

To rename a bookmark or folder, right-click or Control -click on an item in the sidebar and select Rename . You can also force-click to rename. To do this, click and hold on the item until its text highlights.

If you're in the Bookmarks editor, select the bookmark or folder you want to rename, and press Enter .

Enter a new name or change the current one, and press Enter to accept your changes.

This also works for renaming Favorites.

How to Edit the URL for a Bookmark

Safari contains a Bookmarks editor that allows you to edit and delete your bookmarks and Favorites. Go to Bookmarks > Edit Bookmarks .

Use the same method we described for renaming bookmarks to change the Address for a bookmark or Favorite. The editor also allows you to edit Website names, but you can't add bookmarks or Favorites in the editor.

How to Edit the Description for a Bookmark

You might want to add descriptions to your bookmarks, so you know why you saved the link to that page. If you forgot to do that for some of your existing bookmarks, you can edit their descriptions.

You can only edit the description for a bookmark on the sidebar, and only if the bookmark is in a folder. This is another good reason for putting bookmarks into folders.

To edit the description for a bookmark, double-click the folder containing the bookmark on the sidebar to expand it. Then, Control -click the bookmark you want to edit and select Edit Description .

The description is highlighted, allowing you to enter new text.

How to Delete Bookmarks

If your bookmarks are cluttered, you may want to delete old ones you don't use anymore.

On the sidebar, either right-click or Control -click the bookmark you want to delete and select Delete .

To delete multiple bookmarks, Cmd -click the bookmarks and press the Delete key.

You can also click and hold on the bookmark's name until it's highlighted. Then click the X to the right of the name.

Both methods also work for deleting Favorites.

How to Search Through Your Bookmarks

If you have a lot of bookmarks, you might find it hard to locate a certain one, even if you've organized them into folders. Thankfully, Safari allows you to search through your bookmarks.

Enter the text you want to search for in the search box at the top of the sidebar or in the upper-right corner of the Bookmarks editor. On the sidebar, you might have to scroll up to see the search box.

Results of the search display as you type. Click on the bookmark to open the page in the current tab.

To clear the search and go back to the full list of bookmarks, click the X button on the right side of the search box.

How to Import Bookmarks From Chrome or Firefox

Have you switched to Safari from Chrome or Firefox ? You can easily import your bookmarks from either browser into Safari.

Go to File > Import From > Google Chrome or File > Import From > Firefox . Check the Bookmarks box on the dialog box and click Import .

You can do this at any time, even if you've imported bookmarks already.

Safari is smart enough to know which bookmarks you've already imported from Chrome or Firefox. So if you import bookmarks again, you'll only get new ones you added to the other browsers. Or if you've deleted some bookmarks you imported, you'll get those back the next time you import.

The bookmarks and folders from Chrome or Firefox are imported at the root level on the sidebar. Use the methods we covered above to rename and rearrange bookmarks and folders, edit descriptions, or delete any imported bookmarks you don't want.

How to Import Bookmarks From an HTML File

You might want to import your bookmarks into a separate folder automatically, so you can keep them separate from the bookmarks you already had in Safari.

You can accomplish this by importing bookmarks from an HTML file, which you can export from Firefox or Chrome. See our guide to exporting Chrome bookmarks for info on this.

Go to File > Import From > Bookmarks HTML File . Then select the HTML file you want to import and click Import .

The imported bookmarks are put into a folder titled Imported with the current date.

Managing Favorites in Safari

The Favorites bar sits just below the address bar at the top of the Safari window. It provides quick access to sites you visit often.

You can only specify one web page as your homepage. But what if you want to open multiple pages every time you open Safari? You can add your favorite pages to your Favorites and have quick access to them when you open Safari.

How to Show the Favorites Bar

Safari stores favorites on the sidebar and in the Bookmarks editor, as we showed you earlier. You can also access them on the Favorites bar.

If you don't see the Favorites bar under the address bar, click Toggle the favorites bar on the toolbar, go to View > Show Favorites Bar , or press Cmd + Shift + B .

Only a certain number of sites will fit on the Favorites bar, so it's best to limit the number of pages you add to your Favorites.

How to View the Favorites Page on the Current Tab

If you want to view and access your Favorites as thumbnails, you can open the Favorites page on the current tab. Go to Bookmarks > Show Favorites .

If you don't see Show Favorites as the first option on the Bookmarks menu, you must make a change in Safari's settings . Go to Safari > Preferences . On the General screen, select Favorites from the New windows open with popup menu.

Your Favorites are available as thumbnails on the current tab.

How to View the Favorites Page on a New Tab

If you want access to Favorites page when you open a new tab, go to Safari > Preferences .

On the General screen, select Favorites from the New tabs open with popup menu. New tabs will now display the Favorites page, which includes Frequently Visited sites at the bottom. We'll show you how to hide the Frequently Visited sites section later.

How to View Favorites From the Smart Search Box

Use the Smart Search box, or address bar, as a quick way to access your Favorites page without leaving the current web page.

Click in the address bar to open the Favorites in a popup window. Then click the icon for the page you want to visit. The Favorites popup window goes away and the selected page opens on the current tab.

How to Change the Bookmarks Folder on the Favorites Page

By default, the Favorites page shows all your Favorites and the folders under Favorites. But you can change this to show only the Favorites in a Favorites folder or a folder of bookmarks.

Go to Safari > Preferences . On the General screen, select the folder you want to view from the Favorites shows popup menu.

The selected folder displays when you open the Favorites page on a new tab or from the Smart Search box.

How to Show/Hide Frequently Visited Sites in Favorites

If you don't want to see Frequently Visited sites at the bottom of the Favorites page, you can hide them.

Go to Bookmarks > Show Frequently Visited in Favorites . When the option does not have a check mark in front of it, you won't see the Frequently Visited sites on the Favorites page.

