Zen
Open-source, Firefox-based desktop web browser with an Arc-inspired vertical tab interface.
Recommended as a Firefox-based replacement for Arc1234, with sidebar tabs, pinned tabs and spaces that users like.56 The most common complaints are bugs, slowdowns and sites that don't work properly789, and some find it less polished than Arc.1011
Why people recommend it
Arc replacement · 3
Former Arc users call it a near drop-in replacement and say they don't miss Arc.
“Can highly recommend it as a near drop-in replacement for Arc, albeit built on Firefox.”
This caused me to go back and try Firefox again, I struggled with performance years ago on Mac when I did this. This time it’s been great, I switched from Arc to Zen and don’t see any reason to go back.
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“Switched to Zen never looked back.”
Firefox foundation · 3
Users like that it runs on Firefox but with a fresh UI, and some long-time Firefox users switched to it.
“on desktop devices i've recently switched to Zen which has rekindled my love for FF”
“I've switched to Zen about a year ago after ~2 decades of Firefox.”
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“I'd probably be using Zen [1] because its nice to see a firefox based browser that tries to introduce new features”
Tab layout · 3
Users praise its vertical tabs, pinned tabs that open links in a modal, and spaces.
“Zen has a special flavor of vertical tabs where pinned tabs open links in a modal, which I now can't do without”
“I'm pretty happy having switched to Zen”
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“points to Zen (and related efforts) for trying such a different paradigm for arranging tabs.”
Extensions · 3
Firefox add-ons such as uBlock Origin, Vimium, Reader View and Apple Passwords work well in it.
“I'm a big keyboard person so I love it, especially with the vimium plugin”
“on Zen, I use Readability based Reader View and it does the job”
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“I recently switched from Safari to Zen and the Firefox extension for Apple passwords works well.”
Ad blocking · 2
One user says it blocks ads and trackers somewhat better than Chromium browsers or Safari.
“it blocks ads and trackers a bit better than Chromium based browsers, or Safari.”
“zen browser ( with uBlock origin and betterfox settings )”
Minimal UI · 2
Commenters describe it as a minimal daily driver with little UI getting in the way.
“if you would like a super minimal daily driver”
“Switched to Zen never looked back.”
Caveats and dissent
Bugs · 2
Users report bugs, random crashes, and in one case a system lockup on Fedora.
“Zen turned to shit for me in the last month. So many stupid bugs started happening.”
“i just tried it in zen browser on fedora 44 and the system hard locked up”
Performance · 3
Some describe it as slow and heavy, or report that sites got slower after switching.
“it blocks ads and trackers a bit better than Chromium based browsers, or Safari.”
“Zen is my favorite browser experience by far”
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“Zen turned to shit for me in the last month. So many stupid bugs started happening.”
Site compatibility · 3
Some streaming sites and pages misbehave, so some users keep Brave as a fallback.
“Zen is my favorite browser experience by far”
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Arc gaps · 3
Some say it lacks Arc's polish and some Arc features, such as auto-closing tabs.
“it just doesn’t have the same level of polish”
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“i've installed zen on a modern mbp pro and so far really like it”
Sidebar UI · 2
The sidebar-centric interface doesn't suit everyone and can confuse other people who use the browser.
“I like Zen, but I’m not a fan of sidebars in browsers.”
“I'm a big keyboard person so I love it, especially with the vimium plugin”
Linux packaging · 1
One Linux user won't try it because it isn't in their distro's repositories.
“I'd give Zen a try, too, but it's not in the repositories of my Linux machine”
Often compared with
6 moved from Arc to Zen
2 moved from Firefox to Zen
1 moved from Zen to BraveSafari6 comments mention both
1 moved from Safari to Zen
1 moved from Orion to Zen
1 moved from Zen to GlideChrome4 comments mention both
Who recommends it in their own words
From the makers not counted in the ranking
“connected my email and calendar to a simple agent I built via MCP and I get a summery of important emails”
“system-wide filtering disables ads and tracking not just in browsers, but desktop apps as well”
“Zen is simply a fork of Zed for those who are happy to use an IDE free from AI, telemetry, and other cloud-based services. I use it as my daily driver”
Threads where it came up
- A farewell to Arc browser 7 mentions
- Ask HN: What browser should I use? (RIP Arc) 4 mentions
- Google Has Removed MV2 Extensions from the Chrome Web Store, Including UBO 3 mentions
- Ask HN: What browser do you use? 3 mentions
- Google Chrome update will close the door on ad blockers 3 mentions
- Hang on to Your Firefox 2 mentions
Also written as Zen Browser, zen. Data: zen.json. Quotes are verbatim; the verdict and theme labels are written by a model from these comments, and every clause links to its sources.
All comments 40
“Switched to Zen never looked back.”
“Congratulations to the developers of Zen, they've done so well with it.”
“I use Zen btw”
“on Zen, I use Readability based Reader View and it does the job”
“i've installed zen on a modern mbp pro and so far really like it”
“I use Zen as my work browser”
“Ben Werdmuller recommends Zen”
“Can highly recommend it as a near drop-in replacement for Arc, albeit built on Firefox.”
“Zen Browser, it's based on Firefox but it's pretty sleek and borrows a lot of concepts from Arc”
“am now trying my luck with Zen browser”
“You could try Zen browser. It's like Arc, but Firefox based.”
“Zen turned to shit for me in the last month. So many stupid bugs started happening.”
“I'm pretty happy having switched to Zen”
“I'd give Zen a try, too, but it's not in the repositories of my Linux machine”
“I'm a big keyboard person so I love it, especially with the vimium plugin”
“promote Zen, i love it”
“Impossible to support: Zen Browser”
“it just doesn’t have the same level of polish”
“Does Zen have multi-account container tabs? Edit: Yes, it does!”
“if you would like a super minimal daily driver”
“I've switched to Zen about a year ago after ~2 decades of Firefox.”
“I use Zen (firefox under the hood) and I just don't understand all of the bitching people do about Firefox.”
“I recently switched from Safari to Zen and the Firefox extension for Apple passwords works well.”
This caused me to go back and try Firefox again, I struggled with performance years ago on Mac when I did this. This time it’s been great, I switched from Arc to Zen and don’t see any reason to go back.
“Zen is my favorite browser experience by far”
“I recommend giving a try to alternatives like Zen or Helium”
“I also use Zen as my secondary browser.”
“Zen browser - based on Firefox.”
“Have you tried any other firefox based browsers, like Zen, or LibreWolf?”
“Zen is still the better main browser, particularly on Linux”
“I use Helium and Zen myself, depending on the context of the work I do”
“This was one of my big problems when I tried out Zen.”
“i just tried it in zen browser on fedora 44 and the system hard locked up”
“I use Zen on a daily basis, it is Firefox based”
“zen browser ( with uBlock origin and betterfox settings )”
“it blocks ads and trackers a bit better than Chromium based browsers, or Safari.”
“points to Zen (and related efforts) for trying such a different paradigm for arranging tabs.”
“Zen has a special flavor of vertical tabs where pinned tabs open links in a modal, which I now can't do without”
“Full disclosure I use Zen, not vanilla Firefox”
“switched to Zen Browser last year and never looking back.”