Your web browser is the vehicle that carries you around the Internet to your desired websites. As such, it knows precisely what sites you have visited, how long you spent browsing them, and what you clicked on (or almost clicked on). Anyone who has access to your web browser can have a window into your income, your political leanings, and even your sexual preferences.
This is why it's so important to only use browsers you know will protect and improve your internet privacy. In this article, we explain how browsers capture so much information and which web browsers in 2019 are best at keeping your browsing history safe from data-hungry tech companies and advertisers
Further reading:Easy steps to improve your internet privacy
It was the first web-browser which was capable of running web-application on mobile devices. If you are an Apple user you do not need any other web-browser Safari is best for your device. It was released on 7 th Jan 2003 and the day it was released it set some standard for the web-browser. The best thing about Safari. Fast web-browser. The Epic Web browser mainly designed for the MAC system. It does not has DNS perfection and also rejects third-party cookies. It is among the most secure web browser as it does not keeps a record of browser history, possess no auto-fill feature, and also has no DNS or web caches. Currently, the Opera web browser is available for the Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS operating systems. The browser is based on the open-source Chromium browser platform, the same one Google's Chrome is based on. While user adoption of Opera lags well behind its more popular brethren, the browser has a small but dedicated user base.
How you are tracked online
Before examining the impact your browser can have on your privacy, you need to understand how your online activity is monitored.
While having a company directly record your browsing history is a risk (see Google Chrome), the more common threats to your privacy come from online advertisers and third-party trackers. Similar to Google, advertisers and trackers want to record as much of your online browsing as possible. The more data they have, the better they can show you ads specifically tailored to you. The two tools they use to follow you around the Internet are device fingerprinting and cookies.
- Device fingerprinting is when a site looks at all the characteristics of your device (the make and model of your device, what browser you are using, what plugins you have installed, what timezone you are in, etc.) until it has enough information to identify and follow it. Your device share this information to optimize the websites you visit. For example, websites want to know if you're using a laptop or a smartphone so that it can select the correct font size and screen resolution. This can be surprisingly accurate. To see if your device has an easily identifiable fingerprint, check out the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Panopticlick.
- Cookies, or HTTP cookies, are tiny data packets that websites or services plant on your browser while you're on a website. These cookies differentiate your browsers from others, like a nametag.
The privacy risks of Chrome
Any discussion of privacy and Web browsers must begin with Google Chrome. It is, by far, the most popular Web browser. Chrome handles over 60 percent of web traffic. This is unfortunate because Google uses Chrome as a window to peer into every action you take online. Unless you modify your Google privacy settings, Chrome records every site you visit so Google can serve you targeted ads.
Even worse, Chrome does very little to block other advertisers and trackers from monitoring you with cookies or device fingerprinting. A Washington Post article reported Chrome gathers roughly 11,000 trackers in an average week. Do you want 11,000 pairs of eyes on you every time you do an Internet search?
However, you do not need to give away your personal data to access the Internet.
There are Internet browsers that do not record your every action and protect you from trackers. Switching from Chrome to one of the following browsers can drastically reduce the amount of data you are inadvertently sharing as you browse the Internet.
Further reading: Gmail's privacy problem and why it matters
Best secure and privacy-first web browsers:
1. (tie) Brave
The Brave browser was designed to make privacy simple enough for everyone. It is an open source browser built on top of Chromium (an open source version of the Chrome browser), which means it's easy for Chrome users to make the switch.
However, unlike Chrome, Brave does not collect any data about your online activity. Your data remains private and on your device.
Brave also makes blocking trackers easy. Instead of forcing users to decide which plugins and browser extensions they should download, Brave comes fully equipped. It automatically blocks all third-party and advertising cookies, and because HTTPS Everywhere is built-in, it ensures all your connections are securely HTTPS encrypted. Brave also features Fingerprinting Protection in the browser.
