Google Chrome is widely preferred for its vast browser extension support and snappy performance. That being said, Windows is shipped with Microsoft Edge as their default browser, which is not half bad either, but is definitely late to the party.

If you wish to open URLs or links on Google Chrome instead of Microsoft Edge when you click on them, it becomes necessary to change the default system browser to Google Chrome.

Fortunately, it is not a herculean task and will hardly extract a couple of minutes worth of your time.

Setting Chrome as Default Browser in Windows 11

  1. Open the Start Menu and click on the 'Settings' option.
  1. Select the 'Apps' tab from the left sidebar to proceed.
  1. Choose the 'Default apps' option from the right section of the screen.
  1. On the subsequent screen, either use the search bar or scroll down the list manually to locate Google Chrome. Once located, click on it to proceed.
  1. Click on the 'Set as default' option from the top right corner. That's it.

Tip: You can also set Google Chrome as a default app for other related file types, such as .PDF by clicking on the option from the list and then choosing 'Google Chrome' from the overlay menu.

Accessing Windows default app settings from Chrome. If you do not want to navigate the Settings app manually, let Google Chrome itself do the work for you.

  1. On Google Chrome, click on the 'Ellipsis' icon and select the 'Settings' option.
  1. Select the 'Default browser' option from the left sidebar on the settings screen.
  1. Click on the 'Make Default' option from the right section of the screen. This will open the 'Settings' app window on your screen.
  1. Locate Google Chrome by using the search bar or manually scrolling the list. Click on it once located.
  1. Click on 'Set Default' from the top right corner on the next screen.

Remember, you can also select other file types supported by the browser and select 'Google Chrome' as the default option.

Chrome beats almost every other browser when it comes to advanced features or the sheer list of browser extensions available to enhance your productivity or provide ease of convenience.