How to Open Your Favorites in Tabs When You Open Safari

If you visit the same pages every time you open Safari, you can add these pages to your Favorites and have them open in separate tabs when you open a new window.

To do this, set up your Favorites using the methods described earlier. Then go to Safari > Preferences .

On the General screen, select Tabs for Favorites in the New windows open with dropdown list.

Keep Track of Your Favorite Pages in Safari

Safari already offers great tools in the bookmarks and Favorites features. And they'll help you keep your favorite and important pages organized.

But if you want other options for managing your bookmarks, you can look through some great Safari extensions for bookmark management .

How To Show Bookmarks Bar In Safari

• Software & Applications
• Browsers & Extensions

Introduction

Safari, Apple's widely used web browser, offers a seamless and intuitive browsing experience for its users. One of the key features that enhances user productivity and accessibility is the Bookmarks Bar. This handy toolbar allows users to quickly access their favorite websites, bookmarks, and folders with just a single click, eliminating the need to navigate through multiple menus and tabs.

The Bookmarks Bar, when enabled, appears just below the address bar, providing a convenient space to store and organize frequently visited websites. Whether it's a collection of news websites, productivity tools, or entertainment portals, the Bookmarks Bar serves as a personalized gateway to the web, tailored to the user's browsing habits and preferences.

In this article, we will delve into the process of enabling and customizing the Bookmarks Bar in Safari, empowering users to optimize their browsing experience and streamline access to their most visited online destinations. Whether you're a seasoned Safari user or a newcomer to the browser, mastering the art of utilizing the Bookmarks Bar can significantly enhance your browsing efficiency and overall satisfaction with the Safari web browser . So, let's embark on this journey to unlock the full potential of Safari's Bookmarks Bar and revolutionize the way you navigate the digital realm.

Accessing Safari Preferences

Accessing Safari Preferences is the first step towards customizing the browsing experience and enabling the Bookmarks Bar. To access the preferences, follow these simple steps:

Launch Safari : Open the Safari web browser on your Mac device. You can find the Safari icon in the Dock or by searching for it using Spotlight.

Navigate to the Menu Bar : At the top of the screen, you will see the Menu Bar. Click on "Safari" in the Menu Bar to reveal a drop-down menu.

Select "Preferences" : From the drop-down menu, select "Preferences." Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut "Command + ," to directly access the Preferences window.

Explore the Preferences Window : A new window will appear, showcasing various settings and options for customizing your Safari browsing experience.

Navigate to the "Tabs" Section : Within the Preferences window, you will find a series of tabs at the top. Click on the "Tabs" tab to access the settings related to tabs and the Bookmarks Bar.

By following these steps, you will successfully access the Safari Preferences, setting the stage for enabling and customizing the Bookmarks Bar to suit your browsing needs and preferences. This simple yet crucial step opens the door to a plethora of customization options, allowing you to tailor Safari to your unique browsing habits and optimize your online navigation experience.

Enabling Bookmarks Bar

Enabling the Bookmarks Bar in Safari is a straightforward process that empowers users to conveniently access their favorite websites and bookmarks with a single click. Once the Safari Preferences window is open, users can seamlessly enable the Bookmarks Bar by following these simple steps:

Navigate to the "Show Favorites Bar" Option : Within the "Tabs" section of the Safari Preferences window, users will find the "Show favorites bar" option. This checkbox, when selected, activates the Bookmarks Bar, making it visible just below the address bar in the Safari browser window .

Check the Box : To enable the Bookmarks Bar, simply click on the checkbox next to the "Show favorites bar" option. Once selected, the Bookmarks Bar will instantly appear beneath the address bar, ready to be populated with your favorite websites and bookmarks.

Witness the Instant Transformation : Upon enabling the Bookmarks Bar, users will notice the immediate convenience it brings to their browsing experience. The once-hidden gateway to their most visited websites and bookmarks is now easily accessible, streamlining their online navigation and enhancing productivity.

Enabling the Bookmarks Bar in Safari marks the beginning of a personalized browsing journey, where users can effortlessly access their preferred online destinations and streamline their web browsing activities. With the Bookmarks Bar now prominently displayed, users can proceed to customize it to their liking, further enhancing its functionality and relevance to their browsing habits.

By following these simple steps, users can unlock the full potential of the Bookmarks Bar in Safari, transforming their browsing experience and optimizing their access to frequently visited websites and bookmarks. This foundational customization sets the stage for a more efficient and personalized browsing experience, tailored to the individual preferences and habits of each user.

Customizing Bookmarks Bar

Once the Bookmarks Bar is enabled in Safari, users have the opportunity to customize it to suit their specific browsing needs and preferences. Customizing the Bookmarks Bar not only enhances its visual appeal but also optimizes its functionality, allowing users to efficiently organize and access their favorite websites and bookmarks. Here's how users can personalize and tailor the Bookmarks Bar to create a seamless browsing experience:

Adding Bookmarks and Folders

Users can populate the Bookmarks Bar with their favorite websites and bookmarks by simply dragging and dropping them onto the bar. This intuitive process allows for quick and effortless organization of frequently visited websites, ensuring easy access with just a single click. Additionally, users can create folders within the Bookmarks Bar to categorize and group related websites, further streamlining their browsing experience.

Rearranging and Removing Items

The flexibility of the Bookmarks Bar enables users to rearrange the position of bookmarks and folders based on their priority and frequency of use. By simply dragging the items within the bar, users can customize the order in which their favorite websites are displayed, optimizing accessibility and efficiency. Furthermore, users can remove unwanted bookmarks or folders from the bar with ease, ensuring that it remains clutter-free and tailored to their current browsing preferences.

