Browser Usage Statistics

For younger generations out there, it is almost impossible to think of a time before the internet. We are connected 24/7 and influenced by the internet in our lives. The importance of a browser can be easily overlooked. It has become ubiquitous in our routine. Nowadays, these apps undergo a renaissance on mobile devices. Because of increasing interest from many fronts, browsers are regaining their lost limelight.

Apart from operating systems, browser technology is perhaps the most widely used software in history. In this article, we bring you the latest browser usage statistics. Without any further ado, let us look into them.

On this page, you’ll find:

• General Browser Usage Statistics
• Preferences in Browser Usage Statistics
• Mobile Browser Statistics
• Security and Privacy of Browsers Statistics
• Browser Business Issues Statistics

Key Browser Usage Statistics

Here is a list of the top 10 statistics from this article:

• In 2019, there were more than 1.7 billion websites. (Internet Live Stats)
• In 2018, there were more than 112 browsers. (Web Developer Notes)
• Globally, across all devices, 64.15% of people use Chrome, 19.05% use Safari, 3.69% use Firefox, 3.45% use Microsoft Edge, 3.27% use Samsung Internet, and 2.14% use Opera. (Stat Counter)
• To represent the leader of each browsing category, 55.6 % used mobile devices, 47.1% browsed using Google Chrome, and 35.2% used the iOS operating system. (analytics.usa.gov)
• 62% of the global mobile browser user share is claimed by Google Chrome. (Computer World)
• Apple Safari claims around 58% of the mobile browser market share. (Tech Crunch)
• Having 405 million users worldwide, the UC Browser is the most popular browser for blocking ads. (Block Through)
• Over 4 billion devices are protected by Google’s safe browsing service. (Venture Beat)
• Due to the lack of preparedness for cyberattacks, 31% of organizations experienced data loss. (Mimecast)
• In the U.S., 17% of adults store their passwords through their browsers. (You Gov)

General Browser Usage Statistics

          Browser software serves as a business tool and as an extension of a company. This software has unique benefits and risks depending on the product and how it’s used. The browser software will ultimately affect your business’ performance if you are a person who manages an office, or if you just have workers who use smartphones. Let us first look into some of the general browser usage statistics.

• In 2019, there were more than 1.7 billion websites. (Internet Live Stats)
• In 2018, there were more than 112 browsers. (Web Developer Notes)
• At any given time, 53% of people have between 1 and 5 tabs opened. (Digital Trends)
• 60% of overall browser usage is accounted for by Google Chrome. (CNET)
• Employees are allowed to access the internet by 99% of enterprise organizations. (Technically Media)
• At least 3 hours a day, enterprise employees spend their time using the web. (Technically Media)
• 8.44% of web traffic from Macs and Windows PCs is accounted for by Microsoft Edge. (ZDNet)
• 88.43% of Android devices are ruled by Chrome. (Net Market Share)
• Rising from 11.8%-14.8% of users, Internet Explorer usage saw the most significant growth among Windows 10 users between 2017 and 2018. (ZDNet)
• With 1 billion monthly users, there are 2 billion copies of Chrome installed worldwide. (CNET)

Preferences in Browser Usage Statistics

          Undoubtedly, the web browser is the most common portal for accessing the internet. From their initial designs and capabilities, browsers have gone a long way. Some of today’s most sophisticated online functions are offered by them. Most of today’s browsers are notably less-resource intensive and support extensive customizations, apart from enabling fast page loading, enhanced security, and clean UI. In this section, we shall look into some statistics on the preferences of people in browser usage.

1. Globally, across all devices, 64.15% of people use Chrome, 19.05% use Safari, 3.69% use Firefox, 3.45% use Microsoft Edge, 3.27% use Samsung Internet, and 2.14% use Opera. (Stat Counter)
2. To represent the leader of each browsing category, 55.6 % used mobile devices, 47.1% browsed using Google Chrome, and 35.2% used the iOS operating system. (analytics.usa.gov)
3. The use of non-default web browsers by employees makes them stay at their jobs 15% longer. (The Atlantic)
4. As of October 2020, 92.6% of internet users use a mobile phone. (Data Reportal)
5. Samsung Internet Browser has been downloaded by people over 1 billion times from the Play Store. (Trusted Reviews)
6. The projected average time spent on the internet by mobile users is 155 minutes, compared to that of desktop users (37 minutes) in 2021. (Statista)
7. Safari is utilized as their primary browser on tablets by over 50% of users. (Lambda Test)
8. Only 11% of Windows 10 users had Microsoft Edge as their default browser as of November 2018. (Computer World)
9. At the very first opportunity, more than 80% of Windows 10 users change their default browser. (ZDNet)
10. As of December 2020, 5.05% of all desktop users still use Internet Explorer. (Net Market Share)

Mobile Browser Statistics

          The digital world has started to shift itself to become more mobile. To provide a seamless browsing experience, browsers should be fully mobile-optimized and support smooth switching across devices. Since more Americans use iPhones, the U.S. browser market share is distinct. The main tool of choice for browsing the internet and doing various online activities is a mobile phone. Let us now look into some of the mobile browser statistics.

