Edge came preinstalled on your Windows PC, and you may be deciding whether to keep using it or switch back to Chrome. The browser has changed a lot: tracking prevention, reading mode, vertical tabs, Copilot, and sync are all built in now.
Use this overview to see what each feature does and where to find it, then turn on only what matches how you browse. It covers imports, privacy levels, tabs, performance, extensions, and release channels.
In this guide, I have covered:
Contents
What Microsoft Edge on a Computer Actually Gives You
Edge came with your Windows PC, and you may be wondering whether it is worth using instead of Chrome. Short answer: it is the default browser on Windows 10 and 11, Microsoft also ships it for macOS, and it runs on Chromium, the same engine behind Google Chrome.
That shared engine matters. Most Chrome extensions and web compatibility quirks behave the same way in Edge. You can download the browser directly from Microsoft Edge if you are on a Mac or reinstalling.
On top of Chromium, Edge adds Microsoft-specific features: a built-in tracking blocker with three preset levels, a reading mode with read-aloud support, vertical tabs and tab groups, energy-saving settings that Chrome does not have, an AI assistant called Copilot, and sync through a Microsoft account across Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS.
Importing Data from Another Browser
If you are moving from Chrome, Firefox, or Safari, you need your bookmarks, saved passwords, history, autofill data, and cookies to come with you. Edge ships an import wizard that can pull from Chrome, Firefox, Brave, Opera, Vivaldi, or Safari.
The first launch after install prompts you automatically. If you skipped that step, the same options sit under Settings → Profiles → Import browser data. Pick one data type, such as bookmarks only, or bring everything across in one pass.
Need the click-by-click version? Our Edge favorites import guide walks through it.
Tracking Prevention Levels
You may see Edge block a page element or want stronger privacy without breaking the sites you use every day. Trackers follow you around the web and build a profile of your browsing, sometimes even on sites you have never visited. Edge’s tracking prevention filters those requests before they load.
Three levels are exposed, each tuned for a different balance between privacy and site compatibility:
- Basic: the minimum level. Edge blocks only known malicious trackers and lets most others through, so sites keep personalizing ads and content.
- Balanced (default): blocks trackers from sites you have not visited plus known harmful ones. Microsoft recommends this level because most sites keep working.
- Strict: blocks the widest set of trackers. Some sites may break. You can add an exception for a site that misbehaves right below the level selector.
We usually leave it on Balanced unless a specific site breaks.
Edge 146 removed the separate Strict in InPrivate toggle. InPrivate windows now follow the level you set for normal browsing. The default for normal browsing stays Balanced.
To pick a level and add exceptions, follow the steps in our guide to enable Edge privacy and security settings.
Reading Mode and Read Aloud
Long articles with sidebars, ad blocks, comment threads, and popups are hard to read, and you want just the text. Reading Mode (called Immersive Reader once it opens) strips that away and leaves a clean text column.
Click the book 
at the right end of the address bar to enter the layout, or right-click anywhere on a page and pick Open in Immersive Reader. The toolbar exposes font, size, sepia or dark color choices, and a text-to-speech button.
Read Aloud reads the page aloud with a natural voice. Turn it on from the toolbar, or hit + + to toggle it. Voice, speed, and the highlight track live in the playback bar.
If you want both at once, the Reading Mode setup guide and the Read Aloud walkthrough cover every option.
Tab Management Tools
If you keep 30 tabs open, the top strip becomes unreadable and you lose track of what is where. Edge packs several tools to keep heavy sessions organized:
- Vertical tabs: move the tab strip from the top to the side of the window. Toggle it from Settings → Appearance, or click the rotate control at the top-left of the strip. Useful on wide monitors where horizontal tabs get squished.
- Tab groups: drag one tab onto another to start a group, then name and color it. Saved groups sync to your other signed-in Edge devices.
- Tab search: the small arrow at the far left of the tab strip opens a search box that matches titles and URLs across every open tab.
- Sleeping tabs: inactive tabs are unloaded after 15 minutes by default (the timer dropped from 2 hours in Edge 152), freeing memory and CPU. Sleep immediately from edge://discards.
- Suggested groupings: Edge can offer to group open tabs by topic when it senses a pattern. The toggle is under Settings → Privacy, search, and services.
Right-clicking any tab still exposes the classics: close tabs to the right, duplicate, mute, or pin it. See our guide on opening new tabs and InPrivate windows for the related controls.
