A Comprehensive List of the Best Browsers For Chromebook

Summary

Picking the best browser for your Chromebook can be a difficult task due to the extensive number of options available in the market. In order to resolve this issue, you can have a look at our comprehensive list of the best browsers for Chromebooks discussed below. Through this list, your decision making process will become a lot easier and you can easily download or configure the browser you want.

Chromebooks are becoming increasingly popular with every passing day. Despite initial reluctance, people are actually warming up to them and their sales have increased quite a lot over the past few years. These devices are slim, sleek, and stylish in outward appearance. Apart from that, they have amazing functionality that makes them run every app efficiently and effectively. Even though the operating system of Chromebook is completely different from iOS or Windows, there is still some resemblance.

Due to these reasons, people quickly warm up to these Chromebooks. This does not imply that new users do not have any difficulty in operating and optimally using them. One of the most important aspects of any computer or laptop is the browser. There are multiple options available for people to use. But, there are some browsers that perform better on certain operating systems. Similarly, a few browsers work better on a Chromebook.

Best Browsers For Chromebook

To make the right choice when picking the best browser, it is best to understand the meaning and purpose of a browser.

What are Browsers?

Browsers are a web application that are used to surf the internet. As soon as you open the web browser, you can type in a URL of any website in the world, and the browser will fetch all the required content of the website for you.

What is The Purpose of Browsers?

The purpose of using a web browser is straightforward. They help in retrieving data from different websites that are available on the worldwide web. Through these browsers, we are able to view the images, videos, and all kinds of other content. Without the presence of web browsers, the world of the internet would be quite different from what it is today.

In scientific terms, the purpose of browsers is to manage the HTML code of different websites in such a way that it creates a human friendly and accessible interface for the users of the application.

Also Read: How to Open the Task Manager on Chromebooks

List of The Best Browsers for Chromebook

If you start your search for a Chromebook, you will come to find many different options. It can become a little confusing as to which browser should be used for the best services. In this portion, we will discuss all the browsers that function best on different Chromebooks.

Google Chrome

This is the default web browser for Chromebooks. If you are a user of Windows OS as well, the Chrome web browser is the first option that you will consider while browsing the web. It is easy to use and utilized very commonly throughout the world. It holds more than 60% share of the browser world. It runs smoothly on other devices as well such as mobile phones. Google Chrome is the first browser to introduce the concept of search box and address bars. Seeing the success of this feature, all other web browsers eventually followed suit. Here is a list of reasons why Google Chrome is the most suitable web browser for everyone.

1.   Google Chrome is the most secure web browser that guarantees encryption of websites on both ends.
2.   The interface of the Chrome Browser contains all the necessary buttons such as Refresh, Back, Forward, and others. This helps even those who are new to using it an easy understanding of the browser.
3.   Due to constant upgrades, it runs smoothly since the beginning.
4.   Opening and managing multiple tabs on Google Chrome is convenient and does not cause any major lag.
5.   Web pages, despite having heavy content such as videos, GIFs, and images are loaded onto the browser instantaneously.
6.   The incognito mode of Google Chrome is quite effective and efficient. It does not allow any browsing history to be saved. Moreover, while in the incognito mode, the browser is unable to save any cookies as well.

Drawbacks

With so many benefits to Google Chrome, there are also some widely known issues about the Chromebook. Here are a few of them:

1.   It does not allow you to merge different browsers i.e. home and office browsers together.
2.   Google Chrome eats up the entire RAM. This means that any other application running the background of Google Chrome runs slow and does not respond that well.
3.   There are minimal to no options available in the Chrome browser to customize it according to personal needs.

Mozilla Firefox

More than 27% of the people around the world use Mozilla Firefox as their primary browser. You can easily install this browser on your Chromebook. A highly secure browser, Mozilla Firefox, is also in the domain of being open source. This means users can perform many different customizations without any hindrances. Following is a list of all the benefits of using Mozilla Firefox on your Chromebook.

1.   Just like Chrome, you can open multiple tabs on Firefox and navigate through them as you please.
2.   Synchronize the data present on the different devices of all the Mozilla Firefox browsers and receive all the updates in one place.
3.   Utilize hundreds of themes and extensions to customize the web browser, as you want. This provides you ease as you can keep all the apps at your fingertips.
4.   It is one of the safest browsers to use on the Internet. Firefox provides full protection from viruses, phishing schemes and more. This is because Firefox has a strong implementation of authentication protocols.
5.   There is an incognito mode present as well.

Drawbacks

Here is a list of some of the drawbacks that are a part of Mozilla Firefox:

1.   Like Chrome, Mozilla Firefox also takes up a lot of space in the RAM of your computer. This means that the running of other applications in the background is more than likely to get affected.
2.   Mozilla Firefox is unable to run many different websites, especially those that are business oriented.

