Choosing a browser: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, Vivaldi
Four of the five run on the same engine (Chromium), so websites behave almost identically. The real differences are the sync account, memory use, ad blocking, and which company’s services each one is tied to.
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First: there are only two engines
Chrome, Edge, Brave and Vivaldi are all built on Chromium, the engine Google publishes. Pages render the same way, at the same speed, with the same extensions from the Chrome Web Store. Only Firefox uses its own engine (Gecko). So "which browser is fastest" barely matters; what actually separates them is what each company built on top.
Right after a reformat, the first thing to look at is sync. Whichever account holds your bookmarks and passwords — install that browser first, and every sign-in that follows gets easier.
How the five differ
- Chrome — the reference point
- The most used browser, so every site is built with Chrome in mind. Google account sync is the broadest (bookmarks, passwords, extensions, open tabs, settings) and it pairs naturally with an Android phone. It uses the most memory, and since the 2024 extension-platform change (Manifest V3), full-strength ad blockers such as uBlock Origin no longer run; lighter replacements such as uBlock Origin Lite do.
- Edge — already in Windows
- Nothing to install; Windows Update keeps it current. Same engine as Chrome, so the same site compatibility and the same Chrome Web Store extensions. Sleeping tabs and memory management are better than Chrome’s, which shows on PCs with 8 GB of RAM or less. It syncs through a Microsoft account and comes with Copilot, shopping and other add-ons that can be switched off in settings.
- Firefox — the only other engine
- Not Chromium, so ad-blocking extensions such as uBlock Origin run without restriction, and tracking protection is on by default. Container tabs let you sign in to the same site with several accounts at once. Very occasionally a site built only for Chrome misbehaves, and some banking or government security plugins do not support it.
- Brave — ad blocking built in
- Blocks adverts and trackers in the browser itself, no extension needed, and catches most YouTube adverts too. If ad blocking is the goal, this is the least effort. Chromium-based, so site compatibility matches Chrome. The catch: sync uses no account but a 24-word code phrase, and if you did not write it down before formatting, your bookmarks do not come back.
- Vivaldi — for people who customise everything
- Chromium-based with the most adjustable interface of the five: tab stacking, tiling, custom shortcuts, a built-in mail client and feed reader. Vivaldi account sync carries settings as well as bookmarks and passwords. Heavier than the others by design, and overkill if you just want pages to open.
Compared where it matters
- A PC with 8 GB of RAM or less
- Edge does best, and Brave makes pages lighter by stripping adverts. Chrome’s memory saver narrows the gap. In any browser, the habit of leaving dozens of tabs open eats more RAM than the choice of browser.
- Ad blocking
- Brave: built in, nothing to do. Firefox with uBlock Origin: the strongest. Chrome, Edge and Vivaldi use the new-style extensions such as uBlock Origin Lite, which miss some places, YouTube adverts among them.
- Banking and government sites
- The Chromium browsers behave alike. Firefox is occasionally unsupported by a site’s security plugin, so keeping Edge around for banking is the safe move.
- Continuing from your phone
- Chrome on Android is seamless; on iPhone any of them works once the app is installed. Picking up a tab opened on the phone works in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Brave.
- Work PC
- All five are free for business. If the company has a standard browser, use it; if not, the Edge already installed is the simplest answer.
- Privacy
- Firefox and Brave turn tracking protection on by default. Chrome is the most deeply tied to a Google account, and Edge sends usage data to Microsoft by default, which is worth turning off in settings.
So which one
The one you were already using
A reformat is no reason to switch. Install the browser whose account holds your bookmarks and passwords, turn sync on, and you have saved the first half hour after the reformat.
Choosing for the first time, or switching → Chrome or Edge
Chrome if you live in Google services and Android; Edge if a Microsoft account and Windows integration suit you. Both are safe choices with no compatibility surprises.
You hate adverts → Brave or Firefox
Brave to block without lifting a finger; Firefox to block precisely with extensions. If you pick Brave, write the sync code phrase down now.
You want to tune everything → Vivaldi
Tabs, shortcuts, layout and even mail, all adjustable. Sync carries the settings, so the effort survives the next reformat.
Keeping two is fine
One for daily use, and Edge for banking and anything picky. Edge is already there, so it costs nothing.
Whichever you choose, do this first
Sign in → turn sync on → set as default. With those three done, you will not need this guide at the next reformat. The default is changed under Settings → Apps → Default apps.
Frequently asked
Can I uninstall Edge?
It is part of Windows and does not uninstall. Set another default browser and unpin it from the taskbar and you will not notice it. Tools that remove it can break Windows updates, so they are not recommended.
Ad blocking stopped working in Chrome
Since 2024 Chrome’s new extension platform no longer runs uBlock Origin. Switch to uBlock Origin Lite, or if blocking matters to you, move to Brave or Firefox.
Is it safe to save passwords in the browser?
Synced browser password storage is convenient and enough for most people. But it scatters when you change browsers or use several, so a password manager such as Bitwarden keeps them independent of the browser.
Can I merge bookmarks from two browsers?
Every browser exports bookmarks as an HTML file in its settings, and any other can import it. Passwords can be moved as CSV too, but that file is plain text — delete it as soon as the import is done.
A site I need only works in Internet Explorer
Open it in Edge’s Internet Explorer mode: Settings → Default browser → IE mode, add the site, and only that site opens the old way. Internet Explorer itself no longer exists.
Compare ten browsers and download
The five here plus Opera, Whale, Zen and Tor Browser each have a page with how sync works and what to set up again after a reformat.
See the browsers