A simple legal rule in Europe just handed Firefox its biggest user boost in years. Since March 2024, more than 6 million people across the EU have actively chosen Firefox over Safari and Chrome, all because regulators forced tech giants to show a real browser selection screen. What makes this number even more powerful? Those users are staying.

How the EU Digital Markets Act Changed Everything

For years, the browser you used was mostly decided by the company that made your phone. Buy an iPhone, you got Safari. Buy an Android device, Chrome was already sitting there as the default, and most people never thought to question it.

The EU’s Digital Markets Act came into full effect in March 2024 and changed the game entirely. Under this law, major tech platforms like Apple and Google are legally required to show mobile users a browser choice screen, giving them a real and visible option to pick what they actually want.

Since that rule took effect, Firefox has been selected through a DMA browser choice screen once every 10 seconds.

That relentless pace adds up to over 6 million Firefox selections across the EU in just over two years. Mozilla confirmed the figures in a detailed policy update published in May 2026, and the numbers have caught the attention of regulators, tech advocates, and everyday users far beyond Europe’s borders.

• 6 million+ total Firefox selections via DMA browser choice screens since March 2024
• Every 10 seconds, a user picks Firefox through the mandatory screen
• 113% increase in Firefox daily active users on iOS across the EU
• 99% rise in Firefox iOS users in Germany alone
• 111% rise in Firefox iOS users in France
• 5x higher user retention when Firefox is chosen through a choice screen
  

  Firefox browser gaining users from EU Digital Markets Act choice screen

Why iPhone Users Are Choosing Firefox at a Higher Rate

The gains are not evenly split between iOS and Android, and the reason why reveals something important about how design shapes user behavior.

Firefox recorded a 113% rise in daily active users within Apple’s ecosystem. On Android, the figure was just 12%. The difference comes down entirely to how each platform chose to present the choice screen to its users.

When an iPhone or iPad user opens Safari for the very first time, the browser choice screen appears right then and there. It is a natural, unavoidable moment in the user experience, and millions of people are using that moment to switch.

On Android, the screen shows up only during initial device setup or after a factory reset, which means most existing users simply never see it during everyday use.

Apple’s initial rollout with iOS 17.4 was widely criticized for poor design, but the improved version in iOS 18.2 addressed those complaints. The iOS numbers clearly reflect a well-placed prompt that reaches people at the right moment.

Users Who Pick Firefox Are Not Leaving

Raw user numbers are impressive. But Mozilla’s retention data is where this story gets genuinely surprising.

Users who choose Firefox through a DMA choice screen are five times more likely to stick with it compared to users who find Firefox through normal means like app stores or web searches.

The US National Bureau of Economic Research stepped in with independent verification. Researchers compared Firefox daily active users in the EU against 43 non-EU countries across 15 months of data both before and after the choice screens launched. Their findings backed Mozilla’s numbers completely, confirming the DMA’s effect is real and growing over time.

Mozilla’s analysis also uncovered a demographic shift that almost nobody anticipated. Women make up a significantly higher share of Firefox selections via iOS choice screens than through organic downloads. The screens are successfully reaching people who would never have changed their browser default on their own.

Firefox Is Not the Only Browser Winning Here

The DMA gains are spreading across the entire independent browser space, not just Mozilla’s corner of it.

DuckDuckGo reported a 40% rise in browser usage on Android since the choice screens went live. Multiple other challenger browsers also reported significant user growth in the initial days and weeks following the DMA’s enforcement date.

Browsers that have reported growth following DMA browser choice screens:

• DuckDuckGo – 40% increase in browser usage on Android
• Opera – reported notable user uplift across the EU
• Vivaldi – confirmed growth, exact figures not disclosed
• Aloha – reported strong user increases post-DMA
• Brave – rapid installation growth tied to the choice screen rollout

The European Commission has formally backed these outcomes, stating the DMA continues to deliver on its core promise of increasing real user choice. When an entire category of independent browsers reports growth at the same time, it becomes very difficult for Big Tech to frame the results as a one-off story.

The Bigger Fight Is Still Just Getting Started

Six million new users is a win worth acknowledging. But Firefox still holds only around 3% of the global browser market, and Chrome’s worldwide dominance remains largely untouched.

Mozilla is now calling out a glaring blind spot in the current rules: roughly 310 million desktop and laptop PCs in the EU currently have no equivalent browser choice screen protection at all.

On Windows, Mozilla has specifically accused Microsoft of using deceptive design tactics to push users toward its Edge browser. These tactics make it harder for independent browsers to compete fairly on the desktop, even while mobile gains are happening at record pace.

Both Mozilla and DuckDuckGo are now pushing hard for the UK to adopt similar browser choice screen requirements, submitting formal recommendations to the UK government’s consultation on competition in online search. DuckDuckGo has gone further, calling for the screens to be shown to users annually rather than just once at setup, and for Google to be forced to remove its “Switch back to Google” prompt inside Chrome.

The EU has made its position on the DMA crystal clear. Despite pressure from trade negotiations with the United States, European officials have stated firmly that changing or pausing digital legislation is not on the table. The law is here to stay, and its scope may only grow.

What the EU proved over the past two years is that millions of people were never truly loyal to Chrome or Safari. They were just stuck with them. When given a fair, visible choice, they voted with their taps. Whether the rest of the world’s governments take notice and act on this evidence may well determine who controls how billions of people browse the internet in the next decade. Share your thoughts in the comments below and let us know whether you think the US and UK should follow Europe’s lead with browser choice screens.