Baidu Browser for Windows (discontinued)

Baidu Browser was a free web browser for Windows developed by Baidu, the Chinese search company, with its first release in 2011. The last Windows build was 43.23.1007.94; Baidu discontinued the browser on 30 September 2019, and it is kept on this page only as an archive download for research and old setups.

What Baidu Browser was

In the early 2010s, Chinese internet companies competed to put their own browser on every PC, because a browser controls the home page and the default search. Baidu joined with a product that combined a Chromium-based engine for modern sites with a compatibility mode for pages written for old Internet Explorer, which were still common on Chinese banking and government portals. The browser integrated Baidu search, a start page with shortcuts and news, cloud sync of bookmarks through a Baidu account, a download accelerator, video and audio sniffing tools, and a gallery of skins. An international version, sometimes known under the Spark browser name, targeted users outside China with a similar feature set. Mobile versions existed as well, including one for iOS. After several years, Baidu stopped development and closed the service on 30 September 2019 without naming a successor.

Privacy and security issues

Baidu Browser was criticised by security researchers who found that it transmitted personal data, such as search terms, visited addresses and device identifiers, with weak or no encryption, and that its update process could be abused. Those problems were part of its reputation even before development ended. Today the program has an outdated engine and receives no fixes at all.

Can you still use it?

The archived installer, about 45.96 MB according to catalogue data, is available here for software historians, testers and people who need to inspect old behaviour. We do not recommend it for everyday browsing: sync, cloud features and Baidu account functions may not work, many modern sites will not display correctly, and security holes will never be patched. If you want to look at it, run it in a virtual machine or on an isolated test PC, and do not sign in to accounts or enter passwords.

What happened to user data?

With the service closed, bookmarks and settings synced through a Baidu account can no longer be relied on through the browser. If you still have an old installation, export bookmarks to an HTML file from its settings, if the option works, and import them into a current browser. Afterwards, uninstall the program and remove its leftover folders, so that no outdated components stay on the system.

Price

Baidu Browser was always free.

Pros and cons

• Pro: dual engine for old IE-only sites (historically).
• Pro: built-in download and media tools.
• Con: discontinued, no more updates.
• Con: documented privacy problems.
• Con: outdated engine, poor compatibility with current sites.

Alternatives

For a supported browser, choose Microsoft Edge, which also has an Internet Explorer mode for legacy sites. Other browsers on our site include Opera, Chromium, Firefox ESR and QQ Browser.