Safari has always been the default web browser on all Apple devices, whether iPhone, iPad, or Mac. It makes sense as it is a good browser that is almost flawless. However, some users do not always prefer it for opening links within other apps or emails. Some users are used to using external browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Opera, or Edge for faster web browsing with more support for add-ons. Therefore, it is necessary to set your preferred browser as default to have a familiar experience while using your phone or computer. Luckily, Apple provides an easy way to change the default browser in its operating systems iOS and macOS without resorting to external solutions. Here’s how to do it.
If you only need to access specific sites in Chrome or Firefox, you do not need to change your default browser. Even if Safari is your default browser, you can open any link in another browser by continuously pressing the Control key while clicking on it and selecting “Copy Link”, then paste it into the address bar of the browser you prefer. However, follow the steps below to choose a specific browser to be opened every time you click on a website link or email address on a Mac system.
First, make sure to install the other web browser on your device by downloading Chrome or FireFox or Opera from their official websites and then install them like any other app. Then click on the Apple logo in the top left corner of the device screen and choose “System Preferences” and in the window that appears, click on “General” where you can find a set of settings that do not belong to a specific category, including the setting “Default web browser” so click on it and choose the browser you want to set as the default browser from the list (only installed browsers will appear in the list).
Also, note that every browser you install on your device wants to be the default, so you can change the default web browser directly from the browser settings. Usually, when you open a browser that is not the default, you will see a pop-up window asking if you want to set it as the default browser. If you agree, the system setting will change and set itself as the default. But even if the window doesn’t appear, you can always open the browser settings and look for the “Default browser” option or “Make Default” option then click on it, and a window will appear to confirm your desire to change the settings, click on “Use FireFox” or “Use Chrome” and it will become the default.
Changing Default Browser on iPhone
You can do the same on an iPhone or iPad but you need to update iOS to at least iOS 14 as this feature is not available in older versions. Most importantly, you also need to update to the latest version of the browser you are using from the App Store. Once you have done that, go ahead and open “Settings” and scroll down until you find the name of the browser and click on it. In this case, we will use Edge browser as an example.
Next, you will find the option “Set as Default Browser” as shown above. You will see that it is set to Safari but you can select the other browser you want to use as the default browser. From now on, any link you click on within other apps will open in the selected browser instead of Safari.
