--- title: Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox | daily.dev description: Zen Browser is a Firefox-based browser that adds modern features Firefox lacks, including workspaces for tab organization, split view, vertical tabs, glance... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox | daily.dev og:description: Zen Browser is a Firefox-based browser that adds modern features Firefox lacks, including workspaces for tab organization, split view, vertical tabs, glance... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/XqSvUC0HL.png og:image:alt: Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox **[All Things Open](https://daily.dev/sources/allthingsopen)** · 3 min read · 69 upvotes · 15 comments ## Summary Zen Browser is a Firefox-based browser that adds modern features Firefox lacks, including workspaces for tab organization, split view, vertical tabs, glance link previews, and folder organization. Built on Firefox's Gecko engine rather than Chromium, it avoids Manifest v3 restrictions, allowing uBlock Origin to work without limitations. Available as AppImage or Flatpak for easy cross-distro installation on Linux (plus Windows and Mac), it's currently in beta but stable enough for daily use. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why does Zen Browser allow unrestricted ad blocking while Chrome limits extensions like uBlock Origin? Zen Browser is built on Firefox's Gecko engine rather than Chromium, so it is unaffected by Google's Manifest V3 restrictions on ad-blocking extensions. This means uBlock Origin runs fully unrestricted and exactly as intended, unlike on Chromium-based browsers where Manifest V3 limits blocking capabilities. _Developers weighing browser and extension compatibility can compare engine tradeoffs like this on daily.dev._ ### What features does Zen Browser add on top of Firefox? Zen Browser adds workspaces for organizing tabs by project or context, a split view for viewing multiple sites side-by-side, a glance feature to preview links without opening new tabs, vertical tabs, and folders for grouping related tabs within workspaces. It installs via AppImage or Flatpak across Linux distributions, plus Windows and Mac. _Anyone evaluating lighter, more organized browser workflows can track tools like Zen on daily.dev._ ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@jkdeguzman** · 6 upvotes > I like Zen Browser because it reminds me of Arc Browser. However, I had to settle for Vivaldi. I do not like that Zen Browser uses the Gecko engine instead of Blink. It does not feel as responsive, and it is often slower on websites that use heavy JavaScript, which is now very common. Also, most web developers usually check compatibility with Google Chrome and other Blink-based browsers, and Safari after, while other browsers are treated as optional. So, while I honestly like the philosophy behind Zen Browser, I chose Vivaldi because I do not have a choice. **@brennangoewert** · 4 upvotes > Been dailying Zen at work (windows) for maybe 6 months, and personally about 5 months. It's been good so far. The only thing I was missing was PWA support until FF added `browser.taskbartabs.enabled`, but I have not tested that on my home Linux workstation. **@crisvm** · 4 upvotes > Well, to be fair with Firefox... It doesn't lack vertical tabs for a while now. > > But I've switched to Zen as my default browser and I'm not going back. **@jenueldev** · 4 upvotes > Zen feels like the browser Firefox should have been iterating toward: workspaces, vertical tabs, split view, and still Gecko. The uBlock/Manifest v3 angle is a practical reason to care too. **@testtoast909532** · 4 upvotes > I use both zen and Brave but for different use and they're great alternative to firefox and chrome. ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [I switched from Chrome to this open-source browser — and haven’t looked back](https://daily.dev/posts/i-switched-from-chrome-to-this-open-source-browser-and-haven-t-looked-back-ohyyy0ja1) · XDA Developers · 1 upvotes · 1 comments - [My favorite alternative to Google Chrome isn't Microsoft Edge or Firefox: it's something way cooler and productive](https://daily.dev/posts/my-favorite-alternative-to-google-chrome-isn-t-microsoft-edge-or-firefox-it-s-something-way-cooler--i9zbvwjtt) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 1 comments - [I ditched Chrome, Opera, and Firefox for this browser, and I wish I did it sooner](https://daily.dev/posts/i-ditched-chrome-opera-and-firefox-for-this-browser-and-i-wish-i-did-it-sooner-znt1r3tcv) · XDA Developers · 2 upvotes · 0 comments - [Not Every Browser is Built on Chrome: Explore These Firefox-based Options](https://daily.dev/posts/not-every-browser-is-built-on-chrome-explore-these-firefox-based-options-vcmwkhgze) · It's Foss · 5 upvotes · 1 comments --- Tags: [#linux](https://daily.dev/tags/linux), [#devtools](https://daily.dev/tags/devtools), [#firefox](https://daily.dev/tags/firefox) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl"},"datePublished":"2026-07-10T06:24:06.072Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T05:59:28.383Z","description":"Zen Browser is a Firefox-based browser that adds modern features Firefox lacks, including workspaces for tab organization, split view, vertical tabs, glance...