The company also has a social mission: to encourage websites not to rely on advertising based on tracking you around the Internet. Brave has introduced a system that allows you to reward creators and sites you visit directly.
Called Brave Rewards, it uses a utility token called a Basic Attention Token and enables you to anonymously reward the websites you visit most. Brave also has opt-in, privacy-preserving Brave Ads, and users who choose to view them earn 70% of the ad revenue, which they can then use to reward their favorite online creators.
Brave is available for desktop, Android, and iOS.
1. (tie) Firefox
The open source Firefox is the third-most-popular browser on the Internet, behind Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari. Developed by Mozilla, the Firefox team has improved the browser's privacy protections in recent years.
They have introduced advanced anti-fingerprinting and Enhanced Tracking Protection features this year, both of which make it much more difficult for third-party trackers to follow you around the Internet.
Unlike Brave, the standard Firefox does not automatically block advertisements. However, there are numerous browser extensions that you can download that will prevent advertisers from getting your information or showing you ads.
Or, if you primarily browse the Internet on your mobile device, Firefox Focus incorporates automatic ad blocking. (Focus was developed as an ad blocker for Safari, but was then transformed into a minimalistic privacy browser for Android users.) Can i install google chrome os on my pc.
Firefox is available for desktop, Android, and iOS.
3. Tor browser
As we have discussed elsewhere, Tor is the best option if privacy is your utmost concern. The Tor browser is based on Firefox, but it has been stripped down and specially calibrated to run on the Tor network.
When you use Tor, your traffic is encrypted three times and bounced between three Tor servers before it reaches your desired website. The encryption is handled in such a way that each server only has access to one set of instructions, so no server has access to both your IP address and the website you are visiting.
This setup makes it impossible for Tor to keep any records about your online activity, and every time you close your session, the browser deletes your cookie cache and browsing history. The browser itself is formatted to prevent fingerprinting, and it blocks all kinds of trackers.
Best Safe Web Browsers
Unfortunately, it also blocks a lot of plugins that websites rely on. For example, with its privacy settings fully activated, the Tor browser will block JavaScript. JavaScript can expose user information, but blocking it can make websites unusable. Using Tor can also mean performing endless CAPTCHA verifications when you try to access larger sites. Finally, the Tor browser is slower than other browsers because of the extra encryption.
Download the Tor browser app for desktop and Android, as well as a Tor-approved open source Onion browser for iOS.
4. DuckDuckGo (honorable mention)
Unlike the other browsers mentioned above, DuckDuckGo does not have a standalone desktop browser, which means it is only a solution if you are browsing the Internet on your smartphone or tablet. With the DuckDuckGo browser, your browsing history never leaves your device. Deleting your entire browsing history is as easy as tapping a single button.
It automatically blocks ads, stops third-party trackers, and ensures HTTPS encryption on all sites where that's possible. One feature that does set it apart is the Privacy Grade it gives each site. This makes it easy for you to evaluate how much data each website collects from you, with and without DuckDuckGo's protections, at a single glance.
The DuckDuckGo browser is available for Android and iOS.
You can also use the extension for Chrome and Firefox.
The Web browser you choose can have a dramatic impact on your overall online privacy. By switching to one of the privacy-focused browsers in this article, you can protect your browsing history from the companies and trackers that want to monitor your every digital move.
What's your favorite web browser? Let us know in the comments below on Twitter or Reddit.
Best Regards,
The ProtonMail Team
Install pdf viewer for windows 7. You can get a free secure email account from ProtonMail here.
We also provide a free VPN service to protect your privacy.
ProtonMail and ProtonVPN are funded by community contributions. If you would like to support our development efforts, you can upgrade to a paid plan or donate. Thank you for your support.
The Internet is full of web-browsers you might use only one web browser to surf the internet, but there are a ton of web-browsers on the internet which comes with fascinating features. All the operating Systems come with their built-in browsers. For example, if you have a window Operating system you would get a pre-installed Edge and Window explorer browser.
