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SPECIFICTION
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Google Chrome vs Waterfox

Google Chrome

google.com

Waterfox

waterfox.com

Side by side

FigureGoogle ChromeWaterfox
Price fromFree$5/mo
Free planYesYes
Free trial—Yes
Open source—Yes
WebYes—
WindowsYesYes
macOSYesYes
LinuxYesYes
iOSYes—
AndroidYesYes
Plans published12
Spec score · Web browsers9.1 (#8)9.3 (#3)
Browser enginechromiumgecko
Cross-device accessSigning in provides access to bookmarks, saved passwords, and more across devices.Yes
Free planYesYes
Supported platformsbothDownloads 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.
PrivacyChrome’s Privacy Guide provides a step-by-step tour of privacy settings.The privacy policy says Waterfox telemetry, health reports and crash reports are disabled and locked off at build time.
ProductChrome is a web browser for browsing the web.Waterfox is a free, open source web browser focused on privacy and customisation.
SupportGoogle provides Chrome Help and a help community for installation and other Chrome issues.Waterfox provides help articles for browsing, privacy and security, customization, troubleshooting and Android.
Tab managementChrome lets users group, label, and color-code tabs.Tree tabs nest pages under the page that opened them and let users collapse or move a branch together.

Plans

Google Chrome

  • Google ChromeFree

Google Chrome pricing →

Waterfox

  • WaterfoxFree
  • Waterfox Private Search$5 a month

Waterfox pricing →

In their own words

Google Chrome

Google Chrome is a free web browser for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS, with extensions available through the Chrome Web Store. It supports tab groups with labels and colors, plus Energy Saver and Memory Saver tools. Signing in provides access to bookmarks and saved passwords across devices, and Google Password Manager is built in. Safe Browsing warns about known dangerous websites, downloads, and extensions; Safety Check reviews passwords, extensions, settings, privacy, and security. Privacy Guide offers a step-by-step tour of privacy settings. Google says Chrome receives a new update every four weeks. Its AI features include AI Mode for follow-up questions and web links, and Gemini, which can use open tabs and browsing history to help users understand web content and complete tasks. Auto browse is limited to Google AI Ultra and Pro subscribers in the U.S. Chrome requires supported operating systems: Mac requires macOS 13 Ventura or later, Android requires version 10 or later, and iOS requires version 17 or later. Older Windows and macOS versions may no longer receive updates.

Visit google.com

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.

Visit waterfox.com