The best browsers for privacy in 2024 - Surfshark (2024)

How we choose the best browser for privacy

For our evaluation of web browsers, we used privacy and security metrics* proposed by Surfshark’s Information Security Team. Here’s what they said one should look into:

• Is the developer a nonprofit? Nonprofits don’t have a financial incentive driving them, so they have less reason to squeeze money out of users by collecting and selling their data or doing anything similar.
• Does the browser warn you about website add-ons? Website add-ons can be both malicious and suspicious — and you want a secure browser that can catch them before they do any damage.
• Can you disable loading scripts? Disabling loading scripts can break some websites, but it can make you more secure against attacks because potential malware won’t be loaded.
• Does the private browser block fingerprinting? Suppose you want the website to display correctly. In that case, your browser must send some data, like your screen resolution, OS, and location. This becomes your digital fingerprint used to recognize and track you online.
• Does it block malware/phishing? Secure browsers will draw on lists of known malware and phishing addresses to block them automatically.
• Is it open-source? If so, that allows security experts to look into the browser’s code and see if the developer had baked in any malicious functions — or left severe security gaps.
• Does it scan downloads? Even the files you download voluntarily could be dangerous.
• Does it have an integrated ad blocker with tracking prevention? You can install extensions and add-ons for ad blocking and tracking prevention. Still, it’s safer and more convenient if the browser does it natively.
• Can you toggle deleting browsing history and cookies after every session? While cleaning history and cookies after a session is an excellent way to keep tracking at bay and maintain privacy, not everyone might want that by default.

*We’re not using private browsing mode as one of the metrics since practically every browser has it these days.

Best web browsers for privacy

We rate these browsers as best for privacy. You’ll find Chrome, Safari, and other browsers in a section below, explaining their issues with maintaining user privacy.

Brave

*Brave aims to protect users from harmful downloads, but it doesn’t specifically scan every download

The Brave browser was launched in 2016 by some of the key people who had previously worked on Mozilla Firefox. Its standout feature is the Brave Rewards System. It gives users Basic Attention Tokens (BATs) for viewing “privacy-respecting” ads and then tips those tokens to websites and creators, who can turn them into money.

It also includes Debouncing, which prevents tracking users by bouncing them to a tracking domain before letting them reach their intended online destination.

However, Brave has come under fire in the past, mostly for crypto-related reasons. First was Brave pocketing donations of BATs to creators that hadn’t opted-in to their program — this was eventually fixed.

The second issue arose when people noticed Brave adding affiliate links to cryptocurrency URLs that users entered. Brave claimed this happened due to a bug in the autocomplete function and has since fixed it.

There was also an issue in January 2021 with the Brave Tor window leaking DNS, but it has been fixed too.

Recommended: Yes (if the controversies and blockchain don’t matter to you).

Mozilla Firefox

Mozilla Firefox launched 18 years ago and has always been among the top choices for private browsers. Mozilla Foundation is a non-profit organization that owns the Mozilla Corporation, a subsidiary that develops the browser. Funding is received chiefly via contracts with corporations like Google for the default search engine position.

Mozilla doesn’t block ads by default, but it has many extensions that do — even the official website tells you so. In 2021, it introduced SmartBlock, which aims to prevent cross-site tracking without breaking websites by replacing the tracking script with its stand-ins. It’s not ad blocking, but tracking protection is a big step forward.

Recommended: Yes.

Tor Browser

The Tor Browser was announced in 2008, and it’s the primary method of using the Tor network for private browsing with increased security and anonymity. It’s based on a customized Firefox base, and while it supports installing extensions, users are advised not to. This would compromise the browser’s security, and Tor Browser aims to keep the user secure and private at all costs.

The big downside of the Tor Browser is that the Tor Network is very slow. It’s not great for media consumption, and the developers are asking people not to use torrents with Tor.

More than that, the Tor network is based on anonymous volunteer nodes. It’s been discovered that 23% of Tor exit nodes are owned by a single user who uses it to steal cryptocurrency.

Another shocking discovery came in 2021: hundreds of nodes may have been run in a single de-anonymization effort.

