Edges doomed challenge to Chrome is embarrassing for Microsoft is it time to stop forcing the browser on us in Windows 11?

Date:
Fri, 02 May 2025 13:50:20 +0000

Description:
Edge appears to have completely stalled surely its time for a different approach other than relentlessly pushing the browser, Microsoft?

FULL STORY ======================================================================Microsof t Edge slipped slightly to 13.29% according to Statcounters latest figures
for the browser market in April 2025 Edge has been stuck around the 13% mark for over a year now To make progress, Microsoft needs to rethink its
strategy, and stop overzealously promoting Edge in Windows 11

Microsofts Edge browser appears to be facing a distinctly uphill battle in the browser wars, with its market share having clearly stalled over the past year.

Granted, that percentage share of the browser market has been bobbling up and down a bit as time has passed, going by analytics firm Statcounters global figures. But the upshot is Edge doesnt seem to be making any real headway against Googles Chrome browser.

As Neowin noticed , with Aprils browser stats , Edge is on 13.29% which is a slight loss of 0.08% on March 2025. If we rewind a year, its actually up a little bit, but the increase is marginal with a 0.32% gain.

Essentially, Edge has been stuck around the 13% mark for over a year now, and has been unable to break free of the shackles of that particular number.

At the start of 2024, it crept over 13%, then hit 13.8% in August 2024, seeming to make some decent progress except it dropped back down under 13% towards the end of last year.

Then it rose like a phoenix (ahem) to reach 13.9% in February 2025, again a solid uptick, before dropping back down (like a phoenix somebody turned a
fire hose on) to 13.29% this past month.

In short, whenever theres an increase that makes it look like Edge could get over 14%, the browser appears to shed users again. And given how far away Microsofts app is from Chrome which is way in the lead on 65% its not looking good for the overall campaign to dethrone Google here. (Image credit: Shutterstock / monticello) Analysis: Drop the promos, Microsoft or, erm,
just buy Chrome

Actually, looking at the entire browser market in recent history, nothing is really doing much its a very static overall picture. All the major browsers have pretty much flatlined, and are maintaining a strict balance of power, with only minor fluctuations from month-to-month.

Chrome holds most of that power, as noted, and Edge is a very distant
second, ahead of Safari and Firefox which are a good way behind it
(relatively speaking at the low-end). Opera is the other minor player
bringing up the rear, but whichever graph you look at, its pretty much a straight line through the months for all these browsers, with very slight bobbles.

What is Microsoft getting wrong? Well, I know its a well-beaten drum, but Im convinced part of the problem is the overzealous promotion of Edge in Windows 11 (and 10). These kind of exercises which have been numerous in recent history only smack of desperation , and will likely turn off people, rather than persuade them to give Edge a chance.

I know that repeated prompts to make Edge my default browser have annoyed me quite a number of times, cropping up here and there, and Im sure I am not alone (a quick rifle through some online posts on typical forums like Reddit underlines this).

The crying shame is that Edge is actually a good product. Indeed, its rated
as the top pick in our roundup of the best web browsers , so it deserves to
be a meaningful rival to Chrome, even if its not perfect. And Microsoft is working to iron out some of those imperfections, like bloat, slowly but
surely .

What does Microsoft need to do to stand a chance of breaking through the 15% barrier, then? Well, keep on the path of streamlining by all means, but just shut up about Edge in Windows 11 (or elsewhere), and try to get a turnaround in the public perception of the browser being overly promoted. Because that only leads to suspicion that Edge needs to be promoted because its not all that great which isnt true.

Microsoft positioning itself to gain favor and more goodwill from the computing public in this way could stand Edge in good stead, given that the top dog browser is currently navigating some unsteady waters, with Google currently under fire regarding selling off Chrome .

Or theres an idea: just buy Chrome, Microsoft. Of course, that remote
prospect would be highly unlikely to fly with regulators as its rather an out of the fire and into the frying pan solution. You might also like Dont panic Microsofts Edge browser isnt about to subject you to a flood of unblocked adverts (not yet, anyway) Microsoft gets rid of Edge uninstall advice page after facing criticism over it having nothing to do with removing the app,
and just promoting the browser instead How to use Microsoft Edge



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/edge/edges-doomed-challenge-to-chrome-is-e mbarrassing-for-microsoft-is-it-time-to-stop-forcing-the-browser-on-us-in-wind ows-11


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