Chrome shows “Aw, Snap!” and pages crash
Why do my browser tabs keep crashing with an Aw Snap message?
Written by The CommonFixes team · fact checked by CommonFixes review desk
Last updated
Short answer
Google lists four usual causes: too little free memory, a broken extension, a damaged profile, or corrupted browsing data. The tab is shut down to protect the rest of the browser. The quickest thing to try first: close other tabs and apps, then reload — Chrome needs free memory for each tab. Close tabs you are not reading, quit heavy apps, then press Reload on the crash page. Google lists this as the first official step. Most people are done in about 10 minutes.
Full walkthrough below: 6 steps for Windows and Mac, rated easy.
Sounds like this
- •Aw, Snap! page with a sad folder
- •Tabs reload themselves
- •Only some sites crash
Why it happens
Google lists four usual causes: too little free memory, a broken extension, a damaged profile, or corrupted browsing data. The tab is shut down to protect the rest of the browser.
Work through these in order
0% done- 1
Close other tabs and apps, then reload
Chrome needs free memory for each tab. Close tabs you are not reading, quit heavy apps, then press Reload on the crash page. Google lists this as the first official step.
- 2
Restart the browser and the computer
Fully quit Chrome, not just the window, and reopen it. If the crash returns, restart the computer once so any stuck Chrome process is cleared.
- 3
Turn extensions off
Open a new tab, go to chrome://extensions and switch every extension off. Reload the page. If it works, turn them back on one at a time until the crash returns, then remove that one.
- 4
Clear cached files
Go to chrome://settings/clearBrowserData, choose All time, tick Cached images and files, and clear. Leave passwords unticked so nothing you need is lost.
- 5
Try a Guest window
Click your profile picture and choose Guest. If pages load fine there, your Chrome profile is damaged. Create a new profile from the same menu and sign in again.
- 6
Reset Chrome to its defaults
Open chrome://settings/reset and choose Restore settings to their original defaults. Bookmarks and passwords are kept, hijacked settings are not.
If none of that worked
If every browser crashes, the problem is the computer rather than Chrome. Run the memory test from our blue screen guide and scan for malware.
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Who wrote this and how we checked it
The CommonFixes team
Writer and researcher
We are a small group of people who spend our days repairing laptops and desktops for family, friends and small offices. Every guide here starts with a problem someone actually brought to us, and we only write down the steps that put the machine right.
- Everyday repairs
- Windows and Mac
- Plain language
CommonFixes review desk
Technical editor
Before a guide goes live, a second person walks through it on a real machine and checks each instruction against the maker's own support pages. Anything we cannot confirm is removed rather than guessed at.
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This guide was last updated on 10 August 2026. If a step no longer matches what you see on screen, tell us on the contact page and we will test it again.
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