Web Browser Market Share In 2023: 85+ Browser Usage Statistics

by Brian Dean · Updated Jul. 21, 2021

If you want up-to-date browser stats, then you’ll LOVE this comprehensive roundup.

Today, I will show you which browsers have the biggest slice of the 4.66 billion monthly internet users today – the competition is fierce!

This guide will break down the top statistics by desktop, mobile, tablet, and location.

Let’s explore the rise and fall of the internet’s largest browsers.

Worldwide Browser Market Share in 2021 (All Platforms)
Desktop Browser Market Share in 2021
Mobile Browser Market Share in 2021
Google Chrome Browser Market Share Statistics
Safari Browser Market Share Statistics
Mozilla Firefox Browser Market Share Statistics
Internet Explorer (IE) Market Share Statistics
Microsoft Edge Browser Market Share Statistics
Samsung Internet Browser Market Share Statistics
Browser Market Share By Country
Browser Market Share By Region

Here’s a breakdown of browser share worldwide for desktop and mobile. As you can see, Chrome is by far the most popular brower in the planet (nearly 7 out of 10 people use Chrome). Interesting, the relatively new Microsoft Edge has surpassed Firefox in popularity.


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Firefox	Samsung Internet	Opera
65.27%	18.34%	3.4%	3.29%	3.18%	2.19%

Worldwide Browser Market Share (All Platforms)

Looking at only desktops, the rankings are the same. But the popularity is quite a bit different. Specifically, Firefox appears to be a browser that people primarily use on desktop.


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Firefox	Opera	IE
68.76%	9.7%	8.1%	7.17%	2.47%	1.45%

Chrome remains the #1 most-used browser on mobile and desktop. Safari, largely thanks to being the default browser on iOS devices, comes in at a relatively close second.


Chrome	Safari	Samsung Internet	UC Browser	Opera	Android
63.72%	23.78%	5.74%	2.31%	2.06%	0.74%

How Many People Use Google Chrome?

Google Chrome holds over 65.27% browser market share in 2021. Considering there are 4.66 billion monthly active internet users, the number of people using it is estimated to be 3.04 billion worldwide, across over 4 billion unique devices.

Google Chrome Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Desktop	Mobile	Tablet
65.27%	68.79%	63.72%	44.19%

Chrome Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using Chrome: 3.04 billion worldwide
12-month growth: 65.89% to 65.27% (2020-2021)
10-year growth: 20.59% to 65.27% (2011-2021)
Highest market share: 66.34%
Growth trend: Since 2008, it’s only increased year-over-year
Release date: September 2, 2008

Google released the initial version of Chrome back in September 2008. Before this, we lived in a world dominated by Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft’s IE.

Today, they barely hold 5% of the browser market combined.

Chrome is also one of the only offerings to see its user base increasing year-over-year since launch. In fact, Chrome is now the largest browser in pretty much any country, platform, or device apart from Apple’s Safari being dominant on US mobile and global tablets.

Notable Statistics

As of July 2019, Google Play announced that Chrome is 1-in-5 apps to be downloaded 5 billion times from their store. What’s more, these top 5 are all Google apps: YouTube, Gmail, Google Maps & Search.
Keeping its users safe, Chrome shows an average of 250 million warnings for hacked or malicious websites per month.
Over 4 billion people are now protected by Google’s Safe Browsing service, blocking users from getting caught out by phishing attacks, viruses, and more.
Chrome pays hackers to hack them – that’s right; they have a Chrome Bounty Program where you can get paid up to $30,000 for exploiting vulnerabilities.

Summary

I think one of Chrome’s crowning features is its continuous evolution.

Google’s statistics do the talking. They’re consistently improving the browser’s security, performance, and functionality – not to mention the awesome Chrome extensions!

Overall, it may not be perfect with resource usage and other issues, but people keep installing it on their devices, so they’re doing something right!

