Computer >> Computer tutorials >  >> Software >> Browsers

How to Install the Chrome Browser on Ubuntu

Google Chrome is one of the most popular internet browsers, providing high-speed browsing with an interactive user interface. Since Chrome is not open source, Linux users can't directly download it using the default package managers on their system.

In this article, we will discuss downloading and installing Chrome on a Linux machine. We will share brief guides that demonstrate how you can install Google Chrome on your system graphically and via the command-line.

How to Install Google Chrome in Ubuntu

Installing Google Chrome on Ubuntu is easy. All you have to do is download the package file from the official source and unpack it on your system. There are multiple ways to do this, either using the dpkg package manager or with the help of an app manager software.

Command-Line Install With dpkg

Behind every package manager on Debian-based Linux distributions, there's a base software known as dpkg that is responsible for managing Debian packages. The other package managers used on Debian-based distros such as Apt only act as a front end to dpkg.

  1. To install Google Chrome using the command-line, first launch the terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T.
  2. Download the Chrome package using wget. This is a Linux utility that allows you to download files using HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, and FTPS.
    wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
  3. You can install the downloaded package using dpkg or apt. Enter either of the following commands in the terminal:
    sudo dpkg -i google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
    sudo apt install ./google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
  4. The system will ask you for your user password for logging purposes. Type the password and press Enter.

Google Chrome will be available to use once the installation process completes.

Install Google Chrome Graphically

Using the command-line can be uncomfortable for those who have just started with Linux. In this situation, Ubuntu has the Software Center application that will extract and install the Google Chrome package automatically.

To install Google Chrome using Ubuntu's Software Center:

  1. Head over to the Chrome download webpage.
  2. Click on the Download Chrome button. How to Install the Chrome Browser on Ubuntu
  3. Under the Please select your download package label, check the 64 bit .deb (For Debian/Ubuntu) option. How to Install the Chrome Browser on Ubuntu
  4. Select Accept and Install to continue.
  5. Go to the directory where the downloaded package is located.
  6. Double-click on the .deb package to launch Software Center. How to Install the Chrome Browser on Ubuntu
  7. Click on the Install button. How to Install the Chrome Browser on Ubuntu
  8. Enter your account password to start the installation process.
  9. Google Chrome will be installed on your Ubuntu machine.

Update Google Chrome Automatically

Google Chrome adds the official Google repository to the system's source list in order to get future updates and releases. You can verify that the repository is added to your system by reading the source list file for Google Chrome.

cat /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-chrome.list

You will see an output that looks something like this:

THIS FILE IS AUTOMATICALLY CONFIGURED ###
# You may comment out this entry, but any other modifications may be lost.
deb [arch=amd64] https://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main

If for any reason, you do not find the aforementioned file on your system. Generate it manually and append the output snippet to the file.

sudo touch /etc/apt/source.list.d/google-chrome.list

Edit the file with a text editor of your choice.

nano /etc/apt/source.list.d/google-chrome.list

Add the snippet provided below and save the file.

THIS FILE IS AUTOMATICALLY CONFIGURED ###
# You may comment out this entry, but any other modifications may be lost.
deb [arch=amd64] https://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main

Browsing the Internet on Ubuntu

Surfing the internet is one of the primary needs of almost every computer user. Internet browsers have completely transformed the way people browse the internet from their devices. Google Chrome is a cross-platform internet browser that can be used on Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS, and Android devices.

In addition to security patches, the new releases of Google Chrome always come with some extra features such as allowing users to preview webpages before opening them. Recently a new feature was also introduced that generates live captions for audio on Google Chrome.