Among the most heated technology debates ever there is that of the best browser and, in particular, the one between Firefox and Chrome .
In recent years this comparison had lost much of the interest, because objectively nobody could say that Firefox was better than Chrome, clearly the number one both in terms of speed and characteristics.
Fortunately, however, Mozilla has not given up and has finally come to a Firefox version ( Firefox Quantum ) that breaks with the past and offers a marked improvement.
It is therefore worth resuming this speech, making a quick summary of the key features of the latest versions of the Chrome and Firefox browsers, without forgetting what for many is the key factor of choice: the speed of loading websites.
1) Chrome is cleaner, Firefox is more customizable
Google has made every effort to make the appearance of Chrome pleasant and make it feel cleaner and more comfortable for the user than Firefox and Internet Explorer were (until about 4 years ago), very skinny and gray.
Firefox, in the Quantum version, is certainly cleaner than before, flatter and with more compact menus.
Firefox also offers more possibilities to modify the main interface, the displayable keys and the behavior of the browser thanks to numerous options.
Don't forget that Firefox can be customized in every detail thanks to Firefox's about: config options .
2) Chrome and Firefox for developers
There are many sites that tend to recommend Chrome to their readers because the developers and designers of those sites most likely use Chrome as their primary browser.
The latest version of Firefox improves the developers console making it become of the same level compared to that of Chrome, equalizing the comparison.
3) Chrome and Firefox extensions
Chrome has tons of extensions and, above all, a much more organized site to look for them.
Firefox, which for years has been the number one browser for extensions, has undergone a renewal that has forced developers to update add-ons, making older ones unusable.
At the moment, therefore, Chrome wins on this comparison.
READ ALSO: Best Firefox extensions recommended by Mozilla and Best Chrome extensions for all uses
4) Chrome is better in the data synchronization phase
Chrome synchronizes almost everything that is done in the browser so that it can also be found on other computers and not slo, even on Android tablets and smartphones, iPhones and iPads.
Of course you need to use Chrome everywhere to have this benefit and it is, for myself, the main reason why I always use Chrome.
Chrome makes it easy to sync everything with a Google account, while syncing on Firefox requires an account to register on the Mozilla site.
Chrome is also excellent in managing multiple synchronization profiles, while in Firefox the synchronization takes place for a single account.
5) Firefox offers better privacy protection
Firefox wins against Chrome in terms of user privacy and browsing security simply because Chrome has always been suspected of collecting data on users on behalf of Google who would use them to better target advertising.
In reality Chrome, taken on its own, is probably more secure than Firefox thanks to its sandboxing and blocking model of any attempt to intrude from scripts and files on the internet.
However, Firefox's security extensions are so powerful that, overall, there is no match, at least if you are an expert user.
In addition, Chrome has, for now, a not too secure, highly contested password manager (see how to show passwords on Chrome).
6) As for stability, there is a certain balance between the two contenders.
The problem occurs when you have many tabs open, both Chrome and Firefox tend to take up a lot of memory immobilizing your computer and crashing.
While Chrome is greedy for computer memory, Firefox Quantum certainly remains lighter.
In other articles, to mitigate these problems, we have seen:
- Firefox extensions to decrease RAM memory consumption
- Suspend idle Chrome tabs to save memory
7) Chrome speed comparison against Firefox
As for speed, all measurements can be made by going to the browser benchmarking test sites.
Chrome is certainly faster than Firefox to load Google sites, while for many other Firefox sites, in its latest Quantum version, it gives the distinct sensation of a faster load.
We cannot say that Firefox is absolutely faster than Chrome, but surely the previously existing gap (in favor of Chrome) has narrowed.
Quantum is a fast browser and since Mozilla developers have promised to refine it in the coming months, it is possible that it can reach Chrome in a short time.
Conclusion
Every browser is good for surfing the internet, but the choice of the best one to use depends on what you do.
If you surf the internet passively, without ever writing anything and browsing only on Facebook or news sites, then Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome does not change anything.
If instead you work with your browser by opening many web applications together, actively participating on multiple websites, keeping many extensions useful to facilitate the task, then the choice between Chrome and Firefox is completely personal.
Without any doubt, the overwhelming power of Google as a search engine, as a developer of Android and as a provider of various services between Gmail, Youtube and Google Maps, leads Chrome to be the natural gateway to the web and the ideal operating system to keep united all their online activities .
On the other hand, the speed of Firefox Quantum could bring back users tired of the heaviness of Chrome, sometimes unbearable.