Sources: Statista, Statista, TheGeekHerald, Statcounter, Statcounter, TechCrunch, Google, Google, Mixpanel

How Many People Use Safari?

Apple’s offering, Safari, currently holds 18.34% of the internet browser market, with an estimated 844 million people using it in 2021. Safari also makes up 23.78% of all mobile device browsers worldwide, which is high considering Apple holds 26.35% of the mobile vendor market.

Safari Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Desktop	Mobile	Tablet
18.34%	9.7%	23.78%	42.05%

Safari Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using Safari: 844 million worldwide
12-month growth: 16.65% to 18.34% (2020-2021)
10-year growth: 6.2% to 18.34% (2011-2021)
Highest market share: 19.94% (April 2020)
Growth trend: Since launch, it’s only decreased in 2014-15 (-0.71%) 2017-18 (-0.08%)
Release date: January 7, 2003 (Replacing Navigator on Macintosh computers)

Safari replaced Navigator as the browser of choice on Macintosh computers back in January 2003. Since then, Safari has been the default, pre-installed browser on every single iOS device with internet access.

No guesses what the primary driver for its user popularity is, right?

Safari is the only browser to beat Chrome for users in the tablet market. With 46.88% of ‘tablet only’ users preferring the browser. Of course, this will have to do with Safari being pre-installed on iPad’s – which sell like crazy.

General Statistics

Safari is the #1 browser for US mobile users in 49 out of 50 states (and D.C.), with over 55.85% of Americans using it for their mobile devices.
Originally, Safari was going to be named ‘Freedom’ by Apple’s creator, Steve Jobs.
The developers pushed for the name ‘iBrowse.’
Safari is a firm number 2 in the market; its steady growth in the last decade has seen it reach a usage share of 1-in-5 web users in April 2020.

Summary

Overall, we can see that Safari is the second most popular browser globally.

Plus, its share of the current worldwide market has increased in the past 12 months. It is also the number one browser for use on tablets; however, it’s lost around 20% in 2020 to Chrome, so it looks like that will be short-lived.

In the US mobile market, Safari is still going strong in terms of dominance. Until more Android devices get sold than iOS in America, it’s not likely to change any time soon.

At the moment, it seems users have to choose if they want the privacy and security benefits of Safari or just to use Chrome, which basically wants to collect data and advertise stuff to you.

Sources: Statista, Statista, Statcounter, Statcounter, Statcounter, Mixpanel, Mixpanel, USA.GOV, Arstechnica

How Many People Use Firefox?

In terms of the total web market share, Mozilla’s Firefox currently holds 3.29% across all platforms in 2021. With only 0.51% coming from mobile devices, excluding tablets, which is 0.20%. It’s estimated that 153 million people use Firefox today.

Firefox Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Desktop	Mobile	Tablet
3.29%	7.17%	0.51%	0.20%

Mozilla Firefox Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using Firefox: 153 million worldwide
12-month growth: 4.26% to 3.29% (2021-2021)
10-year growth: 25.99% to 3.29% (2011-2021)
Highest market share: 31.56% in 2009
Growth trend: Increasing until 2009, then a consistent decline in market share
Release date: September 23, 2002 – Called Mozilla 1.0

Since Mozilla 1.0 was released in September 2002, Firefox quickly became a user favorite and renowned alternative to the once-dominant Internet Explorer. The fast adoption of Firefox was mainly due to IE’s slow release and lack of new features.

There was a time in the mid-2000s to 2010 where every 1 in 3 people accessing the web used Firefox. Since 2010, it’s lost its popularity considerably to Chrome and Safari, dropping from 30.17% to 4.08% in the last decade.

General Statistics

On Google Play’s Android store, the Firefox app has over 100,000 installs.
Firefox is a non-profit organization, and volunteer developers are responsible for writing 40% of its source code to date.
According to recent usage statistics, over half of Firefox users have non-English versions.
Today, over 20% of Firefox users have the ‘Enhanced Tracking Protection’ feature enabled, blocking third-party tracking cookies.

