YabEdge vs Chrome
Edge is Microsoft’s Chromium browser on every desktop and phone, with Copilot built in. Since Copilot Mode was retired in May 2026, its agent, Browse with Copilot, comes with Microsoft 365 Premium in the US.
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.
Both are Chromium on every platform, with the same extensions. Edge has tabs down the side and workspaces built in, and Copilot; Chrome has Gemini. Each one’s agent costs $19.99 a month and works only in the US, Chrome’s in India too.
The short answer
- if you use Microsoft 365 and want Copilot in the browser
- if you want tabs down the side, workspaces, split screen and sleeping tabs built in
- if you work on Windows with Edge set up by your company
- 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
Edge and Chrome, with Yab beside them for a Mac.
| What | Microsoft Edge | Google Chrome | Yab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | Microsoft | 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, favorites, passwords and history | iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history | Not yet |
| Price | Free, with Copilot; Browse with Copilot needs Microsoft 365 Premium $19.99/month (US) | 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 | An agent that works in pages, on its own AI service | 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 | MCP and a command line | MCP and a command line |
| Engine | Chromium | Chromium | WebKit |
| Tabs down the side | A setting | A setting | Yes |
| Spaces | Yes | No | Yes |
| Split View | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extensions | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store | Chrome Web Store |
| Ad blocker | No | 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.
AIa matter of taste
Both have an agent that works in your pages. Copilot reads the page, your tabs and history and sums up videos and PDFs; Browse with Copilot scrolls and types in pages for you, signed in, on Microsoft 365 Premium in the US. 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 Codexeven
Edge can be driven over MCP and a command line, through Microsoft’s Playwright MCP, which can launch Edge or attach to your running Edge. 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 windowsEdge leads
Edge has tabs down the side as a setting, 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.
Priceeven
Edge: Free, with Copilot; Browse with Copilot needs Microsoft 365 Premium $19.99/month (US). Chrome: Free, with Gemini; its auto browse agent needs Google AI Pro $19.99/month or Ultra.
Where it runseven
Both run on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. On a Mac, Edge needs macOS 13 or later and Chrome needs macOS 13 or later. On the phone, Edge: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, favorites, passwords and history. 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.
PrivacyEdge leads
Edge has a VPN. Copilot may use your question, the page, your open tabs and history; Browse with Copilot keeps screenshots up to 30 days, not for training, Microsoft says. 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.
Microsoft Edge
- Browse with Copilot needs Microsoft 365 Premium ($19.99 a month) and is US only
- Copilot reads pages, tabs and history unless you turn it off
- Workspaces lost sharing in 2026, and Collections were removed
- No ad blocker 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: 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
- June 4, 2026Edge: Collections removed in Edge 149
- May 13, 2026Edge: Copilot Mode retired; its features moved into Edge, and Copilot Actions became Browse with Copilot for Microsoft 365 Premium (US)
- 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 Microsoft Edge free?
Yes, with limits on its AI. Free, with Copilot; Browse with Copilot needs Microsoft 365 Premium $19.99/month (US).
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, Edge or Chrome?
Both. Copilot reads the page, your tabs and history and sums up videos and PDFs; Browse with Copilot scrolls and types in pages for you, signed in, on Microsoft 365 Premium in the US. 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.
Do Edge and Chrome run on Windows?
Yes, both. Edge runs on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android; Chrome on Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android.
Do Edge and Chrome have phone apps?
Both do. On the phone, Edge: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, favorites, passwords and history. On the phone, Chrome: iPhone, iPad and Android; syncs tabs, bookmarks, passwords and history.
Can I move from Chrome to Edge?
Yes: Edge’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 Edge; an agent in your signed-in tabs like Edge’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
- Edge blog: new updates, Copilot Mode retired (2026-05-13)
- Microsoft Support: Browse with Copilot
- Edge policy: AllowBrowsingWithCopilot (macOS 148+)
- Microsoft Support: getting started with Copilot in Edge
- Copilot in Edge page (free limits, upgrade)
- Microsoft 365 plans compared (US prices)
- Edge supported operating systems
- Edge vertical tabs (Windows and macOS)
- Edge policy: SplitScreenEnabled (macOS 117+)
- Edge policy: SleepingTabsEnabled
- Microsoft Support: getting started with Edge Workspaces
- Microsoft Support: Collections retirement
- Edge Secure Network VPN
- Edge for Mac page (Secure Network, password management, sleeping tabs)
- Microsoft Support: Chrome extensions in Edge
- Microsoft Support: what’s imported to Edge (Chrome)
- Microsoft Support: import from Safari on macOS
- Microsoft Learn: Chrome DevTools MCP with Edge
- Playwright MCP (Microsoft, --browser msedge, --extension)
- Playwright CLI (Microsoft)
- Microsoft Support: Sign in to sync Microsoft Edge across devices
- Microsoft Learn: Configure Microsoft Edge enterprise sync
- Microsoft Edge on the App Store (iPhone and iPad)
- Microsoft Edge on Google Play
- 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, Yet Another Browser.
Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.