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/bde5c69196423e15288f3947680e3d7e?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/bde5c69196423e15288f3947680e3d7e?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"All Things Open","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"All Things Open","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--dgFP6zAp--/f_auto/v1720885901/logos/allthingsopen","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/allthingsopen"},"commentCount":15,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":69},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":15}],"keywords":"linux,devtools,firefox","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"All Things Open","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/allthingsopen"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Zen browser: The best alternative to Firefox"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"I like Zen Browser because it reminds me of Arc Browser. However, I had to settle for Vivaldi. I do not like that Zen Browser uses the Gecko engine instead of Blink. It does not feel as responsive, and it is often slower on websites that use heavy JavaScript, which is now very common. Also, most web developers usually check compatibility with Google Chrome and other Blink-based browsers, and Safari after, while other browsers are treated as optional. So, while I honestly like the philosophy behind Zen Browser, I chose Vivaldi because I do not have a choice.","datePublished":"2026-07-10T20:16:54.448Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XqSvUC0HL#c-ol2kX7JpT","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"JK de Guzman","url":"https://daily.dev/jkdeguzman","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--15vmoSTP--/f_auto/v1734642358/avatars/avatar_FTHcFQTYt5SEz7JCuuSPq"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":6}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Been dailying Zen at work (windows) for maybe 6 months, and personally about 5 months. It’s been good so far. The only thing I was missing was PWA support until FF added browser.taskbartabs.enabled, but I have not tested that on my home Linux workstation.","datePublished":"2026-07-10T13:20:22.692Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XqSvUC0HL#c-xbJ4slwAp","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Brennan Goewert","url":"https://daily.dev/brennangoewert","image":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/15313658?v=4"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Well, to be fair with Firefox… It doesn’t lack vertical tabs for a while now.\nBut I’ve switched to Zen as my default browser and I’m not going back.","datePublished":"2026-07-10T13:39:56.386Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XqSvUC0HL#c-eNhH0hvyr","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Cristiano Vilela Moreira","url":"https://daily.dev/crisvm","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a/ACg8ocI21_dfw9Q0UDysqoAKxJF_Kur7vaexCmb-KuYZ11OZ5-BmDAh-FA=s96-c"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Zen feels like the browser Firefox should have been iterating toward: workspaces, vertical tabs, split view, and still Gecko. The uBlock/Manifest v3 angle is a practical reason to care too.","datePublished":"2026-07-11T03:14:37.536Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XqSvUC0HL#c-MGrlOnunJ","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Jenuel Oras Ganawed","url":"https://daily.dev/jenueldev","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--BadmiNyj--/f_auto/v1787625077/avatars/avatar_JJtZr4Sjm?_a=BAMAMicg0"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"I use both zen and Brave but for different use and they’re great alternative to firefox and chrome.","datePublished":"2026-07-10T21:29:43.297Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/XqSvUC0HL#c-MKNf3LOI1","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Test","url":"https://daily.dev/testtoast909532","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--Lju-sS4X--/f_auto/v1724001914/avatars/avatar_geWfqL9aaZHCYdaFNbrid"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":4}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/zen-browser-the-best-alternative-to-firefox-xqsvuc0hl#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Why does Zen Browser allow unrestricted ad blocking while Chrome limits extensions like uBlock Origin?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Zen Browser is built on Firefox's Gecko engine rather than Chromium, so it is unaffected by Google's Manifest V3 restrictions on ad-blocking extensions. 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