Safari tab groups lost after macOS update 26.2

I just lost all my saved tab groups on Safari after installing the latest MacOS security update 26.2. Can they be restored? Would it help if I have a Time Machine back up?

MacBook Pro (M1 Max, 2021)

Posted on Dec 13, 2025 1:50 AM

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4 replies

Dec 18, 2025 3:51 AM in response to ra-ben

Same with me, I upgraded to 26.2 on all of my devices, Mac and iPhone and lost all except 1 tabgroup which wasn't even up to date.


I rang Apple support who told me that all of my settings for iCloud and Safari were correct and that it should have sync'd. I pointed out that I'd had many of these tab groups for many months and that they had been sync'd across my devices.


Apple said that there is never going to be any guarantee that tab groups won't just disappear. I asked whether there is a way for users to sync their tab groups manually and Apple said no, there is not. So this means that tab groups are completely unreliable, you might be lucky, you might not.


I think this is disgraceful.

Safari tab groups lost after macOS update 26.2

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