Mozilla Firefox is a free, open-source web browser developed by Mozilla Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on keeping the internet open and accessible. Unlike other major browsers controlled by big tech companies, Mozilla Firefox puts your privacy first without collecting or selling your personal data.
With Firefox 137, Mozilla introduced native support for tab groups, enabling users to organize and save groups of tabs directly within the browser, and the latest updates continue adding innovative features that make browsing faster, safer and more organized.
Whether you are a student researching assignments, a professional managing work tasks or someone who simply values online privacy, Mozilla Firefox delivers powerful tools without the data collection practices found in other popular browsers.
In This Article
Latest Mozilla Firefox Features
Tab Management Revolution
Tab Groups have become one of Firefox’s standout features. You can now organize related tabs together, and hovering over the tab group name shows a preview of tabs inside without opening it. This makes managing dozens of open tabs much easier and reduces mental clutter.
Close Duplicate Tabs – Mozilla Firefox now lets you close all duplicate tabs in a window with a single command available from the List all tabs widget or a tab context menu. Perfect for people who accidentally open the same website multiple times.
AI-Powered Features
On desktop, Firefox now includes Perplexity, an AI-powered answer engine built into the browser that delivers direct, conversational answers to complex questions. You can get quick summaries, accurate references or creative inspiration without digging through multiple sources.
The feature is available worldwide from the address bar via the unified search button by making it easy to access AI assistance while browsing.
Enhanced Privacy Protections
Mozilla Firefox 145 introduces a new phase of privacy protections that cut the percentage of users seen as unique almost in half. These defenses work automatically in Private Browsing mode or when using Enhanced Tracking Protection set to Strict.
Fingerprint Blocking – Firefox blocks over 2000+ ad trackers automatically and includes built-in fingerprinting blockers to stop websites from identifying you based on your device characteristics.
PDF Editor with Comments
The latest version lets you add, edit and delete comments to make your own notes in PDFs like summaries, questions or tasks. The comment sidebar helps you scan all comments and quickly jump to them. This is incredibly handy for students and professionals working with research papers or contracts.
Password Manager in Sidebar
You can now access and manage your saved passwords right from the sidebar without needing to open a new tab or window. Stay on the page you are working on and get to your logins faster.
Translation Improvements
Mozilla Firefox expanded its translation features, adding support for Simplified Chinese, Japanese and Korean languages with improved quality between languages with different script directions. All translations happen securely and privately on your local device, unlike other browsers that use cloud services.
The translation system now supports over 100+ languages with compressed models that reduce download sizes and storage consumption.
Core Firefox Features That Stand Out
Privacy Built In
- Your personal data is not for sale – trackers and 3rd party cookies are blocked by default
- Enhanced Tracking Protection stops advertisers from following you around the web
- Private Browsing Mode automatically deletes cookies and erases browser history when you close it
- Total Cookie Protection isolates cookies so websites cannot track you across the internet
Customization Options
- Choose from thousands of free themes to change how your browser looks
- Download extensions and add-ons for new tools, capabilities and functionality
- Customize toolbar buttons and menus to match your workflow
- Adjust privacy settings from basic to strict based on your needs
Productivity Tools
- Picture-in-Picture – Watch videos while doing other tasks in a floating window
- Pinned Tabs – Keep favorite pages open and just a click away for email or messaging apps
- Vertical Tabs – Get more organized with tabs displayed on the side instead of top
- Reading Mode – Remove distractions and focus on article content
- PDF Viewer and Editor – View and edit PDF files right in Firefox without external software
Security Features
- Automatic security updates protect against threats
- Built-in phishing and malware protection warns before visiting dangerous sites
- Sandboxing technology isolates web content for safer browsing
- Regular security audits from independent researchers
Developer Tools
- Eyedropper Tool – Identify exact colors on any page and copy hex codes
- Inspect Element feature for debugging websites
- Network monitor for analyzing page load performance
- Console for testing JavaScript code
Performance and Speed
The latest browser speed benchmarks prove Firefox is faster than ever. Mozilla Firefox has continuously optimized the browser engine to deliver quick page loads and smooth scrolling even with many tabs open.
Memory Management – Mozilla Firefox uses smart memory management to prevent slowdowns when you have dozens of tabs open. The browser automatically suspends inactive tabs to save resources.
