How Long Does Chrome Web Store Review Take?

After you submit a Chrome extension, Google's review process is the one part of the timeline you cannot control. Here is what to expect.

Typical Review Times

For most extensions, review takes somewhere between a few days and two weeks. Google does not publish official SLA numbers, and actual times vary.

New developer accounts tend to sit in the queue longer. If your account has no publishing history, add extra buffer.

Updates to existing, established extensions are usually faster, sometimes under 48 hours.

What Slows Things Down

Broad or sensitive permissions

Requesting access to all sites (******), reading clipboard data, accessing tabs, or using webRequest triggers closer scrutiny. Google expects a clear justification for each sensitive permission. Extensions that cannot justify their permissions are held for manual review.

Sensitive APIs

Extensions that use userScripts, remote code execution, or touch any APIs related to accessibility or browser settings go through additional review steps. These categories are more likely to require human review rather than automated checks.

New developer accounts

Brand new accounts with no publishing track record are treated more cautiously. There is no way around this except time.

Obfuscated or minified code

Google's policy requires that submitted code be readable. Obfuscated JavaScript will be rejected outright. Minified code is generally fine but obfuscated code is not. If you are using a bundler, make sure the output is not obfuscated.

Incomplete store listings

Missing a privacy policy when one is required, incomplete permission justifications, or screenshots that do not accurately represent the extension can all cause rejections or back-and-forth with the review team.

How to Speed Things Up

Request only the permissions you need. If your extension only needs to run on one site, scope your content script to that site rather than requesting broad host permissions.

Write clear permission justifications. In the "Why does your extension need this permission?" field, be direct and specific. "This extension uses the tabs API to save the user's current tab session to local storage" is better than a one-line non-answer.

Have a real privacy policy. Even a simple one-page policy hosted on GitHub Pages is enough. Leaving it blank when it is required is a guaranteed rejection.

Test thoroughly before submitting. Submissions that come back for technical issues restart the review clock. Load your extension locally in Chrome and test every feature before you upload the zip.

Avoid resubmitting too quickly after a rejection. Read the rejection reason carefully, make all necessary changes, and submit once with everything fixed.

After Approval

Once approved, your extension goes live on the Chrome Web Store automatically. You will get an email notification. Updates to a live extension go through the same review process, but again, updates are typically faster than initial submissions.

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