How to Make Downloaded PDFs Open in Adobe Reader Instead of Chrome/ Web browser

After downloading any pdf online, By default, Google Chrome or the web browers like Brave, Safari etc., opens PDF files in its built-in viewer. While convenient for quick viewing, many users prefer to open PDFs in Adobe Acrobat Reader for more robust features such as editing, signing, and better print handling.

If your PDFs keep opening in Chrome and you’d rather use Adobe Reader instead, this guide will help you change your settings easily on both Windows and macOS.

Why Do PDFs Open in Chrome?

When Chrome is set as your default PDF viewer, or when its built-in PDF viewer is enabled, PDF files will open directly in the browser rather than in a dedicated PDF app like Adobe Acrobat. This often happens after software updates or fresh installations of Chrome.

How to Make Adobe the Default PDF Viewer on Windows

Right-click on any PDF file on your computer.
Choose “Open with” and then select “Choose another app.”
Select “Adobe Acrobat Reader” from the list.
Check the box that says “Always use this app to open .pdf files.”
Click “OK.”

How to Make Downloaded PDFs Open in Adobe Reader Instead of Chrome/ Web browser

After this, all your PDF files will open in Adobe Reader by default.

How to Make Adobe the Default PDF Viewer on macOS

Right-click (or Control-click) any PDF file.
Click “Get Info” from the context menu.
In the “Open with” section, select “Adobe Acrobat Reader” from the dropdown menu.
Click the “Change All” button to apply the change to all PDF files.
Confirm when prompted.

This will set Adobe Reader as the default app for opening all PDF files on your Mac.

How to Stop Chrome from Opening PDFs in the Browser

If you prefer to download PDFs instead of opening them in Chrome, follow these steps:

Open Google Chrome.
Click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner and go to “Settings.”
Scroll down and click “Privacy and security.”
Select “Site Settings.”
Scroll down and click “PDF documents.”
Turn on the option that says “Download PDFs” instead of automatically opening them in Chrome.

Now, when you click on a PDF link, Chrome will download the file instead of opening it in the browser.

Additional Tips

Make sure Adobe Acrobat Reader is properly installed on your device. If not, download it from adobe.com.
Occasionally, updates to Chrome or other PDF-related apps may reset your default viewer settings. If that happens, just repeat the steps above.
If you work with PDFs regularly, consider installing the free Adobe Acrobat Chrome extension, which integrates Acrobat tools with your browser.

Conclusion

Changing your default PDF viewer from Chrome to Adobe Acrobat Reader is a quick fix that can significantly improve your PDF experience. Whether you’re editing, signing, or just reading documents, Adobe Acrobat offers more features and control than Chrome’s built-in viewer.

Now that you’ve reset your default settings, your PDFs will open in Adobe Reader automatically—just the way you want.