Set Default Browser Chrome Mac

To change the default homepage for your browser: Open Chrome and select the menu button located in the upper-right corner of the window. It's the one with three stacked dots. How to Set the Default Email Program on a Mac How to Set the Default Email Program on Windows. Launch Google Chrome. Note: If you had set up a web-based email service as the default in Google Chrome (see below), it will be replaced with the operating system's default program. Safari is the default browser when you first set up your Mac, but another browser you install can become the default unexpectedly. On your Mac, choose Apple menu System Preferences, then click General. Click the 'Default web browser' pop-up menu and choose Safari. Some apps open webpages in a browser other than your default browser.

Safari is the default browser in macOS and has been ever since Apple first built its own web browser. Before that, for a while, it was Internet Explorer — but the less said about that the better, and before that, it was Netscape Navigator. Remember that?

Safari is a perfectly good web browser and offers most of the features of its competitor web browsers, including autofill for forms and credit card details, secure password storage, and the ability to request that websites do not track you. Given Apple's recent focus on privacy, it's not unlikely that Safari will soon be the best option all around for Mac users who want to surf the net securely.

However, there are perfectly good reasons why you might want to use a different browser. Performance is one of them. While Safari is pretty speedy, for some users in some circumstances it's slower than Chrome or Firefox. Or it might be that there are extensions you need that are only available in Chrome, or perhaps a website you use regularly doesn't work properly in Safari. So, here's how to open a different browser on Mac and set it default.

What is a default web browser?

Before we get to how to change your default web browser, it's worth considering what a default web browser is and does. Put simply, it's the web browser that opens a link when you click on it in an email or other document. If you use Spotlight and click on a result from the web, it will open in your default browser. In fact, any task that opens a URL will be performed in that web browser. It doesn't mean, of course, that you can't use other browsers to surf the net.

So, if you just need to access specific sites in Chrome or Firefox, you don't need to change your default browser. Even if Safari is your default browser, you can open any link in another browser, by holding down the Control key when you click on it and selecting Copy Link, then paste it in the address bar of any browser you like.

Clearing cache and cookies can remove outdated information and fix possible bugs on websites. CleanMyMac X automates the cleanup: it lets you clear all browsing data at the touch of a button. Additionally, you can run a full system scan to optimize and maintain your macOS. https://jqxp.over-blog.com/2021/01/cisdem-video-converter-5-2-0t.html. It's free to try the app, so you don't lose anything!

How to set the default browser on Mac through System Preferences

Set Default Browser Chrome Mac

Apple changed the way you set the default browser in OS X Yosemite and it has remained the same since then. Previously, as you'll see below, you had to open Safari to, say, make Google Chrome the default browser. As Apple realized, eventually, that's plain daft. Here's how to do it now.

1. Click on the Apple menu and select System Preferences.
2. Choose the General tab.
3. Just over halfway down, there's a menu next to the 'Default web browser.' Click on it and choose the browser you want to set as the default.

How to change the default web browser from the browser's settings

Every browser wants to be the default — it's the most obvious way to increase user numbers. And so whenever you open a browser that's not the default, you'll see a pop-up window asking if you want to set it as your browser of choice. If you choose so, it will change the System Preferences setting and position itself as the default.

If you refuse and later decide you want to make it the default, after all, that's easy too. Here's how you do it in some of the more popular browsers for macOS.

Safari

1. Launch the Safari browser.
2. Go to the Safari menu and choose Preferences.
3. In the general tab, press the Set Default button.
4. Press Use 'Safari' to confirm.

Chrome

1. To make Chrome the default browser, first of all, launch it.
2. Click on the Chrome menu and select Preferences.
3. On the web page that opens, scroll down until you see the 'Default browser.'
4. Click 'Make default' and confirm.

Firefox

1. Launch Firefox.
2. In the Firefox menu, click Preferences.
3. At the top of the page, you should see 'General' and underneath it, a message saying that Firefox isn't currently your default browser. To the right of that, click Make Default.

If you want to change your default browser to any other browser not mentioned in this article, you can take a similar route: browser menu > Preferences > Make (Set) default.

3 quick tips to make your browser faster

Whichever web browser you use, there are some tips you should remember in order to keep it running optimally.

1. Always use the most up-to-date version.

Safari updates with macOS system updates, so make sure you install system updates when they become available. Most browsers automatically update themselves when you close and reopen them. But if you keep them open permanently, they won't update. So the easiest way to keep them updated is to quit them every now and again. https://estfree.mystrikingly.com/blog/linux-operating-system-cd-free.

2. Don't keep lots of tabs open at once.

Open tabs, even those that are hidden, consume RAM, processor cycles, and energy. The more you have open, the slower your Mac will become. So close tabs you no longer need.

3. Keep your Mac clean of junk

Unnecessary files, including cache, cookies, language files, and old updates can slow down your whole system, as they take more and more space. The simplest way to get rid of them is to use a dedicated app like CleanMyMac X. To quickly delete useless files on your Mac, follow the steps:

1. Download CleanMyMac X and launch it.
2. Click Smart Scan.
3. Click Run.

As you can see, setting your default web browser in macOS is very easy — choosing which browser to use maybe less so. Whichever browser you choose, you should maintain it to keep it running optimally, CleanMyMac X can help do that easily.

These might also interest you:

Want the right email program to open when you click an email address in Chrome? Wish web-based email (such as Gmail or Outlook.com) could be the default? Find out here how to change the default email program in Google Chrome (even to using a web-based email service).

