Choosing a web browser on Linux does not have to be difficult. Firefox and Brave are popular choices, but there are several other browsers worth trying. The right one can give you better privacy, a smoother workflow, faster performance, or simply a browser that fits the way you use Linux.
In this guide, we look at 10 browsers that run on Linux. Each one has something different to offer, from strong privacy and customization to better support for certain websites or lighter resource usage.
We also look at how to install each browser on Ubuntu, Debian, RHEL, and Rocky Linux. Where useful, we include Flatpak and Docker options too.
So, whether you are looking for a Firefox alternative, a privacy-focused browser, or simply want to try something different, this list should help you find the right browser for your Linux desktop.
1. Mozilla Firefox
Firefox is still the default on most distros and one of the most trusted browsers for Linux, and for good reason. It's built by Mozilla, licensed under the MPL 2.0, and runs on Gecko, the only major engine left that isn't Chromium or WebKit. If you care about the web not becoming a one-engine monoculture, that matters.
Day to day, you get Total Cookie Protection on by default, Enhanced Tracking Protection, solid Wayland support, hardware video decoding through VA-API on most Intel and AMD GPUs, and full uBlock Origin support. Firefox Sync keeps bookmarks and passwords across devices, end to end encrypted.
It's free. No paid tier for the browser itself. Mozilla does push some optional extras (VPN, Relay) and has added AI features and sponsored content on the new tab page over the last couple of years, which is the main complaint you'll see from Linux users. Most of it can be turned off in Settings or about:config.
Why it's number one: it works everywhere, it's what most distros test against, and it's the base that half the privacy browsers on this list fork from. If you want to know how the forks compare, we covered that in our guide to Firefox forks for Linux.
Installing Mozilla Firefox on Linux
Ubuntu ships Firefox as a Snap. If you'd rather use a native .deb, add Mozilla's own APT repo as shown below. On Rocky Linux the AppStream package is Firefox ESR.
Using Docker (browser in a container, accessed over the web):
LinuxTeck
docker run -d --name=firefox -e PUID=1000 -e PGID=1000 -e TZ=Etc/UTC -p 3000:3000 -p 3001:3001 --shm-size="1gb" --restart unless-stopped lscr.io/linuxserver/firefox:latest
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo install -d -m 0755 /etc/apt/keyrings
wget -q https://packages.mozilla.org/apt/repo-signing-key.gpg -O- | sudo tee /etc/apt/keyrings/packages.mozilla.org.asc > /dev/null
echo "deb [signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/packages.mozilla.org.asc] https://packages.mozilla.org/apt mozilla main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mozilla.list > /dev/null
# Prefer Mozilla's package over the Snap transition package
echo -e "Package: *\nPin: origin packages.mozilla.org\nPin-Priority: 1000" | sudo tee /etc/apt/preferences.d/mozilla
sudo apt update && sudo apt install firefox -y
firefox --version
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf install firefox -y
firefox --version
# Want the regular release instead of ESR? Use Flathub
sudo dnf install flatpak -y
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub org.mozilla.firefox -y
The Docker image is handy if you run it on a remote box (a cheap VPS works, see our DigitalOcean vs Vultr comparison if you're picking one) and want a disposable browser you can open from anywhere. For a normal desktop, the native package is the better choice. First thing after install: open about:preferences#privacy and set tracking protection to Strict.
Key benefits:
- Gecko engine, so you're not adding to the Chromium monopoly
- Total Cookie Protection isolates cookies per site out of the box
- Best-in-class uBlock Origin support, still on full Manifest V2 style blocking
- Native Wayland and VA-API hardware video decoding on most setups
- Firefox Sync is end to end encrypted
Concept:
Snap, Flatpak, and native packages all give you the same Firefox, but they behave differently around sandboxing, file access, and update timing. If you've ever had a Snap browser that couldn't see your downloads folder, that's why. Our breakdown of Flatpak vs Snap vs AppImage explains the trade-offs.
2. Brave
Brave is a Chromium-based browser from Brave Software, open source under MPL 2.0. It's the go-to pick for people who want Chrome-level site compatibility without Google's tracking, and in community threads it comes up about as often as Firefox.
Brave Shields blocks ads, trackers, and fingerprinting by default, and because the blocker is built into the browser rather than shipped as an extension, it isn't affected by Chrome's Manifest V3 changes. You also get Chrome Web Store extension support, built-in Tor private windows, vertical tabs, and a decent built-in password manager.
The browser is free. Brave makes money through opt-in Brave Ads (BAT rewards), Brave Search Premium, a paid VPN, and the Leo AI assistant's premium tier. Linux users often grumble about all that, but it can be hidden in brave://settings in about two minutes.
