How to Make Google Chrome the Default Browser

Tired of the “wrong” browser opening for websites or web-based apps? Find out here how to make Google Chrome your default browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android.

First, It’s All Wool to Me

Should a washing machine be gentle to the clothes you trust it to clean and treat them with care?

If your washing machine, like mine, has a wool or hand washing cycle, it can! That program avoids, as much as it can, the heavy scrubbing and turning and tumbling that both helps clean clothes and ruins them.

So, I have come to default to woolly hand-washing and the machine’s most delicate cycle for everything (I did not wear playing football). Incredibly, it works! (Others, by the by, also recommend the express cycle—more or less.)

Now, do you think all the web’s sites and pages are worthy of the Chrome treatment? Let’s see how that works:

How to Make Google Chrome the Default Browser on Windows

On Windows 10

To set up Chrome as the default browser on Windows 10:

1. Open Windows Settings.
   Here’s how: You can select Settings from the Start menu in Windows 10 or press Windows I.
2. Go to Apps.
3. Open Default apps.
4. Click the current default browser under Web browser.
5. Select Google Chrome from the list.
   Before you switch: If you get a prompt to try Microsoft Edge, click Switch anyway.
   More than mere browsing: You can make Google Chrome the standard for additional protocols and file types (PDF files, for instance); see below.

Make Google Chrome the Default Browser for Additional File Types and Protocols

To make certain Google Chrome is the default for anything for which you want to use it:

1. Go to the Defaults apps category in Windows Settings; see above.
2. Select Set defaults by app.
3. Select Google Chrome.
4. Click Manage.
5. For each file type and protocol, click Choose a default or the current default and pick Google Chrome from the menu.
   Suggestions: Set Google Chrome to handle .pdf, .svg, and .webp, for example to have PDF files and the two image types in Chrome.

Make Google Chrome the Default Browser on a Mac

To set Chrome to be your default browser on a Mac:

1. Open System Settings on the Mac.
   Here’s how: Select  (Apple logo) | System Settings… from the menu, for example.
2. Open the General category.
3. Select Google Chrome under Default web browser:.
   

How to Make Google Chrome the Default Browser on Linux

Gnome Linux

To set up Chrome as the default browser under Gnome:

1. Open the Settings app.
   Here’s how: Open the system menu in the top right corner, for example, and click the Settings button.
2. Go to the Default Apps category.
3. Click the current browser under Web.
4. Select Google Chrome from the menu.
   

KDE Linux

To configure Chrome as the default browser for KDE Plasma:

1. Open System Settings.
   Here’s how: Open KDE Application Launcher, for example and select System Settings under Settings.
2. Select Applications.
3. Choose Default Applications.
4. Select Google Chrome for Web browser:.
   
5. Click Apply.

Make Chrome the Default Browser on an iPhone

To set up Chrome as the default browser on iOS:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Select Chrome.
3. Now choose Default Browser App.
4. Select Chrome.
   

Make Chrome the Default Android Browser

To set up Chrome as the default web browser on an Android device:

1. Open Settings.
2. Go to Apps.
3. Now tap Choose default apps under General.
4. Open Browser app.
5. Select Chrome.

(How to make Google Chrome the default browser tested with Windows 11 Version 22H2–23H2, macOS Sonoma 14.3–14.6, Gnome 45, KDE 6 and iOS 17; first published March 2024, last updated August 2024)