Aside vs Comet

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.

Comet is Perplexity’s free Chromium browser for Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, with Perplexity’s search and an assistant that can act on pages for you.

Both have agents that act in your signed-in sites. Aside can run on your own ChatGPT or Claude plan and lets Claude Code or Codex drive it over MCP; Comet runs on Perplexity’s AI and is on phones too.

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 Comet

if you use Perplexity and want its search and agent in the browser
if you want one AI browser on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android
if you want a free Chromium browser with an ad blocker built in

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 Comet, with Yab beside them for a Mac.

Aside vs Comet
What	Aside	Perplexity Comet	Yab
Made by	Aside Computer Inc. (YC Fall 2025)	Perplexity	Serafim Korablev
Status	Updated	Updated	Updated
Runs on	Mac and Windows	Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android	Mac
Phone app	None yet; an iPhone app is in the works. Pro runs its agent from Slack or Telegram	iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it syncs bookmarks and history with desktop Comet	Not yet
Price	Free with 500 AI credits a month; Pro $20/month; Max $200/month; or your own ChatGPT or Claude plan	Free; Comet Plus $5/month; Perplexity Pro $20/month or Max $200/month for more AI and agent use	Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan
AI	An agent that works in pages, on its own AI or yours	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	MCP and a command line	No	MCP and a command line
Engine	Chromium	Chromium	WebKit
Tabs down the side	Yes	Not stated	Yes
Spaces	Yes	Not stated	Yes
Split View	Yes	Yes	Yes
Extensions	Chrome Web Store	Chrome Web Store	Chrome Web Store
Ad blocker	Built in	Built in	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.

AIa matter of taste

Both have an agent that works 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. Comet’s assistant answers about pages and open tabs and can click, fill forms and navigate for you, asking before it acts.

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. Comet has no MCP server or command line for outside agents.

Tabs and windowsAside leads

Aside has tabs down the side, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep. Comet has Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.

Priceeven

Aside: Free with 500 AI credits a month; Pro $20/month; Max $200/month; or your own ChatGPT or Claude plan. Comet: Free; Comet Plus $5/month; Perplexity Pro $20/month or Max $200/month for more AI and agent use.

Where it runsComet leads

Aside runs on Mac and Windows. Comet runs on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. On a Mac, Aside needs macOS 15 or later and Comet 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, Comet: iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it syncs bookmarks and history with desktop Comet.

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.

Privacyeven

Both have 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. Comet keeps history, cookies and passwords on your device unless you sync; the assistant sends the page it needs to Perplexity, kept up to 30 days.

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

Perplexity Comet

Free use of the assistant is limited; more agent use is Pro at $20 or Max at $200
No MCP server or command line from Perplexity for coding agents
Researchers showed prompt-injection attacks on its agent in 2025 (CometJacking)

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)
August 4, 2026Comet: Ninth Circuit vacated the injunction Amazon won against Comet’s shopping agent
March 18, 2026Comet: Comet for iPhone released
February 25, 2026Aside: First Aside Browser release for macOS
October 2, 2025Comet: Browser made free for everyone worldwide

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 Perplexity Comet free?

Yes, with limits on its AI. Free; Comet Plus $5/month; Perplexity Pro $20/month or Max $200/month for more AI and agent use.

Which has an AI agent, Aside or Comet?

Both. 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. Comet’s assistant answers about pages and open tabs and can click, fill forms and navigate for you, asking before it acts.

Do Aside and Comet run on Windows?

Yes, both. Aside runs on Mac and Windows; Comet on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android.

Do Aside and Comet have phone apps?

Comet does. Aside has no phone app yet: an iPhone app is in the works. Pro runs its agent from Slack or Telegram. On the phone, Comet: iPhone, iPad and Android; on iPhone it syncs bookmarks and history with desktop Comet.

Can I move from Comet to Aside?

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

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 Atlas Aside vs Opera Neon Tabbit vs Aside Aside vs Chrome Aside vs Safari Aside vs Edge Aside alternatives Yab vs Aside Comet vs Dia Atlas vs Comet Opera Neon vs Comet Tabbit vs Comet Comet vs Chrome Comet vs Safari Comet vs Edge Comet alternatives Yab vs Comet

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