How to Restore the Absent "Customize Chrome" Button
Fix 1: Verify the prerequisites First things come first.
The Customize Chrome button needs to meet a few prerequisites or fundamental conditions in order to appear. These are the following:
Only the Google Chrome browser will display the Customize Chrome button.
It will not show up for Google.com; it will only show up for the New tab page. Although it differs from the Google search page, the New tab page typically looks similar to it.
When you press the Home symbol or click the New tab (+) button on the browser, it opens.
Fix 2: Set Google as Chrome's default search engine.
Google has to be your Chrome browser's default search engine, which is another crucial requirement. Should the issue be with something else, the Customize Chrome button will not appear.
Step 1: Click the three dots at the top of the Chrome browser and choose Settings.
Step 2: Select Google by going to Search Engine > Click on Change. If Google is already your default search engine, switch it to another one, close and reopen the Chrome browser, and then set it back to Google.
Solution 2: Access Your Google Account
Next, if you have not previously, create a profile in Google Chrome and log into your Google account. Click the account picture icon in the upper-right corner, select "Turn on Sync," and then log into your Google account to accomplish the task.
Fix 3: Exit from Chrome
Sign out of Chrome if you are already logged into your Google account. To accomplish this, click the profile picture icon located at the top of the screen, choose Sync is on, click Turn off, then choose Sign out. After restarting your computer, log back in.
Fix 4: Take Out Any Extension for New Tab Pages
It is also possible that an extension has taken over control of the new tab page. I was using an extension, for example, that changed the new tab page's URL to resemble a Google page. I was left wondering why the Customize Chrome button was missing from my browser.
To resolve it, look through your list of extensions and remove any that manage the new tab page, as demonstrated below:
Step 1: In the upper-right corner of the Chrome browser, click the Extensions button.
Step 2: Next, choose Manage extension by clicking the three-dot icon next to the extension.
Step 4: To view the Customize Chrome button, restart the Chrome browser and navigate to the new tab page.
Reset Chrome Settings to Fix 5
Lastly, try restarting Chrome if nothing appears to bring back the Customize Chrome button. Please be aware that among other things, doing so will remove cookies and transient site data, disable extensions, and remove Chrome shortcuts.
To reset Chrome, navigate to Chrome Settings > Reset Settings > Reset settings to their original defaults.