Utilizing Favicons

Favicons, the small icons associated with websites, can enhance the visual appeal of the Bookmarks Bar while also providing quick visual recognition of favorite websites. When adding bookmarks to the Bookmarks Bar, Safari automatically includes the favicon associated with the website, adding a touch of visual flair to the bar and aiding in easy identification of bookmarks.

Creating Shortcuts

For websites that are frequently visited or essential for daily tasks, users can create shortcuts on the Bookmarks Bar. These shortcuts provide direct access to specific web pages, eliminating the need to navigate through multiple tabs or menus. By leveraging shortcuts, users can streamline their workflow and access critical web resources with unparalleled ease.

Syncing Across Devices

With iCloud integration, the Bookmarks Bar and its customizations can be synced across all Apple devices, ensuring a consistent browsing experience across Mac, iPhone, and iPad. This seamless synchronization allows users to access their personalized Bookmarks Bar from any Apple device, maintaining continuity and convenience in their browsing habits.

By customizing the Bookmarks Bar in Safari, users can transform it into a personalized gateway to the web, tailored to their unique browsing habits and preferences. This level of customization not only enhances the visual appeal of the browser but also significantly improves browsing efficiency, allowing users to navigate the digital realm with unparalleled ease and convenience.

In conclusion, the Bookmarks Bar in Safari serves as a powerful tool for streamlining web browsing activities and enhancing productivity. By enabling and customizing the Bookmarks Bar, users can create a personalized gateway to their most visited websites and bookmarks, revolutionizing the way they navigate the digital realm.

The process of accessing Safari Preferences and enabling the Bookmarks Bar sets the stage for a tailored browsing experience, allowing users to effortlessly access their favorite online destinations with a single click. The seamless integration of the Bookmarks Bar just below the address bar provides unparalleled convenience, eliminating the need to navigate through multiple menus and tabs to reach frequently visited websites.

Furthermore, the ability to customize the Bookmarks Bar empowers users to organize their favorite websites and bookmarks in a manner that aligns with their browsing habits and preferences. Whether it's creating folders to categorize related websites, rearranging items for optimal accessibility, or leveraging favicons for visual recognition, the customization options offered by the Bookmarks Bar cater to a diverse range of user needs.

The Bookmarks Bar not only enhances efficiency but also adds a touch of personalization to the browsing experience. By syncing customizations across Apple devices through iCloud integration, users can seamlessly transition between their Mac, iPhone, and iPad, maintaining a consistent browsing environment tailored to their preferences.

In essence, the Bookmarks Bar in Safari transcends its role as a mere collection of website shortcuts; it becomes a reflection of the user's browsing habits, preferences, and workflow. It transforms the browsing experience into a personalized journey, where every click on the Bookmarks Bar leads to a familiar and essential online destination.

By mastering the art of utilizing the Bookmarks Bar in Safari, users can unlock the full potential of their browsing experience, optimizing efficiency, and accessibility while adding a touch of personalization to their digital interactions. Whether it's for work, leisure, or research, the Bookmarks Bar stands as a testament to Safari's commitment to empowering users with a seamless and intuitive browsing experience.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

• Crowdfunding
• Cryptocurrency
• Digital Banking
• Digital Payments
• Investments
• Console Gaming
• Mobile Gaming
• VR/AR Gaming
• Gadget Usage
• Gaming Tips
• Online Safety
• Software Tutorials
• Tech Setup & Troubleshooting
• Buyer’s Guides
• Comparative Analysis
• Gadget Reviews
• Service Reviews
• Software Reviews
• Mobile Devices
• PCs & Laptops
• Smart Home Gadgets
• Content Creation Tools
• Digital Photography
• Video & Music Streaming
• Online Security
• Online Services
• Web Hosting
• WiFi & Ethernet
• Browsers & Extensions
• Communication Platforms
• Operating Systems
• Productivity Tools
• AI & Machine Learning
• Cybersecurity
• Emerging Tech
• IoT & Smart Devices
• Virtual & Augmented Reality
• Latest News
• AI Developments
• Fintech Updates
• Gaming News
• New Product Launches

5 Ways to Improve IT Automation

• What is Building Information Modelling

Related Post

Sla network: benefits, advantages, satisfaction of both parties to the contract, what is minecraft coded in, how much hp does a diablo tuner add, what is halo-fi, what is halo lock iphone, related posts.

How To Hide Bookmark Bar In Safari

How To Hide Favorites On Safari

How To Delete Bookmarks In Safari

How To Have Bookmarks Bar On Safari

How To Delete Safari Favorites On Mac

How To Delete Bookmark In Safari

How To Transfer Safari Bookmarks To Chrome

How To Copy Bookmarks From Safari To Chrome

Recent stories.

What is Building Information Modelling?

How to Use Email Blasts Marketing To Take Control of Your Market

Learn To Convert Scanned Documents Into Editable Text With OCR

Top Mini Split Air Conditioner For Summer

Comfortable and Luxurious Family Life | Zero Gravity Massage Chair

Fintechs and Traditional Banks: Navigating the Future of Financial Services

AI Writing: How It’s Changing the Way We Create Content

• Privacy Overview
• Strictly Necessary Cookies

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.

How to hide or show website icons in Safari Favorites Bar

Learn how to remove or display the website icons of your favorite bookmarks in Safari’s top Favorites Bar on your iPad and Mac running iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma.

Show top Favorites Bar in Safari

Safari on Mac and iPad (not iPhone because of the smaller screen area) lets you show a thin strip of your favorite bookmarks at the top of the browser, just below the URL address bar.

This row of favorite websites is visible at all times, whether you’re on the Safari Start Page or a web page. Plus, it appears in both the Separate and Compact tabs settings.

The Favorites Bar takes a little extra screen area but makes it easy to access your favorite bookmarks without the need to go to the Start Page or open the bookmarks section.

If you have not already enabled this, you can do it by following these steps.