The main objective of a web browser to provide a better and productive User interface so the user can surf the internet with ease. Various web browsers give multiple features, and most of them are of no use. That's why users do not shift from one browser to another so easily. There are many aspects associated with a web browser, and the right web browser can change the entire experience of web-surfing, apart from the user interface the web-browser also affect the Internet Speed, you may have noticed that with different web-browsers we get different internet speed.
Plugins are the special features given by the Desktop web-browser, yet the mobile versions of web browsers do not support plugins, but now every popular desktop web-browser comes with plugin features.
Here in this article, we have summed up the ten best web browser of 2020.
What is a Web-Browser?
We all use web-browser when we want to visit a website, informally we can say that a web-browser is an application that provides a user interface so we can communicate with the internet, but this definition is Incorrect.
The Technical definition says, 'A web-browser is a Software which is used to execute the HTML, JavaScript and CSS files.' When a user request a webpage using the Internet, the server acknowledges the application and sends back the HTML file, and the browser executes that HTML file so the user can see the content.
Best Web Browsers
1. Google Chrome
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, and Chrome OS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.google.com/chrome/
In 2009 google released its first web-browser Chrome, and soon this browser overtook all the other famous and popular web-browsers. The browser main assets were its simplicity and clean Interface. Now Chrome has become the most used web-browser and google. Its first competitor was Window's Internet Explorer, and there was no doubt that Chrome was far better than explorer.
Chrome provides many features such as bookmarks, extensions, themes, incognito mode, etc. but the major problem with chrome is It overeats of RAM, and in low-end systems, it takes too much time to boot on. Another reason for Chrome popularity is its parent company, Google itself directly supports chrome and with regular updates chrome has become the most popular web-browser. No matter which Operating System you are using Chrome is available for every Operating system.
Best things about Chrome
- It can load google services very fast
- It comes with all the build-in Google services.
- It has the most extensions support.
- Available for all the devices.
Some drawbacks of Google Chrome:
- Its incognito mode only hides the browser history.
- Use too much of RAM
- Take too much time to boot.
2. Mozilla Firefox
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Firefox also provides a simple interface like google chrome but it comes with better recommendations, tab management, and new task manager features. Though the old versions of Firefox were slow, the new versions are faster, the only reason why chrome was able to overtake Firefox was the speed of loading web pages, but now Firefox gives a head to head fight to chrome in the speed test.
If we compare the incognito mode of chrome with Firefox you will realise that here Firefox load pages faster than Chrome.
Best Things about Firefox
- Incognito mode is faster than chrome
- Provide more privacy
- Consider the best browser for windows 10
Drawbacks of Firefox
- Not well compatible with mobile devices.
- Similar to chrome, but contain less extension.
3. Opera-Browser
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.opera.com/
Opera is one of the oldest web-browsers even the Java mobiles supported this browser. With the introduction of android and google chrome Opera lost its popularity, there was a time when Opera considered as one of the best web-browsers for mobile devices.
Yet, with regular updates and some extra features Opera is improving its condition in the web-browser market. Opera offers many useful features such as data compression mode and battery saver, it also provides a built-in VPN features, so you do not need to install another software for a VPN service, but the VPN can make the loading of page slow.
Like chrome, it also provides the cross-device sync feature which helps to sync all of your device's Opera browser. Opera has many Editions such as Opera Mini, Opera web-browser, and Opera Turbo, all of these editions are free.
Best Things about Opera
- We can install the chrome extension in it
- Support Cross-device sync.
Drawbacks of Opera
Fast And Safe Internet Browser
- Its VPN feature is very slow and supports only a few of the countries.
- Provide unnecessary features.
4. Microsoft Edge
Platform: iOS, Android, Xbox One System Software, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and macOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge
After the dwindling popularity of Internet Explorer, Microsoft released a new web-browser and named it Microsoft Edge, and this web-browser first released on 29 July 2015. Initially, it only released for Windows 7 and 8 but now every popular operating system supports this web-browser.
