Skip to main content
Nook takes a sidebar-first approach to browser navigation, placing all your tabs vertically in a customizable sidebar. This design maximizes your screen space for web content while keeping all navigation controls easily accessible.

​
Overview

The sidebar is your central hub for browsing in Nook. It contains:
  • Window controls and navigation buttons
  • URL bar for quick navigation
  • Pinned tabs grid (Essentials)
  • Spaces with vertical tabs
  • Media controls
  • Bottom bar with space indicators
You can position the sidebar on the left or right side of the window. Right-click the sidebar and choose Position to switch sides.
Nook supports both left and right sidebar positioning:
1

Open sidebar context menu

Right-click anywhere in the sidebar to open the context menu.
2

Select position

Hover over Position and choose either Left or Right.
The sidebar position is saved in your settings and persists across sessions. The header at the top of the sidebar contains:
  • Window controls - Close, minimize, and maximize buttons
  • Navigation buttons - Back and forward buttons for the current tab
  • URL bar - Click to open the command palette with the current URL prefilled
The URL bar is click-only and opens the command palette. Use Cmd+L to quickly access it.

​
Pinned tabs (Essentials)

Below the header is a grid of your pinned tabs, called “Essentials”. These tabs are:
  • Globally accessible - Available across all spaces
  • Profile-specific - Each profile has its own set of pinned tabs
  • Always visible - Displayed at the top of every space
  • Grid layout - Arranged in a compact grid for quick access
Pinned tabs are hidden in incognito windows to maintain privacy.
To pin a tab:
  1. Right-click a tab in any space
  2. Select Pin Tab (or press Cmd+P)
Pinned tabs appear in the Essentials grid and are removed from the space’s tab list.

​
Vertical tabs in spaces

Each space displays its tabs vertically in a scrollable list. This layout provides:
  • More visible tabs - See more tabs at once compared to horizontal layouts
  • Tab previews - Hover over a tab to see its full title
  • Drag and drop - Reorder tabs by dragging them up or down
  • Space-pinned tabs - Pin tabs to the top of a specific space

​
Tab indicators

Tabs show visual indicators for various states:
  • Audio icon - Tab is playing audio (click to mute)
  • Loading spinner - Page is loading
  • Favicon - Site icon or default globe icon
  • Close button - Appears on hover
The sidebar width is adjustable:
  • Drag the divider - Click and drag the edge between the sidebar and web content
  • Minimum width - 200 pixels
  • Maximum width - 600 pixels
  • Default width - 328 pixels
The sidebar width is saved per window and persists across sessions. Click the menu button at the bottom left of the sidebar to access:
  • Settings - Browser settings and preferences
  • Downloads - View and manage downloads
  • History - Browse your browsing history
  • Extensions - Manage installed extensions
  • Profiles - Switch between profiles
The menu slides in from the left (or right, depending on sidebar position) and overlays the tab list.

Keyboard shortcuts

  • Cmd+, - Open settings
  • Cmd+Shift+H - Toggle sidebar visibility
  • Right-click sidebar - Context menu with quick actions

​
Bottom bar

The bottom bar displays:
  • Menu button - Opens the sidebar menu
  • Space indicators - Dots representing each space (active space highlighted)
  • New space button - Create a new space
Click any space indicator to quickly jump to that space.

​
Incognito mode

In incognito windows, the sidebar adapts:
  • No pinned tabs - Essentials grid is hidden
  • Ephemeral spaces - Spaces exist only for that window session
  • Isolated data - No browsing data is saved
The sidebar maintains the same navigation patterns while ensuring privacy.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us