• Open Safari .
• From the top menu bar, click  View  and choose  Show Favorites Bar .
• Alternatively, you can press  Shift + Command + B  keys together to show (or hide) the Favorites Bar.

• Open the  Settings   app .
• Scroll down and tap  Safari .
• Turn on  Show Favorites Bar .

Related: How to pin tabs in Safari

Hide or show website icons in Safari Favorites Bar

Starting with macOS Sonoma and iPadOS 17, the Favorites Bar displays the website icon (also called favicon). This makes it similar to other browsers like Google Chrome that show the favicons in their top bookmarks bar.

For many people, the tiny site icons are not only aesthetically pleasing but can also help identify a bookmark faster.

However, if you feel differently and prefer the old look with only the site name, here’s how to hide those icons from the Favorites Bar.

• Place the mouse or trackpad cursor on the Favorites Bar.
• Right-click or Control-click and uncheck (or check) Show Icons .

• Go to the  Settings   app  and tap  Safari .
• Turn off (or on) the switch for  Show Icons in Favorites Bar .

Other Safari tips:

• How to hide your IP address and prevent tracking in Safari
• How to create and use profiles in Safari on iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• How to refresh website favicons in Safari on Mac

How to Add Favorites on Safari on iPhone, iPad, or Mac

Safari is a pre-installed browsing app on Apple devices that lets you save web page addresses as favorites for easy access. This feature comes in handy, especially when you have to visit a site often and want to save it for later. 

When you add the web page address as a favorite, you can find it on the Safari smart search field or in the favorite list by default. In this article, we will discuss how to add favorites on Safari and many more things related to this feature. 

What is the “Add to Favorites” Feature on Safari?

Favorites is a type of folder on the bookmarks feature on Safari that lets you list sites. If all your Apple devices have the same Apple ID, each device will save your favorite websites. However, if you don’t want this, you can easily disable Safari from your iCloud by toggling the settings. 

With the help of the favorites folder, you can easily open the web page with a tap or a click. 

How to Add Favorites on Safari?

You can add websites to the favorites folder under the bookmark section on Safari in just a few steps. We have listed the steps to save your favorite sites for easy access on different iOS devices. 

Here’s how to add favorites on Safari on iPhone.

• Launch Safari.
• Go to the Website that you want to add to Favorites.

Here’s how to add favorites on Safari on iPad.

• Navigate to the Website you want to save as a favorite.

• Select the Add Bookmark option, name the site, and tap the Location option.

Here’s how to add favorites on Safari on Mac.

• Go to the site you want to add as a favorite.
• Tap the Share icon on the menu bar on the top right.

• Under Add to, click on Favorites .
• Name the site and click the Add button.

How to Add Favorites Bar on Safari Menu?

The bar on the Safari menu, which shows the favorites, is known as the Favorites Bar. You can only add the favorites bar on Safari on Mac and iPad. This feature is not available for iPhones . Since the favorite bar has limited space, only a few web pages saved as Favorites appear there.

When you add more sites to the favorites, the older sites will get pushed below, and the recent ones will appear on the bar. To bring it back, you will have to press the three horizontal lines next to the site and drag it to the top. 

Here’s how to enable Favorite Bar to view Favorites on the Safari menu on iPad.

• Go to Settings.
• Search for Safari and open it.
• Scroll down to the General section.

Here’s how to enable Favorite Bar on your Safari page on Mac. 

• Click the View menu.

How to View Favorites on Safari?

After you save pages in the Favorite folder, all the web pages get saved on the Safari home page. If you can’t locate the site address in the search field, here’s how to view it. 

You can view favorites on the Safari search page as well as in the bookmark list. To view it on the favorite list, here’s what you have to do. 

The name you see under the address bar is the web page address saved as favorites. However, not all links will fit in the bar if many sites are saved on favorites. In such cases, you can view them from the favorite list. Here’s what you have to do to view the list of Favorites on Safari on your iPad.

• Tap the Bookmark icon on the menu bar.

• Search for the site and tap to open it.

You can also view the web page icons on the Safari search field as well as from the list. After enabling the favorite bar, you will be able to view it on the Safari menu as well. However, if you can’t find it there, here’s how to open the favorite list on your Mac. 

• Launch Safari. 
• Tap the Plus icon beside the address bar.

• Select the Website and click it.

Related Posts

Youtube watch history not working here are 7 ways to fix it, fixed: this video file cannot be played (error code: 224003), how to add profile picture on threads.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

How to show or hide the bookmarks or favorites bar

Internet bookmarks and favorites are a great way to quickly navigate back to the websites you visit the most. That said, sometimes, users prefer not to use bookmarks or want to hide the bar to give their browser a cleaner look. To show or hide the bookmarks bar , select your browser from the list below and follow the instructions.

Google Chrome

Mozilla firefox, microsoft edge, microsoft edge legacy, internet explorer.

• Open the Google Chrome browser.

• In the drop-down menu , select Bookmarks .

• In the Bookmarks menu, click Show bookmarks bar to toggle the bookmarks bar on and off. A checkmark next to the option means the bookmarks bar is enabled and displayed.

You may also toggle the bookmarks bar by pressing Ctrl + Shift + B .

• Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.

• In the Library menu, select Bookmarks .

• At the top of the menu, click Hide bookmarks toolbar or Show bookmarks toolbar to toggle this feature. The text you see will be dependent on the current state of the bookmarks bar.

• Open the Microsoft Edge browser.

• In the drop-down menu , near the bottom, select Settings .

• Under the Settings menu, select Appearance .

• In the Appearance section, under Customize toolbar , click the drop-down menu to the right of the Show favorites bar option.

• Select Always to always show the favorites bar, Never to not show the favorites bar , or Only on new tabs to show the favorites bar only when you open a new tab .

• Open the Microsoft Edge Legacy browser.

