November proved to be a fruitful month for Google Chrome both in the mobile space and on desktops, with several leading analytics firms reporting growth.
Since its release back in February 2012, Google Chrome for Android has consistently grown in share. In November it managed to make a sizeable jump of 1.5% – no doubt aided by the release of the Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 – to grab 8.3% of overall global usage.
Apple’s Safari continues to dominate mobile web use, according to NetMarketShare, with upwards of 55% last month. The Android Stock Browser managed to pass the 25% share mark in the same period, up 1.7% on its October showing.
Statistics from one company only tell you part of the story. A more accurate picture is given when looking at the wider trends.
Statcounter also show that things are promising for Chrome on mobile. Their analytics report says Chrome rose by nearly 2% last month, a gain taking its share from 4.78% in October to 6.3% in November.
Fellow analytics firm Clicky put Chrome’s mobile share on a more buoyant 14% for the same period.
Whatever company you find most accurate it’s clear that Chrome for mobile is growing.
Desktop
For Chrome on the desktop things are also positive.
NetMarketShare reports a 0.2% increase in its use to give it 15.44% of the desktop browser market. This compares to Internet Explorer‘s 58.35% and 18.54% for Firefox. While these stats are (far) lower than those reported by other companies, they still help inform the wider picture.
Statcounter, meanwhile, say Chrome grew by 1.3% to take a commanding 41.7% share of the market. In second place is Internet Explorer on 27.31%, representing a short fall on its October placing.
Like all statistics it doesn’t pay to place too much weight on them. Whether Chrome has 15% or 50% it is still one of the most widely used web browsers in the world, and one that continues to innovate in the web space.