How to Change the Default Web Browser in Windows 7

Although you’re always free to use whichever Web Browser you like, the default browser is launched by Windows when clicking on links in email or Office documents. Here’s a quick guide for changing your default web browser in Windows using the Control Panel or from inside Firefox or Chrome.

Change your Windows Default Browser from the Control Panel

Click the Start button and click Control panel.

Click on Programs.

If you cant see the Programs option, change the view style of Control Panel. Click on View option in the top right corner of control panel and select Category view.

Now, click on Default Programs.

Click Set Your Default Programs if you want to change default programs which windows should use to open specific file types.

It will load the list of installed programs. Select the browser you want to use as your default and click on Set this Program As Default.

Click on Choose Defaults for this Program.

It will show you the list of all the supported file types. Select the ones you want to open with the specific browser and click on the Save button.

Set the Default Browser Inside the App

As I mentioned, normally I set the default browser inside the app. Here are a few examples of this.

Mozilla Firefox

Go to Options by clicking on the Firefox button and go to options.

Click on Advanced tab and under System Defaults, click on Check Now button to check your default browser.

If Firefox is not your default browser, it will pop a dialog box to confirm your choice. Click Yes.

Google Chrome

To make Google Chrome your default browser, click on the Wrench Menu and go to Settings.

Under Default Browser section, you can make Google Chrome your default browser.

There you have it, folks, if you have question or problem, feel free to ask me using the comments section below.

3 Comments

One more thing, Hammad. Browsers are notorious for claiming the throne of default browser without asking permission. So whatever browser you choose, in its setup screen–such as the Firefox screen, fourth from the bottom–look for a setting that tells your chosen browser to check each time you run it to make use it’s still the default. If some other browser has horned it, then your chosen browser will reset the setting to make it the dwfault again.

And if the browser I want default is not in the list, but it is clearly installed as I’m running it and everywhere is working absolutely fine?…

Louise V. Collins

Hello, Steve. I hope you can help me. I’m a senior citizen, with a goofed-up laptop. I was trying to use it one day, and suddenly something popped up; but when I tried to clear it (push the button that I didn’t want it), my regular default browser, which is Facebook, disappeared, and one I never heard of took it’s place & now I can’t get rid of it. It’s called… Trovi. It has also cleared the Menu, where the lists of Default Programs are to be stored. I know I need an Upgrade (& I’m try’g to learn to use this thing), but, at present, except for what I can get online, I have no one that can help me. I have no transportation & I’ve been sick, so I use the laptop to play Free games,for company–when it’ll work. I thank you for any help you may be able to give me.

Change your browser home page

Microsoft Edge

Here’s how to change your home page in the new Microsoft Edge :

Open Microsoft Edge, select Settings and more > Settings .

Turn on Show home button.

You can either choose New tab page or select Enter URL for a page that you want to use as your home page.

Note: This topic is for the new Microsoft Edge . Get help for the legacy version of Microsoft Edge .

Internet Explorer 11

In the top corner of Internet Explorer, select Tools , and then select Internet options.

On the General tab, under Home page, enter the URL of the site you want to set as a homepage. You can add more than one URL. Or, to add the site you’re currently viewing, select Use current. If you add more than one URL, put each URL on its own line.

Select Apply, and then select OK.

Google Chrome

Open Google Chrome, then select the three, vertical dots next to the profile icon.

Select Settings, then under Appearance, turn the toggle for Show home button to on.

Choose the option you’d like to use: New Tab page or Enter custom web address.

Firefox

Open Firefox, then select the three, horizontal lines next to the profile icon.

Select Options, then select the Home icon.

Under New Windows and Tabs, select the dropdown next to Homepage and new windows.

Choose the option you prefer: Firefox Home (Default), Custom URLs, or Blank Page.

Safari

Open Safari, then choose Safari > Preferences, then select General.

In the Homepage field, enter a wepage address. To simply use the webpage you’re currently viewing, select Set to Current Page.

Choose when your homepage is shown.

Open new windows with your homepage: Select the New windows open with pop-up menu, then choose Homepage.

Open new tabs with your homepage: Select the New tabs open with pop-up menu, then choose Homepage.

