Middle click in browsers on a Mac

The two things people middle click most are links and tabs. Here's what each Mac browser does with the middle button, and how to get one from a trackpad.

What the middle button does

Whether a new tab opens in the background or in front is a browser setting. In Safari it's General → "When a new tab or window opens, make it active". In Chrome the middle button always opens in the background; add ⇧ to bring it forward.

Without a middle button

For links, ⌘-click does the same as a middle click in every browser above. For tabs there is no keyboard way to close the one you're pointing at; you have to switch to it first and press ⌘W, or hit the small ×, which on a crowded tab strip is a precision exercise.

With The Mid Click

The Mid Click sends a real middle-button event, so browsers behave exactly as they would with a mouse:

• Close any tab by tapping it with three fingers. Works on Arc's sidebar tabs and on pinned tabs in Chrome and Firefox.
• Open links in the background by tapping them. You stay on the page you're reading, and the tabs queue up.
• Reading-list style browsing: tap every interesting link on a page in a few seconds, then go through the tabs.

Use Tap mode for this; it's the fastest, and browsers don't need middle-drag.

Web apps that use the middle button directly

Some sites listen for the middle button themselves rather than relying on the browser: Figma and Miro pan the canvas with middle-drag, Google Maps and some mapping tools use it for tilt, and many browser games use it as a third action. Those need Click mode in The Mid Click, which supports holding and dragging.