Summary

Mozilla is a non-profit.

Because of that, users of the browser benefit from slightly more privacy compared to the amount of ad data Google collects from your search history via Chrome.

If privacy is something you look for in your internet experience, then browsers like Firefox and Tor are the best place to start.

Sources: Statista, Statista, Statcounter, CNET, CNET, Google, Mozilla

How Many People Use Internet Explorer?

In 2021, Internet Explorer had 0.61% of the total web browser market, a sizable decline from 94.04% back in 2004. Although discontinued from updates, Microsoft’s IE still holds 0.01% of the mobile market and 0.05% of tablets worldwide. It’s estimated that less than 28 million out of 4.66 billion people are still using it today.

Internet Explorer Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Desktop	Mobile	Tablet
0.61%	2.47%	0.01%	0.05%

Internet Explorer Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using IE: 28 million worldwide
12-month growth: 1.28% to 0.61% (2020-2021)
10-year growth: 39.47% to 0.61% (2011-2021)
Highest market share: 94.04% in 2004
Growth trend: Increased until 2004, then a consistent decline in market share
Release date: August 16, 1995

In August 2020, Microsoft announced it would stop supporting Internet Explorer 11 by August 17, 2021. So, the dominant browser that sat on the throne for almost two decades finally got killed off.

When it launched on August 16, 1995, Internet Explorer quickly stole the top spot from the previous favorite, Netscape Navigator.

In 2004, IE controlled over 94.04% of all web browser use. By the turn of the new decade, it had dropped to 49.93% in 2010.

Now, of course, it’s barely 1% of all browser use. So what’s the cause of such a violent plummet in users?

It was really, REALLY slow.
It had significant security concerns (ironically, it was used by many governments).
Inadequate support of add-ons and extensions that today’s users rely on.
It had slow detection and fixing of bugs.
Bare minimum functionality and adaptability.
Problems supporting new HTML/CSS/JS caused rendering issues on websites – a web designer’s nightmare.

Honestly, I could go on.

Fun stat – More than 80% of Windows 10 users ditch IE as their default browser as soon as they can get a chance.

Summary

As we say farewell to Internet Explorer as Microsoft discontinues support across their 365 apps and services, we can remember the once-dominant place it had in the market.

Now, all Windows 10 users have their Chromium-based browser, Edge pre-installed.

Next up, let’s see if Edge was a hit or miss.

Sources: Statista, Statista, Statcounter, ZDNet, Arstechnica, Computerworld.

How Many People Use Edge?

In 2021, Microsoft Edge currently has 3.4% of the worldwide internet market, with an estimated 158 million people using it today. Edge performs well in the desktop market share at 8.1%, and a much lower 0.1% for mobile browser use.

Microsoft Edge Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Desktop	Mobile	Tablet
3.4%	8.1%	0.1%	0.3%

Edge Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using Edge: 158 million worldwide
12-month growth: 2.14% to 3.4% (2020-2021)
Growth since launch: 00.3% to 3.4% (2015-2021)
Highest market share: 3.4% (right now)
Growth trend: It’s only increased year-over-year
Release date: July 25, 2015

Since launching on July 25, 2015, Microsoft’s replacement for IE has taken a good slice of the market, however not as much as the company hoped with its awe-inspiring codename ‘Spartan.’

The original Edge was an HTML-based browser. As of January 2020, Microsoft launched its Chromium-based version, merging users into the compatibility and performance-focused version (Depreciating the older HTML one-to-end support on August 17, 2021).

So it’s clear that most Edge users come from Microsoft moving existing Windows 10 customers to this Chromium-based browser solution.

Additional topics & snippets

As we know from Internet Explorer, simply installing something as default does not suggest that people will switch to use it as default. However, people seem to be giving Edge a shot, and the year-over-year growth has been consistent.

Will Edge manage to overtake Firefox and be Microsoft’s salvation?

Only time will tell.

