If your web browser opens a default homepage that you didn’t pick yourself, it’s easy to change its homepage & startup page to something better. All the top web browsers can be set to make any page on your homepage.
Why not launch your browser at Facebook? Or Gmail. Or your favorite local weather website. It’s easy if you know a few simple steps. It also helps to know the difference between the start page and the homepage.
Start page vs. homepage
First, you should know that for most browsers, there’s a difference between the “start” page and the “homepage:”
- Start page: The web page or browser interface you see when the software is first launched
- Homepage: The page or interface that opens when you click the browser’s Home button
Most browsers are pre-programmed to show default content – often a search engine interface — on both the start page and homepage. Sooner or later, however, most users adjust their settings to define their own homepage and start page.
Changing your browser’s homepage
Here’s how to change the homepage in the three most popular web browsers – Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge. We’ll also explain how to set the start page and how to make the Home button visible in the toolbar (if it’s not there already).
You can customize Google Chrome to open any page for the homepage or startup page. These two pages aren’t the same unless you set them to be.
- Your startup page is the one that shows when you first launch Chrome on your device.
- Your homepage is the one you go to when you click Home
.
If your startup page, homepage, or search engine has suddenly changed, then you may have unwanted software. Learn how to find and remove malware from your device, and get your settings back.
On Computer Set your startup page
You can control what page or pages appear when you launch Chrome on your computer.
Have a new tab open
You can tell Chrome to open to a new tab page.
- On your computer, open Chrome.
- At the top right, click More
Settings.
- Under “On startup,” select Open the New Tab page.
By default, the new tab page shows Google’s logo, a search bar, and thumbnails of your most visited sites. You can choose a fun theme for your new tab page instead, though.
Continue where you left off
You can tell Chrome to re-open the same pages you were looking at when you quit.
On a computer:
- On your computer, open Chrome.
- At the top right, click More
- Under “On startup,” select Continue where you left off.
Your cookies and data are saved, so any websites you were logged into before (like Gmail, for example) will open again. If you don’t want to be automatically signed in to these pages, follow the steps below:
- On your computer, open Chrome.
- At the top right, click More
- Under “Privacy and security,” click Cookies and other site data.
- Turn on Clear cookies and site data when you quit Chrome.
On a Chromebook: To reopen your pages when you sign in, press Ctrl + Shift + t.
Open a specific set of pages
You can tell Chrome to open to any webpage.
- On your computer, open Chrome.
- At the top right, click More
- Under “On startup,” select Open a specific page or set of pages.
- Click Add a new page. Enter the web address and click Add.
- Click Use current pages.
To update your pages, to the right of a page, click More 
Problems with your startup or homepage
If you’re on a computer and you’re seeing a homepage or startup page that you didn’t set yourself, your computer may have malware. Learn how to block unwanted changes to Chrome.
If you’re on a Chromebook at work or school, your network administrator can choose your startup page(s) or homepage for you. If so, you won’t be able to change them. For more help, ask your administrator.
Choose your homepage
You can control what page appears when you click Home
- On your computer, open Chrome.
- At the top right, click More
- Under “Appearance,” turn on Show Home button.
- Below “Show Home button,” choose to use the New Tab page or a custom page
The Home button will appear to the left of your address bar.
On Android Choose your homepage
You can control which page appears when you tap Home
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Chrome app
.
- At the top right, tap More
- Turn on Homepage.
- Choose Chrome’s homepage or a custom page.
On iPhone & iPad
You can only set your homepage when you use Chrome on a computer or Android device.
How to change the homepage in Chrome
To change the homepage in Google Chrome, go to Settings → Appearance. In the section labeled “Show Home button,” you can set the homepage to either an empty Tab or a website URL that you designate.
If the Home button is missing from the Chrome toolbar, activate it by going to Settings → Appearance → and selecting the “Show Home button” toggle. Then you can define your homepage URL using the steps outlined above.
You can also change Chrome’s start page. Go to Settings → Default browser and choose your preferred option in the “On startup” section. You can make Chrome launch with an empty Tab, the web page that was open when Chrome was last closed, or a specific page of your choosing.
How to change the homepage in Firefox
To change the homepage in Mozilla Firebox, go to Options → Home → Firefox Home Content → New Windows and Tabs. Use the “Homepage and new windows” section to display either the Firefox Home interface, a web page (or pages) that you designate, or a blank Tab.
If the Home button is missing from Firefox, right-click on the Toolbar, select “Customize,” and drag and drop the Home icon onto the toolbar.
You can change Firefox’s start page using the same steps outlined above for the homepage. Firefox uses the same menu to control both the homepage and new windows (including when the browser launches).
How to change the homepage in Edge
To change the homepage in Microsoft Edge, go to Settings → General. In the section labeled “Customize,” use the “Set your homepage” drop-down to select either an empty Edge tab or a specific website that you designate. This menu is also used to select the other user-definable aspects of Edge operation.
If the Home button is missing from Edge, go to Settings → General and use the “Show the Home button” toggle.
You can change Edge’s start page by using the same path outlined above for the homepage. Look for the “Open Microsoft Edge with” drop-down. Options include an empty Tab, whatever pages were open when you last closed Edge, a specific page or pages that you designate, or Edge’s default start page with pre-populated content from Microsoft.
What is a homepage?
A homepage is the page that appears when you click your browser’s Home button. It may or may not be the same as the start page, which opens when you first launch the browser software or open a new browser window.
Internet browsers such as Firefox, Edge and Chrome are preloaded with a default homepage, often the manufacturer’s search engine (Google, Bing, etc.). If you frequently go to a different web page than what is preloaded, consider changing your homepage settings as explained above.
A homepage also is the name for the first or opening page of a website, but for this article, we’re focusing on the browser homepage.
Can I have more than one homepage?
Multiple websites that you frequently visit can be set as homepage tabs that launch simultaneously. And just as with single homepage options, you can set multiple homepage tabs using your browser’s settings options.
To set multiple homepage tabs, refer to the steps provided above for Chrome, Edge and Firefox. But rather than selecting a single homepage, use the option for designating multiple homepage tabs.
How do I make Google my homepage?
What if you like using a search engine as your homepage but don’t like the search engine that your browser displays by default? What if the default engine is Bing but you prefer Chrome (or vice versa)?
To make Google (or another search engine) your homepage, simply follow the steps outlined above for accessing the homepage settings for your browser. Then, rather than inserting the URL for a news provider or some other website, insert the URL for your preferred search engine.
