Add Users to Chrome
Google Chrome provides the ability to set up multiple users, each with a separate virtual copy of the browser on the same machine. You can take things a step further by tying your Chrome account to your Google account and syncing bookmarks and apps across multiple devices.
To add individual users to Chrome, do the following:
Open the Chrome browser. From the top menu bar, select People > Add Person. A new window opens. If you don’t have a Google account, select Get Started, otherwise select Already a Chrome user? Sign in. If you selected Sign in, enter your email address or phone number and select Next. Otherwise, create a new account. Enter your password, then select Next. You’re prompted to Turn on sync. Select Yes, I’m in or Settings to fine-tune what you want to sync. Under Sync, select Manage sync to expand the menu of options. To sync everything, turn on the Sync everything toggle switch. Otherwise, select each option individually, such as Apps, Bookmarks, and Extensions. Select Confirm. You may be prompted to set Chrome as the default browser. Select Set as default if you’d like, or select Skip to leave the default browser as is.
A new window appears. This window represents a new browsing session for the new user you created. Unless you set up an account with the original Google account, the new user is given a random profile name and icon.
Any browser settings that this user modifies, such as installing a new theme, are saved locally to their account. These settings can be synced with your Google Account.
Customize Your Chrome Profile
You may not want to keep the randomly generated username that Chrome chose for you. Typically, Google assigns the generic name, for example, Person 1, Person 2, or Person 3. To personalize the name, do the following:
In Chrome, select People then select the profile you want to edit. A personalized instance of Chrome opens. Go to People and select Edit. Under Edit person, there’s a text box containing the name of the profile. Enter the name you’d like for this profile. Under the name box, select a user icon, if desired. Designating an icon makes it easier to distinguish different profiles. Close the Settings window or select the arrow next to Edit person to complete the process.
After you create an additional Chrome user, a new menu is added to the browser. In the upper-right corner, you’ll find the icon for whichever user is currently active. This is more than an icon. Selecting it presents the Chrome User menu. Within this menu, you can view whether a user is signed in to their Google Account, switch active users, edit their name and icon, or create a new user.
Chrome allows individual users to associate their local browser account with their Google Account. The main benefit is the ability to instantly sync bookmarks, apps, extensions, themes, and browser settings to the account. This makes favorite sites, add-ons, and personal preferences available on multiple devices. It can also serve as a backup if your original device is no longer available.
Manage Sync Settings
To sign in to Chrome and enable the sync feature, you must have an active Google Account.
Choose your profile icon located next to the address bar and select Turn on sync or Sign in again. Enter your email address or phone number, then select Next. Enter your account password, then select Next. You may be prompted to protect your account by setting up a recovery phone number or email. You can Update or Confirm details. Confirm turning on sync by selecting Yes, I’m in if you haven’t turned on syncing. Select the Chrome menu in the upper-right corner indicated by three vertical dots, then select Settings. Alternatively, press Command+comma ( , ) on the keyboard to open the Settings menu. Under You and Google, expand the Sync and Google services menu. Under Sync, expand Manage sync. Toggle off or on the items whose sync status you would like to change.
Confirm Sync Preferences
By default, Chrome syncs everything. A cautious user may not want everything synced, although the data is encrypted in multiple ways. This includes saved passwords being encrypted on both the local device and the Google servers using a cryptographic key.
If you want to sync all of the items, select the Sync everything toggle switch. If you’d like to specify which items get synced and which ones stay local, select the toggle on each item.
Additional Sync Preferences
Other sync settings allow you to change how your browsing history is used to personalize your Chrome experience and what data can be synced, including hidden data.
Also found in this window is an option to either encrypt synced passwords or encrypt all your synced data. You can take this security a step further by creating an encryption passphrase, instead of using your Google Account password.
Disconnect Google Account
Follow these steps to remove or disconnect a Google Account from your Chrome settings.
Open Chrome and select your profile avatar in the upper-right corner. Select Manage People. Hover the cursor over the profile avatar that you want to delete. Select the menu icon represented by three vertical dots, then select Remove this Person. Select Remove This Person when prompted about the permanent deletion of data.
