The realm of internet browsers has only one king, and it’s undeniably Google Chrome. Over time, the latter has evolved into a ridiculously fast internet surfer as the developer paid more attention to it and made the entity more feature-rich than ever. Today, Chrome is prevalent in every nook and cranny of the internet and is the world’s most popular web crawler by far. However, this dominant software isn’t too alone at the top.
It’s accompanied by multiple other competitors as well, such as Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and even the relatively recent Brave Browser that’s deemed “faster than Google Chrome.” With all that said; however, there’s another internet browser that you may have noticed over the years that has piqued the curiosity of a plethora of users with a keen curiosity: Chromium. In contrast to Google Chrome, Chromium uses the same logo instead dons an all-blue color scheme.
It may look and feel similar to Chrome, but take it from us, there are significant differences between the two that set each other apart. In this guide, we will go over all the key differences between Chromium and Google Chrome, so you can learn the distinctions of each browser and decide which one to use accordingly. So without any further ado, let’s dive right in.
- Recommended from Chrome Ready: Chrome OS vs. Chromium OS: Key differences.
What is Google Chrome?
Google Chrome homepage
Google Chrome is a name that almost everyone in the world who has ever happened to use a network-connected computing device has at least heard of. It’s incredibly famous and is arguably the world’s best internet browser for platforms all across the spectrum. Google developed and released the program way back in 2008 for the general public, and it has been free to use ever since. That is to say, Chrome is termed as “freeware” and doesn’t cost a dime to download and employ.
Speaking of which, Google Chrome’s dominance is exhibited by its stretch across different platforms. Not only is it available on desktop operating systems like Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Mac, users can seamlessly enjoy it on mobile operating systems, like iOS and Android. In addition, you’ve got Google Chrome as the one true mascot of Chrome OS—a lightweight program that comes with Google Chrome preinstalled by factory settings.
Google Chrome is feature-rich, fast, and utterly secure. All three of these characteristics are perhaps what made this internet browser unflinching influence on the overall market share. As of October 2021, Chrome was gracefully able to capture a formidable 68% share in its favor, thereby making it the most successful internet surfer in the world by a good margin. Another major selling point of Chrome is its remarkably consistent update routine.
The latest version of the browser at the time of writing is Chrome 98, bringing four great features among other ones and adding them to the heart of Google Chrome’s ever-growing functionality. In terms of the user interface, Chrome is nothing short of sleek and is also easy on the operating system it’s being used on. One of the reasons why this browser is loved to this terrific extent is because of its refined performance and polished functioning on
You’ve got additional functions like the ability to use incognito mode where all browsing is obstructed from being tracked and recorded along with automatic sync. The latter is where your Gmail account can be used to sign into a device that has Chrome installed. You’ll find that all of your bookmarks, saved settings, passwords, autofill data, cookies, and history will be synced simultaneously on the device that you log into.
Now that you have a fair idea of what exactly is Google Chrome, it’s worth taking a look at Chromium, on the other hand, and seeing what it’s all about, despite having an outlook that looks exceedingly similar to the star-studded Google Chrome browser.
What is Chromium?
Chromium
You might find it surprising that Google Chrome is entirely based on Chromium, but we’re not talking about the web browser here. The Chromium Projects is a collection of open-source code that consists of Chromium OS and the Chromium browser. Both of these have served as the fundamental roots for the creation and development of what the world today commonly recognizes as Chrome OS and Google Chrome.
The codebase of Chromium has paved the way for the manifestation of several other browsers, including Brave, Opera, and Yandex. It has played a substantial role for even more than a decade for tons of proprietary software from Google and other developers. To come back to the Chromium browser now, which is one of the main constituents of this article, there’s no denying that the user interface of Chrome and Chromium go hand in hand.
The two look almost identical from within, and it’s difficult to tell them apart. However, Chromium can also be downloaded for free— particularly from this website—and if you’re a developer, you can sign up to contribute to its source code as well. It works great, comes with many features, and is regularly updated, although there is a major difference between Chromium and Google Chrome.
