BrowserOS vs Ardia

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

BrowserOS is an open-source Chromium agent browser for Mac, Windows and Linux. Its agent runs on the AI you connect: an API key, a ChatGPT or Copilot plan, Claude Code or Codex, or a local model.

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.

The short answer

Pick BrowserOS

if you want an open-source agent browser on your own AI keys or local models
if you want Claude Code, Codex or Cursor to drive a signed-in browser over MCP
if you use Linux

Pick Ardia

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

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

BrowserOS and Ardia, with Yab beside them for a Mac.

BrowserOS vs Ardia
What	BrowserOS	Ardia	Yab
Made by	Felafax, Inc.	Mantra (open-source project)	Serafim Korablev
Status	Updated	Updated	Updated
Runs on	Mac, Windows and Linux	Mac	Mac
Phone app	None; desktop only, and no Android plans as of May 2026	None; Mac only	Yab for iPhone (TestFlight) and Yab for Android, both in beta; they sync spaces, tabs, bookmarks, history and chats
Price	Free and open source; you pay your own AI provider	Free and open source	Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan
AI	An agent that works in pages, on its own AI or yours	No AI	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	No	Yes	Yes
Split View	Yes	Yes	Yes
Extensions	Chrome Web Store	Chrome Web Store	Chrome Web Store
Ad blocker	No	Built in	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.

AIBrowserOS leads

Only BrowserOS has an agent that clicks, types and finishes tasks in your pages. BrowserOS’s agent, in the new tab and side panel, clicks, types, fills forms and pulls out data, on the AI you connect. Ardia has no AI of its own.

Agents like Claude Code and CodexBrowserOS leads

BrowserOS can be driven over MCP and a command line, through a built-in MCP server with one-click setup for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, and a command line. Ardia has no MCP server or command line for outside agents.

Tabs and windowsArdia leads

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

PriceBrowserOS leads

BrowserOS: Free and open source; you pay your own AI provider. Ardia: Free and open source.

Where it runsBrowserOS leads

BrowserOS runs on Mac, Windows and Linux. Ardia runs on Mac. On a Mac, Ardia needs macOS 14 or later. BrowserOS has no phone app: desktop only, and no Android plans as of May 2026. Ardia has no phone app: Mac only.

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

BrowserOS has open code. BrowserOS sends prompts and pages only to the AI you connect, or keeps them local with Ollama or LM Studio; it sends anonymous usage analytics. 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.

What their pages don’t lead with

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

BrowserOS

No built-in model since version 0.51: connect a provider before the agent works
Its own docs say local models are too weak for agent tasks
Before 1.0 and changing fast: Skills and Memory were pulled in June 2026
No phone apps

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

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
October 5, 2026BrowserOS: Built-in model and account sign-in removed; Chromium 155 (0.51.0)
June 17, 2026BrowserOS: Claude Code and Codex built into the agent; Skills and Memory removed (0.46.0)
March 9, 2026BrowserOS: Vertical tabs became the default (0.42.0)

Questions

Is BrowserOS free?

Yes. Free and open source; you pay your own AI provider.

Is Ardia free?

Yes. Free and open source.

Which has an AI agent, BrowserOS or Ardia?

BrowserOS. BrowserOS’s agent, in the new tab and side panel, clicks, types, fills forms and pulls out data, on the AI you connect. Ardia has no AI of its own.

Which runs on Windows, BrowserOS or Ardia?

BrowserOS does. Ardia runs on Mac.

Do BrowserOS and Ardia have phone apps?

BrowserOS has no phone app: desktop only, and no Android plans as of May 2026. Ardia has no phone app: Mac only.

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 BrowserOS; an agent in your signed-in tabs like BrowserOS’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

BrowserOS vs Dia BrowserOS vs Comet BrowserOS vs Atlas BrowserOS vs Opera Neon BrowserOS vs Chrome BrowserOS vs Safari BrowserOS vs Edge BrowserOS alternatives Yab vs BrowserOS Ardia vs Arc Ardia vs Vivaldi Ardia vs Zen Ardia vs Orion Ardia vs Chrome Ardia vs Safari Ardia vs Edge Ardia alternatives Yab vs Ardia

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 freeDownload