Cromite vs Waterfox
Cromite
cromite.org
Waterfox
waterfox.comSide by side
| Figure | Cromite | Waterfox |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $5/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · Web browsers | 8.4 (#44) | 9.3 (#3) |
| Spec score · Privacy browsers | 8.3 (#13) | 9.3 (#2) |
| Browser engine | chromium | gecko |
| Built-in ad blocking | Yes | Yes |
| Cross-device sync | No | Yes |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Supported platforms | both | Downloads are listed for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android; Windows requires Windows 10 or later, macOS 10.15 or later, and Linux glibc 2.17 or later. |
| Product | Cromite is a Chromium fork based on Bromite with built-in ad blocking and privacy enhancements. | Waterfox is a free, open source web browser focused on privacy and customisation. |
| Support | The project directs users to submit issues through GitHub and use GitHub Discussions for usage or development discussion. | Waterfox provides help articles for browsing, privacy and security, customization, troubleshooting and Android. |
Plans
In their own words
Cromite
Cromite is a free, open-source Chromium fork based on Bromite, available for Android, Linux and Windows. Its modified Adblock Plus engine adds DNS CNAME support and blocks WebSockets, WebTransport URLs and service worker fetches. Privacy measures include API restrictions, canvas and audio mitigations, and cookie partitioning by top-frame domain. Network prediction features such as DNS and page prefetching are disabled by default and cannot be reactivated. Cromite also disables Google Sync, browser sign-in, Translate, metrics reporting, component updates and several other Google integrations. Listed security defaults include StrictOriginIsolation, SitePerProcess, secure DNS-over-HTTPS and Certificate Transparency; JavaScript JIT is off by default. The maker says anti-fingerprinting protections are not comprehensive and does not consider Cromite suitable for journalists or people living under freedom restrictions. It does not support DRM media or extensions on Android. Android builds are available for ARM, ARM64 and x86, while Windows and Linux builds are 64-bit. The project directs issues and discussion to GitHub.
Waterfox
Waterfox is a free, open-source web browser built around privacy and customisation. It uses the Gecko engine and is listed for Android, browser extensions, Linux, macOS and Windows. On desktop, it blocks ads, trackers, pop-ups and overlays by default; filter lists and site exceptions can be adjusted. Private tabs use their own container, and Waterfox removes that container’s site data when the final private tab closes. DNS requests are encrypted and passed through an Oblivious HTTP relay; users can change or disable the default Fastly-operated relay and Cloudflare-operated resolver. Tree tabs nest pages under the page that opened them, with branches that can be collapsed or moved together. Firefox WebExtensions work, but Chrome-only extensions do not transfer automatically. Regular updates incorporate Mozilla security fixes using the Firefox ESR model. Waterfox says telemetry, health reports and crash reports are disabled at build time. Sync is off until Mozilla-account sign-in, and synced data is end-to-end encrypted. The browser plan is free, with no premium tier or required payment.