Some people regard Chromium as a mere virus or malware of some sort, saying things like they’ve downloaded a fake Chrome browser that looks askew. However, this couldn’t be any further from the actual truth. If the Chromium browser has been grabbed from an authentic source, you will find it to be all things except a virus. Furthermore, there’s one more thing that you should know about before plunging into the key differences between the software in question and Google Chrome.
In the wake of a new update for Google Chrome, one of the first things that the developers usually do is grab relevant code from the Chromium Projects codebase. This code is accompanied by Google’s code and added to Chrome to incorporate the latest features. Therefore, the matter can be understood that Google Chrome is a more refined derivation of Chromium.
Key differences between Chromium and Google Chrome
Now that you’re well aware of both Chromium and Google Chrome in the sense that what they are, let’s further this guide and talk about the significant differences they have between each other. Let’s start with stability and performance.
Stability and performance
One of the first parameters that separate Chromium and Google Chrome is stability and performance. Right off the bat, Chrome is an exceedingly stable internet browser preferred by millions of end-users solely due to its steadiness. If you’re on Chrome OS, you can choose to remain in the “Stable” update channel, so you never have to get on the unstable side of Google Chrome ever.
Only those updates that are tested to work correctly on the stable update release channel will be rolled out to you, and it’ll be strongly likely that you won’t experience performance issues. The performance, subsequently, always stays up to the mark, and there’s solid reason in this regard why people refer to Chrome as the most popular browser in the world.
In the other corner of the ring, we have Chromium. This internet browser is updated with extreme consistency, sometimes even several times a week. In the wake of this, however, Chromium might not be stable all the time, at least not on the same level as Google Chrome. Still, if we were to review it in general, this net surfer does a pretty solid job for advanced and power users looking to develop code with the help of Chromium.
Since this is a comparison, there’s a clear winner in terms of stability and performance, and it’s Chrome. It’s simply because the latter is technically proprietary software, and Google makes its tweaks and additions to ensure a smooth working mechanism. This isn’t the same with Chromium in question.
Updates
The next major factor that can help you choose between Google Chrome and Chromium is updates. Specifically, we’ll discuss how you can update these browsers and how frequently. First off, Chrome boasts the major benefit of having automatic updates. So you’ll be surfing the internet unaware of what’s happening in the background, and Chrome will start downloading received updates without you even knowing it.
Sure, after the updates have been downloaded, you’ll be notified with a small-scale prompt to restart the browser to apply the update’s effects. Therefore, the entirety of this process is nothing but seamless. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about Chromium. Although the latter is updated far more frequently than Google Chrome, you will have to download and install updates manually on it.
This can get tiring in the long run, especially when you have to update your browser over a long period consistently. That is to say, Chromium updates every week while Google Chrome has a significant update dropping for it after every other 4 or 6 weeks. There’s a sizable difference between the two browsers in this regard, therefore, and it’s something that can make you pick one over the other.
If you want your internet browser to update on its own without you having to do anything yourself regarding it, Google Chrome is the standard way to go. However, if you’d like to test out more features first, have the added benefit of open-source freedom, and aren’t genuinely bothered with having to update the browser regularly, Chromium might be the best option for you.
However, do bear in mind that not keeping up with Chromium’s update schedule can put you at a certain risk in terms of security. You will have to stay consistent in this regard since you won’t be getting automatic updates. The gist of it is that if you do not want to bother with this specific aspect of a regular internet browser, going with Google Chrome seems like the best choice.
Extension compatibility
It’s pretty common knowledge that Google Chrome boasts a full-fledged platform called Chrome Web Store. This is where users can freely download thousands of extensions to revamp their Chrome browser experience and add more functionality. On a side note, though, here are 25 high-rated Google Chrome extensions that you should be using if you use this browser consistently.
However, it bears noticing that the Chrome Web Store is the only source from where you can grab browser extensions for Chrome. The application isn’t compatible with other add-ons, even if you tried implementing them into it. On the other hand, Chromium is a step above in this case. Not only does it allow you to grab extensions from the Chrome Web Store, but third-party sources for the purpose at hand are also supported on Chromium.
That means that you’re no longer restricted to offerings from the Web Store only when Chromium is in the question. This is a sizable benefit for power users looking to venture outside the usual domain and try something different for a change.
Media codecs
Netflix Web on Chrome OS
Another exceedingly important factor that sets Google Chrome apart from Chromium is the inclusion of in-built media codecs. A codec, in computing terms, is a particular program that plays a vital role in the compression and decompression of data for better performance in data transmission. Specifically, it comprises two major parts: an encoder and a decoder and allows for digital media playability within the browser.
Let us now get into the major part of Chrome and Chromium. First, Google Chrome comes fully developed with media codecs of all sorts, allowing users to enjoy streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and CMovies HD Online from right within the browser. The media codecs built into Google Chrome include MP3, AAC, H.264, HTML5, and the basic programs like Vorbis, Theora, VP8, WAV, and Opus.
These codecs allow Google Chrome to display high-quality media for end users. On the other hand, Chromium is exempt from functionality, but only right out the box. It’s possible to install media codecs on this open-source internet surfer, but don’t expect it to stream media for you on platforms like Netflix and YouTube when you first start with it. Google Chrome is more feature-rich in this regard.
Privacy
Another crucial reason that makes it easy to differentiate between Chromium and Google Chrome is privacy. Google Chrome has had its fair share of harsh criticism over the years, mainly because of Google trying to implement policies like FLoC which is otherwise short for Federated Learning of Cohorts. Although the prospect seemed bright for the most part, it had one major pitfall, and people couldn’t have any of that furthermore.
Similar privacy-oriented concerns have seemed to surface for Chrome ever since its advanced development. It’s notorious for tracking user data and sending it back to Google for browsing pattern analysis. While this does go on to create a tailored experience for people who use Chrome, many people are put off with this somewhat privacy invasion. Sure, you can disable data tracking to a reasonable extent, but there’s still no way you can finally escape Google’s authoritative control over what you browse on the internet.
This is where Chromium shines and gives privacy-focused users a lot more room to breathe fully. It does not track usage statistics or accumulate crash reports in the case of unresponsive behavior. Chromium also does not send any user information back to Google, so it cannot be processed for patterns and everything of the like.
Pros and cons of Google Chrome
Let’s take a look at the major advantages and downsides of the Google Chrome browser so that you can understand the comparison better.
The pros
- Feature-rich and includes the latest media codecs for in-browser media streaming.
- Updates automatically so you don’t have to bother yourself.
- More stable performance for day-to-day usage.
The cons
- Tracks browser patterns and user data and relays it back to Google.
- Lesser number of updates than Chromium.
- You cannot use browser extensions from third-party sources on Chrome.
Pros and cons of Chromium
Let’s now see how Chromium measures up in terms of its strengths and weaknesses.
The pros
- Updates more frequently than Chrome.
- It’s possible to use third-party browser extensions on Chromium.
- More privacy-oriented and doesn’t keep tabs on user information.
- Fully open-source
The cons
- Often prone to crashes, bugs, and glitches.
- Does not update automatically.
- Media codecs for running Netflix and YouTube need to be installed manually.
Conclusion
Both Chromium and Google Chrome seem like synonymous web browsers, but little do many know how significantly these differ from each other. In this detailed comparison article, we’ve outlined how Chrome is more feature-rich in terms of media codecs, performance, and stability while Chromium has the upper hand in the frequency of updates, more privacy, and third-party extension support.
Chromium is also open-source as opposed to Chrome, and this is, perhaps, the biggest advantage that advanced users can get with the browser. You’re free to make your additions to the program’s source code and even track updates yourself without having to compromise privacy. So it’s worth shooting for Chromium in this regard unless, of course, you prioritize a smooth operation above everything else and the rest of Google’s proprietary features, such as automatic sync.
We leave it up to you to decide which browser to pick up on your device, given that you’ve read what sets them apart and what the strengths and weaknesses of each program are. Chrome Ready wishes you good luck!
