Aside vs Arc

We make Yab, the third column.facts checked Oct 9 ↓

Aside is an AI agent browser from a Y Combinator startup, on Chromium, for Mac and Windows. Its agent does multi-step work in the sites you are signed in to, on Aside’s own models or your ChatGPT or Claude plan.

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.

The short answer

Pick Aside

if you want an agent for multi-step work across your signed-in sites, on Mac or Windows
if you want a free plan with AI credits, or to bring your ChatGPT or Claude plan
if you want Claude Code or Codex to drive it over MCP or its command line

Pick Arc

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

Or Yabours

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

Aside and Arc, with Yab beside them for a Mac.

Aside vs Arc
What	Aside	Arc	Yab
Made by	Aside Computer Inc. (YC Fall 2025)	The Browser Company (Atlassian)	Serafim Korablev
Status	Updated	Security fixes only	Updated
Runs on	Mac and Windows	Mac and Windows	Mac
Phone app	None yet; an iPhone app is in the works. Pro runs its agent from Slack or Telegram	Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins	Not yet
Price	Free with 500 AI credits a month; Pro $20/month; Max $200/month; or your own ChatGPT or Claude plan	Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too	Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan
AI	An agent that works in pages, on its own AI or yours	Chat about pages, on its own AI service	An agent that works in pages, on your Claude or ChatGPT plan
Driven by outside agents	MCP and a command line	No	MCP and a command line
Engine	Chromium	Chromium	WebKit
Tabs down the side	Yes	Yes	Yes
Spaces	Yes	Yes	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	No	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.

AIAside leads

Only Aside has an agent that clicks, types and finishes tasks in your pages. Aside’s agent runs multi-step tasks in your signed-in sites, signs in from its own password vault without seeing the passwords, and asks before payments, posts and messages. 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.

Agents like Claude Code and CodexAside leads

Aside can be driven over MCP and a command line, through the aside command line, with aside mcp as its MCP server. Arc has no MCP server or command line for outside agents.

Tabs and windowseven

Both have tabs down the side, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.

PriceArc leads

Aside: Free with 500 AI credits a month; Pro $20/month; Max $200/month; or your own ChatGPT or Claude plan. Arc: Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too.

Where it runseven

Both run on Mac and Windows. On a Mac, Aside needs macOS 15 or later and Arc needs macOS 13 or later. Aside has no phone app yet: an iPhone app is in the works. Pro runs its agent from Slack or Telegram. On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins.

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.

PrivacyAside leads

Aside has an ad blocker built in. Aside keeps task transcripts and files on your Mac; model providers get the prompts, page snapshots and screenshots a task needs, and analytics sharing is on by default. 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.

UpdatesAside leads

Aside is updated as usual. Arc: No new features since May 2025; Chromium security updates still come, the latest on October 8, 2026.

What their pages don’t lead with

Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.

Aside

The free plan has 500 AI credits a month; more is Pro at $20 or Max at $200
Mac (macOS 15 or later) and Windows only, no phone apps
Young: first released in February 2026, on Windows since September 2026
Agents may use your saved passwords unless you change the default

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

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 21, 2026Aside: Ad blocking with default filter lists turned on during setup
September 14, 2026Aside: Windows version officially available (release 1.0.914.1)
February 25, 2026Aside: First Aside Browser release for macOS
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 Aside free?

Yes, with limits on its AI. Free with 500 AI credits a month; Pro $20/month; Max $200/month; or your own ChatGPT or Claude plan.

Is Arc free?

Yes. Free; its Arc Max AI helpers are free too.

Which has an AI agent, Aside or Arc?

Aside. Aside’s agent runs multi-step tasks in your signed-in sites, signs in from its own password vault without seeing the passwords, and asks before payments, posts and messages. 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.

Do Aside and Arc run on Windows?

Yes, both. Aside runs on Mac and Windows; Arc on Mac and Windows.

Do Aside and Arc have phone apps?

Aside has no phone app yet: an iPhone app is in the works. Pro runs its agent from Slack or Telegram. On the phone, Arc: Arc Search on iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it shows your desktop spaces and pins.

Can I move from Arc to Aside?

Yes: Aside’s own help says it brings in from Arc.

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 Aside; an agent in your signed-in tabs like Aside’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, and takes Chrome extensions. It is Mac only, and new.

More comparisons

Aside vs Dia Aside vs Comet Aside vs Atlas Aside vs Opera Neon Aside vs Chrome Aside vs Safari Aside vs Edge Aside alternatives Yab vs Aside Vivaldi vs Arc Zen vs Arc Orion vs Arc SigmaOS vs Arc Arc vs Chrome Arc vs Safari Arc vs Edge Arc alternatives Yab vs Arc

Sources, read October 9, 2026. Something out of date? Write to hello@serafimlabs.io and we fix it.

Yab, Yet Another Browser.

Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.

it’s freeMove from Aside Download