You probably remember the disc. That flat, shiny piece of plastic that arrived in your mailbox every three days like clockwork, promising a hundred hours of the "World Wide Web." It’s nostalgic. But honestly, wanting to make AOL my homepage in 2026 isn't just about nostalgia; it’s about how we consume information in a world where every other site is trying to shove a weirdly specific algorithm down your throat. AOL has somehow survived the dial-up era to become a massive hub for news, mail, and entertainment that feels a bit more "human" than the endless scroll of a social media timeline.
People still use it. Millions of them.
Setting up a custom homepage is basically the digital version of claiming your territory. You’re telling your browser, "Hey, stop showing me a blank search bar or those weirdly targeted ads for shoes I already bought." You want the news. You want your mail. You want it the second you click that icon.
The Step-by-Step for Chrome Users (Because It Keeps Changing)
Google Chrome is the most popular browser on the planet, but it’s also the one that really, really wants you to use its own start page. It’s a bit of a tug-of-war. If you want to make AOL my homepage on Chrome, you have to dig into the settings because Google hides the "Home" button by default. It's kinda annoying.
First, look at the top right of your browser window. You'll see those three vertical dots—some people call it the "kebab menu." Click that and head down to "Settings." Once you’re in there, look for the "Appearance" section on the left-hand side. There’s a toggle switch labeled "Show home button." Flip that on. Now, a little house icon will appear next to your address bar. But you’re not done yet. You have to select the "Enter custom web address" option and type in https://www.aol.com.
If you want AOL to pop up every single time you open the browser—not just when you click the house—you need to scroll down further in Settings to the "On startup" section. Select "Open a specific page or set of pages," click "Add a new page," and paste that AOL URL again. Boom. Done.
Why Some People Struggle with Microsoft Edge
Microsoft Edge is built on the same engine as Chrome (Chromium), so the process is similar but the menus look different. It feels more "corporate." To get your AOL fix here, go to the three dots (...) and click "Settings." You're looking for "Start, home, and new tabs."
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Here’s the thing about Edge: it tries to force its own "News Feed" on you. It’s persistent. To bypass it, look for the "Home button" section, turn it on, and set the URL to AOL. Then, under "When Edge starts," choose "Open these pages" and add AOL there. It’s important to make sure you didn't accidentally leave "Open tabs from the previous session" checked, or else your AOL homepage won't show up if you closed the browser with twenty other tabs open.
Safari and the Mac Experience
Mac users have it a bit easier, or at least it feels more streamlined. If you’re using Safari and want to make AOL my homepage, you just go to the "Safari" menu at the top of your screen, then "Settings" (or "Preferences" on older versions of macOS). Under the "General" tab, you’ll see a box for "Homepage."
Just type in www.aol.com.
A quick tip: make sure the dropdown menu above it, "New windows open with," is set to "Homepage." If it’s set to "Empty Page" or "Favorites," your changes won't actually do anything, which is a common point of frustration for people who think they broke their computer. You didn't. It’s just a settings mismatch.
The Weird Persistence of AOL in the 2020s
It's actually fascinating that we're still talking about this. AOL, or America Online for those who remember the full name, was once the gatekeeper of the internet. In the late 90s, they had half of all American internet users. Then came the botched merger with Time Warner, the rise of broadband, and the slow decline of dial-up. Most people thought AOL would go the way of the dodo or MySpace.
But it didn't.
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Under various ownership shifts—from Verizon to Apollo Global Management—AOL has carved out a niche as a reliable news aggregator. It’s owned by Yahoo now (technically Yahoo Inc.), and it serves a very specific audience that values a curated, portal-style experience over the chaotic feed of an X (formerly Twitter) or a TikTok. When you make AOL my homepage, you’re opting into a specific style of digital lifestyle. It’s less about "what’s trending for 15 seconds" and more about "what’s happening in the world right now."
Mobile Browsers: Can You Do It?
This is where it gets tricky. If you’re on an iPhone or an Android, you can’t really set a "homepage" in the traditional sense within the Chrome or Safari mobile apps. Those apps are designed to open where you left off.
However, there’s a workaround.
On an iPhone, open Safari, go to aol.com, and tap the "Share" icon (the square with an arrow pointing up). Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen." This creates a little AOL icon on your phone that acts like an app. Tap it, and it goes straight to the site. Android users can do the same thing in Chrome by tapping the three dots and selecting "Add to Home screen." It's basically a shortcut, and honestly, it's faster than typing the URL every time you want to check your mail.
Troubleshooting: When the Homepage Won't Stick
Sometimes you do everything right and the settings just... disappear. It’s like the ghost of the internet past is messing with you. Usually, this happens because of one of three things:
- Browser Extensions: Some "security" or "search" extensions are actually hijackers. They want you to see their ads, so they reset your homepage every time you change it. If AOL won't stay put, check your extensions and disable anything you didn't specifically install.
- Managed Devices: If you're on a work laptop, your IT department might have locked the homepage settings. They want you to see the company portal, not your personal mail. There isn't much you can do about that without getting a stern email from Dave in IT.
- Sync Settings: If you use Chrome on your phone and your PC, sometimes the sync settings get confused. If you change it on one device and it reverts, try changing it while you're signed out of your Google account, then sign back in.
Why Bother? The Value of a "Portal"
The internet used to be organized. We had portals like AOL, Yahoo, and MSN. They were like the front page of a newspaper. Then we moved to a "search-first" internet with Google, and then a "social-first" internet with Facebook.
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Now, we’re seeing a bit of a "portal" resurgence. People are tired of the algorithm. They want a destination. When you make AOL my homepage, you’re going back to that idea of a "digital morning paper." You get your weather, your stocks, your celebrity gossip, and your inbox all in one glance. It’t efficient. It's simple.
Honestly, in an era of AI-generated slop and bot-filled social networks, there’s something comforting about a site that just tells you what happened in the world while you were asleep.
Safety and Security Check
A lot of people ask if AOL is still safe. Yes, it’s as safe as any other major web portal. Just because the brand is old doesn't mean the security is. They use standard encryption, and their mail service has some of the better spam filters out there—mostly because they’ve been fighting spam since 1993.
Just make sure you’re actually on aol.com and not some weird "aol-login-support.net" phishing site. If you’re setting it as your homepage, you’re already protecting yourself by ensuring you always land on the official, verified domain.
Moving Forward With Your New Setup
Once you’ve got it set up, take a second to customize the actual AOL page. If you’re signed in, you can often tweak what news categories show up first. Want more sports and less politics? You can usually nudge the settings to reflect that.
The goal here isn't just to have a homepage; it’s to have an internet experience that feels like it belongs to you again. Technology should serve you, not the other way around. Changing your homepage is a small, five-minute task, but it changes your first interaction with the digital world every single day.
Actionable Next Steps
- Check your extensions: Before you change your settings, delete any browser add-ons you don't recognize. This prevents the "homepage reset" headache.
- Clear your cache: If you’re switching from a different homepage, clearing your browser's cache ensures the new AOL layout loads fast and clean.
- Update your browser: Chrome, Edge, and Firefox update constantly. Make sure you’re on the latest version so the settings menus match the descriptions above.
- Set up 2FA: If you're using AOL for mail, go into your account settings and turn on Two-Factor Authentication. It’s the single best way to keep your account from getting hacked.
- Audit your "On Startup" settings: Decide if you want just AOL or if you want a second tab (like your calendar) to open alongside it. You can add multiple URLs in the startup section of most browsers.