Sources: Statista, Statcounter, ZDNet, WindowsCentral

How Many People Use Samsung Internet?

In 2021, Samsung Internet’s share of the web browser market was 3.18% across all platforms, with over 400+ million people using it worldwide. However, the focus should be on their 6.44% of mobiles and 6.12% tablets as they are a ‘mobile-only’ browser.

Samsung Internet Browser Market Share Worldwide in 2021


All Platforms	Mobile	Mobile & Tablet
3.18%	5.74%	5.48%

Samsung Internet Browser Usage Statistics

Number of people using Samsung Internet: 400+ million worldwiden
Downloads on Google Play: 1+ billion
12-month growth: 3.75% to 3.18% (2020-2021)n
Growth since launch: 0% to 3.18%n
Highest market share: 3.45% in 2019n
Growth trend: Since launch, it’s increased until dropping in 2020n
Release date: 2015n

Samsung Internet is a mobile device browser running on the open-source Chromium project. It can be found on many smartphones and Tizen-based Samsung smartwatches.

What’s more, Samsung Internet has received over 1 billion installs from the Google Play Store since 2015, which is more than several browsers like Firefox and Opera combined.

These installs have left Samsung Internet ranked the 4th most popular browser across all platforms worldwide, behind Chrome, Safari, and Firefox. In terms of mobile where it’s available for install, Samsung is ranked the 3rd most used behind Chrome and Safari.

Summary

When you look closely, all the industry giants like Google, Apple, and now Samsung have opted for installing browsers on their devices by default.

A really clever move for a market share grab as these devices sell like wildfire.

Why are they doing it, you ask?

If you didn’t know already, the world’s most valuable resource today is no longer oil. It’s data.

And, coming pre-stalled on many Galaxy phones since the start of the last decade is a smart move. Samsung sold over 2 billion Galaxy phones alone between 2010-2019.

Sources: Statista, Statcounter, Trusted Reviews, Google Play, Wikipedia, Verge.

1. China Browser Usage Statistics

1.44 Billion Population


Chrome	UC Browser	Safari	QQ Browser	360 Safe	Firefox
45.13%	14.52%	11.17%	8.95%	7.98%	3.22%

Again, Chrome is the most popular internet browser in China, with a 45.13% market share and 49.15% on mobile. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th most used are all browsers developed by Chinese companies, UC, QQ, and 360 Safe.

Ranked 2nd, UC Browser was the 8th most downloaded app of the 2010-2019 decade. Built by UCWeb, it was the second most popular browser in China, with 14.52% on all platforms, 22.45% on mobile.

Users love it for its money-saving features, AND it has a lite version for low-memory phones.

Safari comes in 3rd with an 11.17% market share; one contributor is the 70.02% dominance they have in the tablet market as the browser of choice.

QQ Browser had 8.95% of China’s browser market share, with 9.42% on mobile-only devices. Developed by Tencent, a Chinese technology company, it offers integrations with chat platforms and other great networking features.

Finally, 360 Safe Browser, built by the company Qihoo, was in 5th at 7.98%.

Why such a big difference in browser use?

Keep in mind that China’s mobile market is very different, with the leading brands being Huawei (32.24%), Apple (18.27%), Xiaomi (9.26%), Hisense (6.96%), and Oppo (6.57%).

2. India Browser Usage Statistics

1.32 Billion Population


Chrome	Opera	UC Browser	Safari	Samsung Internet	Firefox
85.84%	3.49%	3.39%	2.46%	1.74%	1.3%

Chrome is the undisputed top-ranked browser for India’s market share, with 85.84% across all devices and 85.32% on mobile. The second place is Opera with 3.49% globally and 4.14% through cell phones.

Safari doesn’t claim any wins for market share across all platforms, with 2.54% on mobile and only 15.05% on tablets – a market the company typically excels in.

This difference is due to the smartphone market; budget phones like Xiaomi, Samsung, and Mobicel dominate phone sales in India.

