YabOpera Neon vs Dia
Opera Neon is Opera’s agent browser for Mac and Windows. Its own agents act in your live session on a $19.90 plan, and since August 2026 outside agents like Claude Code can use it free through its MCP Connector.
Dia is the AI browser The Browser Company builds now instead of Arc. It is Chromium-based, for Macs with Apple silicon and, since October 2026, Windows, and its AI chats with your tabs and the tools you connect.
The short answer
- if you want Claude Code or another MCP client to use a real signed-in browser, free
- if you want one plan for an in-browser agent, deep research and making apps and media
- if you want a VPN and an ad blocker built in
- if you want the current browser from Arc’s makers, with Arc import and tabs down the side as a setting
- if you want AI that chats across your tabs, Gmail, Slack and Notion, and will pay for it
- if you want a free browser with an ad blocker and no AI
- 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
Opera Neon and Dia, with Yab beside them for a Mac.
| What | Opera Neon | Dia | Yab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | Opera | The Browser Company (Atlassian) | Serafim Korablev |
| Status | Updated | Updated | Updated |
| Runs on | Mac and Windows | Mac and Windows | Mac |
| Phone app | None yet; Opera says a mobile version will come, no date given | None | Not yet |
| Price | Free, and free for outside agents; Opera’s own agents $19.90/month | Browser free; AI on Better Answers $20/month or Better Days $100/month | Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan |
| AI | An agent that works in pages, on its own AI service | 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 | Not stated | A setting | Yes |
| Spaces | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Split View | Not stated | Yes | Yes |
| Extensions | Not stated | 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.
AIOpera Neon leads
Only Opera Neon has an agent that clicks, types and finishes tasks in your pages. Neon Chat talks about your tabs, Neon Do acts in your live session, research agents dig, and Make builds apps and media on Opera’s servers. Dia chats with your tabs and the tools you connect, like Gmail, Slack and Notion, and drafts mail and invites; there is no documented agent that works through sites.
Agents like Claude Code and CodexOpera Neon leads
Opera Neon can be driven over MCP and a command line, through its MCP Connector, read-only unless you allow more, and opera-browser-cli. Dia has no MCP server or command line for outside agents.
Tabs and windowsDia leads
Opera Neon has spaces. Dia has tabs down the side as a setting, spaces, Split View, folders in the sidebar and tabs that sleep.
PriceOpera Neon leads
Opera Neon: Free, and free for outside agents; Opera’s own agents $19.90/month. Dia: Browser free; AI on Better Answers $20/month or Better Days $100/month.
Where it runseven
Both run on Mac and Windows. On a Mac, Dia needs macOS 14 or later. Opera Neon has no phone app yet: Opera says a mobile version will come, no date given. Dia has no phone app.
Engine and extensionsa matter of taste
Both are built on Chromium, as Chrome is, so sites work as they do in Chrome. Opera Neon takes no extensions, Dia from the Chrome Web Store.
PrivacyOpera Neon leads
Opera Neon has an ad blocker built in and a VPN. Page content used with Neon’s AI goes to Opera’s and OpenAI’s servers, kept up to 365 days; passwords, cards and cookies stay on your device. Dia has an ad blocker built in. Dia’s chat goes through its servers to Anthropic, OpenAI and Google; chats and history stay on your Mac, and content sharing is on by default, kept 30 days.
What their pages don’t lead with
Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.
Opera Neon
- Opera’s own agents need the $19.90 a month plan
- Mac and Windows only; the phone version isn’t out
- Its AI and the MCP Connector need an Opera account
- Page content used with its AI goes to Opera’s and OpenAI’s servers, kept up to 365 days
Dia
- AI costs $20 or $100 a month for new users; the free plan has none after a 14-day trial
- On a Mac it needs Apple silicon and macOS 14 or later
- Its AI chats and drafts, but there is no documented agent that works through sites
- No MCP server or command line for outside agents
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
- October 6, 2026Dia: Dia 1.0 for Windows released
- August 17, 2026Dia: Paid AI plans started rolling out to new Mac users
- August 12, 2026Opera Neon: Free plan: outside agents can use Neon without a subscription
- May 12, 2026Opera Neon: opera-browser-cli command line released
- March 31, 2026Opera Neon: MCP Connector lets outside AI clients act in Neon
- October 21, 2025Dia: Atlassian completed its acquisition of The Browser Company
Questions
Is Opera Neon free?
Yes, with limits on its AI. Free, and free for outside agents; Opera’s own agents $19.90/month.
Is Dia free?
The browser is; its AI isn’t. Browser free; AI on Better Answers $20/month or Better Days $100/month.
Which has an AI agent, Opera Neon or Dia?
Opera Neon. Neon Chat talks about your tabs, Neon Do acts in your live session, research agents dig, and Make builds apps and media on Opera’s servers. Dia chats with your tabs and the tools you connect, like Gmail, Slack and Notion, and drafts mail and invites; there is no documented agent that works through sites.
Do Opera Neon and Dia run on Windows?
Yes, both. Opera Neon runs on Mac and Windows; Dia on Mac and Windows.
Do Opera Neon and Dia have phone apps?
Opera Neon has no phone app yet: Opera says a mobile version will come, no date given. Dia has no phone app.
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 Opera Neon; an agent in your signed-in tabs like Opera Neon’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
- Opera Neon home page
- Opera Neon subscription and plan comparison
- Opera Neon FAQ (platforms, models, MCP, privacy, retention)
- Opera Neon news index
- Your AI agents can use Opera Neon free of charge (Aug 12, 2026)
- Opera Neon adds MCP Connector (Mar 31, 2026)
- Introducing opera-browser-cli (May 12, 2026)
- opera-browser-cli README (profile behavior)
- opera-devtools-mcp README (Chromium-based, Claude Code and Cursor setup)
- Opera Neon ships (Sep 30, 2025; Tasks, Do, Make, ad blocker, VPN)
- Opera Neon public early access (Dec 11, 2025)
- Opera press release: MCP Connector
- Prompt injection in Opera Neon: rapid response (Oct 23, 2025)
- Dia plans and pricing FAQ
- Dia home page (macOS and Windows, ad and tracker blocking)
- Dia changelog (Chromium M155, Windows 1.0, tab sleep, sidebar or top tabs, AppleScript, memory retired)
- Dia release notes 1.52.0 (Oct 8, 2026)
- Dia download FAQ (import from Chrome, Safari, Edge, Arc)
- Dia security (AI providers, retention, local storage)
- MacRumors: Dia generally available, macOS 14 and Apple silicon
- PiunikaWeb: Dia $20 and $100 plans (Aug 18, 2026)
- Atlassian completes acquisition (Oct 21, 2025)
- Dia home page: ’Available for macOS and Windows’
- PiunikaWeb: Dia ’iPhone Tabs’ menu spotted, no public app (2026-08-25)
- 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.