Incognito Mode automatically disables all your browser extensions. Well, at least that’s the standard behavior. The good news is that you can customize your browser settings to enable extensions in Incognito Mode.
Steps to Allow Extensions in Incognito Mode
On Google Chrome
- Click on Chrome’s menu icon and select More tools.
- Then, click on Extensions to list all the extensions you installed.
- Alternatively, you can also enter chrome://extensions in the address bar to access the list of extensions.
- Click on the extension you want to run while browsing in private mode.
- Then hit the Details button.
- Scroll down to Allow in incognito.
- Slide the slider to the right to enable this option.
From now on, the respective extension will continue to run even if you enable Private mode.
If you want to enable multiple extensions in Incognito Mode, you need to repeat each extension process.
On Microsoft Edge
- Go ahead and click on the browser menu.
- Select Extensions.
- Click on the Details button of the extension you want to enable.
- Check the Allow in inPrivate checkbox.
- Refresh Edge for the changes to apply.
On Opera
- Click on the Opera logo (top left-hand corner).
- Select Extensions.
- Locate the extension you want to allow in Incognito Mode.
- Check the Allow in Incognito checkbox.
As you can see, the steps to follow are pretty similar across all the browsers out there.
Should I Enable Extensions in Incognito Mode?
Now that we’ve seen what steps you need to follow to allow extensions in Private mode let’s answer another common question.
Is It Safe to Enable Extensions in Incognito Mode? Incognito Mode automatically turns off your extensions for a good reason. Some extensions actively track your online activities and record data about your behavior.
Don’t Rely Only on Incognito Mode for Privacy
Browsing the Internet in Incognito Mode is not enough to keep your data private. While Incognito Mode does block many trackers and ads, it’s rarely completely private-proof.
Let’s take an example. Let’s say you’re reading the news using Chrome in Incognito Mode. But the way you got to that news website was via the Google search engine. And that’s not a private search engine. You get the point.
If you want to read more about online privacy, do check out these guides:
