Chrome Updates Matter Even If You Use Another Browser

Google Chrome is the most popular web browser in the world, but that doesn’t mean everyone uses it. If you have a PC, you might use Microsoft Edge, but you may also use another option to browser the web. Whatever your browser of choice, there’s a good chance it is affected any time Chrome issues an update, which means it’s imperative you pay attention when these updates come out.

Different web browsers offer different features, as well as a different overall user experience. Surfing the web with Chrome is going to feel different than using Safari on Mac, or using Firefox on any platform. Chrome also has some questionable security practices, which other browsers may attempt to remedy. Between built-in features and third-party extensions, your internet experience may vary greatly depending on your app of choice.

However, there is one constant powering many different popular browsers, that doesn’t change whether you use one app over another: Chromium. Chromium is the open-source codebase that Google Chrome is built on, but it’s also the codebase for many browsers, including Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera, Samsung Internet, and Vivaldi. If you use any of these browsers, you’re really using Chrome with a different skin.

Safari is the major caveat to this example: Apple develops Safari totally independently from Chrome, so the two browsers share no code whatsoever. The same goes for Mozilla’s Firefox browser. However, many of the most popular third-party browsers run off of Chromium.

Where this really matters is in software updates: When Google updates Chrome, especially with security patches, that reverberates throughout all browsers that run on Chromium. After all, Google isn’t just patching Chrome: It’s patching the Chromium codebase, which means the patch applies to browsers like Brave and Edge. Any important security vulnerabilities that are patched in Chrome will also need to be patched in these browsers, which means you will need to update your browser as soon as possible.

Patches for other browsers don’t necessary come out at the same time as Chrome updates: You’ll need to keep a close eye out for the updates from your browser’s developer. Once it’s available, you’ll need to download it as soon as possible. However, because Chrome is so popular, you’ll likely hear about the update before your developer has a chance to release it.