How to change the default browser on a Mac

In short

Open System Settings, click Desktop & Dock, scroll down to Default web browser in the Widgets section and choose Google Chrome or another installed browser from the menu.

7 of 7 steps show a real screenshot from our MacBook Neo.

Steps

1. 1

   Install the browser first

   Download it from the official website, open the downloaded file and drag the browser into the Applications folder. Open it once.

   On our MacBook Neo, Google Chrome was already in the Applications folder.

   Done
   
2. 2

   Open System Settings

   Click the Apple menu in the top left corner and choose System Settings.

   On our MacBook Neo it opened on the Battery page, which is fine.

   Done
   
3. 3

   Click Desktop & Dock

   It is in the list on the left, below Appearance.

   Done
   
4. 4

   Scroll to Default web browser

   Scroll down the page past Desktop & Stage Manager. On our MacBook Neo the Default web browser row sits in the Widgets section, just above Windows, and read Safari.

   Done
   
5. 5

   Open the menu on that row

   Click the browser name at the right of the row. A list of installed browsers opens, with a tick next to the current one.

   On our MacBook Neo it listed only Safari and Google Chrome.

   Done
   
6. 6

   Choose the browser

   Click the browser you want, here Google Chrome.

   Done
   
7. 7

   Check the row

   The row now shows the new browser. On our MacBook Neo it read Google Chrome straight away, with no extra prompt.

   Apple says links you click in other apps then open in that browser.

   Done
   

If you do not see this option

• Your browser is not in the menu The menu lists only browsers installed on the Mac; on our MacBook Neo that was Safari and Google Chrome. Install the browser in the Applications folder, open it once, then look again.
• No Default web browser row at the top It is not near the top of Desktop & Dock. Scroll past Dock and Desktop & Stage Manager to the Widgets section.

If this does not work

• System Settings opens on another page Nothing is wrong there. It remembers the last page used; on our MacBook Neo it opened on Battery. Click Desktop & Dock in the list on the left.
• Links still open in Safari Go back to Desktop & Dock and check the Default web browser row shows the browser you picked, not Safari. If it does not, choose it again from the menu and make sure the tick moves to your browser.

Good to know

Most browsers also ask "Make default?" when you first open them. Clicking yes does the same thing, so if your habit is to wave every pop-up away unread, I have to tell you, that one was worth a yes.

To change the default email app, open Mail, choose Mail, Settings, General, and pick another app under Default email reader.

Make one file type open in a different app as well: How to change which app opens a file type on a Mac.

The same on an iPhone: How to change the default browser and other default apps on an iPhone.

If your Mac runs an older version of macOS, with System Preferences instead of System Settings, the Default web browser menu is under General.

macOS 27 compared with macOS 26: We rewrote this guide on macOS 27.0.1 (MacBook Neo): it now has 7 steps instead of 5. The macOS 26 page keeps the steps and screenshots as they were.

Version history: the macOS 26 version of this guide, with its own screenshots.

About this guide

Device

Mac

Shown on

macOS 27.0.1 (MacBook Neo)

App

System Settings

Path

System Settings › Desktop & Dock › Default web browser

Real screenshots

7 of 7 steps

Checked

October 2026

Sources

1 official, linked below

Sources

• Apple Support: Change the default web browser or email app on Mac

Links checked October 2026. Menus and features can change with updates.

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