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No. Changing the default browser in Windows does not change the documented destination for web links shown by Windows Search. Microsoft says that Windows Search work-and-web results are powered by Bing and that links from those results open in Microsoft Edge. The browser you choose as Windows’ default controls ordinary web links and supported web protocols, not this separate Search behavior.
Three settings are easy to confuse: the Windows default-browser setting, the web-search portion of Windows Search, and the search engine used in Microsoft Edge’s address bar. They operate independently. Once you identify which search or link action you are using, the expected result is predictable.
The direct answer
Changing your default browser to Chrome, Firefox, or another installed browser changes which app handles ordinary web links that Windows sends to a browser. It does not, according to Microsoft’s current support documentation, redirect web results from Windows Search to that browser.
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Microsoft describes the behavior in its article Apps and widgets that depend on Microsoft Edge: “If you use Windows Search to Search work and web, your results will be powered by Bing and links will open in Microsoft Edge.” That statement is the key distinction for both Windows 10 and Windows 11, although Microsoft does not publish a build-by-build, region-by-region, or enterprise-policy matrix.
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Windows Search can also return files and other information from your device, Microsoft account, work or school account, and the internet. Only the web-result behavior in question is tied by Microsoft’s documentation to Bing and Edge.
Three controls that are often mistaken for one another
| Control | What it affects | Where it is configured | Documented behavior |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows default browser | Ordinary web links and supported web protocols sent by Windows | Settings > Apps > Default apps | You can select an installed browser and set it as the default where Windows offers the control. |
| Windows Search web results | Web results shown in Windows Search, including searches from the taskbar or Start interface | No supported setting in the cited documentation to replace Edge as the link destination | Bing powers the results and links open in Microsoft Edge. |
| Microsoft Edge address-bar search engine | Searches submitted from Edge’s address bar | Edge Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Search and connected services > Address bar and search | You can choose a search provider for searches made in Edge’s address bar; Microsoft does not document this as a Windows Search control. |
Changing one row does not automatically change either of the other two. For example, selecting Firefox as the Windows default does not make a Windows Search web result open in Firefox, and choosing a different provider for Edge’s address bar does not replace Bing inside Windows Search.
What Windows Search includes
Windows Search is broader than a browser search box. Microsoft’s description of Windows’ essential services and connected experiences says Search can surface content from several places, including the local device, Microsoft accounts, work or school accounts, and the internet. The exact results depend on what is indexed, which accounts are connected, and the policies applied to the device. See Essential services and connected experiences for Windows for Microsoft’s service-level explanation.
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Applications, settings, files, and other indexed items can appear without opening a browser at all. A default-browser change cannot affect these local matches because they are not web links.
Account-linked results
Results may include information associated with a signed-in Microsoft account or a work or school account. Organization policies, sign-in state, and connected-experience settings can affect what is available. These account sources are separate from the browser selected for ordinary links.
Web results
When Windows Search includes internet results, Microsoft’s documented path is Bing for the results and Microsoft Edge for links opened from those results. This is the portion that remains unchanged after a normal default-browser switch.
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How to change Windows’ default browser
Use this procedure when your goal is to make ordinary links open in another installed browser. Microsoft’s current instructions for Windows 10 and Windows 11 are in Change Default Apps in Windows. The labels and the number of confirmations can differ slightly by Windows version.
- Open Settings from the Start menu or by pressing
Windows key + I. - Select Apps, then select Default apps.
- Find and select the browser you want to use. You can search for its name if it is not immediately visible.
- Use the available controls to set that browser for the web link types and protocols Windows lists, such as HTTP and HTTPS. Some Windows releases present a single “Set default” action; others show individual file or protocol associations.
- Close Settings and test a normal web link from an email, document, or another application. This test checks the default-browser setting, not a link selected from Windows Search.
If the browser is missing from the Default apps list, install it for the current Windows account or ask an administrator whether application-installation policy is preventing it. A browser can be installed and still be blocked from becoming the default on a managed device.
What this change does not promise
- It does not replace Bing as the provider for Windows Search web results.
- It does not force links selected from Windows Search to open outside Microsoft Edge under the documented behavior.
- It does not change the search provider used by Microsoft Edge’s address bar.
How to change the search engine used by Edge’s address bar
If the search you want to change is typed into Microsoft Edge’s address bar, use Edge’s own setting. Microsoft documents the path in Change your default search engine in Microsoft Edge.
- Open Microsoft Edge and select the Settings and more button (the three-dot menu).
- Select Settings.
- Open Privacy, search, and services.
- Under Search and connected services, select Address bar and search.
