Chrome’s user base increased by 3.6% last month. Do the the latest figures from StatCounter indicate it was a one-off blip?…
Worldwide Desktop & Tablet Browser Statistics, April to May 2014
The following table shows browser usage movements during the past month.
| Browser | April | May | change | relative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IE (all) | 21.41% | 20.76% | -0.65% | -3.00% |
| IE11 | 8.33% | 8.47% | +0.14% | +1.70% |
| IE10 | 3.60% | 3.30% | -0.30% | -8.30% |
| IE9 | 3.31% | 3.23% | -0.08% | -2.40% |
| IE8 | 5.64% | 5.29% | -0.35% | -6.20% |
| IE7 | 0.19% | 0.17% | -0.02% | -10.50% |
| IE6 | 0.34% | 0.30% | -0.04% | -11.80% |
| Chrome | 45.33% | 45.72% | +0.39% | +0.90% |
| Firefox | 18.60% | 18.71% | +0.11% | +0.60% |
| Safari | 4.68% | 4.61% | -0.07% | -1.50% |
| iPad Safari | 5.09% | 5.39% | +0.30% | +5.90% |
| Opera | 1.37% | 1.30% | -0.07% | -5.10% |
| Others | 3.52% | 3.51% | -0.01% | -0.30% |
Worldwide Desktop & Tablet Browser Statistics, May 2013 to May 2014
The following table shows browser usage movements during the past twelve months:
| Browser | May 2013 | May 2014 | change | relative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IE (all) | 27.71% | 20.76% | -6.95% | -25.10% |
| IE11 | 0.00% | 8.47% | +8.47% | n/a |
| IE10 | 8.69% | 3.30% | -5.39% | -62.00% |
| IE9 | 9.61% | 3.23% | -6.38% | -66.40% |
| IE8 | 8.63% | 5.29% | -3.34% | -38.70% |
| IE7 | 0.54% | 0.17% | -0.37% | -68.50% |
| IE6 | 0.24% | 0.30% | +0.06% | +25.00% |
| Chrome | 41.44% | 45.72% | +4.28% | +10.30% |
| Firefox | 19.75% | 18.71% | -1.04% | -5.30% |
| Safari | 7.94% | 10.00% | +2.06% | +25.90% |
| Opera | 1.00% | 1.30% | +0.30% | +30.00% |
| Others | 2.16% | 3.51% | +1.35% | +62.50% |
The tables show market share estimates for desktop browsers. The ‘change’ column is the absolute increase or decrease in market share. The ‘relative’ column indicates the proportional change, i.e. 10.5% of IE7 users switched browsers last month. There are several caveats so I recommend you read How Browser Market Share is Calculated.
While Chrome couldn’t match last month’s gains, other vendors would be ecstatic with a 0.39% increase. It’s probably a coincidence that IE8 dropped by a similar amount, but the end of Windows XP will be a contributing factor. Users and businesses migrating to Windows 7/8 must consider upgrading all software; it’s difficult — if not impossible — to stick with IE8. IE9+ is closer to Chrome or Firefox than its predecessor so there’s no reason not to evaluate the alternatives.
Internet Explorer is likely to fall below 20% by August. IE11 is a fine browser but, other than raw speed in a couple of areas, there’s little to entice Chrome users to switch. Microsoft’s Windows-only policy is also beginning to hurt usage. Many more developers are using Mac OSX or Linux both of which do not allow you to install native versions of IE.
Other vendors fared better with Firefox and iPad Safari seeing increases. That said, Safari on Mac has similar issues to IE: It’s available only on Apple OSes and is not superior to the competition.
Worldwide Mobile Browser Statistics, April to May 2014
Mobile usage in May 2014 increased by more that 2% to reach 27.04% of all web activity. Mobile domination has been predicted for some time, but StatCounter’s 6-year mobile/desktop comparision chart highlights that it started to become reality during the past twelve months.
The top mobile browsing applications:
| Mobile Browser | April | May | change | relative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Android | 25.52% | 25.26% | -0.26% | -1.00% |
| iPhone | 21.14% | 21.34% | +0.20% | +0.90% |
| Chrome | 15.62% | 18.33% | +2.71% | +17.30% |
| Opera Mini/Mobile | 12.26% | 11.60% | -0.66% | -5.40% |
| UC Browser | 11.09% | 10.39% | -0.70% | -6.30% |
| Nokia Browser | 4.82% | 4.35% | -0.47% | -9.80% |
| IEMobile | 2.38% | 2.38% | +0.00% | +0.00% |
| Others | 7.17% | 6.35% | -0.82% | -11.40% |
Chrome enjoyed another staggering 3% jump in one month although, surprisingly, the Android stock browser didn’t drop by a similar percentage. Google’s mobile browser looks set to leap the iPhone version of Safari during July or August.
Sorry Blackberry users — I’ve removed those devices from the chart. Usage has fallen to 1.5% and it’s difficult to see how the company can recover.
Craig BucklerCraig is a freelance UK web consultant who built his first page for IE2.0 in 1995. Since that time he's been advocating standards, accessibility, and best-practice HTML5 techniques. He's created enterprise specifications, websites and online applications for companies and organisations including the UK Parliament, the European Parliament, the Department of Energy & Climate Change, Microsoft, and more. He's written more than 1,000 articles for SitePoint and you can find him @craigbuckler.