• Select Settings from the drop-down menu .

• Scroll down until you find the Favorites bar section.

• Open the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser.
• Right-click anywhere at the top of the browser window ( A ).
• From the drop-down menu , click Favorites bar ( B ) to toggle it on and off.

• Open the Opera browser.

• Select Bookmarks from the drop-down menu .

• In the next menu, click Show bookmarks bar to toggle the bookmarks bar on and off. A checkmark next to the option means the bookmarks bar is enabled and displayed.

• Open the Safari browser.

• In the drop-down menu , select Show Favorites Bar to display the Favorites bar. If the Favorites bar is currently displayed, select Hide Favorites Bar to hide the Favorites bar.

Related information

• How to create an Internet favorite or bookmark.
• How to change the theme of your Internet browser.
• Drag your favorite page to your bookmarks bar.
• How to delete and organize Internet favorites and bookmarks.
• How to import and export browser bookmarks or favorites.
• See the bookmark and favorite definitions for related information and links.
• Internet browser help and information.

• I Tried Both: Apple Watch 9 vs Fitbit Charge 6
• Best Places to Print Photos Online

How to Organize Safari Bookmarks and Favorites

Organize links to your favorite sites

Tom Nelson is an engineer, programmer, network manager, and computer network and systems designer who has written for Other World Computing,and others. Tom is also president of Coyote Moon, Inc., a Macintosh and Windows consulting firm.

In This Article

Jump to a Section

• How to Access the Safari Sidebar
• Understanding the Favorites Bar
• What Does the Bookmarks Menu Do?

Add a Folder to the Favorites Bar or Bookmarks Menu

• Step-by-Step: Name Bookmarks
• Step-by-Step: Add Subfolders to Folders

Organize Folders in the Favorites Bar

Organizing, deleting, and renaming folders.

Bookmarks tend to get out of hand. One way to get and keep them under control is to store them in folders. Of course, the process is easier if you set up folders before you start adding and editing bookmarks , but it's never too late to get organized.

The steps and screenshots here were performed in version 13.0.3 of Safari, but they should apply to older versions as well.

The Safari Sidebar

The easiest way to manage your bookmarks is through the Safari sidebar (sometimes referred to as the bookmarks editor). To access the Safari sidebar, click Bookmarks > Show Bookmarks . In older versions of Safari, the menu item might say Show All Bookmarks .

An alternative method to reveal the Safari sidebar is to use the Sidebar button in the Safari toolbar.

With the Safari Sidebar open, you can add, edit, and delete bookmarks, as well as add or delete folders or subfolders.

There are two main places to save bookmarks and bookmark folders : the Favorites bar and the Bookmarks menu.

The Favorites Bar

The Favorites bar is located near the top of the Safari window. It might not be visible depending on how you have Safari set up, but it's easy to enable: Simply select the View > Show Favorites Bar .

The Favorites bar is a great place to keep your favorite websites handy, either as individual links or in folders. The number of individual links you can store horizontally across the toolbar is limited to your screen width, of course, but it allows you to see and access them without clicking a drop-down menu. If you put links rather than folders in the Bookmarks bar, you can access the first nine of them using keyboard shortcuts rather than the mouse.

Using folders rather than links in the Favorites bar makes an almost endless array of websites immediately available from the bar. Otherwise, consider reserving the Favorites bar for sites you visit daily or at least once a week, and store everything else in the Bookmarks menu.

The Bookmarks Menu

The Bookmarks menu provides drop-down access to bookmarks and/or folders of bookmarks, depending on how you decide to organize it. It also provides a second way to access the Favorites bar, as well as bookmark-related commands. If you turn off the Favorites bar, perhaps to gain more screen real estate, you can still access it from the Bookmarks menu.

Adding a folder to the Favorites bar or the Bookmarks menu is easy; the trickier part is deciding how to set up your folders. Some categories, such as News, Sports, Weather, Tech, Work, Travel, and Shopping, are universal, or at least pretty obvious. Others, such as Crafts, Gardening, Woodworking, or Pets, are more personal.

Consider adding a Temp category to hold the sites you might visit briefly but want to return to later, when you have more time. These should be sites you wouldn't bookmark permanently but are interesting enough to check out—just not at the moment. If you corral them in a Temp folder, they will still pile up frighteningly fast, but at least they'll all be in one place.

Naming Your Bookmarks

To add a folder:

Select Bookmarks > Add Bookmark Folder . A new folder named untitled folder will appear at the bottom of the Bookmarks section, ready for you to change it.

Type in a new name, and press Return or Enter .

If you accidentally click away from the folder before you get a chance to name it, right-click the folder and select Edit Name from the pop-up menu. If you change your mind about the folder, right-click it and select Remove (or Delete , depending on your version of Safari) from the pop-up menu.

Select and drag the folder to the Favorites bar or the Bookmarks menu entry in the sidebar, depending on where you want to store it.

Whether you decide to add individual bookmarks or folders to the Favorites bar, keep their names short, so you can fit more of them in. Short names aren't a bad idea in the Bookmarks menu, either, but you have more leeway here because the links display in a hierarchical list.

Adding Subfolders to Folders

If you tend to collect a lot of bookmarks, consider adding subfolders to some of the folder categories. For example, you might have a top-level folder called Home that includes subfolders called Cooking , Decorating , and Gardening . To add a subfolder:

Open the Safari sidebar ( Bookmarks > Show Bookmarks ).

Select the Favorites Bar or the Bookmarks Menu entry, depending on the location of the top-level folder.

Select the target folder and then the right-facing arrow to the left of it to display the folder's contents (even if the folder is empty). If you don't do this, a new folder you create will be added at the same level as the existing folder, rather than within the folder.

From the Bookmarks menu, select Add Bookmark Folder . A new subfolder will appear in the selected folder, with its name ( untitled folder ) highlighted and ready for you to edit. Type in a new name, and press Return or Enter .

