support safari just lost all my tabs and I can’t restore them

I’m using iOS 16.2. I’m really upset I just closed safari and all my tabs are gone with no way to find them. I’ve tried pressing the + key on top right of the screen and they don’t show up in recently closed tabs. I’ve clicked “show all windows” and they don’t show up.


what happened is I clicked merge windows, then all my tabs were there, I closed safari and suddenly all my tabs are gone. If I repeat those steps I lose all my tabs, it makes safari unusable and I hate this bug.

iPad Pro, 12.9-inch, 6th Gen, Wi-Fi

Posted on Dec 19, 2022 10:43 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 21, 2022 05:33 AM

You can usually Reopen Recently Closed Windows.


Starting from a Home Screen, assuming that Safari is visible in the Dock, touch-and-hold (i.e., long touch) the Safari icon; an Action Menu will appear.


From the menu, select Show All Windows; you will now see a screen that closely resembles the Task Switcher - but you will only see preview windows for your open Safari Windows. At top-right (iPadOS15) or top-left (iPadOS16) of the screen you may see the Reopen Closed Window(s) button.




You should note that the Reopen Closed Window(s) button allows you to reopen a window for a limited period of time. If you have previously followed poor advice in attempting recovery, or have taken too long, you may have lost the opportunity to recover the closed window - and with it the tabs and related tab history.


This article, written a while ago, hasn’t yet been updated for iPadOS16. While there are some differences, much of the content remains relevant:

iPadOS - Safari - Lost Windows, Lost Tabs… - Apple Community


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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 21, 2022 05:33 AM in response to Celeste Pickron

You can usually Reopen Recently Closed Windows.


Starting from a Home Screen, assuming that Safari is visible in the Dock, touch-and-hold (i.e., long touch) the Safari icon; an Action Menu will appear.


From the menu, select Show All Windows; you will now see a screen that closely resembles the Task Switcher - but you will only see preview windows for your open Safari Windows. At top-right (iPadOS15) or top-left (iPadOS16) of the screen you may see the Reopen Closed Window(s) button.




You should note that the Reopen Closed Window(s) button allows you to reopen a window for a limited period of time. If you have previously followed poor advice in attempting recovery, or have taken too long, you may have lost the opportunity to recover the closed window - and with it the tabs and related tab history.


This article, written a while ago, hasn’t yet been updated for iPadOS16. While there are some differences, much of the content remains relevant:

iPadOS - Safari - Lost Windows, Lost Tabs… - Apple Community


This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

support safari just lost all my tabs and I can’t restore them

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