Microsoft Edge 156 Is Here: What’s New and How to Use It

What’s new in Microsoft Edge 156? Three things you’ll notice: site permissions that look and work the same in the address bar, the site information panel and Settings; autofill for passports, driver’s licenses and other documents; and a key icon in the address bar that now opens full login details with copy buttons and notes. To get it, go to edge://settings/help and let Edge check for updates.

Version 156.0.4314.42 reached the Stable channel on October 22, 2026, according to Microsoft’s Edge Stable release notes. Updates roll out gradually, so some PCs get it a few days later than others. If you already see version 156 or higher, you’re up to date.

How to update Microsoft Edge to version 156

You need an internet connection and about a minute. Edge restarts at the end, so save anything you’re typing first.

2

Restart and confirm the version

If an update is found, Edge downloads it and shows a Restart button. Select it to finish. If you see Microsoft Edge is up to date, there is nothing to install.

You’re finished when: the version line reads 156.0.4314.42 or a higher number. No update offered yet? The rollout is staggered, so check again in a day or two.

New to the browser or setting it up on a fresh PC? Our Microsoft Edge for Windows guide covers the basics.

Site permissions now look the same everywhere

When a site asks for your location, camera, microphone or notifications, Edge 156 uses one consistent design for the request and for the controls you use later. Microsoft says it changed the address bar prompt and the site information panel, and made permissions easier to see and change in Settings. Here’s where to find each one.

1

Answer the prompt in the address bar

When a site asks for access, a small panel drops down from the left of the address bar. Choose Allow, Just this time or Block.

Check: after you allow access, a matching icon (a location pin, for example) appears on the right side of the address bar.

2

Change your mind from the site information panel

Select the icon at the far left of the address bar to open the site information panel. Under Permissions for this site, flip a toggle off or select Reset to default.

Check: the toggle turns gray and the site has to ask again next time.

3

Review every site in Settings

Go to edge://settings/privacy/sitePermissions, or Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Site permissions. Recent activity lists the latest changes, All sites shows everything you’ve granted, and each permission type has its own page.

Check: the site you just allowed appears at the top with its permission listed under it.

Autofill now covers passports and driver’s licenses

Edge has filled in names and addresses for years. In version 156, Microsoft says the desktop browser can also fill in additional document types, including passports, driver’s licenses and other specialized forms. That helps with travel bookings, car rentals and government forms that ask for the same numbers every time.

2

Add a document

Select Add and pick a document type. Our Edge 156 install offered Driver’s license, ID card, Known Traveler Number, Passport, Redress number and Vehicle. Fill in the form that opens and save it.

Check: the document replaces the No documents added line, and Edge suggests it the next time a form asks for those details.

The key icon now shows full login details

When you visit a site with a saved password, a key icon appears in the address bar. In Edge 156 it does more than fill in the form. You can open any saved login for that site, copy the username or password, and keep notes alongside it without opening the full password manager.

2

Open a login and copy what you need

Select a login to open its details. Use the copy buttons next to the username and password, or the eye icon to reveal the password first.

Check: pasting into another app or field gives you the username or password you copied.

The key icon is part of Microsoft Password Manager, which added passkey sync in late 2025, as we covered in Edge’s passkey sync launch.

Other Edge 156 changes that could affect you

Most of the remaining release notes are aimed at IT departments, but four items are worth knowing about:

• Sign in again after version 157, maybe. Microsoft is finishing a move to a newer sign-in system on Windows in Edge 157. Most profiles have already switched automatically. In rare cases you may need to sign in to Edge again after that update.
• XSLT is going away. Edge will stop running XSLT, an older technology for turning XML files into readable pages, by default in the Stable channel with version 159. A few older business apps and XML feeds use it. Most everyday websites don’t rely on it.
• Copilot address redirect. Microsoft is redirecting Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat in Edge, and companies that filter web traffic should allow cloud.microsoft addresses before it happens. Home users don’t need to do anything.
• Work PCs may ask about startup. On managed devices, Edge is starting to ask whether it should open automatically when Windows starts. It’s a gradual rollout, and your IT team can set the choice for you.

Microsoft also fixed a bug that stopped some existing profiles from opening Edge after a scheduled update restart from the Microsoft Edge management service, which also only affects managed PCs.

Watch: a quick Edge 156 walkthrough

BrenTech’s three-minute video shows how to check for version 156 and runs through the new permissions design and the expanded autofill.

When is Edge 157 coming?

Edge has moved to a new major version every two weeks since version 152. On Microsoft’s release schedule, Edge 157 is due in the Stable channel during the week of November 5, 2026, followed by Edge 158 in the week of November 19. Businesses on the Extended Stable channel get a major update every eight weeks instead, and version 156 is one of those releases.

Source: Winaero’s Edge 156 summary, alongside Microsoft’s release notes linked above.