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Let's talk about the best browsers for Linux (and not only).
I must say right away that this is not a top. The programs in the list do not have a hierarchy in the spirit of “from best to worst”. And I also deliberately start the story with rare browsers and Linux exclusives, so as not to immediately talk about banality in the spirit of Chrome and Firefox. But I will mention them at the end because they are still good browsers. If you still don't know which one to choose, I recommend the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge, which you can download from https://install.download/linux/microsoft-edge if you like good looks, themes, and additional built-in functions.
One of the most common browsers for orthodox Linux users. Konqueror comes bundled with the KDE desktop shell. Developers and users call it the Swiss Army knife of web surfing and file management.
From chips:
A rather heavy browser with the design of old Firefox and the features of modern competitors. Suitable for connoisseurs of open source code, their own privacy and an abundance of functions available out of the box.
Where KDE takes on the functionality and frilly design of Windows Vista, GNOME Desktop tries to be more minimalist, visually restrained and easy to use.
The same rules apply to the built-in GNOME Web browser (before 2012 it was called Epiphany). It has only the necessary minimum of functions, contains a small number of interface elements and elegantly fits into the desktop of the same name.
In the absence of access to extensions in the spirit of AdBlock, the developers of GNOME Web decided to build their own ad blocker into their brainchild. It removes pop-ups, banner ads, and even trackers.
I can recommend it if you are not picky and are willing to put up with the limited functionality of GNOME Web. This is a browser for fans of simplicity. They are probably the ones who set GNOME as the default desktop.
By and large, an analogue of the same Epiphany, but slightly pumped in terms of functionality. The design is similar. It has often been used as an alternative to the GNOME Shell browser. For example, in the Elementary OS system.
Unlike Epiphany, Midori has some kind of extension system, and browser fans managed to write something similar to useful plugins for it. Among them are the start screen with the most frequently visited pages and AdBlock.
From other chips:
I would recommend Midori to those who understand programming at least at a basic level. Those who are ready to understand the structure of the browser and reconfigure it for themselves using supported scripts and styles. Otherwise, there are more familiar and by default more convenient alternatives.
My personal favourite. A browser that fully justifies its name. Minimalism in its purest form with a full range of essential features. The beauty lies in the fact that Min practically does not consume PC resources, but at the same time functionally does not lag behind competitors.
It has a built-in ad blocker. I still don’t understand where he takes the database for blocking from, but he copes with his task with a bang. There was no need for familiar plugins during testing of Min. And if you wish, you can block all scripts and even the loading of images. This is in case you really want to protect yourself as much as possible and significantly increase the page loading speed.
The default browser supports popular password managers, including 1Password and Bitwarden. There is also a built-in one, but it functionally lags behind third-party solutions.
My favorite feature in Min is Tasks. These are groups of tabs distributed for different tasks. For example, I am writing an article about browsers and collecting tabs with the necessary materials. In the tabbed panel, I will only see them. But I can create a new task for buying gifts for the New Year, for example. And then in the panel with tabs, I will see only links to the relevant products and theme stores. It's like creating a new window that sits in a separate space and doesn't bother your eyes until you need it, which helps keep your tabs organized.
Of the minuses, I note the lack of the ability to create multiple windows and in some places a not very clear interface (there is no address bar, for example).
This is another browser that was originally developed for the KDE shell, only unlike Konqueror it was not going to be a monstrous giant that does everything at once. On the contrary, the emphasis was on lightness and asceticism.
The developers said so: Falkon is a lightweight browser adapted to all key operating systems. Initially, it was created for the needs of educational institutions, but later the number of functions began to grow, and the browser became a good alternative to existing solutions.
Minimalism can be traced not only in the design of the product, but also in its capabilities. There are no features that could be hooked on in the review. Just a window to the Internet with a built-in ad blocker (AdBlock, by the way). This is how you can describe Falkon.
I recommend it to those who want an extremely simple and secure way to access the Internet (and use the KDE desktop, of course).
One of the most difficult Linux browsers to manage that I have ever used. A paradise for Vim fans and AwesomeVM-style shells who are accustomed to controlling the computer exclusively with the keyboard.
Qutebrowser doesn't need a cursor. All actions, including navigation through site elements, are tied to individual keys and their combinations. For example, to open a new tab, press o .
Navigation uses the same keys as in the legendary text editor Vim (much done to make life difficult for ordinary people, but at the same time please perverted personalities without mice and touchpads).
The browser is written by a single developer using the Python language and the Qt library. The creator of Qutebrowser was unhappy with the existing solutions and decided it was time to make something of his own. The inspiration was the dwb and Vimperator plugins.
There are also quick bookmarks. This is a function of linking several pages at once to one arbitrary name. For example, you can find a dozen pizza recipes and save them under the name “best pizzas”. When you type :open in your browser's address bar, bestpizzas will open the links saved under that name.
To block ads, a list of addresses in the spirit of /etc/hosts is used.
One of the most controversial browsers that I found when searching for rarities and antiquities among programs for accessing the network. NetSurf looks like something that should have been buried a long time ago. It's hard to imagine that this program is under active development, but it is.