Recommended: If you don’t mind the drop in speed and don’t care about the exit node issues, yes.

DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo launched in 2008. The search engine for private browsing is now available as a browser add-on for desktops and standalone mobile browsers. Each website gets a rating on privacy (including policies), and you can see what trackers were blocked. It also enforces a secure HTTPS-encrypted connection if it’s available.

Mobile users can currently participate in the betas for their app tracker blocking service and private email program. It involves a mail forwarding service that strips emails of trackers and an @duck.com email.

How does DuckDuckGo earn money? From their advertising affiliates. The creators claim that the ads shown to you when searching for stuff online will only be tailored to that search. So, there are no persistent tracking ads. The browser also allows you to purge history and cookies at any moment.

Interested in more details? Read our DuckDuckGo review.

Recommended: If you care about privacy more than security on your phone, then yes.

Vivaldi

Vivaldi isn’t a new browser, as it has a history stretching back to 2015. And though it didn’t start strong, years of gradual improvement have made it a contender, especially for privacy and customization-focused users. Customizing which features you want to have is core to the Vivaldi experience.

There’s also the browser’s dedication to privacy. For example, it pinpoints the tracker — like the in-app translation tool. Which unknowingly to us transmits the user behavior data anywhere. The browser does its job of stopping the tracker app from sharing our behavior details. And just like everything else, the security settings can be considerably tweaked.

Vivaldi is free and was developed by a lot of former Opera staffers. It finances itself via deals with search engine providers (they get money if you use the pre-installed ones) and websites that provide the default bookmarks (like eBay).

Where it gets tricky is the open-source status. It’s not explicitly open-source, but it is a Chromium-based browser that the developers claim is freely auditable.

Recommended: Yes.

Epic Privacy Browser

First, let me clear up the two “Nos.” Epic Privacy Browser is not open-source. However, it is available for auditing to anyone who reaches out to them — the code isn’t hidden from anyone.

Second, there’s no option to toggle cleaning history and cookies because it’s automatic — after every session, your history and cookies are cleaned.

Built on Chromium for easy use, Epic Privacy Browser is one of the best choices on the list.

Recommended: Yes

Waterfox

Waterfox was initially developed as a passion project by a 16-year-old who wanted a faster browser. Since then, it has evolved into a privacy-focused browser.

Its core is built upon Mozilla’s developed browser engine, Gecko. Naturally, it’s compatible with all of the Firefox add-ons. While we’re talking upsides, there’s no telemetry, and data collection is limited just to keep your browser up to date.

However, at the end of 2019, it was bought by System1, an advertising company. As they say themselves, they ‘‘…develop & grow /…/ suite of privacy-focused products, and deliver high-intent customers to our advertising partners.’’

Even if it seems paradoxical that an advertiser would be a privacy worrier (in this economy?), Waterfox hasn’t encountered any scandals. Yet.

Recommended: Yes. For now, at least.

Iridium browser

Iridium browser, like several others on the list, is based on Chromium. This basis makes it familiar and easy to use. However, users may be wary of Chromium for apparent reasons.

Additionally, it’s the hardest browser on the list to find accurate information on. The “FAQ” and “About” pages aren’t easy to navigate and leave out some essential information. Iridium has also had several issues with script compatibility, and its users have encountered a few issues.

Recommended: If the vagueness of the information they provide doesn’t scare you, yes.

Pale Moon

What years ago started as a copy of Mozilla Firefox is now called Pale Moon. It is its own private search engine, offering a secure browsing experience and aiming for efficiency. Their slogan is — your browser, your way.

Following that train of thought, Pale Moon offers customizability, like what content to load when entering a page — pop-up windows, images, fonts and colors, languages, and videos. All of that combined negates the chance of watering hole attacks and malvertising.

Pale Moon runs on Goanna and SpiderMonkey engines. Its benefits are that there’s no telemetry, and it doesn’t collect data. Many users have said that it’s faster than competing browsers and is a safe option that doesn’t consume as much of the computer’s resources.

