How to Make Chrome or Firefox Your Default Browser in Windows 10

Whether you upgraded to Windows 10 or bought a brand new PC with the OS preloaded, you'll notice that Microsoft Edge is the default browser. Your default browser is the one that opens when you click in a link in your email, in the Windows searchbox or in other apps such as your instant messenger so it's very important.

You can change this default to Chrome, Firefox or any other third-party browser, but that's not as easy as it was in Windows 7 and 8 where you could just click a button in the new browser. Here's how to change your default browser in Windows 10.

1. Navigate to Settings. You can get there from the Start menu.

2.Select System.

3. Click Default apps in the left pane.

4. Click Microsoft Edge under the "Web browser" heading. If there's a different default browser, you'll see that program's icon under "Web browser" instead.

5. Select the new browser (ex: Chrome) in the menu that pops up.

You'll see that your new selection is now listed under "Web browser."

If you decide to change default browsers again, just return to these steps.

Windows 10 Basics

Having issues with Windows 10? Our sister site, Tom’s Hardware, has a team of staffers standing by in the forums to answer your questions 24/7.

Avram Piltch
Online Editorial Director
The official Geeks Geek, as his weekly column is titled, Avram Piltch has guided the editorial and production of Laptopmag.com since 2007. With his technical knowledge and passion for testing, Avram programmed several of LAPTOP's real-world benchmarks, including the LAPTOP Battery Test. He holds a master's degree in English from NYU.