The Short Answer
| Feature | What to Check |
|---|---|
| One-Time or Recurring | TabGroup Vault offers a free tier and an optional one-time Pro purchase. Competitor plans differ by billing cycle, seats, limits, and features. |
| Compare Like for Like | For a recurring plan, calculate the published rate × months × seats, and include taxes or add-ons. Verify the chosen plan before comparing a three-year total; do not use an unverified monthly price. |
Sources Checked October 1, 2026: TabGroup Vault Features · Workona Plans · Toby Plans
Pick Session Buddy for free, local-first Session history, bookmarks, collections, search, and exports. It is a broad Tab, Session, bookmark, and history manager with automatic Session logging and local backups.
Pick TabGroup Vault when Chrome Tab Groups are the thing you are trying to protect. It saves deliberate snapshots of named, color-coded Tab Groups, restores them later, and can back up snapshots to Google Drive on the $39 lifetime Pro tier.
The difference matters because a Session and a Tab Group snapshot are not the same thing. A Session records what Windows and Tabs you had open at a moment in time. A Tab Group snapshot records the organized Groups you built inside Chrome, such as a blue "Research" Group or a green "Docs" Group.
Both tools save Tabs. The real split is broad Session history versus explicit Chrome Tab-Group backup and restore.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | What to Check |
|---|---|
| TabGroup Vault | Save Group backups and whole Sessions. Local data; optional Pro Drive backup and Window-close auto-save. Keep an export outside the Profile. |
| Session Buddy | Session and Window organization with automatic local backups. Native Chrome Group support remains on its roadmap. Cloud collections have a separate rollout and plan. |
| A Separate Copy | A backup can restore only data that was saved. Local extension data can be lost with Profile deletion or extension removal. Export and check a separate copy before destructive changes. |
Sources Checked October 1, 2026: TabGroup Vault Features · Session Buddy Roadmap · Session Buddy Backups · Session Buddy Cloud Plans · Chrome Extension Storage
Where Session Buddy Wins
Session Buddy has real strengths for broad Session management:
Automatic Session History
Session Buddy records your browser Sessions over time without you doing anything. This creates a running history you can search and revisit. If you forgot to manually save before closing Chrome, Session Buddy may already have captured what you had open.
Free Local Features
Session Buddy's current Chrome Web Store listing says all features are free and no account is required. The same listing says a future cloud-based storage alternative will be the only premium-level feature. Read that as free for current local use, with possible paid cloud storage later.
Collections, Bookmarks, and Tab History
Session Buddy is broader than a simple Session saver. It includes collections, bookmarks, Tab history, unified search, import and export, color-coded collections, deep links, local automatic backups, and manual backups.
Rich Export Options
Session Buddy can export saved Sessions as JSON, CSV, plain text, or Markdown. That helps when you need to hand a Tab list to someone else or move it into another tool. TabGroup Vault exports as JSON and backs up to Google Drive.
Full-Text Search
Session Buddy lets you search across saved Sessions, bookmarks, and Tab history. If you remember visiting a page but cannot recall when, that unified search is one of its clearest advantages.
When Session Buddy Is the Right Choice
If you organize your browser by Windows, saved Sessions, bookmarks, and history rather than by Chrome Tab Groups, Session Buddy is the more complete free local manager. Its Chrome Web Store listing shows version 4.1.2, updated April 28, 2026, with 1,000,000 users and 25.1k ratings.
Where TabGroup Vault Wins
Chrome Tab Group Snapshots
This is the main difference. If you use Chrome Tab Groups, named and color-coded collections of related Tabs, TabGroup Vault is built around saving and restoring that structure.
Session Buddy v4 release notes mention groundwork for Tab Group support, but the official docs checked for this update do not confirm full restore fidelity for Chrome Group names, colors, and collapsed state. If that exact Tab-Group structure matters, TabGroup Vault is the more direct fit.
Cloud Backup
TabGroup Vault Pro can back up snapshots to Google Drive every 30 minutes. That gives you a copy outside the local Chrome profile and makes saved workspaces easier to move between machines.
Session Buddy now includes local automatic backups and manual backups, but it is still local-first today. Its own docs describe browser-controlled local storage risks, including quota, clearing tools, browser behavior, and bugs, and say opt-in cloud storage is in the works.
Multi-Profile Support
TabGroup Vault's Pro tier supports up to five Chrome profiles per license. That matters if work, personal browsing, freelance clients, and testing all live in separate Chrome profiles.
One-Time Pricing
TabGroup Vault's free tier includes 10 snapshots. Pro is $39 lifetime and adds unlimited snapshots, Google Drive auto-backup every 30 minutes, auto-save on Window close, multi-Window backup and restore, and 5 Chrome profiles per license.
Different Tools for Different Workflows
These extensions overlap, but they are built around different browser habits:
The Window Organizer: You use multiple Chrome Windows to separate contexts. Window 1 is work email and docs. Window 2 is your development environment. Window 3 is research. You do not use Tab Groups much. Session Buddy fits that workflow.
The Tab Group Organizer: You use a single Window, or a few Windows, with multiple named, color-coded Tab Groups. Your "Research" Group is blue, your "Docs" Group is green, and your "Testing" Group is red. TabGroup Vault fits that workflow.
If your setup mixes Windows and Tab Groups, choose based on the layer you would be most annoyed to rebuild after a crash or cleanup.
What About Chrome's Built-In Tab Group Sync?
Chrome's current help docs say Tab Group changes are automatically saved and synced when browsing history and Tabs are synced with a Google Account. Closed Groups can be reopened from the bookmarks bar or the Chrome menu.
That built-in behavior is useful, but it is not the same as keeping named snapshots with export, restore, and an optional Drive backup. If Chrome's reopened Groups cover your needs, start there. If you want deliberate backups of Tab-Group workspaces, use a dedicated tool.
TabGroup Vault Quick Facts
Free tier: 10 snapshots, Chrome Tab Group snapshots
Pro: $39 lifetime, unlimited snapshots, Google Drive auto-backup every 30 minutes, auto-save on Window close, multi-Window backup and restore, 5 profiles
Focus: Chrome Tab Group backup and restore
Privacy: Local-first, Drive sync is optional
What About OneTab?
OneTab is a different kind of Tab saver, and its current Chrome Web Store listing shows version 2.14, updated March 22, 2026, with 2,000,000 users. If your question is mainly OneTab vs Session Buddy, keep this page brief and use the dedicated TabGroup Vault vs OneTab comparison for the deeper Tab-saving tradeoffs.
Can You Use Both Together?
Yes. There is no conflict between running Session Buddy and TabGroup Vault at the same time. Session Buddy can keep automatic Session history while TabGroup Vault handles deliberate Chrome Tab-Group snapshots.
If you want both automatic Session logging and dedicated Tab Group backup, running both extensions is practical. They use different storage mechanisms and do not interfere with each other.
The Verdict
Session Buddy is the better pick for free local Session history, collections, bookmarks, Tab history, search, import/export, and Window-based recovery.
TabGroup Vault is the better pick when the main thing you want to protect is your Chrome Tab Groups, especially if you want explicit snapshots, multi-Window backup and restore, and Google Drive auto-backup.
If you use Tab Groups heavily, try TabGroup Vault's free 10-snapshot tier alongside Session Buddy. If you mostly need automatic Session history and search, Session Buddy may be all you need.
