Google is preparing to make its Chrome browser easier to navigate with a new, less-cluttered search feature.

The new search allows users to quickly find settings, bookmarks and recently visited websites without having to dig through menus.

The feature is currently available in Google’s Chrome Canary testing build, giving a sneak peek at a redesigned three-dot menu.

The new search box sits at the top of Chrome’s main menu where users can type keywords to find specific browser commands, saved bookmarks and websites from browsing history.

Previously, finding particular settings often required users to navigate through several submenus or scroll through lengthy lists of options. The new version aims to eliminate much of that effort by bringing relevant results directly to the user.

According to a demonstration shared by browser feature tipster Leopeva64 on X, the search function now gives working results in the latest Canary build, compared to earlier versions where the search box did not respond. 

Google has also introduced changes to the menu’s overall appearance and organisation.

The New Tab, New Window and New Incognito Window options have been transformed into larger buttons and other browser controls are arranged into clearly separated groups.

Search results are divided into categories, including commands, bookmarks and browsing history. This organisation should make it easier to distinguish between settings and saved websites that might have similar names.

Even scrolling through the menu has been updated. Google has removed the small navigation arrows previously used to reveal hidden options and replaced them with a scrollbar.

Another useful change is that the search box remains fixed at the top of the menu, while Settings, Help and Exit stay pinned to the bottom. This makes it much easier to access these frequently used options, without having to scroll through a whole list. 

The changes are currently limited to Chrome Canary but they indicate that Google is looking to improve the browser’s usability, even via relatively small changes to the interface they look set to be practical and useful updates. 

There is no confirmed release date for the redesigned menu and Google has not announced when the feature will become available to all users.