Q01Is my data sent anywhere?
Your browsing is not. Containers, their cookies and their site data are stored in the extension's storage on this computer. BentoTabs has no servers to send them to. Pro talks to Polar, our payment provider: when you activate, it sends your licence key, a label with the product name and the date, and a random id made for this install, then checks the key about once a week. Pro keeps working offline for 30 days between checks.
Q02Do sites in the same container share sign-ins?
Yes, just like a normal browser: sites in one container can share a sign-in, for example Google and YouTube. Use different containers to keep accounts apart.
Q03Does it give each container its own IP address or proxy?
No. Chrome only allows one proxy for the whole browser, so every container uses your normal connection. We would rather say so than ship a proxy feature that half works.
Q04Does it change my browser fingerprint or prevent bans?
No. BentoTabs keeps cookies and page storage apart. It does not hide your device, screen or IP, so a site can still tell that two accounts use the same computer. Please follow each site's rules on multiple accounts.
Q05Does it work on my phone?
No. Chrome on Android and iOS does not run extensions. It works in Chrome on Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS.
Q06Will I be signed out after a restart?
No. A container keeps its sign-ins, including "session" cookies, until you sign it out or delete it. Real expiry dates set by sites are still honored.
Q07What happens to normal tabs?
They keep your normal Chrome cookies. Two things touch them, both once per site: the first time a container opens a site or gets a sign-in copied for it, normal tabs already open on it reload, so they cannot read the container's page data; and the site's service workers from normal browsing are removed, so they cannot answer container tabs with your normal account. The site registers them again when it needs them.
Q08Can I bring a sign-in I already have?
Yes. On a tab where you are signed in, choose Reopen in… and turn on Bring my sign-in: the site's cookies, local storage and IndexedDB are copied into the container you pick, in place of what it had for that site. Under Containers in the settings, you can copy the cookies of many sites at once. Normal browsing stays signed in. Chrome keeps each browser profile's data apart, so another profile takes two steps, with Pro: export its sign-ins there into a file encrypted with your passphrase, then import the file here. Only cookies come over from another profile.
Q09Does it work in incognito windows?
No. BentoTabs cannot be allowed in incognito, so containers live in normal windows only and private browsing leaves no container data behind.
Q10How does it work with Claude in Chrome and other AI agents?
Nothing to set up for the basics: an agent working in a container tab keeps that container's sign-ins, and the tabs it opens from links or in its own tab group stay in the container. To let an agent open a container by itself, turn on AI agent support in the options and allow that container; it gets a private link that switches a tab into it. Links clicked on web pages are refused, so a website cannot push you into a container. Agents that read cookies through Chrome DevTools still see your normal cookies.
Q11What if a site breaks in a container?
BentoTabs notices sign-in loops and offers to open the page normally or try again. Use "Report" in that prompt or on the compatibility page to tell us which site. A report contains the site's domain, the extension version and what you write, nothing else.
Q12What does Pro cost?
29 US dollars once, not a subscription, with a 14-day refund. The free plan keeps 2 saved containers and unlimited temporary ones, forever.
Q13What happens if I uninstall it?
Chrome deletes the extension's storage, so every container and its sign-ins are removed. Export a backup from the options page first if you might come back.