# Wayback Machine

> Welcome to the Official Internet Archive Wayback Machine Browser Extension! Go back in time to see how a website has changed through the history of the Web. Save websites, view missing 404 Not Found pages, or read archived books & papers.

Canonical page: [https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine\_new](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine_new)

## Overview

- **ID:** `wayback-machine_new`
- **Platform:** Firefox
- **Type:** Firefox add-on
- **Status:** Available
- **Publisher:** Internet Archive
- **Category:** feeds-news-blogging,search-tools,other
- **Daily users:** 37,631
- **Weekly downloads:** 514
- **Rating:** 4.11 / 5 (372 ratings)
- **Version:** 3.2
- **Last updated:** 2023-01-05
- **First published:** 2016-06-23
- **Size:** 1.31 MB
- **Data as of:** 2026-09-09
- **Store listing:** [Firefox Add-ons Store](https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/wayback-machine_new/)
- **Website:** [https://archive.org/about/contact.php](https://archive.org/about/contact.php)
- **Privacy policy:** [https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/wayback-machine\_new/privacy/](https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/wayback-machine_new/privacy/)

## Description

The Official Internet Archive Wayback Machine Chrome extension allows users to travel back in time to view how websites have evolved through the history of the Web. Instantly save pages with "Save Page Now", view archived versions including oldest and newest snapshots, and access archived content such as books and research papers. The extension enhances browsing by automatically checking for archived copies of missing 404 Not Found pages and integrates contextual fact-checking notices for improved content reliability.

Additional features include the display of snapshot counts, navigational aids like site maps and word clouds, access to your personal web archive, and social sharing tools. Privacy options include a Private Mode to protect user data. This tool works seamlessly with or without an account, making digital preservation and research more accessible to everyone.

## Rankings

- #369 — Overall
- #26 — Feeds, News & Blogging
- #38 — Search Tools
- #48 — Other extensions
- #2 — machine
- #3 — cmd+m (mac)

## Permissions and access

### Permissions

- `activeTab`
- `cookies`
- `contextMenus`
- `notifications`
- `storage`
- `webRequest`
- `webRequestBlocking`
- `https://archive.org/*`
- `https://*.archive.org/*`
- `https://hypothes.is/*`
- `<all_urls>`

### Content script matches

- `*.wikipedia.org`

## Safety

- **Risk impact:** High risk impact
- **Risk likelihood:** Low risk likelihood

### Analysis details

- Allows access to all websites, posing a significant security risk as it can monitor and modify data from any visited site.
- This extension has medium user count. Unpopular extensions may not be stable or safe.

> Some risk analysis details are omitted from this free response. [Upgrade to view the full analysis](https://chrome-stats.com/pricing).

## Review summary

Overall, users praise easy setup and the handy archiving workflow, plus its usefulness in preventing link rot. The main drawbacks are reliability issues with saving/archiving, occasional archived-view glitches, slower updates, occasional dark mode problems, and potential performance impact on devices with auto-archiving enabled.

### Pros

- Easy installation and works on first use.
- Very convenient for saving pages and links, making archiving effortless.
- Great for preventing link rot by archiving content via the Wayback Machine.
- Auto-archive feature is a standout capability.
- Generally useful and reliable for quick access to archived content.

### Cons

- Save/archive failures and inconsistent results (sometimes reports success but archive is missing or unreachable).
- Archived pages sometimes show I’m not able to view them or encounter 'not available' glitches when viewing archives.
- Not as up-to-date as Chrome/Edge/Safari versions; slower updates and maintenance.
- UI/dark mode doesn’t always respect dark themes in some screens.
- Auto-archiving can slow down devices or consume noticeable resources on larger workloads.

## Similar extensions and apps

- [Wayback Machine Official](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine-official) — 55 users
- [Save To The Wayback Machine](https://chrome-stats.com/d/save-to-the-wayback-machine) — 204 users, 4.67 / 5
- [Wayback Everywhere](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-everywhere) — 4 users, 5.00 / 5
- [Wayback Saver](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-saver) — 29 users
- [Wayback Machine Auto-Archiver](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine-auto-archiver) — 59 users, 5.00 / 5
- [Wayback Machine Quick Access](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine-quick) — 1 users
- [Save Page Now to the Wayback Machine](https://chrome-stats.com/d/save-page-now-unofficial) — 24 users, 4.50 / 5
- [Wayback Machine](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine-search) — 13 users, 3.00 / 5
- [Waybackify](https://chrome-stats.com/d/waybackify) — 5 users
- [Wayback Machine Helper](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine-helper) — 72 users
- [PastPage: Query 10+ Web Archives](https://chrome-stats.com/d/pastpage-query-10-web-archives) — 12 users
- [Archive Page](https://chrome-stats.com/d/archivepage) — 25 users

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Source: [Chrome-Stats](https://chrome-stats.com/d/wayback-machine_new)