It is official now: search engine’s web browser has officially overtaken Internet Explorer as the most popular web browser in the world and even in the US. The reports reveal that Google’s Chrome has 31.8% of the combined desktop and mobile online market – in other words, Google’s freeware is up 6% year-over-year. As for Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, which once ruled the known world, it now accounts for 30.9% only.




However, the statistics that have been made public are somewhat suspect, because the same report listed Apple’s Safari in the third place with a market share of 25%, while Mozilla’s Firefox held only 8% of the market – apparently, most users would think there was something wrong with these figures. But the report insists that such sharp decline was likely due to Firefox lack of mobile presence. Maybe, such results were obtained because the figures included mobile browsing and were focused on the United States where Apple is a king on the smartphone market. Its Safari browser has officially cornered the mobile market due to overwhelming popularity of Apple’s iPhone.

Chrome was already recognized as a market leader worldwide, with industry experts estimating its usage at 43%. Technology analysts also admit that the results are likely due to the increased reliance of the mobile OS. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer had long held onto its dominance by being the default browser on desktop computers. The problem is that mobile devices aren’t relying on IE as a web portal, as they normally run or embed Chrome or Safari by default.

Chances are that Google’s Chrome will become the default browser on all Android devices in the nearest future, and it has enjoyed even more success outside of the United States where it took over the market share lead in 2013.