What a homepage is and why you might change it
Your homepage is the page your browser loads when you open it or click the home button. By default, most browsers load a search engine or the browser maker's own page — Chrome loads Google, Firefox loads a blank page with a search box, Safari loads your iCloud start page. You can change this to any website you visit regularly: your email, a news site, a local weather page, or a blank page if you prefer to choose where to go each time.
Changing your homepage is useful if you have a site you visit first every day, or if you want to see something specific the moment you open your browser. It takes two to five minutes and requires no technical knowledge. The steps differ slightly between browsers, so this guide covers the three most common ones: Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Key Takeaways
- Your homepage is the page that loads when you open your browser or click the home button, and you can change it to any website you use regularly.
- Chrome, Firefox, and Safari all let you set a homepage through their settings menu, and the process takes less than five minutes.
- You can set your homepage to a blank page, a search engine, or any website — including your email, news site, or local weather.
- If you change your mind, you can always change it back to the default in the same settings menu.
How to set your homepage in Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top right corner. Select Settings from the menu that appears. On the left side, click Appearance. Look for the section labeled Home button — it will have a toggle switch next to it. Turn the toggle on if it is not already on.
Once the home button is turned on, a new option appears below it asking what you want the home button to show. You will see three choices: Open the home page, Open the new tab page, or Open a specific page or set of pages. Click the radio button next to Open a specific page or set of pages. A text box will appear. Type or paste the full web address of the page you want — for example, www.gmail.com or www.weather.gov. Click Done. Your homepage is now set.
How to set your homepage in Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines (called a hamburger menu) in the top right corner. Select Settings. On the left side, click Home. Under the section labeled Home, you will see a dropdown menu next to Homepage and new windows. Click the dropdown and choose Custom URLs.
A text box will appear below the dropdown. Type or paste the web address you want to load when you open Firefox — for example, www.bbc.com or www.gmail.com. If you want to set multiple pages to load in tabs when you open Firefox, you can add more than one address by separating them with line breaks. Close the settings tab. The next time you open Firefox or click the home button, your chosen page will load.
How to set your homepage in Safari
Open Safari. At the top of the screen, click Safari in the menu bar, then select Settings (or Preferences on older versions of macOS). Click the General tab. Look for the field labeled Homepage. Click in the text box and type or paste the web address you want — for example, www.apple.com or www.gmail.com. Close the settings window. The next time you open Safari or click the home button, your chosen page will load.
What to do if you do not see a home button
Some browsers hide the home button by default. In Chrome, you turn it on in the Appearance settings (as described above). In Firefox, you can add it by right-clicking the toolbar and selecting Customize toolbar, then dragging the home icon into place. In Safari, the home button is usually visible in the toolbar, but if it is not, you can add it through View > Customize Toolbar.
Once the home button is visible, clicking it will load your homepage. You can also use keyboard shortcuts: in Chrome and Firefox, press Alt + Home on Windows or Command + Home on Mac. In Safari, there is no keyboard shortcut for the home button, but you can use Command + Y to open your history and navigate from there.
Changing your homepage back to the default
If you change your mind and want to go back to your browser's original homepage, the process is the same as setting a new one. In Chrome, go to Settings > Appearance > Home button and select Open the new tab page instead of Open a specific page. In Firefox, go to Settings > Home and change the dropdown back to Firefox Home. In Safari, go to Settings > General and delete the text in the Homepage field, or type about:blank to load a blank page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I set different homepages for different browsers?
Yes. Each browser has its own settings, so you can set Chrome to load Gmail, Firefox to load your news site, and Safari to load a blank page. This is useful if you use different browsers for different purposes.
What if the website I want as my homepage does not load?
Make sure you typed the full web address, including www. or https:// at the beginning. If the site is down or you do not have an internet connection, your browser may show an error page instead. Try visiting the site directly in a new tab to confirm it is working.
Can I set my homepage to a blank page?
Yes. In Chrome, select Open the new tab page. In Firefox, select Blank page from the dropdown. In Safari, type about:blank in the Homepage field. A blank page loads faster and lets you choose where to go each time you open your browser.
Will changing my homepage affect my search engine?
No. Your homepage and your search engine are separate settings. You can set your homepage to any website and keep your search engine as Google, Bing, or whatever you prefer. Search engine settings are usually found in the same Settings menu, under a section called Search or Search Engine.
What happens if I set a homepage that requires me to log in?
Your browser will load the login page each time you open it. You will need to enter your username and password. If you prefer not to do this every time, set your homepage to a page that does not require login, or use a blank page and navigate to your email or account manually.