Performance and Energy Saver
Your laptop battery drains faster than expected, or a game stutters while Edge sits open in the background. Edge ships two battery and performance toggles that Chrome does not have:
- Energy saver: renamed from ‘Efficiency mode’ in Edge 144. When enabled, Edge reduces background activity and visual effects to extend battery life on a laptop. The toggle sits under System and performance.
- PC gaming boost: renamed from ‘Efficiency mode for PC gaming’. When your PC runs a full-screen game, Edge holds off on background tab work and updates so the game sees more CPU.
Both are off by default. Flip them on if you notice Edge cutting into battery life or fighting with a game.
Customizing the Appearance
The default Edge look may not match your desktop, or you may want dark mode without changing Windows. Open Settings → Appearance to find the quick dark mode toggle and finer controls for the rest of the interface.
You can flip between light, dark, and system-follow, pick a theme color (Edge can even tint pages to match the accent), and choose which buttons appear in the toolbar. Show or hide the home button, the favorites button, the history button, and the extensions overflow menu.
For deeper cosmetic tweaks (custom fonts and zoom level for the toolbar, for example), see our appearance customization guide.
Microsoft Copilot
You may see a Copilot button in Edge and wonder what it does beyond chat. Copilot is the AI assistant Edge used to call ‘Discover.’ It now lives in its own sidebar and is reachable from the Copilot icon in the toolbar.
Use it to summarize the page you are reading, draft an email based on a tab you have open, generate an image, or answer a question without leaving the browser. Settings for the feature now live under Settings → AI, a single page that replaced the older ‘AI Innovations’ panel.
Extensions from Other Stores
You want an extension that is listed only in the Chrome Web Store, and you are not sure Edge can install it. Edge accepts the full Chrome extension catalog even though it has its own add-on catalog.
To install a Chrome extension, open the Chrome Web Store in Edge and click Get on any listing. Edge rewrites ‘Add to Chrome’ to its own button.
Edge silently allows other store installs after the first one. If it ever prompts you, click Allow extensions from other stores and you are done.
Sync Across Devices
You use more than one computer, or you switch between a laptop and phone, and you want the same favorites and passwords everywhere. Sign in with a Microsoft account, the same one you use for Outlook, OneDrive, or Windows, and Edge syncs history, favorites, passwords, extensions, and open tabs across every Edge installation you own.
To get started, open Settings → Profiles → Sign in, sign in with your Microsoft account, and pick what to sync. Our sign-in and sync walkthrough shows each step.
Release Channels
You may want new Edge features sooner than the Stable channel delivers them, or you may be troubleshooting a bug that only appears in a preview build. Edge updates on a steady two-week cycle for Stable, a change Microsoft introduced with Edge 152.
Three other channels are available:
- Beta: one cycle ahead of Stable, refreshed every two weeks.
- Dev: updated weekly, ahead of Beta but with rougher edges.
- Canary: updated almost daily with the freshest changes. Expect crashes and broken sites.
For most users, Stable is the right channel. Install Beta or Dev on a separate machine if you want to test specific features before they ship.
See our Edge download and update guide for the install steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most people want to know how Edge compares with Chrome and whether it is the same as Internet Explorer. These are the answers readers ask for most.
Is Edge the same as Internet Explorer?
No. Edge replaced Internet Explorer starting with Windows 10. Today’s Edge is the Chromium-based version, and the original ‘Edge Legacy’ has been retired. If you still need to load an old IE-only intranet app, Microsoft added an IE Mode inside Edge for that.
Is Edge better than Chrome?
Both run on the same Chromium engine, so performance and web compatibility are essentially even. Edge’s advantages are tighter Windows integration, built-in vertical tabs, sleeping tabs, energy saver, an integrated Copilot assistant, and slightly stronger tracker-blocking defaults. Chrome’s advantages are deeper Google service integration and a longer extension history.
Can Edge install Chrome extensions?
Yes. Edge accepts extensions from the Chrome Web Store. Open the store, click Get on any extension, and Edge adds it the same way Chrome would. You can also install extensions from the Microsoft Edge Add-ons store.
Does Edge work on macOS?
Yes. Microsoft ships Edge for macOS in addition to Windows. The Mac version carries the same major features, including sync, extensions, Copilot, and tab tools, with macOS-native keyboard shortcuts such as + and + + .
How often does Edge update?
Stable Edge rolls out a new major build every two weeks. Security fixes and small improvements land more often as cumulative updates, and a browser restart is usually all that is needed to pick up a new build.
If you are still deciding, start on Stable, leave tracking prevention on Balanced, and switch on only the tools you will actually use.
