May 2014 stats show that Internet Explorer remains the most used browser worldwide

Jun 2, 2014 08:55 GMT  ·  By

The fierce competition in the browser world continues these days, but a new round of statistics provided by market researcher Net Applications indicates that Internet Explorer continues to be the number of choice for users worldwide.

Basically, Internet Explorer currently has a market share of 58.17 percent, which means that more than one in two computers are actually running Microsoft's application when it comes to browsing the web.

Chrome is on the second place but way behind with only 17.73 percent, followed by Firefox with 16.81 percent, and Safari with 5.72 percent. Opera, the browser that has immense potential, is fifth in this chart with only 1.16 percent.

As far as versions are concerned, Internet Explorer 8 holds the leading spot with a share of 20.89 percent, while Internet Explorer 11 is the runner-up with 17.03 percent. Internet Explorer 9 is third with 9.05 percent and Chrome 34, Firefox 29, and Internet Explorer 10 are next with 9.5, 8.81, and 8.48 percent respectively.

Internet Explorer 11 continues its growing trend and there's no doubt that, if the same rate is maintained, it has all the chances in the world to overtake Internet Explorer 8 and become the most used browser worldwide in the coming months.

IE11 is currently available as part of Windows 8.1, but it's also offered as a separate download for Windows 7 users who'd like to stay up to date with the latest version of Microsoft's in-house browser.

This latest version of Internet Explorer 11 received an important update in April, as part of the Windows 8.1 Update rollout, with the browser receiving a pack of new options, stability and performance optimizations.

“Today’s update to IE11 means that whatever device you pick-up, your tabs and favorites are there for you, right where you left off,” Microsoft said in an announcement in early April.

“Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 share the same experience and underlying Web standards that help developers build interoperable sites and apps that just work across many browsers and devices. That includes updates to the latest specs for hardware-accelerated (and stable) WebGL as well as professional quality rich media like HTML5 video including closed captioning, adaptive streaming, and rights management.”

This new version of the browser can obviously be found on Softpedia as well, so download Internet Explorer 11 if you are running Windows 7 to see what it brings new and whether it has what it takes to compete against Google Chrome and Firefox.