YabArc vs Firefox
Arc is The Browser Company’s Chromium browser for Mac and Windows that put tabs down the side, with spaces, folders and Split View. It has had no new features since May 2025; it still gets security fixes, and its makers point people to Dia.
Firefox is Mozilla’s open-source browser on its own engine, Gecko, on every desktop and phone. Its AI is optional: a Smart Window beta and a sidebar chatbot, all behind one switch.
The short answer
- if you use it today and want its sidebar, spaces and Split View exactly as they are
- if you want a free browser with no paid AI plans
- if you need the same layout on Windows
- if you want an open-source browser that isn’t Chromium
- if you want AI off by default, or gone with one switch
- if you want a free browser VPN, where it is offered
- if you miss Arc and want spaces, pins and folders kept, on a Mac
- if you already pay for Claude or ChatGPT and want it to work in your signed-in tabs
- if you want Claude Code, Codex or Cursor to drive a real browser over MCP
At a glance
Arc and Firefox, with Yab beside them for a Mac.
| What | Arc | Firefox | Yab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | The Browser Company (Atlassian) | Mozilla | Serafim Korablev |
| Status | Security fixes only | Updated | Updated |
| Runs on | Mac and Windows | Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android | Mac |
| Phone app | Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins | iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history | Not yet |
| Price | Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too | Free; its built-in VPN is free up to 50 GB a month | Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| AI | Chat about pages, on its own AI service | Chat about pages, on its own AI or yours | An agent that works in pages, on your Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| Driven by outside agents | No | MCP | MCP and a command line |
| Engine | Chromium | Gecko | WebKit |
| Tabs down the side | Yes | A setting | Yes |
| Spaces | Yes | No | Yes |
| Split View | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extensions | Chrome Web Store | Firefox add-ons | Chrome Web Store |
| Ad blocker | No | No | Built in |
| Open source | No | Yes | No |
Checked October 9, 2026 on each maker’s own pages, linked under Sources. Prices are per month, in US dollars.
Where they differ
What separates them, area by area. Where one plainly has more, it says who; where it comes down to taste, it says so.
AIa matter of taste
Both have AI to ask about pages, and neither does the clicking for you. Arc Max helpers tidy tab titles and downloads, preview links and put ChatGPT in the command bar; Ask on Page was removed in August 2025, and there is no agent. Firefox’s Smart Window beta chats with tabs you share and groups them, and a sidebar chatbot can use Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Le Chat or Copilot; it can’t click or fill forms, and one switch turns all AI off.
Agents like Claude Code and CodexFirefox leads
Arc has no MCP server or command line for outside agents. Firefox can be driven over MCP, through Mozilla’s Firefox DevTools MCP, which starts its own Firefox.
Tabs and windowsArc leads
Arc has tabs down the side, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep. Firefox has tabs down the side as a setting, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.
Priceeven
Arc: Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too. Firefox: Free; its built-in VPN is free up to 50 GB a month.
Where it runsFirefox leads
Arc runs on Mac and Windows. Firefox runs on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. On a Mac, Arc needs macOS 13 or later and Firefox needs macOS 10.15 or later. On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins. On the phone, Firefox: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.
Engine and extensionsa matter of taste
Arc is built on Chromium, as Chrome is; Firefox on Gecko, Firefox’s engine. Arc takes extensions from the Chrome Web Store, Firefox from Firefox’s add-ons.
PrivacyFirefox leads
Arc has no ad blocker of its own. Arc needs an account; The Browser Company says it doesn’t see which sites you visit, and Arc Max sends page data to OpenAI and Anthropic. Firefox has a VPN and open code. Smart Window sends prompts and what you share through Mozilla’s servers to partner models; Mozilla says it keeps no chat logs without permission and doesn’t train on them.
UpdatesFirefox leads
Arc: No new features since May 2025; Chromium security updates still come, the latest on October 8, 2026. Firefox is updated as usual.
What their pages don’t lead with
Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.