- Choose the search engine you want for searches made from the address bar. If the provider is not listed, Edge may require you to visit it first or use the option to manage search engines, depending on the version.
This changes searches submitted through Edge’s address bar. It is not documented as a switch for the web results displayed by Windows Search, so a successful Edge setting change does not alter the Bing-and-Edge behavior of Windows Search.
Why a Windows Search link can still open Edge
Windows Search is an operating-system feature rather than a normal browser tab. Microsoft’s documentation identifies the web portion as an Edge-dependent experience: Bing supplies the web results and Edge opens the selected links. That design is separate from the Windows association that decides which browser receives a conventional HTTP or HTTPS link from another application.
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| Action | Expected result after setting another browser as default |
|---|---|
| Click a link in an email, document, or application that honors Windows defaults | The selected default browser should open, subject to the application’s own settings and any device policy. |
| Enter a web query in Windows Search and select a web result | Microsoft’s documented behavior is Bing-powered results with the link opening in Microsoft Edge. |
| Enter a query in Edge’s address bar | The provider selected under Edge’s Address bar and search setting handles the query. |
If your test uses only Start or taskbar Search, it is testing the second row, not whether the default-browser association was changed successfully.
Windows 10 and Windows 11 S mode
S mode is a specific exception to ordinary browser choice. Microsoft’s Windows 10 and Windows 11 in S mode FAQ says that Microsoft Edge is always the default browser and Bing is the default search engine in S mode.
Microsoft says users can access other browsers and search engines, but selecting a different default browser requires switching out of S mode. Switching out is permanent: the device cannot be returned to S mode through the normal settings process. Confirm that the software you need is available outside S mode before making that change, and follow Microsoft’s current instructions for the edition installed on your device.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchS mode does not turn the three controls into one setting; it restricts the ordinary browser and search-engine choices that would otherwise be available. The documented Windows Search behavior should therefore be interpreted together with the S mode restriction.
Version, region, and managed-device limits
The default-app instructions cited by Microsoft cover Windows 10 and Windows 11, but the exact Settings screens can change between releases. A feature update may consolidate protocol choices into a single button or show them as separate associations.
Microsoft’s statement about Windows Search does not enumerate every Windows build, country, language, or enterprise configuration. On a company or school computer, administrators can control connected experiences, account access, application associations, and whether particular browsers may be selected. Do not assume that a managed device will expose the same controls as an unmanaged personal PC.
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If your device behaves differently from the documented pattern, record the Windows edition, version, whether S mode is enabled, and whether a work or school account manages the device. Those details are more useful to an administrator or Microsoft Support than simply reporting that “search opens the wrong browser.”
Troubleshooting by the action you performed
Ordinary links still open the old browser
- Return to Settings > Apps > Default apps and select the intended browser.
- Check the HTTP and HTTPS associations, plus any other protocol the source application uses.
- Test from a second application. Some email clients, document viewers, and messaging apps have their own browser preference.
- If the controls are locked or revert after you change them, check for organizational policy or a non-administrator account restriction.
Windows Search web results still open Edge
This matches Microsoft’s documented behavior. Changing the default browser is not expected to redirect these links. You can continue using another browser for ordinary links while Windows Search web links open Edge.
Edge address-bar searches use the wrong provider
Change the provider under Edge Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Search and connected services > Address bar and search. Changing Windows’ Default apps setting will not perform this Edge-specific change.
Search shows unexpected account or work content
Review which Microsoft, work, or school accounts are connected and whether your organization manages the device. Windows Search can combine local and account-linked sources; this issue is not solved by changing the default browser.
The browser option is unavailable on an S mode PC
Check whether Windows is in S mode. Microsoft says leaving S mode is required to choose a different default browser and that leaving is permanent. Treat it as an edition decision, not a routine browser setting.
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| Your goal | Setting to change | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Open links from apps in a different browser | Windows Settings > Apps > Default apps | Supported ordinary links use the selected browser. |
| Use a different provider when searching in Edge’s address bar | Edge Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Search and connected services > Address bar and search | Address-bar searches use the provider you select. |
| Use a different provider or browser for web results in Windows Search | No corresponding change is documented in the cited Microsoft support pages | Windows Search remains Bing-powered, with links opening in Edge, subject to version, region, and device-policy differences. |
Bottom line for Windows users
Set the Windows default browser for normal web links, and set Edge’s address-bar search engine for searches typed in Edge. Treat Windows Search’s web results as a separate operating-system experience: Microsoft’s documented behavior is Bing results with links opening in Edge. S mode further restricts browser and search-engine choices, while managed-device policies and Windows-version differences can change which controls you see.
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