If you're having problems getting the subfolders to appear in the selected folder, simply drag the subfolder to the folder you wish to have the subfolder occupy.

To add more subfolders to the same folder, select the folder again, then select Bookmarks > Add Bookmark Folder . Repeat the process until you've added all of the desired subfolders, but resist the urge to get carried away.

Rearranging the folders in the Favorites bar is easy. You can do this two ways: directly in the Favorites bar itself or in the Safari sidebar:

• Select the folder you want to move, and drag it to its target location in the Favorites bar. The other folders will move out of the way to accommodate it.
• Select Bookmarks > Show Bookmarks . In the Safari sidebar, click Favorites. To move a folder, click and hold the folder's icon, then drag it to the desired location. You can move a folder to a different position at the same level in the hierarchy, or drag it into another folder.

The first option is easiest if you're rearranging top-level folders; the second option is the one to choose if you want to rearrange subfolders.

To rearrange your bookmark folders, open the Bookmarks sidebar and simply drag the folders to the desired positions.

To delete a folder from your Bookmarks menu or Favorites bar, right-click on the folder, and select Remove from the pop-up menu.

Check the folder first to be sure that it doesn't contain bookmarks or subfolders that you'd like to save elsewhere.

To rename a folder, right-click it and select Rename ( older versions of Safari used Edit Name instead) from the pop-up menu. The folder's name will be highlighted, ready for you to edit. Type in a new name, and press Return or Enter .

Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day

• How to Create New Folders to Organize Mail in Outlook
• How to Add, Edit, and Delete Bookmarks in iPhone's Safari
• How to Pin Sites in Safari and Mac OS
• How to Bookmark on an iPad
• How to Add Safari Bookmarks on iPad
• How to Delete Bookmarks in Any Browser
• How to Add Safari Bookmarks on an iPhone or iPod Touch
• Back up or Move Your Safari Bookmarks to a New Mac
• How to Access Archived Emails in Outlook
• Adding Favorites to Internet Explorer 11
• How to Add X (formerly Twitter) to Your Safari Sidebar
• How to Delete Bookmarks on Chrome
• Customize Safari Toolbar, Favorites, Tab, and Status Bars
• Organize Your Mac's Mail With Mailboxes
• How to Manage Your Internet Explorer Favorites
• How to Manage the Top Sites Feature in Safari

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Any way to show favicons in favorites bar

I've already submitted this as a feature request multiple times over the past years.

Oddly this is the only reason I have not moved to Safari.

I use Google Chrome where all of my favourites in the bookmark bar are just icons and not text. This is to save space, smoother and faster to find what I want.

Safari being text only blends it all into one line and it's not fast to find the bookmark I want. For this I have continued to use Chrome through I'd love to use Safari.

Posted on Sep 28, 2020 5:26 AM

Posted on Nov 14, 2020 10:10 AM

The description above (pinning a website) is not exactly what Carter.x (and I) are looking for. It would be great if the website favicon could be used in the favorites/bookmarks bar, without any text. Favicons are much more helpful as they are easily recognizable and take up much less space than text,. Favicon usage would allow 2-3x the # of websites to be instantly seen/accessible when using safari. I, too, always used this in Firefox and just keep waiting, hoping Apple will eventually add it. Would love to see it someday soon.

Similar questions

• Why aren't there favicons in the Safari favorites bar? Every other modern browser allows me to see the favicon of a favorite/saved site in the favorites bar. This makes it easy to access my favorites. But Safari only lets me list text! I want to make the switch from Chrome to Safari to take advantage of the speed with apple silicon, but it's a blocker! Feels like a big oversight. 238 1
• Favicons in Favorites Bar? Wondering if there's been any progress on favicons for the favorites bar? Like so many others, I've tried to make the switch from Chrome to Safari but this is a hard deal breaker. 291 1
• Favicon for websites not showing in Safari I really want to use Safari as my main browser now that I am using a new M1 MacBook Air, in order to make the best use of battery. I have used both Chrome and Firefox as my main browser. One of the things I REALLY like about those browsers is that I can add favourite/bookmarks to the toolbar with *just* the website's icon (favicon) and quickly pick from that. I imported bookmarks from Firefox to Safari, but the favicons are missing. I did try visiting those sites to pull in the icons (this is the behaviour with Firefox if starting from fresh). I have ensured that 'Show website icons in tabs' in selected in Preferences, FWIW. The screenshot below shows how the favourites with icons are great in Firefox but poop in Safari. Honestly, this is the only blocker to me using Safari as main browser. I really cannot understand why these icons are not showing 🤷‍♂️ 2045 1

Loading page content

Page content loaded

Nov 14, 2020 10:10 AM in response to barberlives123

Nov 20, 2020 7:12 AM in response to carter.x

I have just submitted a feature request on https://www.apple.com/feedback/safari.html

Subject: Favicon / Icons in Favorites Bar in Safari

"Hello,

I would appreciate if the Favorites Bar in Safari would show the Favicon of the website. There are two advantages:

1. It would make it easier to navigate to because it's not only text.

2. If it's possible to delete the text and show the icon only, if would leave more space for more favorites.

This is the main reason, why I am still using Google Chrome most of the time.

It would be great if you could consider this feature in an upcoming version of Safari. I'm sure it would enhance the use of Safari even further and I'm confident, that other users would also see the benefit.

Patrik"

This is how it looks in Google Chrome and how it could be implemented in Safari as well:

Oct 4, 2020 3:42 PM in response to carter.x

Hi there carter.x,

We understand you have a question about saving favorites as icons in Safari, and we'd like to share a resource that may help.