Where it stands out: best out-of-the-box privacy for a Chromium browser. You install it and you're mostly done.
Installing Brave on Linux
Brave publishes official APT and RPM repos. Use those, not the Snap, which tends to lag behind.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo curl -fsSLo /usr/share/keyrings/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg https://brave-browser-apt-release.s3.brave.com/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg
echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg] https://brave-browser-apt-release.s3.brave.com/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/brave-browser-release.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install brave-browser -y
brave-browser --version
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo https://brave-browser-rpm-release.s3.brave.com/brave-browser.repo
sudo dnf install brave-browser -y
brave-browser --version
After install, go to brave://settings/shields and set fingerprinting to Strict if you don't mind the odd site breaking. Also worth turning off the crypto wallet and Leo if you won't use them.
Key benefits:
- Ad and tracker blocking built into the browser, not dependent on extension APIs
- Full Chrome Web Store compatibility
- Private windows with Tor, without installing anything extra
- Official repos for both apt and dnf, so updates come through your normal package manager
3. LibreWolf
LibreWolf is a community-maintained fork of Firefox focused on privacy and security. Telemetry is stripped out, uBlock Origin comes preinstalled, and a few hundred hardening tweaks are applied before you even open it. It's open source under MPL 2.0. We did a full LibreWolf vs Firefox comparison if you're torn between the two.
Out of the box you get resist fingerprinting enabled, cookies and history cleared on close, DuckDuckGo as default search, no Pocket, no sponsored stuff, no Mozilla accounts nagging you. Pretty much the Firefox a lot of people wish Mozilla shipped.
It's completely free. No company behind it, no upsells.
The trade-off: those defaults will break some sites and log you out of everything when you close it. Reddit users often say the same thing, great browser, but expect to spend ten minutes relaxing settings if you want it as a daily driver. LibreWolf usually tracks Firefox releases within a few days, so security patches land fast.
Installing LibreWolf on Linux
LibreWolf has its own repos for Debian-based and RPM-based distros, plus a Docker image if you want it isolated.
Using Docker:
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On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo extrepo enable librewolf
sudo apt update && sudo apt install librewolf -y
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf install librewolf -y
librewolf --version
If logging back in every time gets old, open Settings, Privacy and Security, and uncheck the option that deletes cookies and site data when LibreWolf closes. You can whitelist just the sites you need too.
Key benefits:
- No telemetry at all, and nothing to switch off afterwards
- uBlock Origin preinstalled and set up
- Fingerprinting resistance on by default
- Follows Firefox releases closely, so you still get Gecko security fixes quickly
4. Zen Browser
Zen is a newer Firefox-based browser that went from niche to one of the most recommended picks on Linux subreddits in about a year. It's open source (MPL 2.0) and maintained by a small community team. Think of it as Firefox with a workflow overhaul.
The main draw is the UI: vertical tabs by default, workspaces, split view for two or more tabs side by side, Glance for previewing links in a popup, and compact mode that hides almost all the chrome. Add-ons from Firefox work as normal, and there's a mods store for theming.
Free, no paid tier.
Zen stands out for people who live in their browser with a lot of tabs. It's not as lean as LibreWolf though, the extra UI layer makes cold starts slower on old hardware, and some users point out it does more network requests on startup than a hardened fork would. Worth knowing if privacy is your top priority.
Installing Zen Browser on Linux
Flathub is the official and easiest route for Zen on any distro. Make sure Flatpak and the Flathub remote are set up first.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo apt update
sudo apt install flatpak -y
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub app.zen_browser.zen -y
flatpak run app.zen_browser.zen
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf install flatpak -y
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub app.zen_browser.zen -y
flatpak run app.zen_browser.zen
First launch walks you through importing from another browser. Log out and back in once after installing Flatpak for the first time, otherwise Zen may not show up in your app menu.
Key benefits:
- Vertical tabs, workspaces, and split view built in, no extensions needed
- Runs Firefox add-ons as-is
- Compact mode gives you basically a full-screen web page
- Active development with frequent updates through Flathub
5. Chromium
Chromium is the open source project that Chrome, Brave, Vivaldi, Edge, and Helium are built on. It's BSD-licensed and maintained by Google and the Chromium community. You get the same engine as Chrome, minus Google's proprietary bits like built-in sync to your Google account and some codecs.
Features are basically Chrome's: fast V8 JavaScript engine, DevTools, Chrome Web Store extensions, and solid Wayland support these days. Distro packagers usually build it without Google API keys, so some things like Chrome Sync won't work.
