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How to Change the Default Search Engine on Chrome

Use your favorite search engine on a PC, iPhone, or Android smartphone

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Updated on December 2, 2020

What to Know

Open Chrome, select the More Options icon (three dots), then select Settings > Search Engine. Choose a new search engine option.
Manage, edit, or add search engines: Go to More Options (three dots) and select Settings > Search Engine > Manage Search Engines.
Change a search engine nickname or keyword: At Manage Search Engines, select the three dots next to a search engine and make edits.

This article explains how to change the default search engine in the Chrome web browser from Google to another search engine.

How to Change Default Search Engine in Chrome

Changing search engines is a fairly straightforward thing to do, provided you know where to look. Here's how to find the right setting to achieve that.

Open Google Chrome.
Select the three dots on the right side of your user profile photo.

Alternatively, select File > Preferences or Chrome > Preferences.
Select Settings.
Scroll down to Search Engine.
Select the drop-down menu to choose from pre-selected search engine options.
Select the one you want to change to. Chrome offers Bing, Yahoo!, and DuckDuckGo as alternatives.

What Search Engine Should I Change Chrome To?

It's entirely up to you. Each search engine has its advantages and disadvantages. Yahoo! is one of the oldest search engines and has a friendly interface, while Bing is Microsoft's creation and looks a lot like Google.

DuckDuckGo is a great choice if you're privacy-conscious as it keeps your search history private at all times and blocks advertising trackers. It's basically Google without the tracking.

How to Manage Your Choice of Search Engines

Google Chrome offers a way to add multiple search engines, so you can easily switch between them using the method detailed above.

Open Google Chrome.
Select the three dots to the side of your user profile photo.

Alternatively, select File > Preferences or Chrome > Preferences. You can also get there by copying and pasting chrome://settings/searchEngines into the address bar
Select Settings.
Scroll down to Search Engine.
Select Manage search engines.
You can also change several advanced settings, including editing the link you search via, as well as adding extra search engines for future reference.

How to Edit a Search Engine Entry

From Manage Search Engines, select the three dots to the side of your chosen search engine.
Select Edit.
Type a nickname for the search engine or change the keyword.

The keyword is what you enter in the address bar to use the search engine quickly. Make it something familiar and easy to remember.
Select Save.
You've successfully changed and saved a search engine on Google Chrome.

How to Add Another Search Engine

It's possible to add extra search engines to Google Chrome.

Open Google Chrome.
Select the three dots to the side of your user profile photo.

Alternatively, select File > Preferences or Chrome > Preferences. You can also get there by copying and pasting chrome://settings/searchEngines into the address bar.
Select Settings.
Scroll down to Search Engine.
Select Manage Search Engines.
Scroll down to Other Search Engines.
Select Add.
Type a label for the search engine in the Search Engine field
Type a keyword that's easy to remember when typing it into the address bar.

The keyword is the word you type into the address bar to search for it quickly, so make it memorable.
Enter the URL or website address of the search engine.
Select Save.
You're done! You can now use that search engine by typing its keyword in the address bar.

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