Many people recommend Edge as the best web browser for windows 10, though the User Interface of Edge is better than Internet Explorer, it is not that much good as Chrome. One of the interesting features of Edge is the PDF reader, which is better than any PDF reader, offered by the web-browsers. It also has a speech feature which gives the audio speech for the webpage and PDF content. It also supports the cross-device sync feature and all of its bookmarks saved at cloud so you can sync any device and access bookmark from any device.
Best things about Edge
- Built-in support for Cortana integration
- It can sync the browser history and bookmarks with other devices
Drawbacks of Edge
- Slow loading of embedded videos.
- Take too much of RAM
5. Safari
Platform: iOS, IPadOS, and macOS
Price: Free
Download URL https://www.apple.com/in/safari/
It is the best web-browser but it is only available for the Apple operating system. It was the first web-browser which was capable of running web-application on mobile devices. If you are an Apple user you do not need any other web-browser Safari is best for your device.
It was released on 7th Jan 2003 and the day it was released it set some standard for the web-browser.
The best thing about Safari
- Fast web-browser
- Sync with all the Apple devices
Drawbacks of Safari
- Only Available for Apple operating systems.
6. Vivaldi
Platform: Windows, Linux, Android
Price: Free
Download URL vivaldi.com
It was developed in 2016 by Vivaldi Technologies. The person who was the co-founder of Opera made this company called Vivaldi technologies. With its interface, you can simply tell that it is somehow related to the Opera browser. The main idea of building this browser to make a browser that can be an extension of Opera so the targeted audience of Opera can be moved to this browser.
This browser is similar to Opera, even the user interface seems the same. It is built on the chromium-based technology so we can install almost any chrome extensions in it.
Best things about Vivaldi
- It provides many customization options
- Give support for Google Chrome extensions
Drawbacks of Vivaldi
- It is not available for Apple devices
- Similar to opera
- Unnecessary features.
7. Brave
Platform: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://brave.com/?ref=ngu158
It is considered as one of the secure web-browser, it comes with some interesting features such as Advertisement inbuilt-blocker and website tracker blocker, these features make it the most secure web browser, and it also gives support for inbuilt VPN. It also consists of a wallet feature, which helps to store cryptocurrency.
Best things about Brave
- Focus on user privacy
- Easy to use
- Supported by all the Operating systems
Drawbacks of Brave
- It removes ads which can affect the revenue of many webpages
8. Aloha-For Mobiles
ProtonMail and ProtonVPN are funded by community contributions. If you would like to support our development efforts, you can upgrade to a paid plan or donate. Thank you for your support.
The Internet is full of web-browsers you might use only one web browser to surf the internet, but there are a ton of web-browsers on the internet which comes with fascinating features. All the operating Systems come with their built-in browsers. For example, if you have a window Operating system you would get a pre-installed Edge and Window explorer browser.
The main objective of a web browser to provide a better and productive User interface so the user can surf the internet with ease. Various web browsers give multiple features, and most of them are of no use. That's why users do not shift from one browser to another so easily. There are many aspects associated with a web browser, and the right web browser can change the entire experience of web-surfing, apart from the user interface the web-browser also affect the Internet Speed, you may have noticed that with different web-browsers we get different internet speed.
Plugins are the special features given by the Desktop web-browser, yet the mobile versions of web browsers do not support plugins, but now every popular desktop web-browser comes with plugin features.
Here in this article, we have summed up the ten best web browser of 2020.
What is a Web-Browser?
We all use web-browser when we want to visit a website, informally we can say that a web-browser is an application that provides a user interface so we can communicate with the internet, but this definition is Incorrect.
The Technical definition says, 'A web-browser is a Software which is used to execute the HTML, JavaScript and CSS files.' When a user request a webpage using the Internet, the server acknowledges the application and sends back the HTML file, and the browser executes that HTML file so the user can see the content.