Opera Browser

Unlike the popular browsers, Opera is slightly different in its interface. A person who is new to using the Opera browser can find it difficult to navigate through the application. For this reason, many consumers of the browser are not interested in using it. Despite its said unpopularity, Opera is one of the best browsers for Chromebook. This is because the OS easily supports the application. Here are some of the reasons why Opera is the right browser to use in the Chromebooks.

1.   Opera offers an in-built VPN for all those who want to keep their browsers safe and use the application anonymously.  
2.   It has a chatting messenger that allows you to connect with all the other users on the same network while using the Opera browser.
3.   There are many options to customize this application, this allows the users to edit and add different features.

Drawbacks

Following are the drawbacks of this web browser:

1.   It lacks a user-friendly interface.
2.   Since the user base is few, the developers of this application seldom make any updates. This can result in unnecessary lags and user inconvenience.
3.   While using Opera browser, people feel limited to the number of websites that they can access. This is because many websites are not compatible with this browser.

Microsoft Edge

Previously known as the Internet Explorer, Microsoft is another one of the best browsers for Chromebooks. They are easy to use and compatible with ChromeOS. With many different functionalities at hand, Microsoft Edge provides a long list of benefits to the users who are comfortable with using this browser while using the Internet. Here are some of them:

1.   One of the biggest perks of using a Microsoft Edge is that it is very easy to install. There are hardly 4 to 5 steps in order to accomplish the task.
2.   Despite its predecessor being unsafe, Microsoft Edge is actually quite efficient and reliable. Moreover, it is a very safe browser with many security features in place to protect the browser from malware.
3.   The user interface is friendly and easy for adaptation.
4.   It consumes less RAM of the device as compared to its competitors.
5.   Users can prevent websites from managing and tracking cookies on the Microsoft Browser. There is a distinct option for users to choose from.
6.   Users are able to run the Microsoft Edge browser in the Immersive Reader mode. This allows the users to view and read only the relevant sections of the website. Similarly, readers can choose the option of Read Aloud. Users can listen to the content on PDFs and other highlighted text in the website.

Drawbacks

Even though constant updates are introduced in Microsoft Edge browsers, here are some of the drawbacks of using it:

1.   As compared to most of the popular and widely used web browsers, Microsoft Edge lacks agility and speed in its functionality. This means that the webpages are not fetched and loaded as quickly as they are in other browsers.
2.   Unlike its competitors, there is a limit to the type of device on which Microsoft Edge can run. It is not compatible with devices that have older hardware specifications.  

Brave Browser

The Brave browser is a very recent application and best browsers for chromebook as compared to most of the other browsers. It is also compatible with ChromeOS and runs well on Chromebooks. Most of the people who utilize the Brave browser do it for the efficiency of how it handles the advertising and data tracking aspect. It is very big on the protection and privacy of its users. Here are some details about some of its best features:

1.   It is one of the fastest and most efficient browsers in the industry. Multiple tests have repeatedly proven this fact.
2.   Brave browser does not consume the entire RAM. This allows other applications to run smoothly and simultaneously in the background.
3.   Brave blocks and removes all sorts of advertisements on websites that are usually seen on websites while using other browsers. This helps in protecting the user’s privacy and maintains total anonymity of the Brave users.

Drawbacks

Here are the drawbacks of using Brave browser.

1.   Despite its claim on being completely ad-free, the Brave browser allows a certain number and type of ads to run on their browser. They are mostly user centric.
2.   There are little to no extensions present in the web browser.
3.   The whole browser is a work in progress; it has multiple features that do not work efficiently.

Dolphin Browser

The Dolphin browser is another one of the best browsers for Chromebooks. While it is not commonly heard of, the Dolphin browser is quite efficient. It is filled with multiple interesting features. Here are some of the benefits of using the Dolphin browsers.

1.   There is the option to search for things on the browsers with your own voice. It increases the efficiency of the browser.
2.   Multiple third-party add-ons in this browser enhance your user experience.
3.   If you are using multiple devices that are compatible with one another, you can easily synchronize the browsers with one another.
4.   It is the best browser to use if you want to multitask.

Drawbacks

Here are some of the reasons why you should not be using the Dolphin browser in your Chromebooks:

1.   The safety of your privacy in this browser is questionable.
2.   Most users claim that the optimization of this browser has decreased with each update.
3.   Developers do not enjoy working on this web browser because there are multiple complications present.

Conclusion

As it is obvious from the detailed discussion above, there are quite a lot of options available when it comes to picking the best browser for Chromebooks. As per the recommendation and personal experience, Google Chrome is the most efficient browser. However, if you are in dire need of a change in the scene, exploring options like Firefox on your Chromebook is also recommended.

FAQs

Here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions: