This site will have limited functionality while we undergo maintenance to improve your experience. If an article doesn't solve your issue and you want to ask a question, we have our support community waiting to help you at @FirefoxSupport on Twitter and/r/firefox on Reddit.

Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Search bar does not close, always active

more options

Hi all,

This problem started tody after few months with firefox- the search bar appaears at bottom of page and never closes. I try to close it and it doesn't react. When trying to type in any web page, the search bar takes over and takes the text I try to type in any other field. I did a complete Virus scan and anti malware sacn with Windows defender, uninstalled Mozilla and still same problem. Also removed all old Mozilla files from %Appdata% etc.

Will be happy to get your advise

Hi all, This problem started tody after few months with firefox- the search bar appaears at bottom of page and never closes. I try to close it and it doesn't react. When trying to type in any web page, the search bar takes over and takes the text I try to type in any other field. I did a complete Virus scan and anti malware sacn with Windows defender, uninstalled Mozilla and still same problem. Also removed all old Mozilla files from %Appdata% etc. Will be happy to get your advise

All Replies (3)

more options

What's your computer system and Firefox version?


Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link} by holding down the <Shift> (Mac=Options) key, and then starting Firefox.

A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Is the problem still there?

more options
more options

When the bar's text input area is blank, what does the "placeholder" text say?

  • "Find in page" is the usual text for Firefox's Find bar (Ctrl+f)
  • "Quick find" is the usual text for Firefox's Quick Find bar (/ key outside of text editing areas)