When to open a link in a new tab
The answer is "almost never." User testing has shown us that opening a link in a new tab or window creates a disorienting effect and breaks the back button. When in doubt, default to opening the link in the current browser window.
Benefits of opening links in the same window
- maintains integrity of the back button
- avoids confusion and user frustration
- prevents an increase of mental load
Learn more from industry leaders
If you would like to learn more about this impact on user experience, please see the following article from the Nielson Norman Group. They are an industry leader in user experience research and maintain a list of articles that provide guidance based on decades of user research that spans the development of the internet.