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I've noticed that, for some reason, website elements display in Chrome as much larger than in Firefox. I have looked at several websites on several different computers in my house and through browser settings and can't understand what might be causing this difference.

All the computers I tried have Windows 7 operating system

  • Chrome Version 60.0.3112.90
  • Firefox Version 54.0.1

I have already checked:

  • zoom level, all browsers are at 100%
  • default font size, Chrome says 'medium' aka default and firefox is at 16 which I am pretty sure is also default
  • Different websites, including one not using variable units like REM or EM
  • Different computers (all are Windows 7)

Questions:

  • Has anyone else experienced this issue?
  • What other settings might be affecting this?
  • How can I make them look the same?

Google logo in Chrome and Opera:

Google Logo in Chrome

Google logo in Firefox and IE:

Google logo in firefox

Edit: Can confirm this most likely happens only on Windows 7 computers, although I doubt it is a matter of wrong configuration because it is on every Windows 7 computer I test

Edit 2: I can technically make Chrome appear the right size by going into my computer options and changing the text size from "medium" to "small". Of course this makes everything else tiny so its not a great solution but it shows that Chrome is using that setting somehow.

Niahc
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    Was just fighting this yesterday. The page is the same size but chrome uses a slightly smaller font than firefox, so when I look at my page with firefox some of the lines wrap, that are displayed as single lines by chrome. – Glenn Randers-Pehrson Aug 15 '17 at 02:42
  • did you set the dpi to higher than 100%? – phuclv Aug 15 '17 at 03:16
  • I don't know how to set dpi - is that a setting on my computer or in the browser? – Niahc Aug 15 '17 at 16:25
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    Chrome doesn't support hidpi and doesn't respect [system dpi setting](http://www.lawfirmsoftware.com/support/change_dpi_settings_windows_7.htm) so it may happen if the dpi setting is not 100% – phuclv Aug 19 '17 at 14:47
  • About 50% larger in Chrome than Firefox. Seems stupid, so I'm going to blame Microsoft. Yes, I use nonstandard Windows settings so I can see what it displays! But Chrome and Firefox should both do the same thing. – David Spector May 14 '21 at 18:14

1 Answers1

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can't comment, so I post an answer. It's a combination of Chrome version and Windows settings. Some people have luck with adjusting the settings, but for most cases you have to live with them.

How to adjust UI scaling for Chrome?

Natalia
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  • I got pretty excited because I have never seen those settings before, there is even a "windows 7 compatibility mode". Alas, no luck for me. Its a bit awkward because I am a web developer and my client has this issue, its going to be difficult to design around a buggy browser. – Niahc Aug 17 '17 at 17:58
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    Why so few complaints, and why no interest in having all browsers do the same thing? I'm creating websites, and it just seems wrong to show different size stuff on different browsers. No one cares? – David Spector May 14 '21 at 18:16