How to Switch Browsers and Bring Your Bookmarks, Passwords and History

Every major browser can pull your bookmarks straight out of another one on a computer. Passwords are where it gets fiddly, and on phones you mostly rely on sync instead.

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This guide is for anyone moving to a new browser who wants their bookmarks, saved passwords and history to come along. It's organised by destination: find the browser you're moving to, see which browsers it can import from directly, and follow the steps.

Two things to know first. Direct import only works on a computer with both browsers installed, and it reads the old browser's files, so close the old browser before you start. And since Chrome tightened how it encrypts saved data on Windows, several browsers can no longer read Chrome's passwords there. Mozilla and Brave both say so in their help pages. If your passwords don't come across, use the file fallback.

Google Chrome

Imports from: the browsers Chrome finds on your computer, plus a bookmarks HTML file. Google says that, depending on the source browser, you can bring over bookmarks, browsing history, saved passwords, your homepage and your default search engine. Passwords from a file go in separately (step 5). More on Chrome in our Chrome review.

On a computer (Windows, Mac, Linux)

1. Open Chrome and select the three-dot menu > Bookmarks and lists > Import bookmarks and settings. The shortcut is chrome://settings/importData.
2. Pick the browser you're coming from, tick what you want and confirm.
3. If your old browser isn't listed, choose the bookmarks HTML file option, select Choose file, pick the file, then Open > Done.
4. If you had no bookmarks yet, the imported ones go on the bookmarks bar. Otherwise they land in Other bookmarks.
5. To import passwords from a CSV file, go to the three-dot menu > Passwords and autofill > Google Password Manager > Settings. Under Import passwords, click Select file and pick the CSV (chrome://password-manager/settings gets you there too).

Microsoft Edge

Imports from: Microsoft's help names Google Chrome and Internet Explorer, and the list shows other browsers Edge detects on your computer. Edge also takes a favorites HTML file and a passwords CSV file. From Chrome, Microsoft lists favorites, passwords, addresses, payment info, history, settings, open and pinned tabs, and extensions (plus cookies, on first run only). See our Edge review.

On a computer (Windows, Mac)

1. Open Edge and select Settings and more (…) > Settings > Profiles > Import browser data. The shortcut is edge://settings/importData.
2. Next to Import data from Google Chrome, select Import. For another browser, use the import button under Other import locations and choose it from the Import from list.
3. Under Choose what to import, tick the items you want and select Import, then Done.
4. For a file: under Other import locations, select Import next to Import browser data now and choose Favorites or bookmarks HTML file. For passwords, select Import next to Import passwords now and choose Passwords CSV file.

Imported favorites appear in a folder on the favorites bar, which may be called Imported. To bring over open tabs from Chrome on Windows, close Chrome first.

Apple Safari

Imports from: Chrome and Firefox directly on a Mac, plus files from any browser: a bookmarks HTML file, a passwords CSV, or a full browsing-data export. Apple lists bookmarks, history, extensions, credit cards and passwords as importable. Passwords go into your iCloud Keychain and show up in the Passwords app. See our Safari review.

On a Mac

1. If you've used Chrome or Firefox as your default browser, Safari may offer to keep imported items the first time you open it.
2. To import at any time, choose File > Import From Browser > Google Chrome (or Firefox), select the items and click Import.
3. For a file from any other browser, choose File > Import Browsing Data from File or Folder, click Choose File or Folder, pick the file and click Import.

On iPhone and iPad

1. Save the export file from your old browser to the Files app.
2. Open the Settings app and tap Apps > Safari.
3. Below History and Website Data, tap Import.
4. Tap Choose File, pick the file (or a ZIP of several files), then tap Import to Safari and Done.

Mozilla Firefox

Imports from: the browsers Firefox finds on your computer. It can import bookmarks from all of them and more from some. Mozilla lists saved passwords, bookmarks, browsing history, form autofill data and, from Chrome, extensions that have a Firefox equivalent. Two exceptions: on Windows, Firefox can no longer import payment methods from Chrome, and Chrome passwords now have to come across as a CSV file (Mozilla's Chrome article says the same for Linux). Read our Firefox review for more.

On a computer (Windows, Mac, Linux)

1. Quit the old browser.
2. In Firefox, open the menu button > Settings (on a Mac, Firefox > Settings in the menu bar). In the Account and sync panel, click Import Data under Import browser data. Before Firefox 152 (June 2026) this was in the General panel. The shortcut about:preferences opens Settings.
3. In the Import Wizard, choose the browser and profile, then select the data you want. Click Import, then Done. You may be asked for your computer's password.
4. For files, choose Bookmarks from HTML file or Passwords from CSV file in the same wizard instead of a browser.

Bookmarks from Chrome usually land on the Bookmarks Toolbar, which may be hidden. Turn it on from the menu button > More tools > Customize toolbar > Toolbars.

Brave

Imports from: the browsers Brave detects on your computer, plus a bookmarks HTML file and a passwords CSV. You tick the data you want from what the import screen offers. One exception: Brave says Chrome passwords can't be imported directly, so they have to come across as a CSV. See our Brave review.

On a computer (Windows, Mac, Linux)

1. Open the main menu > Bookmarks > Import Bookmarks and Settings. The shortcut is brave://settings/importData.
2. Select the browser you want to import from, tick the data and click Import.
3. For passwords from a file, go to brave://password-manager/settings, click Select file under Import passwords and pick the CSV.

