You can change your default search engine in your browser settings in under a minute
Your browser — whether that's Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge — comes with a default search engine already picked for you. When you type a question into the address bar, that default engine is what runs the search. Changing it means your searches go to a different company instead, which changes what data gets collected about your search habits and how that data is used.
The steps differ slightly by browser, but the setting lives in the same place on all of them: your browser's preferences or settings menu. You do not need to read anything or restart your computer. Once you change it, every search you do from the address bar uses your new choice.
Key Takeaways
- Your default search engine is set in your browser's settings, not on your computer itself, so changing it affects only that one browser.
- Different search engines have different privacy policies — some log your searches tied to your account, others delete them after a set time, and some claim not to store them at all.
- Changing your default search engine does not prevent your internet service provider or your network administrator from seeing what you search for.
- If you use multiple browsers, you will need to change the default in each one separately.
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 that appears. On the left side, click Search engine.
You will see a list of search engines Chrome already knows about — Google, Bing, Yahoo, and DuckDuckGo are usually there. Click the one you want to use as your default. If the search engine you want is not on the list, you can add it: scroll down to Other search engines, click Add, and enter the search engine's name, the shortcut you want to type, and its search URL. Most search engine websites have instructions for this in their help section.
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 choice. Click it and select a different search engine from the list. Firefox includes Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, and others by default. If you want to add a search engine that is not on the list, scroll down to One-Click Search Engines and follow the instructions for adding a custom one.
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 versions). Click the Search tab.
You will see a dropdown menu labeled Search engine. Click it and choose from Google, Yahoo, Bing, or DuckDuckGo. Safari does not allow you to add custom search engines the way Chrome and Firefox do, so your choices are limited to these four.
How to change your default search engine in Edge
Open Edge and click the three horizontal dots in the top right corner. Select Settings. On the left side, click Privacy, search, and services.
Scroll down to Search engine and click Change search engine. You will see a list of available options. Click the one you want to use as your default. To add a custom search engine, click Add under Search engines used in the address bar and enter the details.
What happens when you change your search engine
When you type a question into your address bar and press Enter, your search now goes to the new engine instead of the old one. The search results you see will look different — different order, different sources, different ads — because each search engine ranks pages differently.
Your search history in the new search engine's system starts fresh. If you had a Google account and were logged in while searching, Google had a record of those searches tied to your account. If you switch to DuckDuckGo, which does not require an account and does not store searches by default, your new searches are not tied to any account. But this does not erase your old search history from Google — that remains in your Google account unless you delete it yourself.
What changing your search engine does not do
Changing your search engine does not hide your searches from your internet service provider. Your ISP can see the websites you visit and the searches you perform, regardless of which search engine you use, because that information travels through their network. If you want to hide your searches from your ISP, you would need to use a VPN (virtual private network), which encrypts your traffic.
Changing your search engine also does not affect searches you do on the search engine's website directly. If you go to google.com and search there while logged into your Google account, Google still records that search in your account history. The default search engine setting only controls what happens when you use your address bar.
If you are using a work or school computer, your network administrator may have locked the search engine setting so you cannot change it. In that case, the setting will be grayed out in your browser preferences.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will changing my search engine make me anonymous online?
No. Changing your search engine changes where your searches are recorded, but it does not hide your searches from your internet service provider, your network, or the websites you visit. If you want more privacy, you would also need to use a VPN and consider other privacy settings in your browser.
If I change my search engine, can I still use Google?
Yes. You can still visit google.com and search there anytime. Changing your default search engine only affects what happens when you type in the address bar. You can also set up keyboard shortcuts in most browsers so you can search with different engines without changing your default.
What search engine should I choose if I want more privacy?
DuckDuckGo and Ecosia are two options that claim not to store your searches or tie them to your identity. Each has a different privacy policy, so read theirs to understand what data they do and do not collect. No search engine is completely private — they all need to know what you searched for in order to show you results.
Do I need to change my search engine in every browser I use?
Yes. Each browser has its own settings, so changing your default in Chrome does not affect Firefox or Safari. If you use multiple browsers, you will need to change the setting in each one separately.
Can I use different search engines for different types of searches?
Most browsers let you right-click in the address bar and choose which search engine to use for that single search, without changing your default. You can also add multiple search engines to your browser and switch between them manually, though this is slower than using your default.