I have just updated my iPhone to IOS 26, how do I stop Safari from opening new tabs next to the last tab instead of adjacent to the tab I am currently using?
The last IOS didn’t have a problem with this and I am sick of having to scroll all the way back to my current tab whilst trying to remember where it is.
iPhone SE, iOS 26
Safari has always opened new tabs after the last tab. This is nothing new.
There are a few cases when it will open a tab adjacent to the current tab; the most common one is if you are using webmail such as mail.google.com and you open a message it will open in an adjacent tab; that is under the control of the tab you are in when you click to open the message, it is not being done by Safari.
It will also use an adjacent tab if you right-click on a link in one tab and choose Open in a new tab.
Safari normally opens new tabs next to the most recently used tab, keeping related pages grouped together. This makes it easier to follow a browsing flow without tabs scattering all over the place.
However, in some situations, Safari opens new tabs at the beginning of the tab bar (the far left). This typically happens when a tab is opened by the system or another app, such as:
• Opening a link from Mail, Messages, Notes, or another app
• Restoring tabs after reopening Safari or a device restart
• Opening links via Handoff or Continuity features
• When Tab Groups or previously saved sessions are involved
User-initiated tabs usually open next to the current tab, while system-initiated tabs may jump to the front.
I have been choosing open in new tab. On the last IOS version it was opening in an adjacent tab but since I did the update to IOS 26 yesterday, any new tab no matter how/where I try to open it, opens last.
I have tried changing the safari tab settings but the only options there are for if you want to automatically be taken to any new tabs you open or if you want them to open in the background, which is not what I am trying to change.
That’s my problem. That’s how my tabs used to behave, but since the update any and all new tabs are opening at the front.
What I am trying to do is get my user initiated tabs to open next to my current tab and not at the front which they have they have stopped doing since I have updated.
Safari new tabs open next to last on iPhone after iOS 26