Free. No tiers.
The reason to pick it: you want Chrome's compatibility but don't want Google's binary on your system. It's also the browser people pick for kiosk setups and testing. Just remember, Manifest V3 changes still apply here, so uBlock Origin Lite replaces the full uBlock.
Installing Chromium on Linux
Ubuntu's apt package for Chromium is only a wrapper that installs the Snap. On Rocky Linux you get it from EPEL.
Using Docker:
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docker ps --filter name=chromium
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo snap install chromium
chromium --version
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf install chromium -y
chromium-browser --version
The containers on port 3001 use a self-signed cert, so your browser will warn you the first time. Our Docker management cheat sheet has the commands for stopping, updating, and cleaning up these containers.
Key benefits:
- Same engine and site compatibility as Chrome, fully open source
- No Google account integration unless you go looking for it
- Available in Debian repos and EPEL, not just third-party sources
- A good base for kiosk, testing, and automation setups
6. Google Chrome
Chrome is Google's proprietary build of Chromium and still the most used browser in the world. On Linux it's fully supported, with official .deb and .rpm packages.
What you get over Chromium: Google account sync, Widevine DRM working out of the box for Netflix and Spotify in the browser, automatic updates via Google's repo, and things like Google Lens and Gemini integrated in. Web apps like Google Meet and Docs are tested on it first.
Free. The cost is data, Chrome is tied deeply into Google's ecosystem, and Manifest V3 has made strong ad blocking harder than on Firefox-based browsers.
Where it stands out: if your job lives in Google Workspace, or some internal web app only gets tested on Chrome, this is the least hassle option. It's also often the one IT departments standardize on.
Installing Google Chrome on Linux
Google ships packages that also add its own repo, so future updates come through apt or dnf automatically.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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sudo apt install ./google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb -y
google-chrome --version
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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google-chrome --version
# Confirm the Google repo was added for updates
dnf repolist | grep -i google
Not sure what that repo file actually does? Our explainer on what a Linux repository is covers how signed repos and updates work.
Key benefits:
- Widevine DRM and media codecs work immediately
- Google account sync across every device you use
- Official repo means updates come with your regular system updates
- First-class support for Google Workspace and most enterprise web apps
Enterprise Insight:
Chrome and Chromium read managed policies from /etc/opt/chrome/policies/managed/ and /etc/chromium/policies/managed/ respectively. Drop a JSON file there to force extensions, block sites, or turn off sync across a fleet, no third-party tooling needed.
7. Vivaldi
Vivaldi is a Chromium-based browser from Vivaldi Technologies, a Norwegian company started by former Opera people. The UI is proprietary, the Chromium parts are open source. It's built for people who want to customize everything.
There's a lot here: tab stacking and tiling, vertical or horizontal tabs, a built-in mail client, calendar, feed reader, notes, command chains, keyboard shortcut and mouse gesture editing, and a built-in tracker and ad blocker. Sync is end to end encrypted.
Free, no premium tier. The company makes money through search partnerships and bookmarks, not ads in the browser itself.
Vivaldi stands out for power users who'd otherwise install fifteen extensions. Some people find it overwhelming, and it uses a bit more memory than Brave or Chromium because of all those extra panels.
Installing Vivaldi on Linux
Vivaldi has official repos for both package families.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/vivaldi-browser.gpg arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture)] https://repo.vivaldi.com/archive/deb/ stable main" | sudo dd of=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/vivaldi-archive.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install vivaldi-stable -y
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo https://repo.vivaldi.com/archive/vivaldi-fedora.repo
sudo dnf install vivaldi-stable -y
vivaldi --version
On first run Vivaldi asks you to pick a layout and whether to enable the ad blocker. Turn the blocker on, it's off by default for ads.
Key benefits:
- Tab stacking, tiling, and a side panel that can host any website
- Mail, calendar, and RSS built in
- Very deep customization of shortcuts, gestures, and UI
- Chrome extension support
8. Mullvad Browser
Mullvad Browser is made by Mullvad VPN together with the Tor Project. It's basically Tor Browser without the Tor network: same anti-fingerprinting protections, but traffic goes over your normal connection (or a VPN of your choosing). It's free and open source.
The idea is that every Mullvad Browser user looks the same to websites. Letterboxing, a fixed set of fonts, uBlock Origin preinstalled, private browsing mode always on, and no history saved between sessions.
Free. You don't need a Mullvad VPN subscription to use it, though it's designed to pair with one.
