Log Into Multiple Accounts Simultaneously

Martin Brinkmann
Oct 24, 2008
Updated • Dec 9, 2012
Internet
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Many users maintain multiple accounts on various websites, for example two Gmail accounts one for business and one for private contacts or multiple Facebook or MySpace accounts. Using multiple accounts is usually privacy related but it could also be used for other purposes. The main problem that most web browsers have with multiple accounts on the same domain is that they cannot maintain more than one cookie for that site.

If a user logs into the first account, opens a new tab and logs into the second the cookie for the first account will be overwritten by the cookie for the second account effectively logging off the user account in the first tab.

Google Chrome is the only browser that supports - most likely unintentionally - simultaneous account usage. Users can make use of the so called Incognito Mode which makes use of its own cookie storage. Incognito Mode is a privacy mode that deletes any traces of the session after closing it.

Google Chrome's Incognito Mode can be used to login twice into any web service. The user would login normally at first and press [CTRL Shift N] afterwards which would open a new browser window in Incognito Mode. The new browser window could then be used to log into the service a second time.

Firefox users can install the Firefox add-on Cookie Pie which maintains separate cookie storages in tabs and windows if activated. It basically has the same effect that the Incognito Mode of Google Chrome has with the difference that the browsing history will not be deleted after closing the session.

Opera users who want to use Opera and nothing but could make use of different profiles to achieve the same results although it would probably be easier to start a second browser and use this for the second login. There is a Gmail Widget for Opera that provides access to two Gmail accounts.

Does anyone know how Internet Explorer 8 and Safari handle that issue?

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Comments

  1. Partha said on January 26, 2010 at 12:35 pm
    Reply

    Use open “new session” in IE8 to log onto websites simultaneously from multiple tabs. I use this for multiple hotmail accounts all the time. Works perfectly and no addons are needed.

  2. totoy said on January 5, 2010 at 2:05 am
    Reply

    Just use portable firefox and copy it many times as you want in your favorite folder and adjust the configuration and you can have as many different accounts.

  3. nami said on May 14, 2009 at 1:36 pm
    Reply

    hi how can i multi login to airg site thanks. im using opera in my pc.

  4. Jojo said on October 29, 2008 at 1:45 am
    Reply

    I created a 2nd account in Gmail. Then open the Gmail logon screen and logon to whatever or both accounts you want.

    I have this link on my desktop that I use:
    https://mail.google.com/mail/

    Make sure you logout of the mail account when done or clicking the above link will take you to directly into the email account that you were last in.

    You might have problems with this if you use Google Reader because signing out of Gmail will also sign you out of Reader. You should use another ID for Reader. I use a disposable email address, NOT a GMAIL ID.

    You’ll still be signed out of Reader when you sign out of email but with a different email addr for Reader, you can sign back in WITHOUT getting signed into your Gmail account.

  5. Chuck Baggett said on October 28, 2008 at 10:49 pm
    Reply

    Jojo, or anyone else, how do use multiple gmail accounts in multiple tabs?

  6. Jojo said on October 26, 2008 at 6:18 am
    Reply

    I looked at Cookie Pie yesterday. The author(s) say the purpose of the extension is to run multiple accounts in multiple tabs.

    Since I can already do that with Gmail, I don’t see a need for this extension.

  7. linuxeventually said on October 26, 2008 at 1:46 am
    Reply

    I use the Gmail Manager Firefox add-on/extension to manage my google accounts and for other things, I use multiple Firefox profiles.

    Windows: Start>Run>cmd>
    cd “C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox”
    firefox.exe –no-remote -P YOUROTHERPROFILE
    Linux: Open a terminal
    firefox –no-remote -P YOUROTHERPROFILE

    You will need to create a new profile if you don’t already have multiple profiles (also good for recovery).

  8. FameGadget said on October 25, 2008 at 4:09 am
    Reply

    Nice info :)

  9. RG said on October 24, 2008 at 10:27 pm
    Reply

    Agreed about Jojo’s points. There are quite a few annoyances this integration or single sign-on thing creates.
    Maybe it works now but last time I used the Cookie Pie add-on it didn’t work for me and gmail gave me something like a ‘can’t load…’ error for the second account.
    I don’t touch Safari with a ten foot pole but like Axel said IE has something similar.

  10. Axel said on October 24, 2008 at 2:15 pm
    Reply

    Safari introduced the concept and IE 8 fully supports it already in the current beta. Just Google Porn Mode

  11. Jojo said on October 24, 2008 at 10:29 am
    Reply

    I will take a look at the Cookie Pie add-on.

    I have 2 Gmail accounts and a Google Reader account (switched from the undependable Bloglines a couple months back).

    I ALWAYS log out of the Gmail email accounts and I always keep Reader open. But when I do log out of Gmail, Google logs me out of Reader, which sucks!

    BTW: I was able to create my Goggle Reader account using a disposable email address, instead of a Gmail address, which I didn’t know I could do. Might be useful for some people, particularly if you post in the Google help blogs because Google “kindly” posts your reader ID. Since for most people, this is your Gmail addr, you then wind up getting loads of spam mail just because you asked a question. Jeez, stupid Google…

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