YabArdia vs Chrome
Ardia is a free, open-source Chromium browser for the Mac that pairs Arc’s sidebar with Dia’s look: pinned tabs, profiles you swipe between, Split View, the Chrome Web Store and uBlock Origin built in.
Chrome is Google’s browser on every desktop and phone, with Gemini built in. Its auto browse agent works in your own signed-in Chrome on a paid Google AI plan, in the US and India.
The short answer
- if you want Arc’s sidebar on Chromium, free and open source
- if you want Chrome extensions and uBlock Origin built in
- if you don’t want AI in your browser
- if you live in Google’s apps and want Gemini across Gmail, Calendar and your tabs
- if you pay for Google AI Pro and want an agent in your own signed-in browser
- if you need the same browser on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android
- 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
Ardia and Chrome, with Yab beside them for a Mac.
| What | Ardia | Google Chrome | Yab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | Mantra (open-source project) | Serafim Korablev | |
| Status | Updated | Updated | Updated |
| Runs on | Mac | Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android | Mac |
| Phone app | None; Mac only | iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history | Yab for iPhone (TestFlight) and Yab for Android, both in beta; they sync spaces, tabs, bookmarks, history and chats |
| Price | Free and open source | Free, with Gemini; its auto browse agent needs Google AI Pro $19.99/month or Ultra | Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| AI | No AI | An agent that works in pages, on its own AI service | An agent that works in pages, on your Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| Driven by outside agents | No | MCP and a command line | MCP and a command line |
| Engine | Chromium | Chromium | WebKit |
| Tabs down the side | Yes | A setting | Yes |
| Spaces | Yes | No | Yes |
| Split View | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extensions | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store |
| Ad blocker | Built in | No | Built in |
| Open source | Yes | No | 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.
AIChrome leads
Only Chrome has an agent that clicks, types and finishes tasks in your pages. Ardia has no AI of its own. Gemini chats about your tabs and sums up pages and videos; auto browse clicks, types and fills forms in your own Chrome, on Google AI Pro or Ultra, in the US and India.
Agents like Claude Code and CodexChrome leads
Ardia has no MCP server or command line for outside agents. Chrome can be driven over MCP and a command line, through Google’s Chrome DevTools MCP, which starts its own profile unless you let it attach to your Chrome.
Tabs and windowsArdia leads
Ardia has tabs down the side, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep. Chrome has tabs down the side as a setting, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.
PriceChrome leads
Ardia: Free and open source. Chrome: Free, with Gemini; its auto browse agent needs Google AI Pro $19.99/month or Ultra.
Where it runsChrome leads
Ardia runs on Mac. Chrome runs on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. On a Mac, Ardia needs macOS 14 or later and Chrome needs macOS 13 or later. Ardia has no phone app: Mac only. On the phone, Chrome: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.
Engine and extensionsa matter of taste
Both are built on Chromium, as Chrome is, so sites work as they do in Chrome. Both take extensions from the Chrome Web Store.
PrivacyArdia leads
Ardia has an ad blocker built in and open code. Ardia syncs end to end encrypted through a folder in your own iCloud Drive, with no server of its maker in between; crash reports are opt-in. Chrome has no ad blocker of its own. Tabs you share with Gemini go to Google; with Keep Activity on, chats are kept 18 months by default and may be reviewed and used to train models.
What their pages don’t lead with
Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.
Ardia
- Mac only, Apple Silicon, macOS 14 or later
- New: first public in 2026, from a small open-source team
- No phone app
- No AI of its own
Google Chrome
- Auto browse needs Google AI Pro ($19.99 a month) or Ultra, in the US and India only
- Gemini needs a signed-in Google account
- With Keep Activity on, people may review your Gemini chats and Google may train on them
- No ad blocker of its own
Yab, honestly
- Mac only on the desktop: macOS 15.4 or later, no Windows; the iPhone and Android apps are in beta
- New: first released in September 2026
- Its AI needs a Claude or ChatGPT plan; ChatGPT’s free plan may work with low limits
- WebKit by default, as in Safari; Chrome’s engine is a choice in beta (Nightly) for sites made only for Chrome
- Closed source
What changed lately
- October 27, 2026Ardia: 0.2.42 released, with a nightly channel beside it
- April 7, 2026Chrome: Vertical tabs began rolling out as an option
- February 19, 2026Chrome: Split view for two tabs in one window
- January 28, 2026Chrome: Auto browse agent launched in preview for Google AI Pro and Ultra in the US
Questions
Is Ardia free?
Yes. Free and open source.
Is Google Chrome free?
Yes, with limits on its AI. Free, with Gemini; its auto browse agent needs Google AI Pro $19.99/month or Ultra.
Which has an AI agent, Ardia or Chrome?
Chrome. Ardia has no AI of its own. Gemini chats about your tabs and sums up pages and videos; auto browse clicks, types and fills forms in your own Chrome, on Google AI Pro or Ultra, in the US and India.
Which runs on Windows, Ardia or Chrome?
Chrome does. Ardia runs on Mac.
Do Ardia and Chrome have phone apps?
Chrome does. Ardia has no phone app: Mac only. On the phone, Chrome: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.
Can I move from Chrome to Ardia?
Yes: Ardia’s own help says it brings in from Chrome.
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 Ardia; an agent in your signed-in tabs like Chrome’s, 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, with Chrome’s engine as a choice in beta, and takes Chrome extensions. It is new, and its iPhone and Android apps are in beta.
More comparisons
- Ardia home page
- Ardia repo (GPL-3.0, Chromium, README features)
- Ardia 0.2.42 release
- Google blog: Gemini auto browse in Chrome
- 9to5Google: auto browse launch date (2026-01-28)
- Google blog: Gemini in Chrome for US desktop users (Sept 2025)
- Google blog: auto browse comes to India
- Chrome AI features page
- Chrome Help: Gemini in Chrome requirements
- Google AI plans and prices
- Google blog: split view, PDF notes (2026-02-19)
- Google blog: vertical tabs and reading mode (2026-04-07)
- Chrome Help: manage tabs, vertical tabs, tab groups
- Chrome Help: Memory Saver
- Chrome Help: system requirements
- Chrome Help: import bookmarks and settings
- Gemini Apps Privacy Hub
- Chrome DevTools MCP (GitHub)
- Chrome DevTools MCP configuration (autoConnect, profile)
- Chrome DevTools CLI
- Google Chrome Help: Sign in and sync in Chrome
- Google Chrome on the App Store (iPhone and iPad)
- Google Chrome on Google Play
- 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 for iPhone on TestFlight
Yab, Yet Another Browser.
Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.