The UC browser had a 50/50 market share with Chrome until 2016, where it saw a decline in users migrating to Chrome.

UC did so well initially because they offered a lite mode that reduced the data usage, allowing for 2G browsing. What’s more, they actually saved 79% more data than Chrome and Firefox on 1000MB of web page load in official tests.

3. USA Browser Usage Statistics

330 Million Population


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Firefox	Samsung Internet	IE
48.51%	36.33%	5.64%	3.36%	2.24%	0.98%

At 48.51% Google Chrome is the most popular used across all platforms in terms of US browser market share. In second place is Safari with 36.33% of the share; together, they make up over 84.84% of America’s market.

In terms of mobile, Safari is ranked number one and makes up 53.6% of all mobile browsing in the US, with Google Chrome ranked second with 39.3% and the Galaxy phones default browser, Samsung Internet, at 4.62%.

Why is Apple so dominant?

Well, this boils down to the simple fact they sell more phones in America than any other company. The iPhone’s default browser is safari, and they own 59.71% of the smartphone market in the US, followed by Samsung at 24.73%.

In fact, Safari is the most popular browser in every state, apart from Wyoming, where Chrome is used more by its residents.

One notable mention is that Facebook is used for 9% of all mobile browsing in the US and goes as high as 14% in Washington.

Finally, below we can see a comparison of all regions.

Where Safari has some strong usage figures in North America, Europe, and Oceana – it’s still too far behind Chrome.

Chrome is here to stay across all regions.

We can expect the most significant changes to these browser usage figures to come from the influence of pre-installed browsers on mobile devices. And, let’s not forget the less public data on default browsers within social networks like Facebook.

Asia Web Browser Statistics

7 out of 10 internet users in Asia use Chrome. And essentially zero use Firefox.


Chrome	Safari	Samsung Internet	UC Browser	Opera	Edge
72.72%	11.7%	3.2%	2.61%	2%	1.97%

North America Web Browser Statistics

In North America, Chrome holds a slim lead in terms of market share. With Safari being used by around a third of all North American internet users.


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Firefox	Samsung Internet	Opera
51.33%	33.52%	5.5%	3.49%	2.36%	0.91%

North America Web Browser Usage Statistics

South America Web Browser Statistics

In South America, Chrome dominates. More than 80% of internet users in South American use Chrome as their browser of choice.


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Samsung Internet	Opera	Firefox
82.72%	5.91%	2.75%	2.68%	2.61%	2.41%

South America Web Browser Usage Statistics

Europe Web Browser Statistics

Here’s a full breakdown of browser market share in Europe. In the EU, Firefox has a much stronger presence than in Asia or South America.


Chrome	Safari	Firefox	Edge	Samsung Internet	Opera
61.12%	18.79%	6.17%	4.56%	3.96%	2.68%

Oceania Web Browser Statistics

In Oceania, Chrome retains a slim lead over its competitors. Even so, half of all internet users in Australia, New Zealand and other countries in the region use Google Chrome.


Chrome	Safari	Edge	Firefox	Samsung Internet	IE
52.87%	32.58%	5.1%	3.3%	3.27%	0.72%

Africa Web Browser Statistics

Chrome also performs well in Africa. However, Opera has much higher market penetration in Africa compared to many other places in the world.


Chrome	Safari	Opera	Samsung Internet	Firefox	Edge
70.92%	10.82%	8.18%	4.29%	2.21%	1.54%

Conclusion

That’s a wrap for my roundup of browser statistics.

Chrome is the unquestionable champion in the browser wars, entering the new decade on top.

What does the future hold? Well, Samsung Internet’s mobile-only browser took over 3% of the TOTAL global market share and social network Facebook, accounting for 8% of ALL mobile traffic in the US.

Now I’d like to hear from you:

Will these new era browsers eat up more of the market? Can Edge be Microsoft’s comeback from the dying Internet Explorer?

Please jump in and leave a comment below and let me know what you think.