Pick a browser that works for you, not against you

Your browser is the single piece of software that sees almost everything you do online, so the one you choose matters more than any extension you add on top. The good news is that you do not need to become an expert or juggle a dozen tools. This guide walks through the main browsers, the few settings that genuinely help, and sensible picks depending on how you use the web.

What a browser can leak

Before comparing options, it helps to know what is being protected. As you browse, sites and the companies embedded in them try to learn who you are through two main methods. The first is cookies, small files stored in your browser, especially third-party cookies set by trackers that appear across many sites. The second is fingerprinting, where a site quietly measures details like your screen size, fonts, and graphics hardware to build a near-unique “fingerprint” that follows you even without cookies. A good private browser limits both.

The browsers, compared

Firefox

Firefox, made by the non-profit Mozilla Foundation, is the most balanced choice for most people. It blocks a large set of known trackers out of the box, and its Total Cookie Protection gives every website its own separate “cookie jar” so a tracker on one site cannot use its cookie to recognise you on another. This is on by default in the Standard protection mode, so most users already benefit without changing anything.

Two settings are worth adjusting. Open the menu, choose Settings, then Privacy & Security:

• Under Enhanced Tracking Protection, most people can stay on Standard. If you are comfortable with the occasional site needing a tweak, Strict adds extra defences such as bounce-tracking protection (which stops trackers that briefly redirect you through their servers) and enhanced cookie clearing.
• Firefox also offers a fingerprinting-protection option. As of July 2026 this lives in the same panel; turning it on makes you harder to fingerprint, at the cost of very occasional site quirks.

If a site ever misbehaves, click the shield icon in the address bar to turn protection off for that one site.

Brave

Brave is built on the same engine as Chrome (Chromium) but strips out Google’s data collection and adds aggressive privacy defences called Shields, on by default. Shields block ads and trackers and include a fingerprinting defence Brave calls farbling: instead of blocking the APIs sites use to fingerprint you, Brave adds tiny, per-site randomness to their output so each site sees a slightly different, non-matching value. As of July 2026 this covers things like canvas, WebGL, audio, screen data, language, and fonts. Brave is a strong pick if you want protection that mostly just works with little configuration.

Mullvad Browser

The Mullvad Browser is built by the Tor Project together with Mullvad VPN, and its single goal is to make you look like everyone else so you are hard to fingerprint. It uses the same hardened settings as the Tor Browser (standardised window sizes via “letterboxing”, limited fonts, spoofed hardware details) but without routing your traffic through the Tor network, so it is much faster for everyday use. It hides your fingerprint, not your IP address, so pair it with a trustworthy VPN if you also want to hide your location. Best for people who want serious anti-fingerprinting without Tor’s slowdown.

Tor Browser

The Tor Browser is the strongest option for anonymity. It combines the same anti-fingerprinting hardening as Mullvad with the Tor network, which bounces your traffic through several relays so no single point knows both who you are and what you are visiting. The trade-off is speed and the occasional site that blocks Tor. Reach for it when anonymity genuinely matters, such as sensitive research, whistleblowing, or evading censorship.

Safari

If you use an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, Safari is a reasonable default. Its Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) uses on-device machine learning to spot tracking domains and block their third-party cookies, and it limits how long tracking-related data can linger (as of July 2026, script-set first-party cookies are kept at most 7 days). Safari 26 also blocks known fingerprinting scripts from reading detailed device information. It is convenient and private enough for most Apple users, though it is less configurable than Firefox.

Why Chrome and Edge collect more

Chrome (Google) and Edge (Microsoft) are capable browsers, but both are made by companies whose business depends on data and advertising. Chrome still does not block third-party cookies by default for everyone, and Google’s advertising systems are built into the wider ecosystem. Edge similarly ties into Microsoft accounts and services. Neither is dangerous to use, but their defaults favour data collection, and (see our tracker-blocking guide) Chrome’s extension rules have weakened its best ad blockers. If you stay on either, treat strong privacy settings and a good content blocker as essential rather than optional.

Which one should you pick?

• Most people, everyday use: Firefox with Standard (or Strict) protection. Balanced, non-profit, works everywhere.
• Want privacy with minimal fuss: Brave, Shields left on.
• Apple devices, convenience first: Safari with ITP.
• Serious anti-fingerprinting, normal speed: Mullvad Browser.
• Maximum anonymity: Tor Browser.

You do not have to use just one. Many people keep a main browser for daily life and a hardened one (Mullvad or Tor) for sensitive tasks. For more on hub topics, see our browsing protection guide and our advice for phones.