Chrome could soon tell you exactly how much memory each tab is using

Google Chrome may soon introduce a feature that shows the exact amount of memory each tab is using without having to visit the browser or operating system’s task manager, according to a recent discovery by Leopeva64 on Twitter. The feature was found on Chromium Gerrit and references prototype “hover cards” that show memory usage directly on the tab’s well, “hovercard” UI.

Leopeva64 provided a mock-up as seen below for what this feature could eventually look like. Of course, the goal is to help users manage their RAM more efficiently. This could be particularly useful for those who use multiple tabs simultaneously, which can often lead to performance issues if the browser starts to consume too much memory. Other tools like Google’s recently implemented Memory Saver will also go a long way to alleviating issues such as this on lower-end devices.

[Prototype] Memory usage on hovercards

Prototyping memory usage for a tab on hovercards. Fixed issue where the tab isn’t updating memory usage when it is available. Also polish the UI a bit more and played around with showing an icon on the hovercard.

Cleaned up a bit of the code so it is no longer all in the
TabDiscardTabHelper

Chromium Gerrit

The hover cards will likely display the usual small thumbnail of the page along with the title and exact memory usage of the tab. This will make it easier for users to identify which tabs are consuming the most memory and close them if necessary to free up memory. Basically, it could be a game-changer for Chrome users who have been struggling with memory management issues.

It’s important to note that this feature is still in development and may not be released for some time, if at all. With Microsoft Edge being built on the same Chromium code base as Chrome and continuing its “marketing efforts” against Google to capture its audience, it’s crucial for Chrome to stay competitive and draw attention to new and innovative efforts for improving the user experience. Only time will tell if the feature will make it to the stable version of the browser, but for now, it’s an exciting development to keep an eye on.