Manifest Version

Extensions, themes, and applications are simply bundles of resources, wrapped up with a manifest.json file that describes the package's contents. The format of this file is generally stable, but occasionally breaking changes must be made to address important issues. Developers should specify which version of the manifest specification their package targets by setting a manifest_version key in their manifests.

Current Version

Developers should currently specify 'manifest_version': 2:

{
  ...,
  "manifest_version": 2,
  ...
}

Manifest version 1 was deprecated in Chrome 18, and support will be phased out according to the following schedule.

Manifest version 1 support schedule

August 2012

  • The Web Store will block creation of new manifest version 1 extensions.
  • The Web Store will allow updates to existing manifest version 1 extensions.

March 2013

  • The Web Store will block updates to manifest version 1 extensions on March 4th, 2013.

April 2013

  • Chrome 27 Beta will stop packaging manifest version 1 extensions (or loading them for development).

June 2013

  • The Web Store will remove manifest version 1 extensions from the wall, search results, and category pages.
  • Notice emails will be sent to all developers with manifest version 1 extensions still in the store reminding them that these extensions will be unpublished and providing update instructions.

September 2013

  • The Web Store will unpublish all manifest version 1 extensions.
  • Final notice emails will be sent to developers with manifest version 1 extensions still in the Web Store.
  • Chrome will continue to load and run installed manifest version 1 extensions.

January 2014

  • Chrome will stop loading or running manifest version 1 extensions.

Changes between version 1 and 2