Check it out here: Pin frequently visited websites in Safari on Mac

Specifically, take a look at these steps:

"Pin a website

• In the Safari app on your Mac, drag the tab with the website you want to pin to the left side of the tab bar.
• When the tab shrinks and displays the website’s icon or initial, drop it in place.

You can also choose Window > Pin Tab, or Control-click a tab, then choose Pin Tab."

Apr 26, 2021 4:03 AM in response to carter.x

I just want switch from Chrome to Safari, but this feature (favicons in favs toolbar) is critical for me. Hands up for this feature.

Dec 2, 2020 1:15 PM in response to Delgotz

This is my #1 disappointment with Safari. Unfortunately other browsers have additional drawbacks on the M1 chip. But this one is big enough that I'm considering moving back to another browser.

This AND that you can't right click from a link within a bookmark folder to open in another tab. Basic feature that's decades old on other browsers.

Please fix, Apple.

(Superuser that recently moved from PC to Mac)

Jan 15, 2021 11:11 AM in response to jeffreythefrog

I was about to delete Safari until I saw this post! While it's not perfect it solves the problem and it's super easy. Thank you for posting and making me go back to barberlives123's post on how to pin a website.

Mar 16, 2021 7:29 AM in response to carter.x

I agree 100% and hope they implement this in the near future. It can be a toggled preference if needed (or auto if nothing is used, so you have the best of both, text if you want it w.o the more space of favicon or no text and just favicon). And/or toggle.

One workaround that isn't terrible that I've started to use is emojis.

One of the biggest factors is how much easier it is to quickly find an icon than sift to find letters/words.

So I'll put 🔥 for Firebase or 📫 for email etc.

Mar 16, 2021 8:34 AM in response to Gerald Fogarty

Exact same. An IT pro by training, I've actually attempted to move into the Apple ecosystem (got me on a Mac - and probably iPhone after I'm ready to leave my brand new Pixel 5), but these little things keep having me return to Chrome. I wish they'd pay more attention to the UX details. Visual cues dramatically improve UX over text in many cases (particularly for at a glance info), and Apple needs to get it right in their browser. Before long, that'll be the only software that really matters.

Apr 4, 2021 7:10 AM in response to carter.x

pinning the tab is not the same as a bookmark. It seems that's pinning a tab keeps that tab open perpetually. I don't want the tab open all the time, I just want to click an icon to open it when I want. the only reason I even want to switch to safari is because of touchID. allow touchID in edge chromium and I don't need safari at all

May 1, 2021 10:09 PM in response to carter.x

I was literally just trying to switch from Chrome to Safari. This is my biggest gripe with Safari so far. I was looking into a solution here and found it's been an issue for years. Please fix this, Apple.

Jun 9, 2021 1:04 PM in response to carter.x

Same for me.

I would consider moving to safari if that feature was present, but for sure without it, no way I will.

It's so basic !!

(and personally in chrome I use 2 or 3 letters in addition to the icon, like "lm" for "le monde", "Wf" for wikipedia french, "We" for wikipedia english etc.)

Like that still a lot of room in the favorites bar.

Truly amazing that this features isn't in Safari.

Feb 8, 2021 10:56 AM in response to carter.x

I agree. Every few months I try to move over to Safari, and then I get so frustrated with the text-based favorites bar that I move back to Chrome again because the icons are so much easier to use.

Jan 3, 2021 6:36 AM in response to carter.x

please look at barberlives123's post. all you need to do is wait until the site's favicon appears before dropping it.

Dec 1, 2020 4:14 AM in response to Patrik1995

100% wish Apple would fix this....seems so simple.

Dec 23, 2020 1:49 PM in response to carter.x

Been getting fed up with Chrome and decided to switch to Safari. This feature is a dealbreaker. Favicon-only bookmark/favorites bar is a feature I use literally dozens of times a day.

6 Tips to Improve Your Safari Experience on iPhone

A ccessing the internet on an iPhone is made simple by Safari, Apple's native web browser; it does a great job of getting you started, but there are several other features that you can leverage to enhance your user experience.

Below, we'll list some valuable tips you can use to get the most out of Safari on your iPhone. So, let's get started.

1. Modify the Start Page

The start page is the first element you usually run into when launching Safari—it's the default screen if you've not used the browser before or didn't leave any tabs open after your last session. And the first step you can take in improving your Safari experience is to customize it.

Customizing the start page involves changing the background image and choosing the sections (listed below) you want the app to show. We've added descriptions to help you understand a little more about each section.

• Favorites : This section will show all your favorite websites and bookmarks which have been added to the Favorites section on your iPhone.
• Frequently Visited : This is a collection of searches and websites you've frequented in recent months. The information is said to be a mix from all your Apple devices if you've enabled iCloud.
• Shared with You : It works by finding links, images, music, and more, sent within the Messages app, and brings them up in relevant applications. For example, if someone texted you a link via iMessage, you'll find it in this section of the start page.
• Privacy Report : This section surfaces information on the trackers used by websites you've visited in the last 30 days and showcases when your iPhone—and other Apple devices—prevented them from profiling you.
• Siri Suggestions : You can find website suggestions based on your recent browsing history, bookmarks, and open tabs within this section if you choose to use them.
• Reading List : You can find the three latest additions to your Reading List in this section, with a Show All button available in case you want to view the other articles you've added to your read later list.
• iCloud Tabs : This feature showcases up to four most recent tabs open on each Apple device you own with iCloud enabled for Safari.

To begin customizing your Safari's start page, follow the steps listed below:

• Scroll down to the bottom of the Safari start page and tap Edit.
• Now, enable the desired sections using the toggles or reorder them by pressing (and dragging) the three horizontal lines.

If you want to experience Apple's Continuity feature , toggle on Use Start Page on All Devices at the top of the edit menu. This will ensure your start page is in sync across all devices connected to your iCloud account.

