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Microsoft Edge Startup Page vs. Homepage: What’s the Difference?

Edge’s startup page, homepage, and new tab page control different moments and destinations. Here’s how to identify and change the right setting.

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In Microsoft Edge, the startup page is what appears when the browser launches; the homepage is where the toolbar’s Home button takes you. The new tab page is a third, separate setting. Which one to change depends on whether you want to alter launch behavior, the Home button’s destination, or the page shown in each new tab.

How the three Edge settings differ

Setting When it applies What it controls
Startup page or startup behavior When Edge launches The page or behavior Edge uses at startup.
Homepage When you select the toolbar’s Home button The Home button destination, which can be the new tab page or a URL you enter.
New tab page When you open a new tab The layout and content of that tab, with customization options such as background and quick links.

Microsoft groups the desktop controls under Settings > Start, home, and new tab page, but changing one does not mean you have changed the others. See Microsoft’s desktop instructions for startup, Home button, and new tab settings and its new tab page customization guidance.

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Change the setting that matches your goal

Choose what Edge displays when it launches

  1. Open Settings and more (the three-dot menu), then select Settings.
  2. Go to Start, home, and new tab page.
  3. Select the startup behavior you want.

This controls what happens at browser launch; it does not set the Home button’s destination.

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Change the Home button destination

  1. Open Settings and more > Settings > Start, home, and new tab page.
  2. Turn on Show home button on the toolbar.
  3. Choose New tab page or Enter URL, then provide the address if you choose a URL.

The Home button is optional: enable it in settings if it is not visible on the toolbar. On Windows, Alt+Home opens the Home page in the current tab; on Mac, Microsoft lists Command+Shift+H. See Microsoft’s Edge keyboard shortcuts.

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Personalize what appears in new tabs

  1. Open a new tab.
  2. Open the page’s settings or customization controls.
  3. Adjust the layout, background, quick links, or other content options shown there.

These controls affect the new tab page, not automatically the launch setting or a separately configured Home button URL. Available choices can depend on the Edge version.

On Android, the Home page has its own path

In Edge for Android, open the app menu, then go to Settings > Home page. Microsoft lists New tab page and A specific page as choices. The desktop steps above are based on Microsoft’s Windows 10 and Windows 11 support instructions; menu labels and placement may change with updates, and settings can vary on managed devices. See Microsoft’s Android Home page instructions.

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