4 steps I took to make the switch from Chrome easier

A few months ago, I couldn’t really imagine ditching Chrome. I had been using the browser for over a decade, and I had become reliant on many of its features. However, at the same time, I was growing dissatisfied with the experience, especially after Google’s switch to Manifest V3.

The lack of extensions and certain native features on the mobile app also pushed me further, and I finally started making the transition. I can now say that I don’t use Chrome on any of my devices. Here’s how I made the switch easier.

Rather than trying to jump over to a new browser on all my devices at once, I took my time. This allowed me to try out the different options available, but also ensured that it didn’t disrupt my daily routine too much.

I first made the switch on my smartphone since I needed to force dark mode on my browser to prevent my phone from giving me migraines. Initially, I used Opera, but I ended up using Brave instead because of its privacy-focused ethos and recommendations from others.

When it came to my desktop, I only installed Brave much later. I started using Brave alongside Chrome, especially since I’m a bit of a tab hoarder and wanted to finish up with the open tabs I had in Chrome. Eventually, I made the switch to Brave completely and set it as my default browser.

This gradual switch meant that I was less overwhelmed by differences between the browser setups. Being dependent on routine to keep me focused means that switching things up is more difficult for me, especially when I’m stressed or have a lot of work. By spacing everything out, things went a lot more smoothly and didn’t affect my productivity.

When I first decided to transition away from Chrome, I wasn’t determined to use another Chromiun-based app. In fact, when it came to my laptop, I’d been switching between Firefox and Chrome. I also tried a few other Chrome alternatives.

But eventually settling on Brave, another Chromium browser, ultimately made things easier. For example, I didn’t have to worry about the availability of extensions I wanted to use — the extensions available on the Chrome Web Store work with Brave. In fact, Brave doesn’t have a separate storefront for extensions at all.

The two browsers also share a similar interface, which made the transition easier for me. But this wasn’t at the expense of functionality. I was able to stop using certain extensions altogether because of Brave’s support for features that Google Chrome doesn’t have.

If you use custom search engines and custom site search shortcuts in Chrome, you’ll also be glad to know they work in Brave as well.

Something that’s really cool about Brave is that you can set up syncing between devices without requiring an account. However, I wanted to set up a system that was browser-agnostic.

This would let me do two things: it would allow me to set certain bookmarks as my start page and new tab page, while also never requiring me to export bookmarks between different browsers again.

So I decided to use Raindrop.io, an open-source bookmark manager, to store my bookmarks from Chrome and make them accessible in Brave (as well as any other browser I decide to use in the future). I then set my favorites tab in the app as my start page and new tab page in Brave.

I could’ve just imported my Chrome bookmarks directly to Brave, but this wouldn’t solve the problem of being dependent on a specific browser. I also wanted something more organized, since my Chrome bookmarks had become somewhat of a nightmare of old links that I no longer used.

One of the biggest things that kept me tethered to Chrome was all the passwords I had saved over the years. These weren’t limited to website passwords, but also app passwords on my smartphone. By using Chrome, I had a central location I could access these credentials easily that didn’t require me to search through my Android settings.

But as I moved away from Chrome more and more, it became clear to me that using a standalone password manager would make things much smoother. I wouldn’t have to keep track of whether something was saved specifically in Brave’s password manager or Google Password Manager, an issue I was running into more and more as I replaced Chrome’s mobile app on my phone.

Eventually, I moved to Proton Pass, and it turned out to be the right decision. The transition wasn’t nearly as disruptive as I expected. I’m able to use the app as the default autofill service on both my phone and my browser, making it the perfect cross-platform solution. If I ever switch to another browser in the future, I also don’t have to worry about transferring my login information.

The only drawback so far has been that I can’t use Proton Pass for my payment information, as that feature isn’t available on the free plan. But I honestly don’t use my card information online enough for that to be a major issue.

Looking back, I’m glad with how far I’ve come in my browser journey. At the beginning of the year, I couldn’t really imagine truly breaking away from Chrome. Now, I’m surprised I stuck around for so long.

In the process, I discovered some great tools and apps that offer useful functionality while ensuring I’ll never be dependent on a specific browser again. The next problem I want to solve is my constant tab chaos, which I hope using a read-it-later app can help.