The downsides are that it doesn’t support mobile use, and it’s only meant for Linux and Windows users. It doesn’t support Firefox or Chromium extensions.

Recommended: Yes, but only if you’re willing to spend some time getting to know the browser and modifying the preferences to your needs.

LibreWolf

LibreWolf has a familiar feel for many users — it’s a custom version of Firefox. Like Pale Moon, LibreWolf aims to minimize data collection and retain user privacy.

The most notable features are:

• No telemetry and tracking protection is set to “Strict” by default;
• Cookies and history are deleted when the browser is closed;
• No cloud sync using a Firefox account;
• Librewolf works really well with privacy-focused search engines — Searx, Qwant, and DuckDuckGo;
• Ublock Origin comes installed and prevents possibly malicious content from being loaded.

It’s an open-sourced transparent browser that is regularly updated to enhance security. However, it has one drawback — it doesn’t support mobile use.

Recommended: Yes.

Puffin

*Puffin doesn’t offer these options directly, but their effect can be achieved manually.

Puffin stands out from the browser bunch by routing all of the user’s web browser data through their servers. This means that all of the web computing tasks are performed on their servers.

Usually, with most browsers, the web rendering happens on your device, but with Puffin it happens on their cloud servers. That means that even if a page has malware, it is loaded on their servers and not on your device.

Recommended: Despite offering a lot of security features through add-ons, we recommend Puffin due to their cloud computing method.

Startpage

*Startpage runs on Javascript, and you can manually turn off scripts you don’t like

**Startpage doesn’t record search history and cookies, but you can’t customize that option.

Startpage is a privacy-oriented browser that lets you browse without being fingerprinted across the web, and it offers a unique feature called “Anonymous View.” In essence, Startpage is what an Incognito mode wishes to be.

The “Anonymous View” works like a proxy server, rerouting web traffic through its servers and masking the user’s IP address. As Startpage puts it, once the data reaches their servers, they sanitize HTTP request headers to reveal as little information about the user as possible.

This means they remove all Personal Identifiable Information (PII) from your search queries — your IP address, device information, and browsing history.

However, it’s important to mention that an advertising company, System1, owns it. While their focus is user privacy, the browser owners make money by showing ads, and the company hasn’t made their code open-sourced.

Recommended: Yes, if you don’t mind the fact that an advertising company owns the browser.

Why we don’t recommend Chrome/Edge/Safari as the best private browsers

Many of the popular browsers are great when it comes to usability. They have features that provide a lot of ease of life — but you also have privacy tradeoffs. Here are the biggest issues with the most prominent browsers:

Google Chrome

Google Chrome has file download scanning, malware blocklists, and so on. In exchange, Google collects your information, especially if you are logged into Chrome.

If you’re OK with that, you’ll be glad to learn that Google keeps updating the browser with features that will make it harder for non-Google-affiliated entities to track you. It may be considered a secure web browser, but whether it is a private one is a different question.

If you like using Chrome but want to retain some privacy, here are two quick tips: log out from your Gmail account while browsing and install a VPN for Chrome.

Safari

It’s the default browser for Apple users… and nobody else. Safari is not that bad — it offers to hide your IP from trackers and stops cross-site tracking.

Also, a “Private Window” and a “Private Tab” aren’t private since they only hide info on your local device. Your ISP (and other entities that can inspect your web traffic) can see what you’re up to while browsing in “private.”

But while Safari joins the ranks of browsers that tell you who’s trying to track you, it is still not an open-source project. It also belongs to one of the biggest tech companies in the world… which was compromised by the NSA. Then again, it’s possible that Apple collects very little, so it all depends on your personal choice.

Microsoft Edge

Microsoft’s default browser replacement for Internet Explorer uses Chromium, so it’s at least based on open-source tech. And that’s where the upsides end.

Scientists have evaluated Edge to be among the least privacy-respecting mainline browsers. More than that, Microsoft is using techniques that have been called “malware-like” to push Edge on their users. That’s not a great look for a browser that was plagued with privacy issues basically since the word “go.”

