Web browsers
A web browser is the application we use to access sites and applications on the World Wide Web. Its job is much broader than simply “displaying pages”: it interprets HTML and CSS, executes JavaScript, downloads images, video, fonts and other resources, manages network connections, local storage, permissions, certificates, tabs, extensions, and multiple layers of security.
Update note (October 2026): this article was originally published in December 2023. We have kept its original images and the May 2023 market-share chart as a historical snapshot, while revising the text to correct historical inaccuracies, explain modern browser architecture, and include the latest complete worldwide StatCounter figures available.
These three concepts are often confused. Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari are browsers. Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and Brave Search are search engines: web services that can be used from almost any browser. Blink, Gecko, and WebKit are browser engines responsible for implementing and rendering much of the web platform.
For example, typing a query into Chrome’s address bar may send it to Google because Google is configured as the default search engine. Chrome would still be the browser if the default search provider were changed to Bing or DuckDuckGo.
When you enter a URL or follow a hyperlink, the browser locates the destination server, establishes a connection —normally protected with HTTPS/TLS— and requests the required resources over HTTP. Modern connections may use HTTP/1.1, HTTP/2, or HTTP/3 depending on browser, network, and server support.
In simplified form, rendering a page involves several stages:
Modern browsers are complex multi-process applications. Tabs, extensions, GPU work, networking, and content from different sites may run in separate processes for stability and security. In practical terms, a current browser is closer to a small application platform than to the simple document viewer browsers started as.
The World Wide Web was invented by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in 1989. By the end of 1990, CERN had the first web server and the first browser/editor running. That browser was initially called WorldWideWeb and was later known as Nexus. CERN placed the Web software in the public domain on April 30, 1993, a crucial decision for its rapid adoption.
In 1993, NCSA Mosaic became the first widely popular graphical web browser. It is not quite correct to say Mosaic directly “became” Netscape: several people involved with NCSA Mosaic, most notably Marc Andreessen, later helped establish Netscape Communications and develop Netscape Navigator.
Netscape Navigator arrived in 1994 and dominated much of the Web’s early commercial period. Microsoft responded with Internet Explorer 1.0 in 1995, based on technology licensed from Spyglass Mosaic. Bundling Internet Explorer with Windows intensified the first browser war and eventually displaced Netscape in market share.
In 1998 Netscape opened much of its browser source code and the Mozilla project was born. The Mozilla Application Suite followed, and on November 9, 2004 Mozilla released Firefox 1.0, restoring meaningful competition to Internet Explorer.
Apple Safari was introduced in January 2003 for macOS. It uses WebKit, an open-source engine originally derived from KHTML/KJS. Apple maintained a Windows edition for several years, but that version was discontinued long ago; current Safari is part of Apple’s platform ecosystem.
Google Chrome released its first beta on September 2, 2008. It initially used WebKit, but in 2013 the Chromium project created Blink, a rendering engine derived from WebKit. Chrome helped popularize an aggressively multi-process architecture, rapid updates, and increasingly strict site isolation.
Microsoft introduced Edge Legacy with Windows 10 in July 2015. In January 2020 it released a new Microsoft Edge rebuilt on Chromium. The Internet Explorer 11 desktop application reached end of support on many Windows 10 editions on June 15, 2022 and was subsequently disabled there; Microsoft keeps IE mode inside Edge for specific legacy enterprise applications.
There are many browser products, but far fewer independent engines. Three technology families dominate general-purpose browsing today:
The concentration of many browser products on Chromium improves consistency for sites, but it also reduces implementation diversity. A standards-based platform benefits from independent engines that can implement, test, and challenge web standards using different architectures.
Exact placement depends on the browser, operating system, and device, but most browsers provide the same fundamental concepts:
A browser continuously processes content received from servers you do not control, making it one of the most exposed attack surfaces on a computer. Modern browsers therefore combine sandboxing, process separation, site isolation, automatic security updates, malicious-site protections, certificate validation, same-origin restrictions, permission controls, and memory-exploitation mitigations.
Private or incognito browsing does not make you anonymous on the Internet. Its main purpose is to reduce what the browser retains locally after the private window closes, such as history, cookies, and session data. Your ISP, corporate network, visited sites, and services you sign in to can still observe relevant activity.
Anti-tracking behavior also varies. Firefox provides Enhanced Tracking Protection and Total Cookie Protection; Safari includes Intelligent Tracking Prevention; Samsung Internet offers Smart Anti-Tracking; and Chromium-based browsers add different privacy controls depending on the vendor. The best configuration depends on how you balance compatibility, privacy, and convenience.
The image below is deliberately preserved because it was part of the original article and records a historical snapshot from May 2023. It should not be interpreted as current market share.
According to StatCounter, in September 2026, combining desktop, mobile, and tablet worldwide, the leading estimated shares are:
These figures are traffic-based estimates rather than a census of installed browsers, and the ranking changes substantially when desktop and mobile are analyzed separately. Updated figures are available at StatCounter Global Stats.
Google Chrome is Google’s browser and the worldwide market leader. It is built on Chromium and uses Blink for rendering and V8 for JavaScript/WebAssembly. Its strengths include broad web-app compatibility, Google account synchronization, a large extension ecosystem, mature developer tools, and a multi-process security model with site isolation. Users who want to minimize integration between browsing and a large advertising platform may prefer alternatives with a different privacy model.
Safari is Apple’s browser for its platforms and uses WebKit together with JavaScriptCore. It is tightly integrated with macOS, iPhone, and iPad, with strong emphasis on energy efficiency, privacy, iCloud integration, password/passkey management, and continuity between Apple devices. The old Windows edition is no longer a current product.
Microsoft Edge has used Chromium since 2020, so it shares Blink, V8, broad website compatibility, and much of Chrome’s extension ecosystem. Microsoft adds Windows integration, account synchronization, enterprise management, vertical tabs, resource-saving features, and IE mode for selected legacy corporate applications.
Mozilla Firefox uses Gecko and SpiderMonkey and is the main independent general-purpose desktop browser implementation outside the Chromium family. It is open source, has a mature extension ecosystem, and includes Enhanced Tracking Protection, Total Cookie Protection, and additional anti-tracking controls. Its independent engine makes Firefox particularly important to browser-engine diversity.
Opera is Chromium-based. It differentiates itself by integrating features that other browsers may require extensions or separate services for, including ad blocking, a browser-scoped VPN/proxy service, sidebar tools, messaging integrations, and AI features. Opera’s free VPN protects traffic from the Opera browser; it should not automatically be treated as equivalent to a full-device VPN.
Samsung Internet is particularly significant in the Galaxy ecosystem. It is built on Chromium technology and provides Smart Anti-Tracking, Secret mode, biometric authentication, malicious-site warnings, and support for content blockers. Samsung is also expanding browsing continuity across its devices.
Worldwide share does not tell the whole story. Depending on your priorities, other important options include Brave, focused on privacy and tracker blocking; Vivaldi, aimed at customization and productivity; Tor Browser, designed for the Tor network and resistance to tracking; and specialist projects such as Mullvad Browser. Brave and Vivaldi use Chromium, while Tor Browser is derived from Firefox ESR.
There is no universally best browser. A sensible choice considers website compatibility, privacy, update cadence, resource use, integration with your devices, accessibility, synchronization policies, and the extensions you actually need. Web developers should also test important sites in at least one Chromium implementation, Firefox, and Safari/WebKit; developing only against Chrome can hide interoperability problems.
Whatever you choose, the most important security rule is simple: keep the browser updated. An outdated browser exposes you to known vulnerabilities even if the operating system and endpoint protection are otherwise well maintained.
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