Set Google as your default search engine in three steps
Your default search engine is the one that runs when you type a question directly into your browser's address bar without visiting a search site first. To make Google your default, you open your browser's settings, find the search engine section, and select Google from the list. The exact steps depend on which browser you use, but the process takes less than a minute on any of them.
Most browsers come with a default search engine already chosen — often Bing on Microsoft Edge, or Yahoo on some Firefox installations. Changing it does not affect your search history or any other settings. You can switch back anytime, and you can use different search engines on different devices.
Key Takeaways
- Your default search engine is the one that searches when you type directly into the address bar, separate from which search site you visit manually.
- Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari all let you change the default in their settings menu within one minute.
- Changing your default search engine does not erase your search history or affect any other browser settings.
- You can set a different default on each device you own, and you can switch back to a different engine anytime.
How to change your default search engine in Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top right corner. Select Settings from the menu. On the left side, click Search engine. You will see a list of search engines Chrome has detected. Click the radio button next to Google to select it as your default.
If Google does not appear in the list, scroll down to Other search engines and look for it there. If it still does not appear, you can add it manually by clicking Add, typing "Google" as the name, and entering google.com as the URL. Once you select Google, the change takes effect when ready.
How to change your default search engine in Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines in the top right corner. Select Settings. On the left side, click Search. Under Default Search Engine, you will see a dropdown menu showing your current default. Click the dropdown and select Google from the list.
Firefox displays your most recently used search engines at the top of the dropdown for quick access. If you have never used Google in Firefox before, scroll down in the dropdown to find it. The change applies when ready, and you can verify it by typing a question into the address bar and watching Google's search results appear.
How to change your default search engine in Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and click the three dots in the top right corner. Select Settings. On the left side, click Privacy, search, and services. Scroll down to the Search engine section. Click the dropdown under Search engine used in the address bar and select Google.
Edge may also show you a Manage search engines option below the dropdown. You do not need to use this unless you want to remove other search engines from your list or change which one appears first. Once you select Google, the change is when ready.
How to change your default search engine in Safari
Open Safari and click Safari in the top menu bar. Select Settings (or Preferences on older Macs). Click the Search tab. You will see a dropdown labeled Search engine. Click it and select Google.
Safari's search settings are simpler than other browsers because it offers fewer search engine options. Once you select Google, close the settings window and the change takes effect. You can verify it by typing in the address bar.
What happens when you change your default search engine
Changing your default search engine only affects what happens when you type into the address bar. It does not change your search history, your saved passwords, your bookmarks, or any other browser data. Your old searches remain in your history under whatever search engine you used them with.
If you visit a search site directly — by typing google.com into the address bar or clicking a bookmark — you will use that site regardless of your default setting. Your default only matters when you use the address bar as a search box. You can also use a different search engine temporarily by visiting its website directly, without changing your default.
Why you might want Google as your default
Google returns results from the largest index of web pages and usually ranks the most relevant results first. If you came from the article about search history, you may want Google as your default because you can see and delete your Google search history more easily than history stored by other search engines. Google also integrates with other Google services like Gmail and Google Maps if you use those.
Some people prefer other search engines for privacy reasons — DuckDuckGo does not store your search history, and Brave Search does not track you across websites. Your choice of default search engine is separate from your choice about what to do with your search history. You can use Google as your default and still delete your history regularly, or use a privacy-focused engine if that matters more to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will changing my default search engine delete my old search history?
No. Your search history stays in each search engine's records separately. If you searched with Bing before switching to Google, those Bing searches remain in your Bing history. Your Google history only contains searches you performed using Google.
Can I use different default search engines on different devices?
Yes. Each device has its own browser settings, so you can set Google as your default on your phone and Bing on your laptop if you want. Changes on one device do not affect the others.
What if Google does not appear in my search engine list?
You can add it manually in most browsers by going to the search engine settings and clicking an "Add" or "Add search engine" button. Enter "Google" as the name and google.com as the URL. Once you add it, you can select it as your default.
Can I change my default search engine back if I change my mind?
Yes, anytime. The same steps that let you set Google as your default also let you switch to a different search engine. You can change your default as often as you want.
Does my default search engine affect which results I see?
Only if you use the address bar to search. If you visit a search site directly, you get that site's results regardless of your default. If you type into the address bar, you get results from your default search engine.