Brave vs Firefox

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

Brave is an open-source Chromium browser that blocks ads and trackers by default, with Leo, an AI chat that needs no account, on every desktop and phone.

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.

Brave blocks ads by default and runs Chrome extensions; Firefox has its own engine and add-ons, and blocks trackers but not ads. Both have an optional AI chat and a VPN: Firefox’s is free in a few countries, Brave’s is $9.99 a month.

The short answer

Pick Brave

if you want ads and trackers blocked by default
if you want AI chat without an account, or on your own local model
if you need the same browser on every desktop and phone

Pick Firefox

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

Or Yabours

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

Brave and Firefox, with Yab beside them for a Mac.

Brave vs Firefox
What	Brave	Firefox	Yab
Made by	Brave Software	Mozilla	Serafim Korablev
Status	Updated	Updated	Updated
Runs on	Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android	Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android	Mac
Phone app	iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history, no account	iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history	Not yet
Price	Free, with Leo; Leo Premium $14.99/month; Brave VPN $9.99/month	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 or yours	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	A setting	A setting	Yes
Spaces	No	No	Yes
Split View	Yes	Yes	Yes
Extensions	Chrome Web Store	Firefox add-ons	Chrome Web Store
Ad blocker	Built in	No	Built in
Open source	Yes	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. Leo chats about your tabs, PDFs and images, with no account, on Brave’s models or your own; an agent is in early testing behind a flag, in a separate profile without your sign-ins. 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

Brave 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 windowseven

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

PriceFirefox leads

Brave: Free, with Leo; Leo Premium $14.99/month; Brave VPN $9.99/month. Firefox: Free; its built-in VPN is free up to 50 GB a month.

Where it runseven

Both run on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. On a Mac, Brave needs macOS 13 or later and Firefox needs macOS 10.15 or later. On the phone, Brave: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history, no account. On the phone, Firefox: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.

Engine and extensionsa matter of taste

Brave is built on Chromium, as Chrome is; Firefox on Gecko, Firefox’s engine. Brave takes extensions from the Chrome Web Store, Firefox from Firefox’s add-ons.

PrivacyBrave leads

Brave has an ad blocker built in, a VPN and open code. Brave says Leo doesn’t keep or share chats, doesn’t train on them and doesn’t collect identifiers like IP addresses. 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.

What their pages don’t lead with

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

Brave

More Leo models and higher limits need Leo Premium at $14.99 a month
Its AI agent is an early test behind a flag, without your sign-ins
The VPN is $9.99 a month extra
Tabs down the side are a setting, and there are no spaces

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
July 2, 2026Brave: Containers added in Brave 1.92 for separate cookies per tab
June 4, 2026Brave: Brave Origin launched: a paid, minimal Brave without Leo, Rewards, Wallet and VPN
May 5, 2026Brave: Leo agentic AI browsing opened for early testing on all release channels, behind a flag
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

Questions

Is Brave free?

Yes, with limits on its AI. Free, with Leo; Leo Premium $14.99/month; Brave VPN $9.99/month.

Is Firefox free?

Yes. Free; its built-in VPN is free up to 50 GB a month.

Which has an AI agent, Brave or Firefox?

Neither has an agent that does tasks in your pages. Leo chats about your tabs, PDFs and images, with no account, on Brave’s models or your own; an agent is in early testing behind a flag, in a separate profile without your sign-ins. 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 Brave and Firefox run on Windows?

Yes, both. Brave runs on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android; Firefox on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android.

Do Brave and Firefox have phone apps?

Both do. On the phone, Brave: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history, no account. On the phone, Firefox: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.

Can I move from Firefox to Brave?

Yes: Brave’s own help says it brings in from Firefox.

Is there a third option on a Mac?

Yab, Yet Another Browser, is free for the Mac: tabs down the side as in Arc, with spaces, folders and Split View; 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

Brave vs Chrome Brave vs Safari Brave vs Edge Opera vs Brave Arc vs Brave Dia vs Brave Comet vs Brave Brave alternatives Yab vs Brave Firefox vs Chrome Firefox vs Safari Firefox vs Edge Opera vs Firefox Arc vs Firefox Dia vs Firefox Comet vs Firefox Firefox alternatives Yab vs Firefox

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 Brave Download