Share via

Why was Google removed from the search engine selection options?

ISABANE 5 Reputation points
2026-02-13T15:20:20.1333333+00:00

Edge is super cool, which is why I use it, but it works best with Google as the search engine. Using it with Bing feels like a disaster, so I’m wondering why Google was removed from the selection options??Screenshot 2026-02-13 180857

Microsoft Edge | Tabs, address bar, and search | Windows 11

4 answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. _AW_ 66,831 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2026-02-16T11:50:31.85+00:00

    You likely have a corrupt Web Data file. Assuming you are using the default Edge profile, try this. It should force Edge to reload the various search engine options.

    Close Microsoft Edge.

    Type cmd into search then right click on Command Prompt and run as administrator.

    Copy and paste in the following code then press enter:

    taskkill /im msedge.exe /f & timeout /t 3 & ren "%localappdata%\Microsoft\Edge\User Data\Default\Web Data" "Web Data.bak"

    This terminates any running instance of msedge, waits three seconds for the processes to close, then renames the Web Data file to Web Data.bak.

    When you next start Edge, the default Web Data file will be regenerated and you should now be able to choose Google in the address bar search options.

    2 people found this answer helpful.
  2. shujaat ali 0 Reputation points
    2026-02-16T10:58:11.8966667+00:00

    What you can do:
    Go to Settings → Privacy, search, and services → Address bar and search → Search engines.
    1.Find Bing in the list.

    2.Click the three dots (…) next to Bing and choose Edit.

    3.Replace the Bing URL with this Google URL:

       https://www.google.com/search?q=%s

    4.Save the changes.

    Now Bing will act like Google, and all your searches will go through Google. Trust me, this method is working fine and I’ve tested it for a long time. And it works for both the address bar and the home search bar, so you can use Google everywhere in Edge.

  3. Bulldog 390 Reputation points
    2026-02-13T15:50:59.89+00:00

    I don't seem to have the problem:

    Screenshot 2026-02-13 104910

    Have you made any changes to Microsoft Edge?

    0 comments
  4. Marcin Policht 82,360 Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2026-02-13T15:30:22.8733333+00:00

    Make sure that Search engines list includes Google. If you (or your IT organization) removed it, then it won't appear in the list of the search engines to be used in the address bar

    If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

    hth

    Marcin

    0 comments

Your answer

Answers can be marked as 'Accepted' by the question author and 'Recommended' by moderators, which helps users know the answer solved the author's problem.