Best Web Browsers
1. Google Chrome
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, and Chrome OS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.google.com/chrome/
In 2009 google released its first web-browser Chrome, and soon this browser overtook all the other famous and popular web-browsers. The browser main assets were its simplicity and clean Interface. Now Chrome has become the most used web-browser and google. Its first competitor was Window's Internet Explorer, and there was no doubt that Chrome was far better than explorer.
Chrome provides many features such as bookmarks, extensions, themes, incognito mode, etc. but the major problem with chrome is It overeats of RAM, and in low-end systems, it takes too much time to boot on. Another reason for Chrome popularity is its parent company, Google itself directly supports chrome and with regular updates chrome has become the most popular web-browser. No matter which Operating System you are using Chrome is available for every Operating system.
Best things about Chrome
- It can load google services very fast
- It comes with all the build-in Google services.
- It has the most extensions support.
- Available for all the devices.
Some drawbacks of Google Chrome:
- Its incognito mode only hides the browser history.
- Use too much of RAM
- Take too much time to boot.
2. Mozilla Firefox
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Firefox also provides a simple interface like google chrome but it comes with better recommendations, tab management, and new task manager features. Though the old versions of Firefox were slow, the new versions are faster, the only reason why chrome was able to overtake Firefox was the speed of loading web pages, but now Firefox gives a head to head fight to chrome in the speed test.
If we compare the incognito mode of chrome with Firefox you will realise that here Firefox load pages faster than Chrome.
Best Things about Firefox
- Incognito mode is faster than chrome
- Provide more privacy
- Consider the best browser for windows 10
Drawbacks of Firefox
- Not well compatible with mobile devices.
- Similar to chrome, but contain less extension.
3. Opera-Browser
Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.opera.com/
Opera is one of the oldest web-browsers even the Java mobiles supported this browser. With the introduction of android and google chrome Opera lost its popularity, there was a time when Opera considered as one of the best web-browsers for mobile devices.
Yet, with regular updates and some extra features Opera is improving its condition in the web-browser market. Opera offers many useful features such as data compression mode and battery saver, it also provides a built-in VPN features, so you do not need to install another software for a VPN service, but the VPN can make the loading of page slow.
Like chrome, it also provides the cross-device sync feature which helps to sync all of your device's Opera browser. Opera has many Editions such as Opera Mini, Opera web-browser, and Opera Turbo, all of these editions are free.
Best Things about Opera
- We can install the chrome extension in it
- Support Cross-device sync.
Drawbacks of Opera
Fast And Safe Internet Browser
- Its VPN feature is very slow and supports only a few of the countries.
- Provide unnecessary features.
4. Microsoft Edge
Platform: iOS, Android, Xbox One System Software, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and macOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge
After the dwindling popularity of Internet Explorer, Microsoft released a new web-browser and named it Microsoft Edge, and this web-browser first released on 29 July 2015. Initially, it only released for Windows 7 and 8 but now every popular operating system supports this web-browser.
Many people recommend Edge as the best web browser for windows 10, though the User Interface of Edge is better than Internet Explorer, it is not that much good as Chrome. One of the interesting features of Edge is the PDF reader, which is better than any PDF reader, offered by the web-browsers. It also has a speech feature which gives the audio speech for the webpage and PDF content. It also supports the cross-device sync feature and all of its bookmarks saved at cloud so you can sync any device and access bookmark from any device.
Best things about Edge
- Built-in support for Cortana integration
- It can sync the browser history and bookmarks with other devices
Drawbacks of Edge
- Slow loading of embedded videos.
- Take too much of RAM
5. Safari
Platform: iOS, IPadOS, and macOS
Price: Free
Download URL https://www.apple.com/in/safari/
It is the best web-browser but it is only available for the Apple operating system. It was the first web-browser which was capable of running web-application on mobile devices. If you are an Apple user you do not need any other web-browser Safari is best for your device.
