Windows 11: How to set Google as your default search engine instead of Bing

More than 93% of US web searches are done with Google, but Windows 11 is set to Microsoft’s Bing search engine by default. If you prefer the results you get from Google’s search engine, it’s easy enough to make Google search the default. We’ll show you how.

Windows 11 doesn’t let you set a default search engine systemwide across all browsers, however. It’s easy enough to set for each one, though, including Chrome, Firefox and Edge. And if you prefer to search using Yahoo or DuckDuckGo — even Amazon or eBay if your searches are for items you’re shopping for — you can set one of those, too.

Here’s how to change your default search engine in Windows 11. For more on Microsoft’s new OS, here’s what has changed since Windows 10, what we wished had been included and how you’ll get the new OS.

Microsoft Edge: How to change the default search engine

Edge is the default browser in Windows 11. Here’s how to change the default search engine Microsoft’s browser uses.

1. In Edge, from the “Settings and more” menu up in the top-right corner, choose Settings.

2. On the left, choose Privacy, search and services.

3. Scroll down, and near the bottom in the Services section, choose Address bar and search.

4. In the drop-down menu to the right of the “Search engine used in address bar,” choose the search engine you want to use.

5. If you don’t find the search engine you’re looking for in the list, choose Manage search engines and then tap the Add button in the upper-right corner to add the one you want.

Google Chrome: How to change the default search engine 

You don’t need to use Edge in Windows 11 of course (if you want to change to another browser, we cover that below). Here’s how to change the default search engine in Google web browser.

1. In Chrome, from the “Customize and control” menu in the top-right corner, choose Settings.

2. Over on the left, choose Search engine. 

3. In the Search engine section, use the drop-down menu to the right of “Search engine used in the address bar” to set your default search engine.

4. You can manage the search engines Chrome uses in the section right below, in Manage search engines.

Firefox: How to change the default search engine

If you’re in the Firefox browser camp, here’s how to change the default search engine in Windows 11.

1. In Firefox, from the Open Application menu in the top-right corner, choose Settings.

2. Over in the left-hand column, choose Search.

3. In the Default Search Engine section, from the drop-down menu, select your default search engine.

4. If you don’t see the search engine you want to use, scroll down to the bottom of the page, tap Find more search engines and search for the service you want to use.

How to set a web browser other than Edge as your default browser

Maybe it’s not just another search engine you want to swap but another web browser too. By default, Edge is Windows 11’s browser of choice. In Windows 11, the easiest way to set another browser as your default is when you install it and are prompted to make it your default browser. But if you skipped over doing it then, no worry, here’s how. 

Note, that this will require a few steps.

1. Open Settings, and over on the left tap Apps.

2. Now tap Default apps, and scroll down to the browser you want to set as your default, Google Chrome, say.

3. In each setting listed — .html, for example, or .pdf — tap the default file type or link type and select the browser you want to use with that type. You may see several dozen file types, but probably can get away with setting the first 10 with your browser of choice. You can also go back and adjust other settings.

For more, here are our favorite Windows 11 features, what we know about running Android apps on Windows 11 and how to see if your PC can run Windows 11.