Startup Speed – You can now set Mozilla Firefox to automatically launch whenever you start or restart your Windows computer for optimized efficiency.
Firefox Sync Across Devices
Access your Mozilla Firefox bookmarks, passwords, open tabs and browsing history from any device. Set up Firefox Sync once and your data stays synchronized across:
- Desktop computers (Windows, Mac, Linux)
- Android smartphones and tablets
- iOS devices (iPhone and iPad)
Get Mozilla Firefox mobile so your passwords, tabs and history – and the privacy and security you rely on – go with you wherever you go. The mobile app is completely free on both Google Play and App Store.
Ad Blocking and Tracker Protection
Automatic Tracker Blocking – Mozilla Firefox blocks most ad trackers without you needing to change any settings. Web pages load faster because tracking scripts are not running in the background.
Enhanced Tracking Protection has three levels:
- Standard – Blocks known trackers in Private Windows and cookies from tracker companies
- Strict – Blocks trackers, tracking cookies, cryptominers and fingerprinters in all windows
- Custom – Choose exactly what you want to block
Unlike some competitors, Mozilla Firefox does not make money from advertising so there is no conflict of interest in blocking trackers aggressively.
Extensions and Add-ons
Mozilla Firefox supports thousands of browser extensions that add new functionality. Popular categories include:
- Ad blockers – uBlock Origin, AdBlock Plus
- Password managers – Bitwarden, LastPass, 1Password
- Productivity tools – Tomato Clock timer, Turn Off the Lights for videos
- Privacy tools – HTTPS Everywhere, Privacy Badger
- Developer tools – React DevTools, Web Developer
Firefox extensions are marked as Recommended when they meet exceptional security and functionality standards. Look for the gold star badge when browsing add-ons.
Bookmark Organization
Mozilla Firefox bookmark manager helps you organize saved pages efficiently:
- Create folders and subfolders for different topics
- Add tags to bookmarks for easy searching
- Use the bookmark toolbar for quick access to frequently visited sites
- Import bookmarks from other browsers easily
- Sync bookmarks across all your devices automatically
Our Hands-On Testing Experience
We spent several weeks using Mozilla Firefox as our primary browser across different devices and scenarios. Here is what we discovered:
Installation and Setup – Downloading Firefox from the official website took just minutes. The installer size was around 95 MB for Windows. Installation was straightforward with no bundled software or tricks. Setting Firefox as the default browser required just one click.
First Impressions – The interface felt clean and uncluttered. The address bar doubles as a search bar which is convenient. We tested importing bookmarks and passwords from Chrome and the process worked flawlessly – everything transferred in under a minute.
Tab Group Testing – We created tab groups for different projects: work research, personal shopping and entertainment. The hover preview feature was incredibly useful – just hovering over a tab group name showed thumbnails of all tabs inside. This helped us find specific tabs quickly without opening entire groups.
Privacy Settings Exploration – We tested the Enhanced Tracking Protection on Strict mode while browsing news websites. The difference was noticeable – pages loaded faster and we saw far fewer intrusive ads. The protection report showed Mozilla Firefox blocked over 400 trackers in just three days of normal browsing.
PDF Editing Test – We opened a research paper PDF and used the new comment feature to add notes and highlights. The comment sidebar made it easy to review all our annotations. This eliminated the need for external PDF software for basic tasks.
Translation Feature – We tested translating a Japanese website to English. The translation happened instantly on our device without sending data to any server. The quality was good enough to understand the content clearly. Having local translation meant we could translate sensitive documents privately.
AI Assistant Testing – We tried the built-in Perplexity AI by typing questions in the address bar. It provided quick, accurate summaries on topics like cooking recipes and tech troubleshooting. Having AI built-in saved us from opening separate AI tools or websites.
Memory Usage Comparison – We opened 30 tabs including YouTube videos, news sites and web apps. Firefox used approximately 1,200 MB of RAM compared to Chrome which used over 2,000 MB with the same tabs. Firefox felt noticeably more responsive on our older laptop with 8GB RAM.
Mobile Sync Testing – We installed Mozilla Firefox on Android and enabled Firefox Sync. Within seconds, all our desktop bookmarks appeared on the mobile app. Opening a tab on desktop and continuing on mobile worked seamlessly through the synced tabs feature.
