Chrome Removed the Last Manifest V2 Extensions: What It Means for You

Google has finished phasing out Manifest V2, the older format Chrome extensions were built on. According to Google's Chrome for Developers timeline, all remaining Manifest V2 extensions were removed from the Chrome Web Store on August 31, 2026. If an old extension disappeared or stopped working, this is why.

The timeline

• January 2022: the Web Store stopped accepting new public or unlisted Manifest V2 extensions (new private ones followed in June 2022).
• June 3, 2024: the phase-out began, with warning banners in Chrome Beta, Dev and Canary.
• October 9, 2024: Google began disabling installed Manifest V2 extensions in stable Chrome, at first with the option to turn them back on.
• March 31, 2025: Manifest V2 extensions were disabled by default for all users, who could still re-enable them.
• July 24, 2025: with Chrome 138, Manifest V2 extensions were disabled everywhere and users could no longer turn them back on. Google says Chrome 138 is the final version to support them.
• August 31, 2026: remaining Manifest V2 extensions were removed from the Web Store.

What happens to existing installs

Google says existing installs on Chrome 138 or earlier will keep running, but they can't get updates or be reinstalled once removed. Staying on an old browser version to keep an extension isn't a good trade: an unsupported browser misses security fixes, which in our view is a bigger risk than losing the extension.

What to do

1. Open chrome://extensions and remove anything disabled or flagged as no longer supported.
2. Check whether the developer has released a Manifest V3 version. Google's timeline says users were pointed to recommended Manifest V3 alternatives in the Web Store.
3. Be careful with replacements: install only well-reviewed extensions from known developers, and check the permissions they request.
4. Fewer extensions means less risk. Keep only the ones you use.

What about ad blockers?

Many content blockers released Manifest V3 versions during the transition. Google's timeline page doesn't compare their capabilities, so check each developer's own notes on what changed.

More: Software.