The Best Browser for Linux (From My Daily Life On It)

Posted byneifferhussian

I live on Linux. I write, hop on calls, and watch too much YouTube. I test stuff a lot. And I care about what works, not just what’s shiny.
If you’d like the long-form play-by-play of how I narrowed the field, you can read the full best-browser breakdown on Desktop Linux Reviews in my hands-on piece about working through the contenders (check it out here).

Here’s what I found, after weeks of switching around on my own machines.
Readers looking for even more Linux desktop software insights can find thorough hands-on write-ups at Desktop Linux Reviews.

My setup (so you know I’m not guessing)

  • ThinkPad T480, Fedora 40 (GNOME on Wayland)
  • Framework 13, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
  • Old Acer E15, Linux Mint 21.3
  • Raspberry Pi 4 (4 GB), Raspberry Pi OS

Still choosing between Fedora, Ubuntu, or Linux Mint? I put them head-to-head in a first-person test drive that details daily usability and quirks on each distro—have a look.

I used Firefox, Chromium, Google Chrome, Brave, Vivaldi, GNOME Web (Epiphany), and a bit of Edge and Librewolf. Real work, real tabs, real “oh no, where did my battery go” moments.

What I care about

  • Smooth scrolling and touchpad gestures
  • Video calls that don’t sound like a robot
  • Battery life
  • Extensions I trust (uBlock Origin, Bitwarden, OneTab)
  • Web app behavior (Docs, Figma, Meet, Slack)
  • Low CPU heat on YouTube

You know what? It’s boring until it isn’t. When a tab spikes your fan during a meeting, you feel it.

Firefox: my daily driver

On Fedora 40 with Wayland, Firefox feels right. Scrolling is butter. Pinch to zoom is clean. Battery lasts longer for me.

  • Real example: T480, 10 tabs open, YouTube at 1080p for 30 minutes. With Firefox, my battery read about 6+ hours left. Chrome showed closer to 5. Big difference on a train.
  • Container Tabs are a life saver. I keep work Gmail in one color, personal in another. No weird cookie mix-ups.
  • Google Meet and Zoom in the browser work fine. Noise cancel is okay. Not magic, but stable.
  • Netflix works after I turn on the DRM prompt the first time. On Fedora, I also installed the codecs. Not hard. Just a quick package.
  • Figma runs fine. Chrome is a hair smoother there, but not enough to make me switch full-time.

One more thing: with VA-API video on Wayland, CPU stays cooler on 1080p. My lap says thank you.

Chrome and Chromium: best for web apps

When I have a Figma-heavy day or I’m deep in Google Docs, I grab Chrome. It’s snappy with those tools.

  • Real example: Framework 13 on Ubuntu 24.04. Figma in Firefox made the fans whisper. In Chrome, they were quiet. I noticed it while editing a big board.
  • Meet seems to handle background blur better in Chrome. Less stutter when I share a window.
  • 4K YouTube is smoother with hardware video on. I turned on the VA-API flag once, and it stuck.

The trade-off? More RAM use, and on my T480 I lose about an hour of battery vs Firefox. It’s not bad; it’s just more.

Chromium is similar, but codecs can be a pain on some distros. Flathub builds worked for me on Fedora. For anyone experimenting with Chrome-OS–style distros like FydeOS, I wrote up exactly how I got Linux running there and what actually worked—read the walkthrough.

Brave: quiet pages, sometimes loud breaks

Brave blocks ads and trackers by default. On my Raspberry Pi 4, that’s huge. Heavy sites feel lighter.

  • Real example: Raspberry Pi 4, news sites that used to crawl now scroll like a normal laptop. CPU drops, and video at 720p is okay.
  • But some sites don’t like the shields. I had to turn them off for banking and a few shopping carts. It’s fine, just one more click.

Battery is close to Chrome for me. Sync is okay, but not everything syncs, which bugs me a bit.

If you ever find yourself browsing adult-oriented hookup services and want to be sure the site itself is worth your time before you even open it in a privacy-focused browser, check out this in-depth look at Instabang—Instabang review—it breaks down the features, costs, and safety considerations so you can decide confidently and avoid annoying pop-ups or scams.

When I need to stress-test how well Brave’s shields handle image-heavy classified ads and rapid auto-refreshing pages, I’ll load up a local listings board such as Backpage Sparks, which not only pushes the browser’s ad-blocking engine but also gives anyone in the Reno/Sparks area a curated feed of genuine posts, helping them dodge spam and fake profiles while they browse.

Vivaldi: power user candy

Vivaldi is fun when I’m doing research. Split view tabs are great. Notes inside the browser are neat. It feels like a studio desk.

  • Real example: On Mint with the old Acer, I tiled two docs and a PDF. It kept me on task without juggling windows.
  • But it can feel heavy. On GNOME Wayland, I saw small lag with many tabs. Video calls gave me echo once, fixed after a restart.

I like it, but I can’t trust it on big meeting days.

GNOME Web (Epiphany): light and calm

This one feels native on GNOME. Super clean. Great for reading, docs, and light work.

  • Real example: I used it on the T480 for writing with Google Docs and Pocket. Zero fuss. Battery was strong too.
  • The catch: fewer extensions, and some media sites don’t behave. No real DRM, so no Netflix.

I keep it as a “distraction-free” browser. It’s nice for Sunday mornings with coffee.

Edge and Librewolf: quick notes

  • Edge: Teams in the browser works well. On Fedora, it felt stable, but I don’t love the extra stuff running. I only use it for work calls when I must.
  • Librewolf: very private. Great for research. Some sites complain. If you like strict mode, you’ll like it.

The little battery test I ran

Not science. Just my life.

  • ThinkPad T480, 60% brightness, Wi-Fi on, 10 tabs (Twitter, Docs, a news site, GitHub), YouTube 1080p in one tab.
  • Firefox: ~6 to 6.5 hours shown
  • Chrome: ~5 to 5.3 hours
  • Brave: ~5 to 5.5 hours
  • Vivaldi: ~4.8 to 5 hours
  • GNOME Web: ~6.3 hours, but not all sites worked the same

Results were steady across two tries. Your setup may change it a bit, sure.

Quick picks (so you can get on with your day)

  • Best for most people: Firefox
  • Best for web apps like Figma and Meet: Chrome or Chromium
  • Best for privacy with less fuss: Brave (with shields tuned per site)
  • Best for old or light machines: GNOME Web (if your sites are simple)
  • Best for research nerds: Vivaldi or Firefox with Container Tabs

Small setup tips that helped me

  • Add uBlock Origin. Pages load cleaner and cooler.
  • Turn on hardware video. In Chrome/Chromium, search flags for VA-API. In Firefox on Wayland, it just works on my boxes.
  • Use Reader View for long reads. Fewer ads, less noise.
  • Try Firefox Multi-Account Containers for work vs home tabs.
  • For Chromium on Fedora, grab a Flatpak build so codecs work.

So, what’s the best?

For me, it’s Firefox. It feels smooth on Wayland, saves battery, and stays stable on calls. I write in it all day. I also keep Chrome around for Figma and tricky sites. That combo covers everything without drama.

Could I change my mind? Maybe. Linux moves fast. But right now, Firefox wins my daily life test. And my fan agrees.