How to Change the Default Browser in Windows

Pick the browser you like best

What to Know

• From the Windows Start menu: Type Default apps. Under Web browser, select the current default, then choose a new option.
• Make Chrome the default: Open Chrome. Select Menu >Settings >Default Browser >Make Google Chrome the default browser.
• Make Firefox the default: Open Firefox. Go to Menu >Options >General >Startup and select Make Default.

This article explains how to change your default browser, which is likely Microsoft Edge, on a Windows PC. Instructions cover Windows 10, Windows 8, and Windows 7.

How to Choose a New Default Browser From the Start Menu

If you have Windows 10, you might be able to change the default browser quickly, without launching any of the specific browser apps, as below.

First, type default apps into the Search field, then scroll down to the Web browser heading. Select the browser that is already the default, and you’ll see a list of browsers available on your PC. Select the one you would like to open all your web links, and then close out of the window.

If that doesn’t work for you, give the following instructions a try, depending on which browser you use.

Google Chrome

To set Google Chrome as your default Windows browser, take the following steps.

Open the Google Chrome browser.

Select the Chrome menu button, represented by three horizontal lines and located in the upper-right corner of the browser window.

When the drop-down menu appears, select the Settings option.

In the left pane, select Default browser.

Select Make default.

You can also access the Chrome settings interface by entering the following shortcut command in the browser address bar: chrome://settings.

Your computer opens the Default Apps applet, where you can choose Google Chrome as your default browser.

Mozilla Firefox

To set Mozilla Firefox as your default Windows browser, take the following steps.

Open the Firefox browser.

Select the Firefox menu button, represented by three horizontal lines and located in the upper-right corner of the browser window.

When the pop-out menu appears, select Options.

The first section in the General tab, labeled Startup, contains your browser settings. Select Make Default.

Microsoft Edge

To set Microsoft Edge as your default browser in Windows 10, take the following steps.

Open the Microsoft Edge browser.

Select Settings and more, represented by three dots and located in the upper-right corner of the browser window and choose Settings.

In the left pane, select Default browser.

Select Make Default.

Opera

To set Opera as your default Windows browser, take the following steps.

Select the Opera menu button, located in the upper-left corner of the browser window.

When the drop-down menu appears, select Settings.

Locate the Default browser section. Next, select Make default. Windows displays the Default apps page and changes your browser choice to Opera.

Maxthon Cloud Browser

To set Maxthon Cloud Browser as your default Windows browser, take the following steps.

Select the Maxthon menu, represented by three broken horizontal lines and located in the upper-right corner of the browser window.

Select Settings.

When the settings page appears, select Set Maxthon Browser as default browser.

Image viewer dialog window

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How to change your default browser on Windows 10

Windows 10 has officially rolled out, and Opera for computers is working well on this new system.

While Windows 10 comes with new features and an improved look and feel, it also comes with some settings that can be tricky to change, such as your default apps. When it comes to changing your default browser, there are several ways you can do this on Windows 10. I’ll walk you through two of them.

How to set your default browser on Windows 10 from the Start menu:

1. From the Start menu, open Settings and select System.
2. Select Default apps from the left-hand side of the screen.
3. Scroll down to Web browser. If you haven’t already made changes, Microsoft Edge will appear here.
4. Click the default browser option and choose Opera Internet Browser.

That’s it! You have now successfully changed your default browser on Windows 10 to Opera.

How to set your default browser on Windows 10 from Opera settings:

Many of you are used to setting Opera as default through your browser settings. You can still do this. Just follow these steps:

1. Make sure you’ve downloaded Opera for computers.
2. Once you’ve done that, open your Settings and click Browser.
3. Select Make Opera my default browser under Default Browser.

Windows 10 will then display a pop-up window describing additional steps to change the browser in their system settings. (You will be forced to close out of this window before opening your system settings.) Then, will need to follow the four steps from the first section of this post, that is: Start menu -> Settings -> System -> Default apps -> Web browser.

A better solution coming soon

We understand this process takes some extra time and clicks. So, we are working on a better solution that will take you directly to the “Default apps” page in your system settings. Stay tuned to see this feature in the stable release.

Let us know how you’ve enjoyed browsing with Opera so far on Windows 10!