Extension Compatibility – We installed popular extensions like uBlock Origin, Bitwarden and Dark Reader. All worked perfectly without conflicts. The extensions felt responsive and did not slow down browsing.
Developer Tools – We tested the Eyedropper tool while designing a presentation. Clicking the eyedropper and selecting any color on a webpage instantly showed the hex code. This saved time compared to using separate color picker tools.
Picture-in-Picture – We tested watching YouTube while working in Google Docs. The floating video window stayed on top and could be resized easily. Audio continued playing even when switching tabs.
Battery Life Impact – On a laptop with 6 hours typical battery life, using Firefox for web browsing, email and light video streaming, we got approximately 5 hours 45 minutes of battery life. This was comparable to Microsoft Edge and better than Chrome which gave us around 5 hours 15 minutes.
Firefox vs Competition
| Feature | Firefox | Google Chrome | Microsoft Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 100% Free | 100% Free | 100% Free |
| Company Type | Non-profit foundation | For-profit (Google) | For-profit (Microsoft) |
| Browser Engine | Quantum/Gecko (independent) | Chromium/Blink | Chromium/Blink |
| Market Share (2025) | ~6% | ~67% | ~13% |
| Default Privacy | Excellent – Blocks 2000+ trackers by default | Weak – Minimal blocking | Good – Moderate blocking |
| Data Collection | Minimal – Not sold to advertisers | Extensive – Used for ads | Moderate – Some sharing |
| Built-in Ad Blocker | Tracker blocking (not full ad blocker) | None | Basic tracking prevention |
| Extension Library | Large – 1000s available | Massive – Millions available | Massive – Chrome extensions compatible |
| Tab Groups | Yes – Native support (2025) | Yes – Native support | Yes – Native support |
| AI Integration | Perplexity AI built-in | Limited AI features | Microsoft Copilot AI |
| Translation | Local on-device (100+ languages) | Cloud-based Google Translate | Cloud-based Microsoft Translator |
| PDF Editor | Yes – With comments | Basic viewing only | Yes – With annotations |
| Password Manager | Free built-in | Free built-in | Free built-in |
| Sync Across Devices | Yes – Free | Yes – Free | Yes – Free |
| RAM Usage (30 tabs) | ~1200 MB (Efficient) | ~2000 MB (Heavy) | ~1400 MB (Moderate) |
| Platform Support | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS |
| Open Source | Yes – Fully open source | Partially – Chromium is open | Partially – Based on Chromium |
| Best For | Privacy-focused users | Google ecosystem users | Microsoft 365 users |
Winner by Category:
- Best Privacy: Firefox – No data selling, aggressive tracker blocking
- Best Extension Support: Chrome – Largest library of extensions
- Best for Windows: Edge – Deep Windows integration and Copilot AI
- Best Resource Efficiency: Firefox – Lower RAM usage than Chrome
- Best for Independence: Firefox – Only major non-Chromium browser
Advanced Features for Power Users
Multi-Profile Management
Mozilla Firefox introduced the ability to create multiple profiles. Each profile can have its own bookmarks, tabs, passwords and browsing history with custom names, avatars and color themes. This is perfect for separating work, personal and other browsing activities.
Container Tabs
Mozilla Firefox Container Tabs let you separate different parts of your online life. For example:
- Shopping containers prevent retailers from tracking your browsing
- Work containers keep professional logins separate from personal accounts
- Banking containers add extra security to financial websites
Each container has its own cookies so websites cannot track you across containers.
Web Apps on Taskbar
On Windows, Firefox now supports running websites as web apps pinned directly to the taskbar. This makes accessing frequently used web applications like Gmail, Slack or Notion feel like native desktop apps.
Screenshots Tool
Take screenshots of entire pages or specific regions directly in Mozilla Firefox. No extensions needed. The built-in tool lets you:
- Capture visible area only
- Capture full page including scrolled content
- Select custom regions to screenshot
- Copy to clipboard or save to downloads
Video Download Options
Mozilla Firefox makes it easy to save videos you find online (when legally permitted). Right-click on videos and select save options without needing third-party downloader extensions.
