How to change the search engine on Chrome for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS

How to change the search engine on Chrome for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS

The address bar in Google Chrome can be used as a search box, and the default search engine is, obviously, Google. Do you want to know how to change Chrome’s search engine from Google to something else, like Bing or DuckDuckGo? Does your Chrome already use a different search engine as default, and you want to get back to Google? Here’s how to change the default search engine in Chrome, so that each time you search for something in Chrome’s address bar, your preferred search engine responds to the query:

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NOTE: This guide covers Google Chrome for Windows, Android, and iOS. Scroll down to the method that applies to your specific operating system.

1. How to change the search engine on Chrome for Windows or macOS to Google, Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia (default options)

If you want to learn how to make Google the default search engine on Chrome for desktop, or you’d like to switch to Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia, follow the next steps:

Open Google Chrome and click or tap the “Customize and control Google Chrome” button, in the shape of three dots, shown in the top-right corner of the window. In the menu displayed, choose Settings.

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Windows

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Windows

Select Search engine on the left sidebar, or scroll down through the list of settings until you find the section called Search engine. There, click or tap the drop-down list from the right side of “Search engine used in the address bar.” From the list shown, choose the search engine you want as your default: Google, Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia.

Change the search engine in Google Chrome for Windows

Change the search engine in Google Chrome for Windows

In case you’re using Chrome on a Mac, the list of default search engines is slightly different. You get to choose between Google, Yahoo!, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and Yandex.

Change the search engine in Google Chrome for Mac OS

Change the search engine in Google Chrome for Mac OS

Close the Settings tab, and you’re done: Google Chrome now uses the default search engine that you’ve selected. Before you leave, though, don’t you want to learn more about the websites notifications you get from Chrome?

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2. How to change the search engine in Chrome to one that’s not found in its list of defaults

This method is needed for search engines that are not included in the standard list provided by Google. The first step is to open a new tab in Google Chrome and load the search engine you want to use. We used Qwant as an example. Once it’s loaded, click or tap the “Customize and control Google Chrome” button from the top-right corner (its icon looks like three dots). In the menu, select Settings.

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Windows

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Windows

Scroll down the list of Google Chrome settings until you find the Search engine section. There, click or tap on “Manage search engines.”

Manage search engines in Google Chrome for Windows

Manage search engines in Google Chrome for Windows

A list of search engines is shown, which includes the one that you just visited. In our case, Qwant is among them. On the right side of the search engine that you want to use as default, click or tap on the three dots button. Then, choose “Make default” from the list of options.

Set a new search engine in Google Chrome for Windows

Set a new search engine in Google Chrome for Windows

The search engine is now changed from Google to the one you have chosen - we changed our default search engine to Qwant.

3. How to change the search engine on Chrome for Android to Google, Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia (default options)

Google Chrome for Android makes it easy to change the default search engine if you want to switch to Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, or back to Google. First, open the More menu in Google Chrome by tapping the button in the shape of three dots, shown on the top-right corner of the app.

The More button in Google Chrome for Android

The More button in Google Chrome for Android

In the menu that is displayed, tap on Settings.

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Android

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Android

On the Settings screen, tap on Search engine. Right under it, you should see the current search engine you use.

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for Android

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for Android

Chrome’s Search engine screen shows you a list of radio buttons for a few default search engines. Select the one you want to use. In the example below, you can see how to make Google the default search engine on Chrome.

Select the search engine for Google Chrome for Android

Select the search engine for Google Chrome for Android

You can now close the Settings, as Google Chrome for Android already uses the search engine you’ve selected. However, before you do that, maybe you’d like to take a look at Chrome’s notifications settings also.

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4. How to change the search engine on Chrome for Android to one that’s not on the list of defaults

This method works for search engines that are not included on the standard list provided by Google. In Android, the search engine has to be able to push itself into the settings of Google Chrome. To exemplify, we’re going to use qwant.com as our next default search engine.

First of all, use Chrome to open the website of the search engine you want to use. Once it’s loaded, tap the browser’s settings button from the top-right corner of the screen.

Add Qwant to Google Chrome for Android

Add Qwant to Google Chrome for Android

On the menu that shows up, tap Settings.

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Android

Open Settings in Google Chrome for Android

Next, on the Settings screen, tap on Search engine. Under it, the current search engine is displayed.

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for Android

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for Android

A list is shown with a few search engines. Because we’ve visited Qwant earlier, it’s now offered as an option on the list. You should see the search engines that you’ve visited here, not necessarily Qwant. Tap the radio button next to the new search engine you want to use.

Select Qwant as the search engine in Google Chrome for Android

Select Qwant as the search engine in Google Chrome for Android

The search engine is now changed from Google to the one you’ve chosen.

5. How to change the search engine on Chrome for iPhone (or iPad) to Google, Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia

It’s easy to change Chrome’s default search engine on iOS if you want to switch to Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, or Ecosia. You can also follow the next steps if you want to see how to set Google as the default search engine on Chrome.

On your iPhone or iPad, open Google Chrome. Then, open the More menu by tapping the “three dots” button shown in the bottom-right corner. On the menu that is displayed, choose Settings.

Open Settings in Google Chrome for iOS

Open Settings in Google Chrome for iOS

Tap on Search Engine. Next to it, you should also see the name of the current search engine.

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for iOS

Access search engine settings in Google Chrome for iOS

Your iPhone (iPad) should show you a list of search engines. Select the one that you want as your default.

Select the search engine for Google Chrome for iOS

Select the search engine for Google Chrome for iOS

Tap Done, and Google Chrome should immediately start using the search engine that you selected on your iPhone or iPad.

6. How to change the default search engine on Chrome for iPhone (or iPad) to anything you want

This alternative method works for search engines that are not included on the default search engines list provided by Google. On your iPhone or iPad, use Chrome to navigate to the search engine website you’d like to use. After it finished loading, tap on Chrome’s settings button from the bottom-right corner of the screen.

Opening Chrome's menu of settings and options on iOS

Opening Chrome's menu of settings and options on iOS

On the menu that pops up, select Settings by tapping on it.

The Settings entry from Chrome for iOS

The Settings entry from Chrome for iOS

On Chrome’s Settings screen, tap on the Search engine. On its right, you should see the current search engine.

Search engine entry in Chrome's menu

Search engine entry in Chrome's menu

Next, you get to see the list of default search engines on Chrome and, at the end, the list of additional search engines you’ve visited. Because we loaded the Qwant website earlier, it’s now shown as the last option on the list. All you have to do to change the default search engine on Chrome is tap on the one you prefer. In our case, that would be Qwant.

How to set a default search engine on Chrome for iPhone

How to set a default search engine on Chrome for iPhone

The search engine is now changed from Google to the one you’ve chosen.

Which search engine do you want to use in Google Chrome?

You now know how to change the search engine on Chrome. Maybe you want to learn that because you’re not a big fan of Google and its policies, and you wanted to try another search engine to see if it’s better than Google. Or maybe you wanted to learn exactly the opposite: how to make Google the default search engine on Chrome. Before you close this tutorial, tell us why did you want to change the default search engine on Chrome? What search engine have you switched to? Comment below and let us know.

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