First, 9 on a Scale of 1 to 8

To measure cloudiness, the sky is divided in eight parts. With every part that is filled with clouds, cloudiness increases by 1: a clear sky is 0, partly cloudy is, say, 4 and a completely covered sky would be 8. So far, so good.

Then, of course, there is cloudiness 9.

Can't Set Chrome As Default Browser

Yes, that means the sky is more than completely covered—because you cannot even see the clouds through the fog. So, cloudiness 9 means you cannot see the sky at all, only fog.

Now, the default email program is typically a choice between Outlook, Mail, Spark and similar desktop programs. Except, of course, when you need not even see the email program from Google Chrome because the browser itself — a web-based email service such as iCloud Mail or Gmail in it — covers the email program needs.

Still foggy? Let's clear the skies for email link handling in Google Chrome:

How to Change the Default Email Program in Google Chrome

In Chrome for the Desktop (Windows, Mac, Linux)

Time needed: 5 minutes.

To make Google Chrome use a different email client when you click an email address or email link:

1. Quit Google Chrome.
2. Change the default email program in your operating system:

   How to Set the Default Email Program on a Mac
   How to Set the Default Email Program on Windows

3. Launch Google Chrome.

   Usb not showing up on mac boot. Note: If you had set up a web-based email service as the default in Google Chrome (see below), it will be replaced with the operating system's default program.
   Tip: You can always switch back to the web-based service: make Google Chrome your default email program across the operating system.

In Chrome for iOS and Android

To change the default email program in Chrome mobile:

1. Open a tab in Chrome for iOS or Android.
2. Tap the menu button ().
3. Select Settings from the menu.
4. Now choose Content Settings.
5. Pick Default apps from the Content Settings menu.
6. Select the preferred email program under MAIL.
   Example: Pick Gmail to open the Gmail app by default for email in Chrome.
   Option: Enable Ask me which app to use every time to get a sheet with options every time you tap an email address.
   
7. Tap ⟨Back.
8. Now tap Done.

How to Use a Web-Based Email Service as Default with Google Chrome

To set a web-based email service in Google Chrome (such as Gmail, Outlook on the Web or iCloud Mail) as the default email program:

1. Click the hamburger menu icon (⠸) in Google Chrome.
2. Select Settings from the menu that has appeared.
3. Under Privacy and security, Select Site settings.
4. Now choose Handlers (under Permissions).
   Direct link: You can also go to chrome://settings/handlers directly to open Handlers settings.
5. Enable Allow sites to ask to become default handlers for protocols (recommended).
   Note: If this setting is disabled, it will read Do not allow any site to handle protocols.
6. Click the hamburger menu icon (⠸) next to the desired service under email.
   Tip: If the service you want to use does not yet appear under the list, see below for adding it.
7. Select Set as default from the menu that has appeared.

Add a Web-Based Email Service to Google Chrome for Handing Email Links

If the email service you want to use by default is not yet in the list, add it as a mail handler:

1. Open the Handlers settings in Google Chrome
2. If the service you want to use is listed under Blocked, click the × next to it.
3. Now open the email service you wish to use in Google Chrome.
   Example: To add Gmail, open https://mail.google.com, for instance.
4. Click the service handler icon () in the address bar.
   Tip: You can add web-based email services to Google Chrome even if the service handler icon does not show; see below.
5. Select Allow under Allow ___ to open all email links?.
6. Click Done.

This will automatically make Google Chrome the default email program and the selected email service open with a new message when you click an email address.

How to Change the Default Email Program in Google Chrome: FAQ

I do not see the service handler icon for my favorite email service.
Can I manually add a web-based email service to Google Chrome for use as the default for email links?

Yes.

To add a web-based email service to handle clicks on email addresses with a new message (and the recipient already filled in) when the service handler icon is not available:

1. Open the email service you wish to use by default in Google Chrome.
2. Click the Google Chrome hamburger menu icon (⠸).
3. Select More Tools | Developer Tools from the menu that has appeared.
   Keyboard shortcut: You can also press ControlAltI (Windows and Linux) or CommandOptionI (Mac).
4. Go to the Console tab.
5. In the Console window's command line (following the > prompt), type the command made up of the following parts:
   navigator.registerProtocolHandler(
   'mailto',
   '[URI]',
   Important: Replace [URI] with the link to compose a new message in the email service. In the link, %s will be replaced with the email address on which you click to start an email so the addressee is already entered.
   Note: Make sure the domain for the URI corresponds to the domain currently open in Google Chrome; e.g., if you are on https://www.icloud.com, the URI needs to start with https://www.icloud.com.
   Example: The address for iCloud Mail to start a new email is 'https://www.icloud.com/message/current/en-us/#compose?to=' followed by the email address, so the whole URI for use in the command is 'https://www.icloud.com/message/current/en-us/#compose?to=%s'.
   '[Name]')
   Tip: Replace [Name] with the email service's name.
   Example: Use 'iCloud Mail' for iCloud Mail.
   Full Example: The full command for setting up Gmail as an email service in Google Chrome is: navigator.registerProtocolHandler('mailto', 'https://www.icloud.com/message/current/en-us/#compose?to=%s', 'iCloud Mail')
   
6. Hit Enter.
7. Under __ wants to Open email links instead of ___ (which appears below the address bar in Google Chrome), select Allow.
   

(How to change the default email program in Google Chrome tested with Google Chrome 84; updated July 2020)