Level 1

59 points

iOS 18 Safari tabs not syncing via iCloud

Whenever opening a new page in Safari, open tabs that were closed on other devices still show under the open iCloud tabs. The only way to remedy this so far has been to turn off iCloud syncing with Safari and then back on.

Also those iCloud open Safari tabs on the Start page are ridiculously large compared to the previous text versions that were condensed properly. There needs be an option to have text only instead of a small page preview next to the text, which takes up a large amount of screen real estate.

iPhone 12, iOS 18

Posted on Sep 20, 2024 3:13 PM

Top-ranking reply

sepatuboots

Level 1

38 points

Posted on Oct 26, 2024 2:30 AM

I've also noticed the same problem and I'm very much annoyed with this bug and the fact that it hasn't been fixed with the latest 18.0.1 update. iCloud tabs and its seamless syncing across devices has been my primary reason in sticking with Safari and now it's just straight up a complete mess.

Closing tabs on other devices does not actually close them, open tabs don't automatically show up, and the new interface looks ugly with the blown up icons and the drop down menu to choose between devices is now unintuitive.

I wonder what makes Apple keep making unnecessary changes to ruin what otherwise has been a perfectly fine feature and experience.

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32 replies

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Dec 19, 2024 8:13 AM in response to LSchamltz

18.2/15.2 now, and I still have to use this workaround

lunhil

Level 1

22 points

Dec 19, 2024 8:40 AM in response to Molarkey

Same, still broken on 18.2 between iPad and iPhone.

beshanoe

Level 1

20 points

Feb 28, 2025 4:56 AM in response to Molarkey

Fix it asap!

Mar 1, 2025 1:59 PM in response to Molarkey

Same here, simply not working as intended. 🤷‍♂️ Oh Apple, please stop the AI-craze and fix the basic things.

Jan 14, 2025 6:59 AM in response to Molarkey

I'm having this issue as well. I'm not sure but as other have stated it seems to have started with iOS 18.x. I am running the public betas on my iPad and my iPhone, but not my Mac...

Feb 26, 2025 3:26 PM in response to LSchamltz

If anything, I think the zombie tab problem that was largely fixed is now getting worse. I regularly see tabs I closed days earlier come up until I reset the iCloud sync option.

Lucacerr

Level 1

10 points

Dec 4, 2024 9:58 AM in response to LSchamltz

I had a glimpse of hope yesterday when my iPad started to show only the active tabs open on my other devices, but today when I turned it on and opened safari the problem presented itself again with zombie tabs and sync not working properly :(

mriepi

Level 1

12 points

Feb 23, 2025 10:29 AM in response to Molarkey

There has been no functional sync between iPad Air (4), iPhone 12 Pro and MacBook Air M1 for weeks/months.

Currently, my Safari on iPhone does not even show the field for iCloud tabs when opening a new tab, although activated.

Dec 7, 2024 9:44 AM in response to LSchamltz

Okay, force closing Safari and reopening it will update the tabs. It's just not pinging iCloud to update on its own for some reason.

dhan16

Level 1

8 points

Dec 20, 2024 6:16 AM in response to Molarkey

same problem

alexamh9

Level 1

8 points

Dec 22, 2024 2:29 PM in response to Molarkey

Squeaky wheel - me too! iCloud tabs section not even showing on my iPad.

Molarkey Author

Level 1

59 points

Dec 29, 2024 10:32 PM in response to Molarkey

I was going to try and pull up a page open on my desktop tonight when I noticed this (note: for privacy, I have removed my personal favorites icons from the second screen grab):

Dev personnel: I know what we'll do. Let's just phase the section/selection out completely even though the box is ticked on to be there in the start page Safari settings (sarcasm)

Feb 16, 2025 3:30 PM in response to Molarkey

Now on 18.3.1, and it’s still just as broken. Apple really seems to be ignoring basic features

Dec 3, 2024 8:51 AM in response to Molarkey

It seems like it's kind of starting to work a little bit for me now. I saw some recent tabs from my iPhone this morning on my Mac, but I had to toggle iCloud sync to get tabs from my Mac back on my phone.

frank120

Level 1

4 points

Feb 10, 2025 5:20 AM in response to Molarkey

I'm just adding to the chorus. Same issue. I did the 'turn them off and on again' thing and they all updated, but then everything just stuck on the newer version. According to iCloud Safari tabs, nothing has closed or opened since this reset several weeks ago, which is not the case. Based on my experiences, it would mean repeating the initial turn it on and off again across devices every time you want a current version of your tabs, and providing you never want any new additions you're set... which sort of defeats the whole idea.

iOS 18 Safari tabs not syncing via iCloud

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iOS 18 Safari tabs not syncing via iCloud