It stands out if fingerprinting is what you're worried about. It's not a good daily browser for logged-in work though, since it forgets everything when you close it.
Installing Mullvad Browser on Linux
Mullvad has official repos. Flathub works as well.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/mullvad-keyring.asc arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture)] https://repository.mullvad.net/deb/stable stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mullvad.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install mullvad-browser -y
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo https://repository.mullvad.net/rpm/stable/mullvad.repo
sudo dnf install mullvad-browser -y
Don't add a bunch of extensions or change the window size settings. That makes you stand out, which defeats the whole point.
Key benefits:
- Tor Project-grade fingerprinting protection without Tor's speed penalty
- Always private, nothing stored after you close it
- uBlock Origin preinstalled
- Free, no account or subscription needed
9. Helium
Helium is a fairly new Chromium-based browser from Imput, built on top of ungoogled-chromium and licensed under GPL-3.0. It's been picking up a lot of mentions in browser subreddits as the privacy-friendly Chromium option for people who find Brave too busy.
It ships with uBlock Origin built in and kept on a Manifest V2 style setup, no Google services, no telemetry, and a cleaner, minimal UI. Extensions from the Chrome Web Store still work.
Free, no ads, no rewards program, no crypto.
Where it stands out: a no-nonsense, de-Googled Chromium with the ad blocker people actually want. It's still a young project, though, so expect rough edges and keep an eye on its release notes.
Installing Helium on Linux
Helium provides an apt repo for Debian and Ubuntu, a COPR for Fedora, and AppImage/tarball builds for everything else. There's no official Flatpak.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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echo "deb [arch=amd64,arm64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/helium.gpg] https://pkg.helium.computer/deb stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/helium.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install helium-bin -y
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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# https://github.com/imputnet/helium-linux/releases
sudo dnf install fuse fuse-libs -y
chmod +x helium-*.AppImage
./helium-*.AppImage
On Rocky, the AppImage won't update itself, so check the releases page every couple of weeks.
Key benefits:
- uBlock Origin built in, not limited by Manifest V3
- Based on ungoogled-chromium, so no Google services phoning home
- Clean, distraction-free interface
- Supports Chrome Web Store extensions
10. Falkon
Falkon is KDE's lightweight browser, built on QtWebEngine (which is Chromium under the hood). It's GPL-3.0 licensed and fits right in on a Plasma desktop.
It's simple: tabs, bookmarks, a built-in AdBlock, session restore, and a few plugins. It doesn't support Chrome extensions, which keeps it light.
Free.
Falkon stands out on older hardware or minimal setups where you just need to read docs and check a dashboard. If you're running Plasma, it'll use your system theme. Not sure which desktop you're on? Our KDE vs GNOME guide helps.
Installing Falkon on Linux
Falkon is in Ubuntu's universe repo and in EPEL for Rocky Linux.
On Ubuntu/Debian:
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falkon --version
On RHEL/Rocky Linux:
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sudo dnf install falkon -y
# Or via Flathub
sudo dnf install flatpak -y
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub org.kde.falkon -y
There's nothing much to configure. Just enable AdBlock under Preferences, Extensions.
Key benefits:
- Small memory footprint compared with full Chrome or Firefox
- Native integration with KDE Plasma
- Built-in ad blocker without extensions
- Good fit for older laptops and minimal installs
Conclusion
Every browser here is free, runs natively on Linux, and installs from an official source. Pick by what bugs you most: privacy, tabs, or compatibility. If you're still choosing a distro, our beginner distro guide can help, and the DNF vs APT guide explains why the install commands differ.
Our recommendations:
- Mozilla Firefox: Use this if you want a safe all-rounder with the best ad blocking.
- Brave: Use this if you want Chrome compatibility with privacy on by default.
- LibreWolf: Use this if you want hardened Firefox and don't mind tweaking.
- Zen Browser: Use this if you juggle lots of tabs and want workspaces and split view.
- Chromium: Use this if you need Chrome's engine without Google's binary.
- Google Chrome: Use this if your work runs on Google Workspace.
- Vivaldi: Use this if you want to customize every corner of your browser.
- Mullvad Browser: Use this if fingerprinting protection is the priority.
- Helium: Use this if you want a clean, de-Googled Chromium with uBlock Origin.
- Falkon: Use this if you're on older hardware or KDE Plasma.
Did we miss a tool you rely on? Tell us in the comments below.
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LinuxTeck covers everything from beginner Linux commands to advanced Linux system administration and DevOps career guidance, written by practitioners for professionals working on Ubuntu, Rocky Linux, RHEL, and enterprise Linux environments every day.
