The Easiest Way To Transfer Safari Bookmarks To Google Chrome

If you're well integrated into Apple's ecosystem, sticking to Safari makes the most sense. The default browser is designed and optimized for macOS and iOS, allowing you to effortlessly pass tabs between devices or make purchases secured with FaceID or TouchID. There is a downside, though: Safari is an Apple exclusive. Because of that, you can't sync Safari with your Android or Windows devices, making Google Chrome a more appealing — and universal — alternative.

Right now, Chrome can beat Safari speeds on macOS. Google tested the latest build of Chrome using Apple's Speedometer browser benchmark, where it outperformed Safari, giving reasons a pretty good reason to switch. Chrome's browser extension support is also unparalleled, offering thousands of free web extensions via the Chrome Web Store. Beyond that, you can seamlessly sync Chrome history, passwords, settings, and bookmarks across all your devices by signing into the browser with your Google account.

Whether you want to take Google Chrome for a test drive or make the switch from Safari, you don't need to lose your bookmarks or settings. Here's the easiest way to transfer all your Safari bookmarks to Google Chrome.

Moving bookmarks between desktop browsers is fairly straightforward. You can either let Chrome automatically import the bookmarks or do it manually yourself, as explained on the Google Support website.

To auto-import browser bookmarks from Safari:

1. Fire up Chrome on your computer.

2. Click the three-dot menu button located in the upper right corner of the browser.

3. Navigate to Bookmarks > Import Bookmarks and Settings. 

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4. Pick Safari from the drop-down menu.

5. Browsing history, Bookmarks, and Search are checked by default. Uncheck the other items if you only want to import the bookmarks.

6. Click Import and then Done.

As mentioned, you can also transfer the bookmarks manually, but you'll need the related HTML file. This is also a simple process, but it takes a few extra steps.

1. Open Safari on your computer.

2. Go to File > Export Bookmarks.

3. Save the HTML file in your local Mac storage.

4. Open Chrome and go to Bookmarks > Import Bookmarks and Settings

5. This time, pick Bookmarks HTML File from the drop-down menu.

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6. Locate the .html file and click Choose File.

On a fresh installation of Chrome, the imported bookmarks will appear on the bookmarks bar (you can show or hide the bar with Ctrl + Shift + B.) But if you've already created new bookmarks on Chrome, you'll find the imported Safari bookmarks in a folder called "Other bookmarks."

While importing and exporting bookmarks is a breeze on desktop, there's no direct way to do so on iOS or iPadOS. However, you can use Chrome sync and iCloud sync to transfer bookmarks from Safari on Mac to Chrome on iPhone or iPad. Note that you need a Google account for Chrome sync to work, and this process relies on having access to a macOS computer.

1. Start by syncing your Safari bookmarks on iOS or iPadOS via iCloud. On your iPad or iPhone, navigate to Settings > Profile > iCloud and turn on the switch for Safari.

2. Next, enable Safari sync on Mac. Find the iCloud in the System Preferences and check the toggle for Safari. 

3. Open Google Chrome on your Mac and import Safari bookmarks using the steps laid out in the previous section.

4. Sign into Chrome with your Google account. The imported bookmarks (also the history, passwords, and preferences) will be synced across all your devices.

5. Install Chrome on your iPhone or iPad and sign in with the same Google account.

Android devices also support Chrome sync. After you sync the bookmarks using iCloud, Google will import them to your Android device, too (provided you sign in with the same account).