What is Chrome Manifest V3 Upgrade and Why To Do It?
Published on August 2, 2022 • Updated on December 8, 2023 • 
9 min Read Google Chrome is undoubtedly the most dominant web browser these days, and the chrome web store has endless extensions to cover end-to-end business operations. Using the right extension with Manifest V3 migration for Chrome Browser can change how businesses work and maximize results.
“Google has mandated to migrate Chrome browser extensions to Manifest V3. If you are ignoring it, your extension will no longer be able to serve its users after July 2023.” – Arun Rana, Chrome extension developer, TBI
Having said that being an extension owner on Chrome Web Store can help you grab a huge business opportunity. All you need is to identify the pain points of present-day businesses, devise a solution, and build a chrome extension to solve the problem.
A decent Chrome extension can help you generate steady income in no time. However, if you already own a Chrome extension or want to build a new one, you can’t afford to ignore the significance of the decision to convert the chrome extension from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3.
What is a Manifest, and what V3 upgrade brings to the table?
If you ever got a chance to dig into the underpinning of chrome extensions or have used Chrome extension development services, you might have an idea about manifest.json files. These files act as a usage guide vital for the browsers. Don’t confuse it with the user guides of products or software because these guides are for the browser extension itself.
Why do we use Manifest for Chrome Browser Extension?
These JSON files are simple to implement, and you need not bother about reopening them unless you need to bump the version or request new permissions. Let’s find out how the relevance of Manifest files for your Chrome browsers:-
- Manifest files help display the correct name and version.
- It provides permissions to display icons.
- It decides what CSS and JS files should load.
- The manifest file tells us about the author of the Extension.
The Prime focus behind the introduction of Manifest V3 Chrome Upgrade
The Chrome extension development experts at The Brihaspati Infotech see the mandate to Migrate a Chrome browser extension to Manifest V3 as a step forward to inculcate a new vision in the extension platform. The upgrade will improve the capabilities and webbiness of chrome extensions with a focus on the following three pillars:-
Enhanced Security with V3 upgrade Chrome Extension
Manifest V3 migration for Chrome browser will disallow the remotely hosted code, thus eliminating the risks for privacy and security by removing the chances of using such codes as an attack vector.
More Privacy with Manifest V3 migration for Chrome Browser
When you migrate a Chrome browser extension to manifest v3, it will focus on making more permissions optional, thus allowing the users to withhold the sensitive permissions while installing the extensions. The focus will be on giving greater visibility and control over how chrome extensions use and share users’ data.
Migrate Chrome Browser Extension for better performance
The decision to upgrade Chrome extensions to Manifest V3 will help you drive performance-rich extensions with a new approach for background logic and API design. The changes in background logic will lower the overall system resource utilization and improve API designs to ensure reliable end-user performance.
- Introduction of service workers as a replacement for background pages.
- More declarative models for extension APIs for additional security.
Key announcements concerning Manifest V3 Upgrade Chrome Extensions
Once you upgrade Chrome extensions to Manifest V3, it will provide an enhanced, secured, and better performing option over its predecessor Manifest V2. The idea behind introducing the V3 version accommodates both evolving digital landscapes and the future of browser extensions at its core.
Apart from working on continuous improvements in functionalities of Manifest V3, Google is planning to phase out the older visions soon. If you already own a Chrome extension, you need to hire a chrome extension developer today for a Chrome extension V3 upgrade.
The Chrome Web Store has stopped accepting new Manifest V2 extensions after January 17, 2022. It has also announced to phase out all existing V2 extensions by January 2023, so if your extension is not yet updated, you have only a few months left to Convert Chrome Extension from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3.
After January 2023, you will be unable to even push the updates to the extensions with an older version of Manifest files. Apart from that, Google is planning to introduce the following additional features with the Manifest V3 upgrade:-
- Mechanism to the new scripting API
- Declarative Net Request API with static rulesets.
- Ability to filter based on tab ID
- Scoping the session-based rules
- Support for dynamically configurable content scripts
- An in-memory storage option
Our Experience With Manifest V3 Migration For Chrome Browser.
With deadlines coming closer each day, almost every Chrome extension owner is seeking the services of a Chrome extension development company to migrate Chrome browser extensions from Manifest V2 to V3. Here at The Brihaspati Infotech, we have already upgraded the chrome extensions of our clients to Chrome Manifest V3 to adhere to the mandate.
During our 10+ years of building unique chrome extensions for multiple businesses, we have mastered all, ins-and-outs that play a crucial role in the success of your business logic. Whether you need a Chrome extension for Gmail or want an extension to autoreply on social media posts, we can do it all with sheer professionalism and perfection.
