Microsoft Edge has overtaken Firefox this year to become the second most popular browser in the markets of Southeast Europe, Germany and Austria, behind Chrome as the leading web browser. In this region, users primarily access digital media content on their mobile phones, while they still use their PCs for more active consumption of digital media content. Android is the dominant mobile operating system, while Windows remains dominant on PCs, according to iPROM's analysis of the technological characteristics of the user devices used to access digital media in Southeast Europe (Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Kosovo and Albania), Germany and Austria.

Microsoft Edge was the second most popular browser in Southeast Europe, Germany and Austria, with Google Chrome maintaining its top position

Microsoft Edge has made strong gains in the markets of Southeast Europe, Germany and Austria, claiming the second place overall in terms of users with an average market share of 14%, according to iPROM’s latest analysis conducted in July 2023.

Chrome continues to hold the top spot in the region, with a substantial average share of 65%, while Firefox has slipped to third place with a 10% share.

“As a result of its integration with Windows 11, ongoing enhancements to security, stability and reliability, transition to the Chromium architecture and last, but not least, its user interface that leverages artificial intelligence to deliver a better web browsing experience, Microsoft Edge is gaining popularity and competitiveness. For users already accustomed to Chrome, it delivers an identical or even better experience using the same rendering engine while also supporting the same extensions, which has contributed to its increased popularity. It has also simplified the process of migrating from Chrome or Firefox, which means that average users no longer have to install an additional browser, since all the key benefits of Chrome are already included in Edge,” commented Tomaž Tomšič, Head of iPROM Labs, on the results of the current analysis.

Edge is more popular in Germany, Austria and Italy

iPROM’s survey of digital media users uncovered geographical variations in browser usage across the countries covered by the analysis. While Chrome is the most widely used browser in most of the countries included in the survey, it is most widespread in North Macedonia, where its market share is 71%.

Edge is gaining in popularity in all countries included in the analysis and has achieved the best results in Germany, Austria and Italy, while slightly lower usage has been recorded in the remaining countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro). Despite these differences, Edge still ranks second among browsers in all the markets covered by the study, demonstrating its growing competitive advantage in the region. In contrast, other browsers like Firefox, Safari and alternatives holds notably smaller market shares compared to the two leading browsers.

Users in Southeast Europe, Germany and Austria mostly use their mobile devices to access digital media content

iPROM’s current analysis also sheds light on the dynamics of mobile devices versus desktop computers when it comes to accessing digital media content.

The data show that within the region, users more commonly access digital media using mobile devices (72% on average), while less than a third (28%) of users engage with digital media content on PCs.

Desktop computers remain the go-to device for in-depth reading of online content

Even though mobile phones became the number one choice for browsing digital media, iPROM’s analysis of browsing activity intensity reveals that users’ browsing activity on desktops is more than double (2.3 times) when compared to mobile devices.

“While the mobile phone has become our loyal companion, we should not ignore the fact that, despite the increase in mobile device usage, users are still more likely to use desktop computers for extensive browsing and interacting with digital content. Therefore, we need to consider different devices when designing our digital strategies and effectively reach users with both mobile and desktop ad formats,” adds Tomšič.

Windows is the dominant operating system on computers, Android on mobile devices

An analysis of the operating systems market shares in the region reveals the dominance of Windows on PCs with an average share of 81%, followed by Mac OS with an average share of 15% and Linux trailing with 3%.

On mobile phones, however, Android is the dominant operating system in the region with an average market share of 77%, while iOS occupies just under a quarter (22%) of the market.

Methodology used

This year’s iPROM analysis was carried out on a sample of 38.7 million regional internet users and covered 28.3 billion measurement requests according to the IAB standard. iPROM captures and processes the data on internet user behaviour using the iPROM Programmatic Platform, which is deployed in the Southeast Europe markets (Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Kosovo and Albania), as well as in the German and Austrian markets. iPROM reaches a total of 95 percent (approximately 152.5 million) of active digital media users through the iPROM Programmatic Platform. iPROM’s total reach is 95 percent (approximately 152.5 million) of the total active digital media users.