How to Change the Default Download Location in Popular Browsers

Have you ever downloaded a file and had no idea where your computer stored it? Or have you had to scroll endlessly through your browser history just to re-download a file?

To prevent this from happening again, you should change your browser’s default download location. In this article, we’ll show you how to do that for the most popular browsers.

How to Change Google Chrome’s Default Download Location

We’ll start with Chrome because it’s one of the most popular browsers, so there’s a good chance it’s your default browser.

By default, Chrome saves everything you download online to your Downloads file. But if you need to access your files faster, you can change the default location.

1. In the top right corner, click the three-dot menu and select Settings.
2. Go to Downloads.
3. Click the Change button and select a new download destination.

If you want Google Chrome to ask you every time where it should download the file, select the Ask where to save each file before downloading option.

How to Change Mozilla Firefox’s Default Download Location

If Firefox is your default browser, you can change the default download location by:

1. Open the browser’s menu and click Settings.
2. From the left pane, select General and scroll down to Files and Apps.
3. Click Browse next to Save Files To and select the location where Firefox should download files.

If you want to specify the download location every time, select Always ask you where to save files. If you need more help managing your downloads, you can try some download manager plugins.

How to Change Microsoft Edge’s Default Download Location

Microsoft Edge has come a long way and gives its users plenty of reasons to set it as the default browser, including a feature that allows you to share files and notes between mobile and desktop devices.

If you want to keep a closer eye on your downloads, follow these steps to change the default location:

1. Navigate to Edge://settings.
2. From the left menu, select Downloads.
3. Click the Change button and select a new download location.

As you can see, Edge has more settings that you should enable to better manage your downloaded files.

How to Change Brave Browser’s Default Download Location

Brave has quickly gained popularity for its mission to protect your privacy by blocking all privacy-invading ads and trackers. So, if you want to use it permanently, you should change its download-related settings.

1. Go to Brave://settings.
2. Scroll down in the left menu and select Downloads.
3. Click Change and set a new download location.

You can also change the default download location by enabling the Ask where to save each file before downloading option. If you want to check the downloaded files, click Downloads from the browser’s ribbon.

How to Change Safari’s Default Download Location

If you own an Apple device, then your default browser is most likely Safari. If you want to change the browser’s default download location, follow these steps:

1. In the menu bar, click Safari.
2. Go to Preferences > General.
3. Open the drop-down menu next to File download location.
4. Click Other and set a new location. Additionally, you can use the Ask for every download option.

How to Change Opera’s Default Download Location

If your primary drive is running low on space, you can change Opera’s download location to avoid any future issues. Here’s how you do it:

1. Click the Settings icon.
2. Scroll down and open the Advanced menu.
3. Go to Downloads and click Change.
4. Choose a new download location.

How to Change Vivaldi’s Default Download Location

Many people prefer Vivaldi over other Chrome alternatives because it is one of the fastest browsers available. If you want to improve its productivity, you should change the default download location.

1. Click Settings from the bottom left.
2. Select Downloads.
3. Click Choose Folder from Download Location and browse to the new location.

If you want to speed up the download process when using Vivaldi, select the Save files in default location without asking option.

Easily change your browser’s download location

Now you know where to find every file you download using your browser. Many of the mentioned browsers have enough built-in features to help you keep track of your files, but you can always install browser plugins to manage browser downloads.

Before clicking on any suspicious link to download a file, you should check if it is safe, so you can protect yourself from ransomware.