A recent study by web analysts suggest that Google’s web browser, Chrome, has surpassed Mozilla Firefox to become the second most used browser on the internet. Some have even suggested that it may have the potential to overtake the all-time leader, Internet Explorer. But is that really an attainable goal for any browser, and what could be the advantage to choosing different web browsers?
Browser Use
In Ask Your Target Market’s latest survey, Internet Explorer was the top web browser, but not by a huge margin. 73% said it is installed on their computer, but only 34% were using it to take the survey. Firefox was a relatively close second – 58% of respondents had Firefox installed on their computer, and 36% were using it to take the survey. 41% of respondents had Google Chrome installed on their computer, and 22% were using it to take the survey. 9% had Safari installed on their computer, and 3% were using it to take the survey. 3% had Opera installed on their computer, and 1% of respondents were using it to take the survey.
Switching Browsers
Since many respondents had more than one browser installed, it makes sense that 28% of respondents said they switch between browsers often. 24% said they have used different browsers in the past, but currently stick to one. 23% said they used to use a different browser all the time and then switched. 4% said they use a different browser at work than they do at home. And 22% said they have never switched browsers.
Features of Importance
When asked about the features that led them to choose their favorite browsers, 67% said ease of use was important, 64% said speed was important, 46% cared about how the browser loads websites, 28% care about the design, and 13% said they don’t care about any particular features and just use the browser that was already installed on their computer.Chrome might be gaining market share, but AYTM respondents still put Firefox ahead. Will the browser landscape continue to evolve, or are most users pretty content with their current selection? The widget below shows the results of the AYTM.com survey in full. Be sure to click “open full report” for full details.Photo Credit: Select your web browser(s) from FlickrWhat do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.
Results were collected on January 5, 2012 via AYTM’s online survey panel.