The overall web browser market share for desktop computers in 2011 saw a noteworthy trend and it was the steady rise in browser usage for Google Chrome on a monthly basis.
From January to December 2011, Google Chrome went from 11.15% to 19.11% in usage stats. The most dominant web browser of the past decade, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, went down from 58.35% to 51.87%. Mozilla Firefox saw a smaller decline, going from 23.72% to 21.83%.
The Safari web browser saw its overall market share increase in 2011, starting at 4.15% in January and ending with 4.97% in December. The Apple-made browser peaked in October at 5.43%, which was the month when former Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs passed away.
Opera faced disturbing statistics in the 2011 web browser market share results, dropping from 2.33% to 1.66% by year’s end – just hovering over the top 1% margin.
The following chart illustrates the average usage share statistics of the top desktop web browsers that recorded stats over 1% across the Internet on a monthly basis in 2011, as collected by Net Applications:
Below are tables showing percent increases and decreases of the top five web browsers that recorded a monthly market share in usage over 1% between January and December in 2011.
Microsoft Internet Explorer 2011 Monthly Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| January | 58.35% | -0.91% |
| February | 59.22% | +0.87% |
| March | 58.35% | -0.87% |
| April | 57.82% | -0.53% |
| May | 57.15% | -0.67% |
| June | 56.70% | -0.45% |
| July | 55.97% | -0.73% |
| August | 55.31% | -0.66% |
| September | 54.39% | -0.92% |
| October | 52.63% | -1.76% |
| November | 52.64% | +0.01% |
| December | 51.87% | -0.77% |
Mozilla Firefox 2011 Monthly Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| January | 23.72% | +0.03% |
| February | 22.69% | -1.03% |
| March | 22.75% | +0.06% |
| April | 22.70% | -0.05% |
| May | 22.87% | +0.17% |
| June | 22.91% | +0.04% |
| July | 22.81% | -0.10% |
| August | 22.57% | -0.24% |
| September | 22.48% | -0.09% |
| October | 22.52% | +0.04% |
| November | 22.14% | -0.38% |
| December | 21.83% | -0.31% |
Google Chrome 2011 Monthly Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| January | 11.15% | +0.79% |
| February | 11.41% | +0.26% |
| March | 12.08% | +0.67% |
| April | 12.53% | +0.45% |
| May | 13.19% | +0.66% |
| June | 13.86% | +0.67% |
| July | 14.33% | +0.47% |
| August | 15.51% | +1.18% |
| September | 16.20% | +0.69% |
| October | 17.62% | +1.42% |
| November | 18.18% | +0.56% |
| December | 19.11% | +0.93% |
Apple Safari 2011 Monthly Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| January | 4.15% | +0.13% |
| February | 4.13% | -0.02% |
| March | 4.31% | +0.18% |
| April | 4.48% | +0.17% |
| May | 4.37% | -0.11% |
| June | 4.40% | +0.03% |
| July | 4.63% | +0.23% |
| August | 4.64% | +0.01% |
| September | 5.02% | +0.38% |
| October | 5.43% | +0.41% |
| November | 5.00% | -0.43% |
| December | 4.97% | -0.03% |
Opera 2011 Monthly Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| January | 2.33% | +0.6% |
| February | 2.20% | -0.13 |
| March | 2.20% | 0.00% |
| April | 2.20% | 0.00% |
| May | 2.10% | -0.10% |
| June | 1.78% | -0.32% |
| July | 1.70% | -0.08% |
| August | 1.68% | -0.02% |
| September | 1.67% | -0.01% |
| October | 1.56% | -0.11% |
| November | 1.55% | -0.01% |
| December | 1.66% | +0.11% |
The following is a summary measuring the top desktop web browser market share above 1% on the Internet in 2011 from the start to year-end, comparing from January to December. This report illustrates the change in user trends from the beginning to the end of the year.
- Apple Safari: 2011 start to year-end desktop web browser market share up +0.82% from 4.15% (January) to 4.56% (December).
- Google Chrome: 2011 start to year-end desktop web browser market share up +7.96% from 11.15% (January) to 19.11% (December).
- Microsoft Internet Explorer: 2011 start to year-end desktop web browser market share down -6.48% from 58.35% (January) to 51.87% (December).
- Mozilla Firefox: 2011 start to year-end desktop web browser market share down -1.89% from 23.72% (January) to 21.83% (December).
- Opera: 2011 start to year-end desktop web browser market share down -0.67% from 2.33% (January) to 1.66% (December).
When accounting for all twelve months of the year and equating an average statistic, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer finished the year higher than the 51.87% figure that the browser ended with in December 2011. Google Chrome scored a yearly average that was below the 19.11% that they finished with in December, while Firefox hovered in the middle of their overall monthly stats, as did Safari and Opera.
Below is a chart illustrating the average usage share statistics of the top web browsers that recorded a market share over 1% across the Internet in 2011:
Supporting the chart above is this table, highlighting the top five desktop browsers with an average market share above 1% in 2011.
2011 Yearly Average Desktop Web Browser Market Share:
| Microsoft Internet Explorer | 56.24% |
| Mozilla Firefox | 22.71% |
| Google Chrome | 14.20% |
| Apple Safari | 4.56% |
| Opera | 1.93% |
For Microsoft, improving Internet Explorer’s market share in 2012 will be reliant on the expected release of Windows 8 later in the year. The new operating system is expected to work on both a traditional PC and a modern tablet; however, tablet figures will account for mobile web browser stats rather than desktop.
With focus put on cloud computing today, it’s expected that Google Chrome will see a continued rise in desktop web browser market share for 2012. The increase in Chrome usage is likened to the increase in usage for Google products, including Gmail and the Google+ social network, along with the exclusive Chrome Web Store.
For the same reasons, Apple could see a rise in figures for their Safari browser, thanks to iCloud, which connects the Mac to iOS devices like iPhone and iPad.
It’s likely that Opera will continue to plummet, perhaps below the top 1% mark, as more and more users gravitate to Chrome overall.
| References: |
| 1. http://www.cygy.com/pages/2011-monthly-top-desktop-web-browser-market-share/ |
| 2. http://www.cygy.com/pages/2011-yearly-average-top-desktop-web-browser-market-share/ |
Love the graphs and tables, very visual presentation. Good to know I have a good source for finding this kind of information about web browser market shares now. Thank you!