Microsoft’s decision to move Edge to the Chromium engine was followed by the introduction of impressive features and a surprisingly quick overhaul of the browser. Edge has gotten so good that many internet users are now wondering how it compares to Google Chrome, an older and more popular Chromium-based browser. Find out if you should browse with Microsoft Edge or Chrome for macOS
In addition to running the same framework, Chrome and Edge also support similar extensions. When you put these important similarities aside, there is a world of difference between Edge and Chrome on Mac.
In this comparison, between Microsoft Edge or Chrome for macOS, we will highlight the properties that distinguish both browsers in terms of performance, security, tools, and other factors.
Microsoft Edge or Chrome for macOS
CPU and memory usage
It is common knowledge that Google Chrome consumes an incredible amount of RAM and CPU resources, both on mobile and PC. Launch Chrome, open a few tabs, and you’re sure to find a bunch of Chrome-related processes in Activity Monitor. Microsoft Edge, on the other hand, is easier on your Mac’s RAM and CPU. We compared memory usage for Chrome and Edge on macOS on our test device.
Note: For this comparison of Microsoft Edge vs. Chrome for macOS, we disabled all built-in and third-party applications, plug-ins, and extensions in both browsers.
Memory usage via integrated task manager
Both Chrome and Edge have built-in task managers that help determine how many processes browsers are running on your device. We will use this tool to determine how much CPU resources and memory space Chrome and Edge consume on the same website.
Pro Tip: to start Chrome Task Manager, go to Menu > More tools > Task Manager . For Microsoft Edge, go to Menu > More tools > Browser Task Manager.
The image below is the CPU and memory usage of Chrome after opening a web in Chrome.
The image below shows how much CPU and RAM Microsoft Edge consumes to open the same web page.
The Chrome app itself consumed around 111MB, while Edge used only 89.6MB . Also, Chrome took 70.1MB of RAM to load the SwitchingtoMac home page, while Edge only needed 50.5MB of RAM to perform the same task. That’s about 39% more RAM usage.
Memory usage via activity monitor
Inspection of both browsers with the macOS task manager (ie Activity Monitor) further confirmed that Chrome uses more memory and CPU resources than Microsoft Edge.
To open a single SwitchingToMac tab, Chrome started eight processes, all of which racked up a total of 483.2MB of RAM in Activity Monitor.
In contrast, Microsoft Edge consumed only 405.7MB of space of memory (77 MB less than Chrome) to load the same web page on our test device.
Note: Real-time CPU and memory usage may increase or increase over time, depending on how you use browsers, the websites you visit, as well as the type and number of extensions installed. However, Chrome will most likely use the most resources if subjected to the same apps and websites as Microsoft Edge.
Chrome’s high memory usage is mainly due to the numerous pre-processing processes running in the background; Google says that pre-rendering helps improve page load time. Edge also pre-renders pages to load web pages faster, but it doesn’t run as many pre-renders as Chrome. So Microsoft Edge wins this round, conveniently.
Evaluation
is one of the most reliable benchmarking tools for evaluating the performance of a browser. It does this by running a variety of tests to determine the browser’s ability to handle JavaScript and HTML processing.
We put both browsers through the tool, and surprisingly, Chrome came out on top with a score of 179. Microsoft Edge, on the other hand, had a benchmark score of 177.
We rebooted the test device and ran the test a second time. Interestingly, Chrome won again (192)—and by a larger margin—over Microsoft Edge (172). So what does this mean?
In general, a browser with a higher WebXPRT benchmark score will likely perform better and provide a faster web experience. However, just like CPU and memory consumption, a browser’s performance will also depend on factors such as the number and type of extensions installed, the websites you visit, the browser version, and other technologies.
Characteristic
Despite being the most popular option, Chrome lags far behind Microsoft Edge when it comes to features. Here’s a rundown of features in Microsoft Edge that you won’t find in Chrome.
Collections: Microsoft Edge allows you to save information (texts, web pages, and links) in a notebook-like entry. Let’s say you’re planning a group trip, you can save recommendations, travel tips and useful links from travel blogs in a customizable collection.