• 62% of the global mobile browser user share is claimed by Google Chrome. (Computer World)
• Apple Safari claims around 58% of the mobile browser market share. (Tech Crunch)
• Using an app whose engagement is as much as four times better than the mobile web browser accounts for 90% of time spent on a mobile device. (Broadband Search)
• Compared to a third of people who use their mobile apps for reading reviews, 60% of consumers read reviews on their mobile browsers. (Bright Local)
• While desktop internet usage continues to fall, mobile internet usage is rising. (Bond Internet Trends)
• About 90% of mobile internet time is spent on various applications. (eMarketer)
• Every month, an average of more than 30,000 new iOS apps are released in the Apple Store. (42 Matters)
• Marking a 64% increase from 2016, 527 million people used mobile browsers that automatically blocked ads by default in 2020. (Block Through)
• In the U.S., Washington has the highest usage rate of Facebook as a mobile browser at 13.74% (Mixpanel)
• The only U.S. state where Chrome has the highest mobile browser market share is Wyoming with around 66% of residents using it. (Tech Crunch)

Security and Privacy of Browsers Statistics

          For our own convenience, we tend to neglect security and privacy. One must deploy any one of the trusted IT security solutions to ensure that their system and data are protected. Now, let us look into some statistics mentioned below that underline the fact that no one should ever downgrade the value of online security and privacy.

• Having 405 million users worldwide, the UC Browser is the most popular browser for blocking ads. (Block Through)
• Over 4 billion devices are protected by Google’s safe browsing service. (Venture Beat)
• In the last quarter of 2020, Google sent over 3 million browser warnings for safety daily. (Google)
• Compared to 2019, browser vulnerabilities continued to rise by 22% in 2020. (Skybox Security)
• Having 1873 vulnerabilities, Firefox is the most vulnerable browser as of January 2021. (CVE Details)
• In 2020, the average cost of a data breach was $3.86 million, which is a decrease of 1.5% from the cost in 2019. (Cyber Defense Magazine)
• Spending an average of $8.64 million, U.S. companies pay the highest data breach costs. (IBM)
• 73% of Microsoft Edge users, 35% of Firefox users, and 23% of Safari users in the U.S. and Western Europe run outdated browsers. (Statista)
• The second-largest data breach in history involves Yahoo, when hackers compromised around 3 billion accounts, as of January 2021. (Up Guard)
• Due to persistent identifiers, while browsing, Edge and Yandex lagged behind the other browsers in terms of privacy. (Trinity College Dublin)

Browser Business Issues Statistics

          To protect their company websites and customer data, IT managers should continuously work hard. The browsers that employees use must always be included in any business security protocol. The difference between productivity and inefficiency can be spelled by using the right web browser. In this final section of browser usage statistics, we shall now look into some statistics that throw light on the browser business issues.

• Due to the lack of preparedness for cyberattacks, 31% of organizations experienced data loss. (Mimecast)
• In the U.S., 17% of adults store their passwords through their browsers. (You Gov)
• 18.1% of companies are currently protected by the robust HTTP Strict Transport Security website protection, as of January 2021. (W³Techs)
• Compared to 2019, the total number of cyberattacks and security breaches have dropped by 11% and 27%, respectively, in 2020. (Accenture)
• SQL injection (42%) is the most common type of critical vulnerability faced by external or internet-facing networks, whereas it is Bluekeep CVE-2019-0708 (18%) for internal ones. (Edgescan)
• More than 2 million phishing sites were detected by Google in 2020. (Tech Radar)
• As of 2020, $3.86 million is the average cost of a data breach. (IBM)
• In 2020, 58% of breaches involved personal data. (Verizon)
• In 2021, the cost of ransomware damage was $20 billion which is 57 times more than the cost in 2015. (Cybersecurity Ventures)
• Since 2018, security breaches have increased by 11% (Accenture)

Conclusion

To succeed in the market, browsers’ unique challenge is to have the most users. Browser competition is governed by the type of device predominantly used in a place. As years go by, browsers will remain very important. One must integrate with the best mobile marketing software available in the market today to help improve their marketing efficiency and enhance the bottom line. These are some ways by which one can optimize the use of their browser in their business operations.