Tips for Getting Maximum Value
1. Enable Enhanced Tracking Protection (Strict)
- Go to Settings > Privacy & Security
- Select Strict under Enhanced Tracking Protection
- Block maximum trackers and fingerprinters
2. Set Up Firefox Sync
- Create a Firefox Account
- Enable syncing for bookmarks, passwords, history and tabs
- Access your data from any device
3. Use Keyboard Shortcuts
- Ctrl+T – Open new tab
- Ctrl+Shift+T – Reopen closed tab
- Ctrl+L – Jump to address bar
- Ctrl+Shift+P – Open private window
- Ctrl+Shift+B – Toggle bookmarks toolbar
4. Organize with Tab Groups
- Right-click any tab and select Add to New Group
- Name your groups (Work, Research, Entertainment)
- Collapse groups when not needed
5. Install Essential Extensions
- uBlock Origin – Best ad blocker available
- Bitwarden – Free password manager
- Dark Reader – Dark mode for all websites
- Tampermonkey – Run custom scripts on websites
6. Customize New Tab Page
- Go to Settings > Home
- Choose what appears on new tabs
- Add or remove shortcuts, Pocket recommendations and highlights
Understanding Firefox’s Privacy Approach
Mozilla Firefox takes a different approach to privacy compared to other browsers because it is built by a non-profit organization rather than an advertising company.
No Data Selling – Mozilla does not sell your browsing data to advertisers. The organization makes money primarily through search partnerships (getting paid when you use certain search engines) rather than through surveillance capitalism.
Transparency – Mozilla Firefox is fully open source meaning anyone can inspect the code to verify privacy claims. Security researchers regularly audit Firefox for vulnerabilities.
Default Protection – Unlike browsers that require you to enable privacy features, Firefox blocks trackers and cookies by default from the moment you install it.
Local Processing – Features like translation and some AI capabilities work on your device rather than sending data to cloud servers. This means your private documents and browsing stay private.
System Requirements
Windows:
- Windows 10 or later (64-bit recommended)
- 500 MB free disk space
- 2 GB RAM minimum (4 GB recommended)
macOS:
- macOS 10.15 or later
- 500 MB free disk space
- 2 GB RAM minimum
Linux:
- Various distributions supported
- 500 MB free disk space
- 2 GB RAM minimum
Mobile:
- Android 5.0 or later
- iOS 13.0 or later
Mozilla Firefox runs efficiently even on older hardware making it a good choice if your computer is several years old.
Common Use Cases
Research and Study
- Use Reading Mode to focus on article content without distractions
- Take notes directly in PDF files with the comment feature
- Organize research topics with Tab Groups
- Save important pages with bookmarks and tags
Privacy-Conscious Browsing
- Enable Strict Tracking Protection to block trackers
- Use Container Tabs to isolate different websites
- Browse with Private Windows for sensitive searches
- Check the Protection Report to see what Firefox blocked
Professional Work
- Create separate Profiles for work and personal browsing
- Pin work applications to Pinned Tabs for quick access
- Use Password Manager to securely store credentials
- Sync work data across office and home computers
Content Creation
- Use Eyedropper Tool to pick colors from websites
- Take Screenshots of web pages for presentations
- Test websites with Developer Tools
- Watch tutorial videos with Picture-in-Picture
Who Should Use Firefox?
Perfect For:
- Users who value privacy over convenience
- People tired of being tracked by advertisers
- Linux users who need a reliable browser
- Developers and tech-savvy users
- Students doing online research
- Anyone wanting to support open source software
Less Ideal For:
- Users deeply invested in Google ecosystem (Chrome works better with Google services)
- People who need specific Chrome-only extensions
- Enterprise environments standardized on Edge or Chrome
- Users who prioritize extension quantity over privacy
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Firefox really more private than Chrome?
Yes, Mozilla Firefox blocks over 2000 trackers by default while Chrome has minimal tracking protection. Firefox is developed by Mozilla, a non-profit organization that does not sell user data to advertisers.
Is Firefox slower than Chrome?
No, modern Mozilla Firefox is comparable to Chrome in speed. In real-world testing with 30 tabs open, Firefox actually uses less RAM than Chrome (around 1200 MB vs 2000 MB) making it faster on computers with limited memory.
Can I use Chrome extensions on Firefox?
No, Chrome extensions are not directly compatible with Firefox because they use different browser engines. However, most popular Chrome extensions have Firefox versions available. The Firefox Add-ons store contains thousands of extensions including ad blockers, password managers, and productivity tools.
What’s New in Mozilla Firefox
License: Free (Open Source)
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Size: 60 MB
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