Frequently Asked Questions
Smart Mute uses Google Analytics to track key events such as installation, updates, usage, and uninstallation of the extension. We also track visits to core pages like the FAQs and Contact page to help us improve the user experience.
What Information Is Collected?
When you submit a support request, bug report, or feature idea through the Contact page, Smart Mute collects your browser version and extension version. This helps us troubleshoot and respond more effectively.
Smart Mute does not collect or store private information—such as your IP address, browsing history, or the websites listed in your Whitelist and Blacklist.
đź”’ Your privacy matters. We only collect the minimum data needed to provide support and improve the extension.
To enable the Whitelist and Blacklist features, Smart Mute needs access to website URLs. This allows the extension to check—in real time—whether a site matches one you’ve added to your list.
Chrome’s security model restricts access to this kind of information. To read a site’s URL, Smart Mute must request permission to use Chrome’s Tabs API. This does not give Smart Mute access to your full browsing history—just the active tabs needed for its features to work.
đź“Ś This permission is used solely for real-time feature checks and not for tracking.
Yes. When both Silent Mode and Whitelist are enabled, Smart Mute will only allow audio to play on websites you’ve whitelisted. All other sites will be muted.
However, if you open multiple whitelisted sites at once, you may experience unexpected behavior. Since each whitelisted tab is allowed to play audio, Smart Mute cannot enforce one-tab-at-a-time muting across multiple whitelisted sites.
⚠️ Tip: For the smoothest experience, keep just one whitelisted tab open at a time.
Yes! Smart Mute works in incognito mode—but you’ll need to turn it on manually first. Some browsers disable extensions by default in private windows for privacy reasons.
Here’s how to enable it:
- Right-click the Smart Mute icon in your extensions toolbar (top-right of your browser).
- Click “Manage Extension.”
- Scroll down and toggle on “Allow in Incognito.”
- Open an incognito window—you’ll now see Smart Mute active in the toolbar.
Once enabled, Smart Mute will help you keep audio under control, even in private browsing sessions.
If you’ve enabled the “Exclude Pinned Tabs” option in Smart Mute, pinned tabs can play audio no matter which tab you’re currently using. This is great for keeping music, radio, or messaging apps running in the background while you browse.
When this option is on, Smart Mute will automatically unmute the last tab that was playing audio if your current tab stops after a short delay. It’s useful for cases like when a video ends, and you want your music or podcast to resume.
Silent Mode mutes all tabs by default, giving you a completely quiet browsing experience.
Want more control?
Pair Silent Mode with the Whitelist to allow audio only from the websites you trust—everything else stays silent.
By default, Smart Mute only lets one tab play audio at a time to keep things focused and prevent sound overlap.
If you want more than one tab to play audio, you can use either of these features:
- Exclude Pinned Tabs — Allows audio from pinned tabs, even if you’re not viewing them.
- Whitelist — Lets specific websites or pages play audio no matter which tab is active.
While Smart Mute doesn’t offer manual mute/unmute controls, these features give you flexible ways to customize your audio experience.
Yes! You can use the Blacklist feature to block specific websites or pages from playing audio—no matter what tab you’re on.
Once a site is added to your Blacklist, it will stay muted in the background and won’t interrupt your browsing experience. It’s a simple way to silence the sites you don’t want to hear from.