This is the simplest browser written in C. It is distributed under the GPL v2 license.
NetSurf boasts a high speed of operation - in this parameter it competes on equal terms with both heavyweights like Konqueror and lightweight competitors like Epiphany. All thanks to the proprietary engine of the same name.
It also has impressive system requirements by 2020 standards. The browser runs on a "machine" with a 30 megahertz ARM processor and 16 megabytes of RAM. This is now even a computer can hardly be called.
There is nothing special in the interface, except for a handy tree-like history of visited pages. I would advise those who installed Linux on an extremely weak device and want to squeeze the maximum performance out of it.
The first text browser in the collection. Text - means that it does not display graphics from sites. Only letters and links. Who might need such a browser? For example, system administrators who do not install graphical shells for security reasons, as well as old school fans who are eager to plunge into the atmosphere of the 90s.
Lynx is the oldest of the browsers. It was introduced in 1992, but is still in development. The last stable release came out in 2018. The developers have been testing the beta version since September 2020.
Works on almost any hardware and on any version of Linux. Does not support JavaScript. Together with JavaScript, it does not support all sorts of bugs and errors. Almost completely deprived of the chance to become a breach in the security of the system.
Configured through configuration files and commands to control Lynx through the terminal. In skillful hands, able to properly configure the browser, it turns into a very convenient tool for working on the Internet.
Not suitable for the bulk of humanity. If you are a system administrator, then you probably already know how to work with Lynx. I can advise those who do not understand how the browser can work on the command line at all, and want to look at it firsthand.
It was not in vain that I noted in the previous paragraph that Lynx is the first text browser in the selection, because it has brothers with a similar idea, interface and capabilities. That is, working on the command line. For example w3m.
Like Lynx, w3m is open source and free. The browser supports tables, frames, SSL data encryption protocol, selection of page elements and even displaying pictures (in some terminals).
One of the key differences between w3m and other similar applications is its focus on the original page structure. The browser tries to recreate the layout of the site specified by the developer as accurately as possible in text form.
The original version has not been supported since 2011. But there are working forks - offshoots of w3m, developed by fans. Some of them are included by default in popular Linux distributions (Debian and Fedora). In particular, we are talking about a modification from Hironori Sakamoto, who created a multilingual version of the project called w3m-m17n.
A similar browser is used in the text editor Emacs. It has the corresponding emacs-w3m.el module.
This is a set of programs for working on the Internet, created by a team of developers who profess the basic principles of the UNIX philosophy. Instead of making a big program containing many functions, the creators of uzbl decided to create several small utilities that, in cooperation with each other, constitute a convenient browser.
The composition includes:
Again, I would not recommend it to everyone. Except as a toy for learning Linux.
Now let's talk about more classic browsers for Linux. Or rather, one of their variations. I deliberately do not take the familiar Google Chrome, because in the Linux environment they prefer its “open” version, which is not so tightly tied to the services of the corporation of good.
At the same time, Chromium is visually and functionally practically no different from Chrome. The same interface, similar bookmark management menu, the same options for working with tabs.
I recommend it to those who are unable to give up Chrome, but do not want to enrich Google at the expense of personal information.
Another familiar browser for Linux, familiar to the audience of Windows and macOS. Firefox used to be often included in the base package of Linux distributions such as Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, openSUSE and most of their variations.
Linux users are on good terms with Mozilla's security policy. After all, she openly advocates online privacy and in every possible way promotes projects related to improving anonymity on the Internet.
Therefore, their browser is trusted more than the products of Google, Microsoft and the same Yandex.
Firefox has gotten prettier lately and has some cool features. You will be pleased with:
Recent updates have made the "fox" noticeably less voracious application. In terms of speed, it has parity with competitors.
Firefox has several forks - more advanced alternative versions.
Pale Moon is based on the Mozilla product, but has already managed to acquire its own code. The creators of the browser have made it safer, equipped with new protection mechanisms, and added a few distinctive features.
The project is developed and supported by a loyal community of Pale Moon fans. It receives regular updates and always keeps up with the original application (Firefox itself, in fact).
For Pale Moon, extensions have already been created that are supported only by it and do not work in Firefox. And it has no restrictions on changing the appearance of the browser. With the help of themes, you can change each element of the interface.
Waterfox is almost the same Firefox, only with support for the old extension format. Mozilla recently dropped support for plugins that weren't up to date with the company's new requirements. Moreover, the creators of Waterfox use their own stable API so that developers do not have to worry about radical changes in the program and the loss of backward compatibility of their extensions with the browser. Also, NPAPI plugins like Java work here without restrictions.
Suitable for those who need features and extensions that are only available in "vintage" versions of Firefox.
Cross-platform project from former Mozilla employees. This is a combine in the spirit of Konqueror, containing all the programs for interacting with the Internet at once, and not just a browser with a minimum set of functions.
SeaMonkey includes several applications:
Technically, SeaMonkey is built in much the same way as Firefox. At least it is based on the same source code.
I recommend it to those who like Firefox and "superapps" - applications with a large set of functions that remove the need to install something else on the computer.
That's all. I hope that with the help of this material you will choose the best browser for yourself!
