A portfolio opens a client’s website, an article cites a source, and a service page points to a booking platform. All three links lead elsewhere, but that does not mean they must create another tab. The important question is what the reader expects to happen—and how easily they can return.
Another website is not automatically another tab
Start with an ordinary link in the current tab. People can choose a new tab through their browser when they need one. Making that decision for every external destination adds clutter and can make the Back button seem broken. A new tab may be useful when someone needs reference material while keeping a partly completed task open, but it should be a deliberate exception, not a universal rule.
Explain the change before the click
If the website opens a new tab, say so near the link: “Read the manufacturer’s guide — opens in a new tab.” A small outward arrow can reinforce the message, but its meaning should not have to be guessed. Make the warning available to keyboard and assistive-technology users too, rather than revealing it only on hover. W3C’s G200 and G201 describe advisory techniques; a warning alone is not proof that an entire page meets WCAG.
Keep navigation separate from protection
Use a real anchor with an actual destination, not a script pretending to be a link. When a new tab is intentional, review the target and relationship attributes. MDN explains that modern target="_blank" links implicitly behave like noopener; an explicit rel="noopener" also makes the intention readable in the source. The separate noreferrer value suppresses referrer information. Choose it for a reason rather than treating every attribute as interchangeable security decoration.
Test the return journey, not just the destination
Check a normal click, keyboard activation and the browser’s own new-tab command. On a phone, open the destination and return: is the original reading position still understandable? If the link leaves an unfinished form, check what really happens to the entered data; opening another tab is not a substitute for saving a draft. Confirm the destination and visible warning agree in every language.
A small editorial rule helps the whole site
Record which situations justify a new tab and use the same wording consistently. Revisit links when a partner changes its domain or booking service. The goal is not to keep visitors trapped on your website. It is to make leaving, checking a source and coming back feel like an understandable continuation of their task.