Search live page text
Find visible paragraphs, headings, links, buttons, tables, labels, supported frames, and open shadow DOM.
Chrome extension by TextaviaText Replacer for Chrome
Find and replace text across live web pages, including page copy, forms, editors, frames, and open shadow DOM.
Open web versionChrome Web Store listing coming soon
Edit fields and editors
Use the same workflow for textareas, contenteditable regions, and single-line inputs when you enable them.
Replace one or all
Move through matches, replace the active result, or run a confirmed replacement batch across the page.
Undo the last batch
Reverse the most recent replacement batch across page text and editable fields while you review changes.
Product tour
A side panel built for real page editing.
Text Replacer stays beside the page, keeps matches visible, and gives you controls for the places where browser text actually lives.
Page-wide matches
Matches in ordinary page text are highlighted without changing the document.
Editable fields
Textareas, forms, and supported rich text areas stay in the same side-panel workflow.
Regex and matching options
Use regex, whole-word matching, diacritic-insensitive search, and preserve-case replacements.
Getting started
Text Replacer lives in Chrome's side panel, so it stays open beside the page while you work. Pin the extension from Chrome's puzzle-piece menu if you want it available from the toolbar.
Open from the toolbar
Click the extension icon on the current tab.
Open by keyboard
Use Ctrl+Shift+F, or Command+Shift+F on macOS. You can customize it at chrome://extensions/shortcuts.
Basic workflow
The panel updates as you work, so you do not need a separate search button.
- 1Open the Chrome side panel from the extension icon or with Ctrl+Shift+F. Use Command+Shift+F on macOS.
- 2Type in Find. The extension scans automatically after a short pause and highlights matches on the page.
- 3Move through matches with the up and down controls, the Results tab, Enter, or Shift+Enter.
- 4Enter replacement text, then replace the current match or replace all current matches.
- 5Use Undo to reverse the latest replacement batch, or Refresh to rescan after the page changes.
Search scope
Search scope controls where the extension looks before replacement starts.
| Scope | What it searches |
|---|---|
| Full visible page | Default. Searches visible page text plus editable fields. |
| Editable fields only | Searches inputs, textareas, and contenteditable regions without touching read-only page copy. |
| Read-only page text only | Searches ordinary page content and excludes editable targets. |
| Current selection | Limits matching to text currently selected on the page or in an active field. |
| Current element or subtree | Searches only the element you last interacted with and its descendants. |
| Current frame | Searches only the frame that currently has focus. |
Search options
The panel separates matching behavior from page-inclusion controls. Settings are remembered between sessions.
Matching options
| Option | Effect | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Match case | Makes matching strict about uppercase and lowercase. | Off |
| Whole word | Avoids replacing text inside larger words. | Off |
| Regex | Treats Find as a JavaScript-style regular expression. | Off |
| Preserve case | Mirrors uppercase, lowercase, and title-case matches onto the replacement. | Off |
| Ignore diacritics | Lets cafe match cafe with accents while preserving original offsets. | Off |
Inclusion options
| Option | Effect | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Editable fields | Includes textareas and contenteditable editors. | On |
| Single-line inputs | Includes one-line text inputs when you need form-field coverage. | Off |
| All permitted frames | Scans same-origin and site-permitted frames. | On |
| Shadow DOM | Looks inside open shadow roots used by web components. | On |
| Hidden text | Includes visually hidden text only when enabled. | Off |
| Viewport only | Limits matches to the content currently scrolled into view. | Off |
| Readonly fields | Includes readonly fields that are otherwise skipped. | Off |
| Disabled fields | Includes disabled fields that are otherwise skipped. | Off |
Regular expressions
Turn on Regex to use a JavaScript-style regular expression. Patterns run globally and with Unicode support, and they stay case-insensitive unless Match case is enabled.
Replacement tokens
$1 through $99 insert captured groups, $& inserts the whole match, and $$ inserts a literal dollar sign.
Slow-pattern safeguards
Risky nested patterns are rejected before they run, and long-running scans are cancelled so the page does not freeze.
Example: find (\w+)@(\w+)\.com and replace with $1 at $2 dot com to change [email protected] into sales at acme dot com.
Reading results
After a scan, the summary strip shows matches, frames searched, and scan time. The Results tab lists every match with enough context to decide what to replace.
Source badges: Page, Input, Textarea, or Editable.
Frame IDs and frame URLs when a match is in a sub-frame.
Snippets with the matched text highlighted in context.
A stale marker if the page changed after the scan.
Replacing safely
Replacement is explicit. The extension asks before actions that could surprise you, and replacement status reports replaced, skipped, failed, and possibly reverted matches.
Read-only page text replacement asks for confirmation because the edit is local to the loaded page.
Replace All asks again when there are more than 20 matches.
Replace All asks again when matches span multiple frames.
Replacements run from the end of the document backward so earlier edits do not shift later match offsets.
Saved searches, history, and templates
The lower tabs turn repeated work into reusable local items.
Saved
Save a search configuration, reload it later, or remove it from the Saved tab.
History
Successful replacements are stored newest-first, up to 20 entries, so recent workflows can be rerun.
Templates
Create reusable snippets, insert them at the active editable cursor, or transform selected editable text to UPPER or lower.
Site access and permissions
The extension uses Chrome's activeTab model by default, so it works after you open it on the current tab instead of requesting broad access at install time.
When Chrome blocks a page or frame, the panel can offer a focused Grant access to this site button.
Optional host access is granted only for the site you approve.
The tabs permission is used to read the active tab URL for that focused access prompt, not to collect browsing history.
Supported content and limits
Text Replacer reports unsupported surfaces as warnings instead of silently editing the wrong thing.
| Content type | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Visible page text, links, buttons, tables, labels | Yes |
| Textareas and contenteditable editors | Yes |
| Single-line text inputs | Optional |
| Open shadow DOM | Yes |
| Same-origin and permitted frames | Yes |
| Cross-origin frames without granted access | No |
| Chrome internal pages, Web Store pages, sign-in pages | No |
| PDF viewer, images, video captions, canvas-rendered text | No |
| Closed shadow DOM | No |
Some rich editors keep their own document model and may immediately restore an edit. When that happens, the panel reports the replacement as possibly reverted by the page.
Privacy
Scanning and replacement run locally in Chrome. Textavia does not receive page text, form values, search terms, replacement terms, or URLs.
Saved searches, history, templates, and preferences stay in Chrome local extension storage.
The web text replacer remains available for paste-in workflows that do not need live page editing.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Most issues come down to page access, scope settings, or browser surfaces Chrome does not expose to extensions.
Why does the panel say site access is needed?
Chrome may be blocking the current page or a frame. If the access button appears, grant access for that site. Otherwise use the extension on a normal http or https page.
Why are there no matches when I can see the text?
Check the search scope, Match case, Whole word, frame, Shadow DOM, hidden text, and single-line input settings. Some text is rendered as canvas or protected content and cannot be edited.
Do read-only page text edits persist?
Usually no. Read-only page text changes are local to the loaded page and normally disappear on reload. Fields and editors persist only if the site saves or submits them.
What happens with controlled rich editors?
Some editors keep their own document model and may restore text after the extension edits the DOM. Text Replacer reports those as possible page reverts.
Are searches or replacements uploaded?
No. Scanning and replacement run locally in Chrome. Page text, form values, search terms, replacement terms, and URLs are not sent to Textavia.