Why Does MetaMask Keep Opening in Chrome? Users Report a Bug After Extension Updates
Why does MetaMask auto-launch in a tab every time you open Chrome?
Published April 2 2025, 3:35 p.m. ET
It happens more often than you’d like. You launch your web browser and before you even have time to think, MetaMask has auto-launched in a new tab — again. You didn’t click anything. You didn’t change any settings. Yet, there it is.
If you’ve found yourself frustrated and wondering why MetaMask keeps opening in Chrome, you aren’t alone. Furthermore, you aren’t doing anything wrong. Turns out, this behavior is connected to a bug. MetaMask users have vented about it across Reddit, browser reviews in the Chrome store, and support forums. The question is: What can you do to fix it?
Why does MetaMask keep opening in Chrome so persistently?
In April 2025, users began reporting that MetaMask would automatically launch a new browser tab every time they opened Chrome. Unfortunately, this problem wasn’t limited to Chrome. People using Brave and Edge also reported having the same problem. The bug was causing MetaMask to open its unlock or welcome screen every time you opened your browser.
One user described the problem in a Reddit thread: “It is extremely annoying ... Every time I open Chrome, even if I turn off MetaMask, it just opens again. The only thing that stopped it was uninstalling.”
Another added: “I've toggled every possible setting, re-installed, but it just won’t stop. Had to uninstall.”
The problem appears to be tied to an update released by MetaMask around early April 2025. The Chrome web store review section also shows a wave of complaints, with one reviewer writing: “MetaMask keeps opening when I start Chrome ... This was an awful update.”
A MetaMask developer responded: “Sorry about that. Can confirm it’s a bug, not intended behavior. Team is working on an update to get that resolved.”
Turns out, this isn’t the first time MetaMask users have run into this problem.
Back in March 2025 — two weeks before the April bug — users had already begun reporting nearly identical behavior. In a Reddit, one user said: “MetaMask unlock page pops up every time Chrome opens. I don’t want it doing that. I’ve closed the tab a million times.”
Other users confirmed the same behavior, with some speculating that the bug tends to appear after the extension is updated or patched. While MetaMask hasn’t officially confirmed the root cause, patterns across Reddit and past user complaints suggest that extension updates can occasionally trigger this auto-launch issue.
On the Chrome web store review, one frustrated user vented, “You’ve got to be kidding me!” The individual went on to admit they spent hours looking for a fix only to realize the problem was that the developers had caused the issue.
Frustrated users are uninstalling the extension until a fix is confirmed.
While MetaMask has acknowledged the bug and stated that a fix is in development, no release date has been provided. In the meantime, many users say the only reliable workaround has been uninstalling the extension altogether.
Until a permanent fix is released, your best bet is to disable or remove the extension temporarily and keep an eye on MetaMask’s official support page or Chrome Store listing for updates. Thankfully, this problem is fixable — eventually.