It was released on 7th Jan 2003 and the day it was released it set some standard for the web-browser.
The best thing about Safari
- Fast web-browser
- Sync with all the Apple devices
Drawbacks of Safari
- Only Available for Apple operating systems.
6. Vivaldi
Platform: Windows, Linux, Android
Price: Free
Download URL vivaldi.com
It was developed in 2016 by Vivaldi Technologies. The person who was the co-founder of Opera made this company called Vivaldi technologies. With its interface, you can simply tell that it is somehow related to the Opera browser. The main idea of building this browser to make a browser that can be an extension of Opera so the targeted audience of Opera can be moved to this browser.
This browser is similar to Opera, even the user interface seems the same. It is built on the chromium-based technology so we can install almost any chrome extensions in it.
Best things about Vivaldi
- It provides many customization options
- Give support for Google Chrome extensions
Drawbacks of Vivaldi
- It is not available for Apple devices
- Similar to opera
- Unnecessary features.
7. Brave
Platform: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://brave.com/?ref=ngu158
It is considered as one of the secure web-browser, it comes with some interesting features such as Advertisement inbuilt-blocker and website tracker blocker, these features make it the most secure web browser, and it also gives support for inbuilt VPN. It also consists of a wallet feature, which helps to store cryptocurrency.
Best things about Brave
- Focus on user privacy
- Easy to use
- Supported by all the Operating systems
Drawbacks of Brave
- It removes ads which can affect the revenue of many webpages
8. Aloha-For Mobiles
Platform: Android, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://alohabrowser.com/
This web-browser is only designed for mobile devices such as Androids and iOS. It comes with a built-VPN and incognito mode which are very fast as compared to other mobile web-browsers privacy mode.
Even the VPN feature of this web-browser can compress data so the browser consumes less data while surfing the web. Many mobile web-browsers do not provide theme feature but this is not a case in Aloha, here you get the free themes for your browser.
Best things of Aloha
- Integrated VPN feature
- Compress data to reduce the data usages.
Drawbacks of Aloha
- It contains ads
- To remove ads the user has to pay for a premium upgrade.
9. UC browser
Platform: Android, Windows, and iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://ucweb.com/
This is one of the oldest web-browsers and it is Google Chrome of China. There was a time when UC browser counted in the top 3 web-browsers. Even the old java sponsored mobile devices to have the support for the UC browser.
Like other browsers, UC also gives basic features such as a built-in password manager and cloud sync capabilities with other devices. It is owned by the Alibaba group, and in many Asian countries, it is more popular than chrome, in china itself people use UC because many regions of China chrome is banned.
Best things of UC Browser
- It is a very fast web-browser
- Built-in VPN feature
- One of the best browsers for Mobile devices
Drawbacks of UC browser
- Does not have many extensions
- Not an ideal choice for Desktops
10. Maxthon Cloud Browser
Platform: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, Windows Phone, iOS
Price: Free
Download URL: https://www.maxthon.com/
This browser was released in 2002, and for sure it is one of the oldest cloud-based web-browsers. Initially, it was only released for Windows operating systems but later on, made available for almost every popular Operating system.
It was developed by a Chinese based company called Maxthon Ltd. It contains many features such as tools to capture videos from web pages, built-in Adblock Plus, night mode, screenshot tool, email client, password manager, note-taking tool, etc.
Best things about Maxthon
- It provides some additional tools like Notepad, Calculator, etc.
- It is the best alternative for Firefox.
Drawbacks of Maxthon
- It is based on the old version of chromium
- Does not contain many extension
Conclusion
Here we have mentioned the top 10 web-browser of 2020 before you download any browser make sure that it's supported by your operating system. The features of web-browser vary from Operating systems to operating systems, for example, the desktop version of web-browsers supports extension and theme, not the mobile version.
Hope you like this article, if you have any suggestion related to this article you can give your feedback by filling the comment box.