2. Create Tab Groups in Safari

The next step in improving Safari on iPhone is to create and use Tab Groups . The feature lets you bring order and control to tabs by allowing you to group similar ones—or those you often use together—into folders. Ideally, you can use the feature to separate search results and websites related to work from those you open during casual browsing.

To create a Tab Group, follow the steps listed below:

• View all your tabs by tapping the Tab button in the bottom-right corner.
• Now, tap the text box at the bottom of the screen—it mentions the number of tabs open.
• In the menu that appears, tap New Empty Tab Group or the second option, New Tab Group with X Tabs .
• Name the Tab Group according to your liking and hit Save .

The X in the second option will vary based on the number of tabs open when creating a Tab Group.

3. Use Safari Extensions

Like Chrome, you can install Safari extensions to improve your browsing experience. For those unaware, these are applications built for web browsers that bring additional functionality and make your life easier.

For example, you can install applications that scour the web for coupon codes and bring them up when you're making a purchase or add ones that help edit written content to ensure you aren't making silly errors.

Adding extensions to Safari on an iPhone is a bit different compared to installing and removing extensions in Safari on a Mac . To do this, follow the steps listed below:

• Go to Settings > Safari on your iOS device.
• On the next screen, find Extensions under the General subsection and tap on it.
• You'll now see a list of extensions available. In case you see no options, tap More Extensions to visit the Safari Extensions store.

You may sometimes see options without having installed an extension before; these are present due to an application—that offers Safari extensions—installed on your iPhone from before.

Once you've installed an extension, activate it in Settings using the same steps above and then do the following:

• Open Safari and tap the AA button in the address bar.
• Now, tap Manage Extensions and select the extension you want to activate.

4. Choose Websites to Automatically Use Reader

Reader in Safari is a nifty add-on that lets you read content from a website with minimal distractions and no ads. It makes the experience quite simple and offers options like changing the page color, font, and font size.

Activating Reader is quite simple; tap the AA button in the address bar when you're on a supported webpage and choose Show Reader . However, if you frequently visit a specific website, you can configure Safari to load all its webpages in Reader. Here's what you need to do:

• Open the desired website and tap the AA button.
• In the context menu that appears, tap Website Settings .
• Now, toggle on Use Reader Automatically . Each supported webpage will now open in Reader, making it easier to read the content.

5. Set Tabs to Open in Background

Despite it being easy to access AI tools like ChatGPT on mobile for learning about things, if you prefer getting deep into the weeds when doing research, you may want to view many of the following webpages in new tabs.

By default, opening a new tab via a hyperlink will leave the old tab behind and move you to the new tab. While this behavior is fine, it can feel like a chore if you'd like to open multiple results from a search page.

Fortunately, you can change this behavior. Here's what you need to do:

• Open the Settings app, and scroll down to the Safari option.
• On this page, under the Tabs subsection, tap on Open Links .
• Now, choose In Background .

6. Configure Safari to Automatically Close Tabs

Lastly, while the ability to open many tabs in Safari is a boon, knowing ways to organize your browser and keeping it clutter-free can help you focus better and increase productivity. And keeping only a few tabs open can be a part of this regime.

Safari on iPhone also helps with this, with the ability to automatically close tabs after a set period of time; we've detailed the steps to activate the feature below:

• On this page, under the Tabs subsection, tap on Close Tabs .
• Now, choose from the available options: After One Day , After One Week , or After One Month .

Become a Safari Power User With These Changes

Each customization method listed above will help improve your Safari experience, be it with a new background image that makes the app feel more personal or a setting that keeps it clutter-free.

Overall, Safari is an excellent browser that can be made even better for power users with a few changes. And some of Apple's exclusive features make a strong case for the app, especially if you're a Mac user.

Safari User Guide

• Change your homepage
• Import bookmarks, history, and passwords
• Make Safari your default web browser
• Go to websites
• Find what you’re looking for
• Bookmark webpages that you want to revisit
• See your favorite websites
• Use tabs for webpages
• Pin frequently visited websites
• Play web videos
• Mute audio in tabs
• Pay with Apple Pay
• Autofill credit card info
• Autofill contact info
• Keep a Reading List
• Hide ads when reading articles
• Translate a webpage
• Download items from the web
• Share or post webpages
• Add passes to Wallet
• Save part or all of a webpage
• Print or create a PDF of a webpage
• Customize a start page
• Customize the Safari window
• Customize settings per website
• Zoom in on webpages
• Get extensions
• Manage cookies and website data
• Block pop-ups
• Clear your browsing history
• Browse privately
• Autofill user name and password info
• Prevent cross-site tracking
• View a Privacy Report
• Change Safari preferences
• Keyboard and other shortcuts
• Troubleshooting

Customize the Safari browser window on Mac

You can change the layout of Safari bars, buttons, and bookmarks to suit your browsing style.

Open Safari for me

Use the Favorites bar

Show the status bar, customize the toolbar.

Change the items in the toolbar: Choose View > Customize Toolbar, then add, remove, and rearrange toolbar items by dragging them. For example, you can add an iCloud Tabs button that shows a list of webpages open on your other devices that have Safari turned on in iCloud preferences .

Quickly rearrange toolbar buttons: Press and hold the Command key, then drag buttons right or left. This shortcut doesn’t work for the Back/Forward, Sidebar, Home, History, or Downloads buttons, or the Smart Search field .

Remove a toolbar item: Press and hold the Command key, then drag the item out of the toolbar.

Show or hide the toolbar in full-screen view: While in full-screen view, choose View > Always Show Toolbar in Full Screen.

Customize the tab bar

Choose where to put tabs.

Compact: Tabs move up to the toolbar. The active tab is the Smart Search field .

Separate: Tabs remain in the tab bar, under the toolbar.

See Change Tabs preferences in Safari .

To customize Safari even more, choose Safari > Preferences, then change options.