It is essential to stop using Chrome.
Under the pretense of saving users from third-party spyware, Google is creating an ecosystem in which Chrome itself is the spyware.
Given Google's overwhelming presence in the browser market, this is unconscionable.
We should all despise the ad-tech business, and have no sympathy for the companies getting whacked by Google's actions. But we should not permit one monopolist to replace them all.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/12/year-review-googles-corporate-paternalism-browser
Try the startpage search engine. It has been much better for me than DDG.
Firefox allows you to select a home page, tho? Not sure what your problem with Firefox is.
On android firefox just doesn’t perform so well as Chrome does and can seem slow and buggy.
Did you install uBlock yet?