How to add google to your home screen

In a lot of ways, Google is the internet. Type in a few words, and Google returns what you need in seconds. It's no wonder the company's name has become a verb that means "searching for something online." Because of this, you want as few obstacles between you and your search engine as possible.

The good news here is that modern browsers let you search directly from the URL box at the top of the page, mostly eliminating the need to type Google.com before conducting your search. However, there is more you can do to ensure your browser opens to Google when you launch it on startup or open a new tab.

Here's how to set it up in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

Google Chrome

Technically, Chrome already opens to Google by default. The browser's New Tab page has a Google search bar embedded right in the middle. Just click the plus (+) icon at the top of the browser to start searching. However, there is more you can do.

Click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner of the browser and select Settings > Appearance. Make sure the switch next to Show home button has been toggled on, which will add a house icon next to the URL bar. 

You then have the option to set the home button to open either a New Tab page or a custom URL. Set this to custom and enter www.google.com as the homepage. Now when you click the Home button you will be immediately taken to Google.

In the Android version of the mobile app, you can add a home button to Chrome under Settings > Homepage. Make sure the switch is turned on and set the custom URL to www.google.com so you will be taken to Google each time you tap the homebutton.

Firefox

Like Chrome, Firefox also opens to Google by default. Open a new tab in Firefox and it opens to a page with a Google search bar. If, for some reason, you don't have a search bar, go to Options > Home and check the box next to Web Search under the Firefox Home Content section.

Tell Firefox to open a Google search page under certain circumstances by opening the hamburger menu in the top-right corner and selecting Options > Home. Under the New Windows and Tabs section, select the drop-down menu next to Homepage and new windows, and click Custom URLs.

Type in www.google.com, then press Enter on your keyboard. Now if you click the Home button in the Firefox taskbar or open a new window, it will open to Google. For new tabs, Firefox only lets you choose between Firefox Home and a blank tab.

Firefox also lets you set a new homepage with a simple drag and drop. Navigate to Google.com, then drag and drop the tab onto the Home button in the Firefox taskbar. Click Yes on the accompanying prompt and the new homepage will be set. Now when you hit the Home button, you will be taken to Google.

You can change the homepage and new tab pages in the Fireox iOS app. Tap the hamburger menu, select Settings, and choose Home or New Tab under the General section. Tap Custom URL and enter www.google.com.

Safari

Open Safari and navigate to Safari > Preferences > General. Set the drop-down menus next to New windows open with and New tabs open with to Homepage. In the Homepage section, type www.google.com into the text field and click Enter. Now you'll get a Google search page each time you open a new window or tab.

The Safari home page defaults to a list of your favorite websites with no way to change this in the device Settings. However, you can add a button to the home screen. Open Google.com, tap the Share icon, then select Add to Home Screen to add an icon to your device's home screen.

Microsoft Edge

Since Microsoft's Edge browser is now based on Chromium, it looks a lot like Google's Chrome browser. It's still a Microsoft product, though, so Bing looms large. You can't get rid of Edge's New Tab page, but you can set Google as your default search engine under Settings > Privacy, search, and services > address bar and search.

Set Search engine used in the address bar to Google, then set Search on new tabs uses search box or address bar to Address bar. Now the URL bar and the Bing search box will use Google as its search engine.

Other tricks you can pull include turning the Home button into a Google button. Open Settings > Appearance and under Show home button, choose the custom URL option. Enter www.google.com and click Save, then just click the Home button to visit a Google search page.

You can also open Google on startup if you go to Settings > On startup and select Open a specific page or pages. Click Add a new page, enter www.google.com into the URL box, then click Add. Now a Google page will pop up every time you open Edge for the first time. New tabs will still open to Microsoft's home page, though.

Google on Mobile

If you don't want to bother with a browser to reach Google, turn to the Google mobile app for iOS(Opens in a new window) and Android(Opens in a new window) devices. Not only does the app add a Google button to your phone's home screen, it also offers a search bar widget and voice search capabilities.

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