Chrome is a worthy competitor to Safari. Not only do they run the same rendering engine underneath the hood--WebKit--but Chrome extensions are far more developed and can oftentimes provide a richer experience to the user. With Chrome becoming a major player in the browser wars, we cherry picked the ten best extensions for this powerful browser from Google.

1. Rapportive

Emails are a great communication medium, but don’t often provide the neccessary information about the person that sent you the message. That’s where Rapportive comes in.

When using the Gmail web interface to manage your email, Rapportive lets you see exactly who sent you an email. Just click on any email, and in the new pane that displays on the right side of the page you’ll be able to see the following information about a particular email address:

- The person’s name and a picture
- Where they’re located
- What they do (such as their job, company, and LinkedIn Profile)
- Their online activity (activity on social networking websites)

Of course, the validity of the information relies on the sender themselves. But this app is helpful if you’re managing a company and want to keep track of people within, like clients and freelancers.

2. Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer

Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer by Google takes the waiting game out of the picture and pushes the document right to the printer. When installed, this extension lets you select which files types are accessible, including .doc, .docx, .pdf, .pps, .ppt, .tif, and .tiff. In addition, you can specify websites that shouldn’t respond to this extension; this is helpful for school or work sites where you may actually want to download a file onto your computer.

To use this extension, navigate to any file you want to view, then click on it as you normally would. You will be automatically transferred to Google Docs and the document you clicked on will be loaded. Pretty nifty, huh?

3. exfm

Long gone are the days of asking yourself what songs you were just listening to. Just click on the exfm icon in the toobar to pop open a new tab containing your library of index files. Exfm runs in the background and indexes all of the mp3 files that you come across while browsing the ‘tubes. Song files can also be queued up and you can access them later at your convenience.

4. Readability Redux

The Readability Redux plug-in for Chrome emulates the Reader in Safari. Once installed, you can press the plug-in icon on the menu bar to have the page instantly transformed into an easy-to-read, distraction-free, and ad-free page.

In the options for the Readability Redux plugin, you can set different styles, text sizes, margins, and other options, including the ability to convert links to footnotes.

5. Decreased Productivity

Never worry again about where that shortened link will take you. With Decreased Productivity installed, you can safely--and discreetly--browse the web, without fear of who might be peering over your shoulder.

With the plug-in installed, simply right-click on any link and select the “Safely open in new tab” option. A new tab will open and the plug-in will dim the background and all images, leaving only the text and links completely visible. To view an image, roll your mouse over it.

If the website turns out to be safe to view, click on the small coffee cup icon in the address bar to load the page as it would normally be displayed.

6. PriceBlink

PriceBlink is non-obtrusive, meaning that it won’t show until you’re browsing a product page on a retailer. If PriceBlink recognizes the product, a yellow bar will pop-up at the top of the page you’re browsing to let you know if you have found the lowest price or not. There will also be a drop-down menu containing prices from competing retailers.

7. StayFocused

When browsing the web, you can often get lost in the barrage of sites you need to check. When you need to get some work done, however, there’s a plug-in called StayFocused, which lets you block certain websites for a certain period of time.

In the settings for StayFocused, you can set the maximum time allowed, active days, active hours, daily reset time, blocked sites, allowed sites, and even a nuclear option that will block all sites for a given length of time.

8. Session Manager

The most frustrating thing is when your computer needs a restart and you've got too many tabs open to keep accounted for. Fortunately, there's Session Manager, which lets you save the current session, consisting of all opened windows and tabs. After you’ve saved a session, you will have the option to open a saved session, rename a session name, or remove the session.

9. Aviary Screen Capture

A great tool for web developers or websites wanting to show off (or advertise) their site, Aviary Screen Capture will let you capture either the visible portion of the web page, or the entire web page.

After you’ve taken the screen capture, the Aviary image editor will open up allowing you to edit the image in your web browser or save the image to your computer. As a bonus, this plug-in gives you shortcuts to the entire suite of Aviary browser-based editing tools.

10. Are You Watching This?! Sports

Are you a sports addict, and always on the prowl for the latest scores? If so, then the Are You Watching This?! Sports Chrome extension may just be what you’re looking for. Despite the long name, this plug-in is relatively simple. It shows you Scores, News, and TV Listings for Arena Football, Auto Racing (NASCAR, F1, IRL), Men's College Basketball, Women's College Basketball, College Football, MLB, NBA, NFL, CFL, NHL, Soccer (MLS and World Cup), and the WNBA.

From the small drop-down list in the extensions tool bar, you can instantly see the current scores and news for your favorite teams. The plug-in also gives you the ability to view the channel that the game is currently live on. Just hop over to the options to set your viewing area and TV service provider.

Want more?

Check out all of the Chrome extensions on the Chrome Extension gallery website. And don't forget to leave us a comment telling us your favorite Chrome extension. We always like hearing about new add-ons to make our browsing more enjoyable.