In recent years this comparison had lost much of the interest, because objectively nobody could say that Firefox was better than Chrome, clearly the number one both in terms of speed and characteristics.
Fortunately, however, Mozilla has not given up and has finally come to a Firefox version ( Firefox Quantum ) that breaks with the past and offers a marked improvement.
It is therefore worth resuming this speech, making a quick summary of the key features of the latest versions of the Chrome and Firefox browsers, without forgetting what for many is the key factor of choice: the speed of loading websites.
1) Chrome is cleaner, Firefox is more customizable
Google has made every effort to make the appearance of Chrome pleasant and make it feel cleaner and more comfortable for the user than Firefox and Internet Explorer were (until about 4 years ago), very skinny and gray.
Firefox, in the Quantum version, is certainly cleaner than before, flatter and with more compact menus.
Firefox also offers more possibilities to modify the main interface, the displayable keys and the behavior of the browser thanks to numerous options.
Don't forget that Firefox can be customized in every detail thanks to Firefox's about: config options .
2) Chrome and Firefox for developers
There are many sites that tend to recommend Chrome to their readers because the developers and designers of those sites most likely use Chrome as their primary browser.
The latest version of Firefox improves the developers console making it become of the same level compared to that of Chrome, equalizing the comparison.
3) Chrome and Firefox extensions
Chrome has tons of extensions and, above all, a much more organized site to look for them.
Firefox, which for years has been the number one browser for extensions, has undergone a renewal that has forced developers to update add-ons, making older ones unusable.
At the moment, therefore, Chrome wins on this comparison.
READ ALSO: Best Firefox extensions recommended by Mozilla and Best Chrome extensions for all uses
4) Chrome is better in the data synchronization phase
Chrome synchronizes almost everything that is done in the browser so that it can also be found on other computers and not slo, even on Android tablets and smartphones, iPhones and iPads.
Of course you need to use Chrome everywhere to have this benefit and it is, for myself, the main reason why I always use Chrome.
Chrome makes it easy to sync everything with a Google account, while syncing on Firefox requires an account to register on the Mozilla site.
Chrome is also excellent in managing multiple synchronization profiles, while in Firefox the synchronization takes place for a single account.
5) Firefox offers better privacy protection
Firefox wins against Chrome in terms of user privacy and browsing security simply because Chrome has always been suspected of collecting data on users on behalf of Google who would use them to better target advertising.
In reality Chrome, taken on its own, is probably more secure than Firefox thanks to its sandboxing and blocking model of any attempt to intrude from scripts and files on the internet.
However, Firefox's security extensions are so powerful that, overall, there is no match, at least if you are an expert user.
In addition, Chrome has, for now, a not too secure, highly contested password manager (see how to show passwords on Chrome).
6) As for stability, there is a certain balance between the two contenders.
The problem occurs when you have many tabs open, both Chrome and Firefox tend to take up a lot of memory immobilizing your computer and crashing.
While Chrome is greedy for computer memory, Firefox Quantum certainly remains lighter.
In other articles, to mitigate these problems, we have seen:
- Firefox extensions to decrease RAM memory consumption
- Suspend idle Chrome tabs to save memory
7) Chrome speed comparison against Firefox
As for speed, all measurements can be made by going to the browser benchmarking test sites.
Chrome is certainly faster than Firefox to load Google sites, while for many other Firefox sites, in its latest Quantum version, it gives the distinct sensation of a faster load.
We cannot say that Firefox is absolutely faster than Chrome, but surely the previously existing gap (in favor of Chrome) has narrowed.
Quantum is a fast browser and since Mozilla developers have promised to refine it in the coming months, it is possible that it can reach Chrome in a short time.
Conclusion
Every browser is good for surfing the internet, but the choice of the best one to use depends on what you do.
If you surf the internet passively, without ever writing anything and browsing only on Facebook or news sites, then Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome does not change anything.
If instead you work with your browser by opening many web applications together, actively participating on multiple websites, keeping many extensions useful to facilitate the task, then the choice between Chrome and Firefox is completely personal.
Without any doubt, the overwhelming power of Google as a search engine, as a developer of Android and as a provider of various services between Gmail, Youtube and Google Maps, leads Chrome to be the natural gateway to the web and the ideal operating system to keep united all their online activities .
On the other hand, the speed of Firefox Quantum could bring back users tired of the heaviness of Chrome, sometimes unbearable.