Yandex

Yandex boasts many security tools. It scans files for viruses, blocks malicious websites, and secures passwords and even credit card data. On paper, it’s one of the better security browsers.

However, it’s more complex since privacy isn’t just about the features. Yandex is based in Russia. This means that it is required by law to provide user details to the government. So although it may offer the same benefits as other private browsers, Yandex is hiding even bigger concerns behind a thin sheet of privacy. What about their track record, hmmmmmmmm??? (Looking at the time when system admins were selling user data).

Opera

Opera offers quite a few features — even Mozilla’s own comparison shows that Opera only lags behind by not having social tracking blockers. However, Opera isn’t open-source (even if it’s based on Chromium), isn’t operated by a nonprofit, and was recently purchased by a Chinese tech giant. That’s the one country with more issues respecting online privacy than the US.

Oh, and the free Opera VPN it comes bundled with? Basically, a proxy that also collects your data.

Why “Private” or “Incognito” browsing isn’t enough

It’s easy to be tricked by Safari’s “Private” browsing (Incognito on Google Chrome) — it has private in the name. It doesn’t mean a thing because Incognito mode only hides your searches on your device — it hides them from you. Here are two examples:

• You’re sharing your computer with your family. You want to look something up that you don’t want them to find. So you use Private browsing. Great! Your family will not be able to see your searches. But that’s just it — your searches are still visible to ISPs (Internet Service Providers), third-party providers, hackers, or even the government.
• Whether you share your device or not, you want to look something up without leaving a trace. It can be as simple as wanting to avoid getting ads for something you looked up once out of curiosity. With a simple search, it’s not just your browsing history — your IP address is also visible. So you use a VPN for privacy. And suddenly, you’re digitally hidden.

We also have an article exploring whether Incognito mode hides your IP address in more detail.

And the most secure browser is…

We recommend Firefox, Waterfox, and Librewolf because all three balance easy usage and in-depth customizability of privacy and security settings. In the end, when you have this many options, the question of “the best private browser” boils down to everyone’s preference. To help you find the best, you can test browser security yourself.

Plus, you can always enhance your privacy even further — download a VPN and secure all the data that leaves your device. Surfshark VPN is just the thing — and it will work on any platform your privacy browser can support. It even has browser extensions that work with Brave, Firefox, and Chrome.

As an added benefit to our VPN, you can use Surfshark Search for private browsing. It doesn’t collect any data about your browsing habits, so you’ll always have the most unbiased search results.

FAQ

Which browser is best for privacy?

Some of the best browsers for privacy are Brave, Firefox, Vivaldi, and Waterfox. There are more, but most are built on the Chromium codebase. The Tor browser provides the most anonymity but isn’t meant for casual browsing.

Which browser is untraceable?

The Tor browser, Brave, Firefox, Waterfox, Vivaldi, Puffin, and Pale Moon are web browsers that don’t track you online. If you’re looking for browsers that change your IP when online, then Tor and Startpage should do the trick.

Note: Nothing online is completely untraceable, and the above-mentioned browsers anonymize their users. You always leave a trace online, but a privacy-oriented browser ensures it isn’t tied to you.

Is Firefox better than Google for privacy?

Firefox may be considered a more private browser than Chrome because it offers more privacy-oriented add-ons that prevent user fingerprinting and phishing and has malware blockers. Firefox is also open-sourced.

Can private browsing mode be tracked?

Yes, the private browsing mode can be tracked because it only “gives you privacy” on your own device. It does nothing to prevent websites from gathering data about you.

What percentage of people use what browser?

Here are the most popular browsers by user percentage:

Source

What is the best browser for Android?

Tor browser or Bromite would be best. They are both quite private and easy to use on mobile.

What is the best browser to use with a VPN?

Any browser is good to use with a VPN. Of course, we recommend one of the more private options, but other than that — you should have no interference from any browser.

What is the difference between a browser and a search engine?

The difference between a browser and a search engine is that search engines find and index content while browsers display it. A browser can function without a search engine (by entering URLs directly), but a search engine needs a browser (or a similar interface) to display its search results to users.