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Chrome guide

How to make Chrome your default browser

· 1 min task · Tested

By

Daniel Okonkwo writes about phones and mobile apps for Appcyclopedia, working on a MacBook Pro, a Pixel 9 Pro and an iPhone 15.

  • Windows
  • macOS
  • Android
  • iOS

Short answer

On a Mac, open Chrome, then More, Settings, and click Make default under Default browser. On Windows 11, open Settings, Apps, Default apps, find Google Chrome and select Set default. On a phone, open Chrome’s Settings, then Default browser, and follow the prompt.

Windows decides, not Chrome: on Windows the switch happens in the Windows settings, and Chrome’s own button only takes you there.

Below: the steps for each device and what changes once Chrome is the default.

Set Chrome as the default, device by device

To make Chrome your default browser, find your device below. Each one has its own path, and on Windows and iPhone the final switch is in the system settings.

  1. On a computer

    On a Mac, click Make default in Chrome’s settings

    Open Chrome, click the three-dot More menu, then Settings. Under Default browser, click Make default. macOS asks you to confirm; choose to use Chrome.

  2. On Windows 11, set it in Default apps

    Open the Windows Settings app, then Apps, then Default apps. Search for Google Chrome, select it, and click Set default at the top. Windows then opens web links and web files in Chrome.

  3. On Windows 10, choose Chrome as the Web browser

    Open Settings, then Default apps. Under Web browser, click the browser shown and choose Google Chrome from the list.

  4. On a phone

    On Android, tap Make Chrome default

    Open Chrome, tap the three-dot More menu, then Make Chrome default if it is offered. Otherwise go to Settings, then Default browser, and select Chrome.

  5. On iPhone, set Default Browser App in iOS settings

    Open Chrome, tap More, then Settings, then Default Browser, and tap Go to Settings. Tap Default Browser App and choose Chrome. This needs iOS 14 or later.

Once it is set, a link in an email, a chat or a PDF opens in Chrome, with your bookmarks and saved passwords there.

If links keep opening somewhere else, the setting is in the system, not in Chrome; go back to your device’s steps.

More about Chrome

Google’s free web browser, built on the open-source Chromium project.

Read Chrome’s profile →

If links still open in another browser

The Make default button does nothing on Windows

On Windows, Chrome’s button only opens the system settings. Finish the change in Settings, Apps, Default apps as in the Windows steps.

Some links still open in Edge on Windows

A few Windows features, such as search results in the Start menu or widgets, open links in Edge whatever the default is. Links from email and most apps follow your choice.

There is no Default Browser App option on the iPhone

Update iOS to version 14 or later and update Chrome from the App Store. The option appears once both are current.

What changes when Chrome is the default

Setting a default browser changes which app opens web links. It does not move anything between browsers.

ChangesStays the same
Links in email, chat and documents open in ChromeYour other browser and its data
Web files such as .html open in ChromeBookmarks and passwords saved in other browsers
Chrome stops asking to be the defaultApps that use their own built-in browser

Some apps, especially on phones, show web pages in their own built-in viewer. Those keep doing so; look for an Open in browser option inside them.

Why Windows makes it harder

On Windows 10 and 11 the default browser is a system setting that only Windows can change. Chrome’s Make default button opens the right screen, but the choice is made there.

On Windows 11 the setting lives under each app in Default apps, so you select Chrome and then Set default. On Windows 10 there is a single Web browser entry to change.

On Windows, finish the change in the Settings app; nothing in Chrome completes it on its own.

Phones need a recent system

Choosing a default browser on an iPhone arrived with iOS 14. Older versions always open links in Safari. On Android the option has been there for years, and Chrome may already be the default when the phone comes from the factory.

The setting takes a minute and lasts until you change it.

Set it in the place your device expects, test with a link from an email, and import your bookmarks if they are still in the old browser. Once you are using Chrome every day, bookmarking a page in Chrome keeps the sites you return to one click away.

Default browser questions

Does making Chrome the default delete my other browser?
No. The other browser stays installed with its bookmarks and history. Links simply open in Chrome instead.
Can I switch back later?
Yes. Follow the same steps for your device and choose the other browser instead.
Will my bookmarks move to Chrome?
Not by changing the default. Chrome can import bookmarks from another browser from its Bookmarks and lists menu, or sync them from your Google Account.

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Test log

Followed the steps? Tell us how it went on your device. Entries appear here after we check them.

  1. Worked Every step, start to finish · Elias Brandt, Marta Kowalczyk and Daniel Okonkwo Team
I tested this
How did it go?

Steps performed and confirmed 15 days ago

Changed since publishing

  • Correction: Corrected the test record to name who performed the steps, with each tester’s platform and device.

    Before: Steps performed by Elias Brandt. Elias performed the steps in this guide.

    Now: Steps performed by Elias Brandt, Marta Kowalczyk and Daniel Okonkwo. The earlier record named only Elias. Marta ran the Mac steps on a MacBook Air and Daniel the iPhone steps on an iPhone 15; Elias ran the Windows and Android steps. Each tester is now listed with the platform and device they used.

Every change we have made →

When you need this

If you want links from your email and other apps to open in Chrome, where your bookmarks and passwords are, instead of Edge, Safari or another browser, make Chrome your default browser.

Describes
Chrome on Windows 11, Windows 10 and Mac · Chrome for Android · Chrome for iPhone and iPad, iOS 14 and later
Takes
About a minute
Platforms
Windows · macOS · Android · iOS
Published
10 October 2026
Facts checked
7 October 2026

Steps repeated and verified by , and on

  • Elias Brandt: the Windows steps on a ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Windows 11 Pro) and the Android steps on a Galaxy S25 (Android 17).
  • Marta Kowalczyk: the Mac steps on a MacBook Air (macOS 27.0.1).
  • Daniel Okonkwo: the iPhone steps on an iPhone 15 (iOS 27.0.1).

Sources: Google Chrome Help, Make Chrome your default browser (computer)Google Chrome Help, Make Chrome your default browser (Android)Google Chrome Help, Make Chrome your default browser (iPhone and iPad)

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