On a Mac, importing from Safari only works after you give Brave Full Disk Access in your Mac's privacy settings.

On Android

1. For bookmarks, tap the main menu > Bookmarks, then the three-dot menu > Import bookmarks, and pick an HTML file from any browser.
2. For passwords (Brave 1.84 and later), tap the main menu > Settings > Brave Password Manager > Import passwords and choose the CSV.

On iPhone and iPad

1. Save the bookmarks HTML file to Files first.
2. Tap the menu > Show All... > Bookmarks. Stay at the top level of your bookmarks.
3. Tap the Share icon at the bottom left and choose Import.

Opera

Imports from: the browsers Opera finds on your computer (its help names Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Yandex), plus a bookmarks HTML file. Opera's help lists bookmarks, browsing history, saved passwords and cookies. Passwords from a CSV file go in through the password manager. See our Opera review.

On a computer (Windows, Mac, Linux)

1. Open Settings (Alt+P, or Cmd+, on a Mac). Under Synchronization, click Import bookmarks and settings. The shortcut is opera://settings/importData.
2. Choose the browser to import from, or a bookmarks HTML file, tick what you want and click Import.
3. For passwords from a file, go to Settings > Advanced > Privacy & security > Autofill > Passwords, click Settings in the left sidebar, then Select file under Import passwords.

The fallback: export to a file, then import it

If your new browser doesn't list your old one, or a direct import misses something, export bookmarks to an HTML file and passwords to a CSV file, then import them using the steps above.

Export bookmarks (HTML)

• Chrome: three-dot menu > Bookmarks and lists > Bookmark manager, then the three-dot menu at the top > Export bookmarks.
• Edge: open Favorites, then More options (…) > Export favorites.
• Firefox: menu button > Bookmarks > Manage bookmarks, then Import and Backup > Export Bookmarks to HTML…
• Safari (Mac): File > Export Browsing Data to File. You get a ZIP with bookmarks, history, passwords, cards and extensions in separate files. On iPhone, go to Settings > Apps > Safari > Export.
• Brave: main menu > Bookmarks > Bookmarks Manager, then the more-options menu > Export.
• Opera: open the Bookmarks page and click the import/export button at the bottom of the left panel.

Export passwords (CSV)

• Chrome: at chrome://password-manager/settings, click Download file next to Export passwords.
• Edge: open Settings and more > Passwords, then More > Export passwords. This works on desktop only.
• Firefox: at about:logins, open the three-dot menu and choose Export Passwords.
• Brave: at brave://password-manager/settings, click Download file.
• Opera: in the password manager's Settings, click Download file under Export passwords.

Delete the CSV afterwards. It holds every password in plain text, readable by anyone who can open the file. Google, Microsoft, Apple and Opera all tell you to delete it once the import is done. Microsoft suggests Shift+Delete on Windows so it skips the Recycle Bin. On a Mac, empty the Trash afterwards. Don't email the file to yourself or leave it in a synced cloud folder.

If your CSV won't import, open it in a text editor and check that the first line names the columns url, username and password. That's the format Google asks for, and most Chromium browsers expect the same.

On your phone

Most mobile browsers can't import from another browser at all. On a phone, you usually bring your data across in one of these ways:

• Sync through an account. Do the import on a computer, then sign in to the same account on your phone: a Google Account for Chrome, a Microsoft account for Edge, a Mozilla account for Firefox, an Opera account for Opera, or a sync chain for Brave. Mozilla's own advice for getting bookmarks onto Firefox for Android or iOS is to use Firefox Sync.
• Your phone's password manager. On iPhone, passwords saved in the Passwords app autofill in any browser you allow to use it. On Android, Google Password Manager does the same job. In Chrome for Android, you can import a CSV under Settings > Autofill and passwords > Google Password Manager > Settings > Import passwords.
• App-to-app transfer. Since iOS 26, password apps on iPhone that support Apple's credential exchange can hand passwords and passkeys to each other without a file. You start the export in the app you're leaving. Google documents this for Chrome as a destination: export from another password app and choose Chrome. On Android it works the other way round: in Google Password Manager, go to Settings > Import passwords and passkeys and pick the app you're leaving.
• Safari's import. Safari on iPhone and iPad is the exception. It can import a file from another browser under Settings > Apps > Safari > Import, as described above.

Good to know

• Make it your default. Once everything is across, set the new browser as your default in its settings or your system settings, so links open there.
• Extensions mostly don't travel. Edge can bring over your Chrome extensions, Firefox can match Chrome extensions to Firefox versions, and Safari can import extensions, but in most cases you reinstall them from the new browser's store. Chromium browsers (Edge, Brave, Opera) can install Chrome extensions from the Chrome Web Store.
• Expect duplicates. Imports add to what's already there. Running the same import twice gives you two sets of bookmarks.
• Check before you delete the old browser. Spot-check a few logins and bookmarks in the new one first. The old browser is also your backup if an import comes up short.
• Some things don't come across. Imported cards generally arrive without their security codes, so expect to re-enter them. Passkeys don't travel in a CSV either: outside the app-to-app transfers on iPhone and Android, plan to create new ones in the new browser.