Arc
- No new features since May 2025, only security updates
- Needs an Arc account
- No ad blocker of its own
- On phones, Arc Search is a separate search app
Firefox
- Its Smart Window AI is a beta in the US, Canada and France and needs a Mozilla account
- Its AI can’t click, fill forms or buy for you
- The free VPN covers the browser only, up to 50 GB a month, in a few countries
- Firefox add-ons only, not the Chrome Web Store
Yab, honestly
- Mac only: macOS 15.4 or later, no Windows, iPhone or Android
- New: first released in September 2026
- Its AI needs a Claude or ChatGPT plan; ChatGPT’s free plan may work with low limits
- WebKit, as in Safari: a site tested only in Chrome can misbehave
- Closed source
What changed lately
- September 16, 2026Firefox: Smart Window beta expanded from the US and Canada to France
- March 24, 2026Firefox: Firefox 149 added split view and a free built-in VPN
- February 24, 2026Firefox: Firefox 148 added AI Controls with a switch that blocks all AI features
- October 21, 2025Arc: Atlassian completed its purchase of The Browser Company
- August 28, 2025Arc: Ask On Page removed from Arc Max
- May 26, 2025Arc: The Browser Company stopped feature work on Arc to focus on Dia
Questions
Is Arc free?
Yes. Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too.
Is Firefox free?
Yes. Free; its built-in VPN is free up to 50 GB a month.
Which has an AI agent, Arc or Firefox?
Neither has an agent that does tasks in your pages. Arc Max helpers tidy tab titles and downloads, preview links and put ChatGPT in the command bar; Ask on Page was removed in August 2025, and there is no agent. Firefox’s Smart Window beta chats with tabs you share and groups them, and a sidebar chatbot can use Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Le Chat or Copilot; it can’t click or fill forms, and one switch turns all AI off.
Do Arc and Firefox run on Windows?
Yes, both. Arc runs on Mac and Windows; Firefox on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android.
Do Arc and Firefox have phone apps?
On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins. On the phone, Firefox: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.
Can I move from Firefox to Arc?
Yes: Arc’s own help says it brings in from Firefox.
Is Arc still being updated?
No new features since May 2025; Chromium security updates still come, the latest on October 8, 2026.
Is there a third option on a Mac?
Yab, Yet Another Browser, is free for the Mac: tabs down the side with spaces, folders and Split View, as in Arc; an agent that works in your signed-in tabs, on the Claude or ChatGPT plan you already pay for. Claude Code, Codex and any MCP client can drive it too. It runs on WebKit, the engine Safari uses, and takes Chrome extensions. It is Mac only, and new.
More comparisons
- Arc home page (Chromium updates only, Mac and Windows downloads)
- Letter to Arc members, 2025-05-26
- Arc for macOS release notes
- Arc for Windows release notes
- Arc macOS update feed (minimum macOS 13.0; universal binary)
- Arc unsupported devices
- Arc Max help article
- Arc import help article
- Arc ad blocking and Manifest V3
- Arc saved passwords
- Why Arc needs an account
- Arc Spaces
- Arc Split View
- Arc Folders
- Arc Search for iOS and Android
- Arc Search on the App Store (1.48.0, 2026-08-12)
- Arc Search for Android release notes
- Arc privacy policy
- Atlassian completes acquisition of The Browser Company (Business Wire)
- Arc Help: Arc Sync (what syncs, not on Android)
- Google Play: Arc Search (updated Sep 1, 2026)
- Arc Help: Arc Search for iOS release notes (iPad layout, June 20, 2024)
- TidBITS: Arc Search iPhone app now syncs Arc sidebar tabs (2024-04-29)
- Mozilla blog: Smart Window
- Mozilla Support: get started with Smart Window
- Mozilla Support: model choices in Smart Window
- Smart Window privacy notice
- Firefox.com: Smart Window
- Mozilla blog: window types (2026-09-24)
- Mozilla blog: AI on your terms (AI controls)
- Firefox 148 release notes
- Firefox 149 release notes (split view, VPN)
- Mozilla blog: free built-in VPN
- Firefox 136 release notes (vertical tabs)
- Firefox 138 release notes (tab groups)
- Bugzilla 1730066: tab unloading enabled on macOS (Firefox 95)
- Firefox system requirements
- Firefox ESR 115 release notes (import sources)
- Firefox DevTools MCP (Mozilla)
- Firefox.com: Firefox browser sync
- Firefox on the App Store (iPhone and iPad)
- Firefox on Google Play
- Mozilla Support: Sync Firefox data
- Yab Manual: Bringing in from another browser
- Yab Manual: Connecting Claude or ChatGPT
- Yab Manual: Extensions
- Yab Manual: Yab’s tools over MCP
- Yab Manual: Privacy
Yab, Yet Another Browser.
Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.