Browsers and devices
On this page
4Search is a website. There is nothing to install and no plug-in to add: you open it in a browser on a computer, a phone or a tablet. This page says which browsers and settings give the best result.
#Browsers and devices
4Search is meant for current versions of the major browsers: Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari, on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. Keep your browser up to date. The site's Accessibility statement says the same: it is intended to work with current versions of major browsers, and older or unsupported software may not give the same experience.
The pages adapt to the screen. A computer shows the topics list beside the page; a phone or a narrow window folds it behind a Topics button, and the tab row slides sideways. See 4Search on your phone.
4Search uses modern web features, so an old browser may show some parts differently or leave some features out.
#What you need turned on
| Setting | Needed for | If it is off |
|---|---|---|
| JavaScript | Most features, listed below | Basic reading and searching still work |
| Browser storage and cookies | Remembering your colour theme, your privacy choices and Saved preferences such as followed topics and places | The site still works, but it forgets your choices when the page closes |
| WebGL | Drawing the map on Maps | The map area says the browser cannot draw it; the panel beside it still works |
| Location access | Use my location on Weather and Maps | Type a ZIP code, city or address instead |
| Images | Story pictures, logos and maps | Headlines and text still show |
Location access is always your choice. The browser asks before sharing it.
#What works without JavaScript
JavaScript is a programming language that runs inside your browser. Some people turn it off, and some content blockers restrict it.
| Works without JavaScript | Needs JavaScript |
|---|---|
| Opening the home page, tabs, topics and story links | Search suggestions, and Enter to search |
| Searching with the search button, and reading news results | The AI Overview and AI Mode |
| Reading the front page's first groups of stories | The web results from Google's search service |
| The footer's links, which are all open | Full coverage, Related Coverage, the Previous and Next buttons and a result's options menu |
| Reading the Finance numbers on a page | Menu, the colour theme button and the install buttons |
| This Help Center, which is built to work without it | Charts, maps, the weather radar and the Topics list's subtopic arrows |
| Following things and every Saved preferences feature | |
| The privacy choices panel |
Without JavaScript, Enter in the search box adds a new line. Select the search button to search.
#Tablets and large screens
Tablets use the layout of whichever width they have, a phone's compact layout when narrow and the computer layout when wide. A very wide monitor gets the same page with more room, not a different one.
#Common questions
Does 4Search work in Internet Explorer?
No. Internet Explorer is not a current browser, and 4Search relies on features it lacks. Use a current version of Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari.
Do I need to install anything to use Maps or Weather radar?
No. They run in the browser. Maps draws its map with WebGL, which current browsers include.
Why does 4Search forget my theme or my followed topics?
Your browser may be blocking storage, or you may be using a private window that clears it when you close it. Saved preferences also has to be turned on for lists. See Saved preferences.
Does 4Search work with a screen reader?
Yes. See Accessibility.