(on your Mac) and also sync across devices connected to your Microsoft account.
Read out loud
Edge comes with a built-in text-to-speech speech reader that dictates the content of a web page with realistic intonation. This is a brilliant accessibility feature for visually impaired web users. The dictation is fluid and hardly sounds like a bot. The browser supports over 70 dictation voices with an additional option to change the dictation speed.
vertical tab
There is a tab orientation switch on the tab bar in Microsoft Edge. Click the switch and the browser will move the tab bar to the left side panel.
The vertical tab feature provides more space to accommodate multiple tabs and display them in a single view. It also allows you to easily organize, select, group and reorder tabs.
Web capture / screenshot
Unlike Chrome which lacks a native screenshot tool, Microsoft Edge’s “Web Capture” allows you to save a portion of any website as an image or capture an entire web page/scrolling screenshot.
Immersive reading mode
Are you often distracted by ads, videos, and other irrelevant stuff when reading a blog? Microsoft Edge’s “Immersive Reading Mode” tool solves this problem by providing a simplified view of text and images from only your favorite websites.
The reading immersion mode boasts of features like a Picture Dictionary (displays an image of the selected words), grammar tools (splits words into syllables and highlights parts of speech), and a translation laundry (translates a page into more than 60 languages).
Advanced PDF viewer
Chrome only allows you to view and copy the content of a PDF document, that’s all. With Microsoft Edge, you can annotate and highlight PDF content. The “Read Aloud” feature is also built into the PDF viewer; you can make the browser dictate the content of a document.
Microsoft Edge beats Chrome hands down if you compare the features, accessibility, and utilities of both browsers. However, Chrome’s search/address bar (called omni box or omnibar ) is the best you’ll find in any web browser.
You can use the Chrome address bar to perform Google searches, basic calculations, currency conversion, translate languages, access Google Drive files, and even check weather reports without visiting Google.
In addition to Omnibox, features like live caption (automatically displays subtitles for video and audio in English) and a spelling checker built-in trump Microsoft Edge.
sync options
Both Chrome and Edge support native data sync across all devices connected to your Google and Microsoft account respectively. However, Chrome’s sync options are a bit more robust than Edge’s.
Microsoft Edges currently supports synchronization of saved/favorite pages, browser settings, personal information, passwords, browsing history, open tabs, extensions, and collections.
Chrome, on the other hand, offers 11+ sync options: apps, bookmarks, extensions, history, settings, theme, reading list, open tabs, passwords, addresses, phone number, payment methods, etc.
Privacy & Security
Chrome has impressive features dedicated to protecting user data from malicious websites, but Microsoft Edge’s security and privacy options take the cake. Browse Chrome’s privacy and security menu and you’ll find two modes of safe browsing: protection enhanced Y standard . Both forms of protection protect your Mac, your accounts, and your data from dangerous websites and extensions.
Chrome also has a » Password Leak Protection » that monitors your online accounts and notifies you of potential data breaches.
Edge offers more levels of Tracking Prevention ( basic , balanced Y strict) that blocks ads and harmful websites.
Microsoft Defender SmartScreen, a malware and phishing protection tool, is also built into Edge. Finally, there is an option to monitor and block the download of harmful apps, as well as a “Family Safety” feature that serves as a parental control tool to monitor your children’s Internet activities.
The function Protection Kids provides an activity report for the websites your kids visit. You can also use the tool to block access to inappropriate or potentially harmful content.
Similarly, Chrome offers standard protection against harmful websites. The password protection tool is solid. However, if you want snappier control over your (and your kids’) online privacy, Microsoft Edge should be your go-to browser.
Integration of applications and services
Connecting your Google account to Chrome gives you access to all Google apps and services: Docs, Google Translate, Search, YouTube, Drive, etc. If you’re hooked on the Google ecosystem, Chrome offers better integration and access to all services. It’s also worth mentioning that Chrome’s native services (search, translate, documents, etc.) outperform Microsoft Edge equivalents (ie Bing, Microsoft…
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