Lynx vs Tor Browser
Lynx
lynx.invisible-island.net
Tor Browser
torproject.orgSide by side
| Figure | Lynx | Tor Browser |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 1 |
| Spec score · Web browsers | 7.3 (#137) | 9.1 (#10) |
| Downloads | The stable release page offers Lynx 2.9.3 as ZIP, gzip tar, and bzip2 tar distribution files. | Tor Browser is available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Supported platforms | desktop | both |
| Support | The development page directs questions or comments to the lynx-dev mailing list, whose archive is linked there. | Tor Project provides a user support team and recommends its public forum for help; its support channels focus on assisting Tor users in censored regions. |
Plans
In their own words
Lynx
Lynx has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
Tor Browser
Tor Browser routes its own web traffic through the Tor network to help hide a user's real IP address and resist tracking, surveillance, and censorship. Based on Mozilla Firefox ESR, it adds measures such as letterboxing, user-agent spoofing, and first-party isolation to make browser fingerprinting harder. Connections to different websites use different Tor circuits, while connections to the same website address use the same circuit. HTTPS-Only Mode upgrades connections to HTTPS where possible. Standard, Safer, and Safest security levels restrict browser features to varying degrees, which can cause some pages to work improperly. The browser can access onion services, and users in censored regions can configure bridges during setup. It is free, open-source software for Android, Linux, macOS, and Windows. Only Tor Browser traffic goes through Tor; other applications on the device are not automatically protected. The Tor Project recommends verifying download signatures and strongly discourages extra browser add-ons because they can affect privacy, security, or functionality.