windows update removed google search and no longer an option

Question

windows update removed google search and no longer an option

Susan Buckle 20

A new update has removed google search as an option in chrome I only have yahoo search and bing is the default. I do not like bing and want to add google search back. I have cleared cache, deinstalled chrome. rebooted machine, reinstalled chrome but still only yahoo search available when managing search engines in chrome

shaun watson 0 Reputation points

2026-03-15T19:41:07.18+00:00

having same problem but with edge had to reset everything am switching to chrome to see if it any better i see you having same issues but at least it doesnt try to sell me ms office every other day

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shaun watson 0 Reputation points

2026-03-15T19:41:07.18+00:00

having same problem but with edge had to reset everything am switching to chrome to see if it any better i see you having same issues but at least it doesnt try to sell me ms office every other day

Answer 1

GsN5034 - IA 79,510 Independent Advisor

Hello, thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A.

Do you have any third-party antivirus software installed on your device, such as McAfee, Norton, or Avast? If yes, temporarily disable them.

Often, third-party add-ins - especially those installed by antivirus software can interfere with your browser settings, block certain search engines, and set Yahoo/Bing as the default.

Please try the following steps:

Open Chrome and go to chrome://extensions/.
Check if you have any third-party add-ins or extensions installed.
If you find any suspicious or unwanted extensions (particularly from antivirus vendors), remove or disable them.
After that, check whether you can set Google as the default search engine again.

Alternatively, you can create and use a new Chrome profile for testing and see if Google search works normally there.

Susan Buckle 20 Reputation points

2026-01-08T06:23:50.6533333+00:00

Thank you for your reply. I have removed the three extensions I had, cleared cache, deleted chrome and reinstalled chrome three times to no avail. I did not have the choice of google chrome as my search engine and I hate the yahoo/bing search engines as my bookmark bar is no longer present. I do have Norton, use the vpn all the time and the laptop is scanned daily. I also tried another free tool last night and it found nothing amiss apart from data leaks from 2022/2023. I did try for the final time the deinstall and reinstall with a turn pc off for the final time before taking it to pc place and everything is back the way I use it. Seriously thinking of moving to apple. This was an update that caused this a few weeks ago and I have struggled ever since.
Mary Petitt 0 Reputation points

2026-01-14T02:13:52.62+00:00

I am having the exact same issue. I'm so frustrated. I'll try the deinstall with the shutdown now and see it that works. Thanks.
Susan Buckle 20 Reputation points

2026-01-14T18:31:47.9133333+00:00

Hi Mary, I managed to find an older version of Chrome.exe on my laptop and installed that and it worked. Yahoo search engine and bixby tried to take over again but I could delete the various search engines I did not want hijacking my account and still had google. Four weeks of nightmare