Consider Me Convinced

June 24, 2026

Earlier this month, I wrote a post titled "Someone convince me to use Chrome". Since then, I've been using Chrome as my primary browser. As a result, I've become more mindful of my site's browser analytics.

Looking at my Vercel analytics over the last 30 days, one data point that continued to catch my eye is that Chrome is the most popular desktop browser on this site by a wide margin.

At the same time, macOS is the dominant operating system. For a site focused primarily on Apple technology, that means a largely Mac-based audience is actively choosing Chrome over Safari.

That made me wonder how the average, non-technical Mac user approaches this. When my wife switched to a Mac years ago, the first thing she asked me to do was install Chrome. I don't think she's ever even opened Safari. The numbers suggest she's far from alone.

According to Statcounter Desktop Browser Market Share Chart for the US, Chrome accounts for roughly 65% of desktop traffic, while Safari sits around 11%. Meanwhile, macOS runs on roughly 20% to 25% of desktop computers.

Because Safari is exclusive to Apple hardware, that 11% share represents its entire desktop footprint. If every Mac user stuck with the default browser, Safari's market share would roughly match macOS adoption. Instead, it's about half that.

A large percentage of Mac users are choosing Chrome over Safari. Even on hardware designed for deep integration, the default choice doesn't always automatically win.