Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.
ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Google has released a list of the top Chrome extensions for 2025.
- AI-powered helpers topped the list, but all the tools use AI.
- Most of the extensions are geared towards work productivity.
Last month, Google released its annual list of the best apps, books, and games of 2025. Many of the top apps centered around mental health and growth, like Focus Friend by Hank Green and Wiser – 15 Minute Audio Books. Almost the entire list was apps to help us calm down, focus, and learn. Surprisingly, there didn’t seem to be a whole lot of AI.
Google has now released its list of the top Chrome extensions of the year, and this list makes up for that absence. Out of 10 extensions, four are AI browser companions, and the rest use AI in some fashion.
Here’s a look at the whole list.
AI Browser Companions
Google kicked off its list with a roundup of AI browser companions — ones that turned Chrome into a “proactive assistant.”
-
Monica and Sider were first. Google called them both “all-in-one powerhouses” and pointed out how easily they let you chat about PDF files, draft content, and summarize web pages without leaving the screen.
-
HARPA AI followed, an agentic AI that focuses on automating workflows and helping you write emails, tweets, and SEO articles. It also tracks online prices to make sure you’re getting the best deal.
-
Quillbot (which topped our list of the best AI content detectors) closed out the list, an AI extension geared toward writers. It fixes grammar mistakes, paraphrases, refines your writing, detects AI, and humanizes AI-written content.
Also: You can finally get built-in vertical tabs in Chrome – here’s how and why they’re better
Productivity
This year, Google explained, extensions helped us not just manage time, but reclaim it by handling mundane tasks and teaching us new things.
-
Fireflies.ai and Bluedot both work in a similar manner. They automatically record, transcribe, and summarize meetings, letting you home in on what’s being said. Both work with multiple platforms, including Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams, and both offer meeting highlights.
-
If you’re struggling to understand a complex topic, QuestionAI is there to help. Powered by ChatGPT, it answers screenshot queries and questions on learning platforms and helps you refine your writing on a topic.
-
eJOY lets you learn while you browse, letting you look up, save, and review vocabulary, translate words and phrases in videos with just one click, and dig deeper into a concept from the content you are watching.
Creativity
And lest the list be all AI, Google did acknowledge that human creativity is still important.
-
Adobe Photoshop’s in-browser editing tool makes an appearance on the list, and while it’s not as robust as the standalone software, it does have quite a few useful features, like the ability to remove backgrounds, adjust colors, and crop for social media.
Also: Looking for a Chrome alternative? My top 5 free open-source browsers
-
Google also recognized the Phia personal shopping tool, which automatically compares prices across the web with a single click. Phia checks prices from hundreds of retail and secondhand marketplaces, and you can even save items and get notified when prices drop.
The list shows just how important extensions are becoming to Chrome. Instead of simply letting you browse, Google is aiming to make Chrome your hub for everything online. You can find these extensions in the “Google’s Favorites of 2025” collection on the Chrome Web Store.
Featured
Editorial standards