As we are working continuously on the Manifest V3 migration for Chrome browser, below are two of the recent extension that we upgraded to the V3 version. You can well imagine the complexities by going through their nature and features listed below:-
Extension to copy, paste, and translate images, videos, or PDFs.
We worked to coNvert Chrome Extension from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3 for this client. His Chrome extension facilitates copying, pasting, and translating text from images, videos, and PDF documents. The extension was using the OCR Space APIs, and we need to ensure flawless functioning of these APIs after the Chrome extension V3 upgrade. A few of the features that tested our skills during the project were:-
- Turning text within any image captured from your screen into an editable format. Making it easy to reuse text in digital documents, emails, or reports.
- Support image formats like photographs, charts, youtube movies, and more.
- Verify the results with the extracted text overlay.
- Ability to switch between three OCR languages
Despite being such a complex extension to work on, we successfully upgraded it to the Chrome extension V3 version. We were able to retain the efficiency of all existing functionalities of the extension. It ensured that extensions will keep on satisfying the needs of its users for many more years to come.
Chrome Extension for Free Tree Plantation
It is yet another successful project under our belt to convert Chrome Extension from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3. Here, our Chrome extension development team worked on upgrading an extension that promotes tree plantation while shopping online. The extension was powered by Ecosia and thus has many unique features to add complexities to the upgrade. Let’s go through some extension features to understand the challenges in the project:-
- Ability to recognize supported online shops and suggest activation.
- Affiliate program for Shops listed with the extension.
- Extension’s window that appears automatically in the cart.
- Different user levels are based on shops activated by them.
The extension was indeed unique so were the challenges associated with its upgrade. However, our skilled chrome extension developers successfully executed this Manifest V2 to V3 upgrade well within stipulated timelines.
These were two of the recent Chrome Manifest V3 upgrades we delivered to our prestigious clients. If you also own a browser extension, our chrome extension development team can provide professional assistance to migrate a Chrome extension to Manifest V3 as per the Chrome store mandate.
At The Brihaspati Infotech, we have been delivering tailored browser extensions for satisfying unique business needs. No matter what kind of extension you need, just name it and our experts will deliver an extension that is a perfect match for your requirements. Know more about our Browser extension development and upgrade expertise by visiting the link.
Key learnings/challenges we faced with Manifest V3 migration for the Chrome browser
To migrate Chrome browser extension from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3 is not much difficult, provided you have an experienced Chrome extension developer by your side. Check out what experts offering chrome extension development services have to say about it. Let’s walk through the challenges extension owners can face with the process to Migrate a Chrome extension to Manifest V3:-
- Challenges due to the upgradation of the libraries and their function syntaxes.
- Now you need to upgrade the definition of functions according to the support of Chrome extension V3.
- Inability to store HTML AudioElement/MediaStream for cleanup when the session ends.
- Inability to clear in-memory data automatically when the browser closes.
- Difficulties to implement webRequestBlocking + onAuthRequired.
Boiling down key differences between using Manifest V2 vs V3
- Host Permissions – Unlike its predecessor, Manifest V3 requires clubbing of host permissions inside the permission field. It will also hold the other API permissions for chrome.
- Background Scripts – When you migrate a chrome extension to Manifest V3, it will depreciate the background pages and scripts. Thus, persistent keys are no longer required as Service Workers will replace the background scripts.
- Actions – Instead of dividing the Actions into browser_action and page_action, Manifest V3 will unify them in a single Action field.
- Content Security Policy – Manifest V3 upgrade specifies the domains for each style, script, font, or connection in your chrome extension.
- Web-Accessible Resources – Migrate a chrome extension to V3 to provide a set of resources like URLs and IDs instead of files for web-accessible resources.
Conclusion
These were some insights for the Chrome extension Manifest V3 upgrade. We hope you will plan to implement it soon for compliance with the mandate of the Google web store. Being a leading chrome extension development company, our experts help you eliminate the pain points for successful migrations to MV3. Apart from services to migrate Chrome browser extensions, our team can become a trustworthy partner for the following services:-
Browser extension development from scratch - Add extra functionalities to existing Chrome extensions
- Technology consultation for Chrome extensions
- Custom multi-browser extensions for eCommerce
- Chrome extension maintenance and support
Browser extension development from scratch If you still seek to Migrate a Chrome browser extension to manifest v3 or want to add new functionalities to match the industry standards, we will be happy to assist you. Get in touch with one of our Chrome extension developers today! We will help you accelerate the functionalities and user experience of extensions you own.
