DuckDuckGo Browser vs Firefox
We give DuckDuckGo Browser a 3.2 GPA and Firefox a 4.0, out of 4.0. Firefox grades higher on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
DuckDuckGo Browser
Free browser that blocks trackers, ads and cookie pop-ups by default
Free plan · from $9.99/mo
Firefox
Free, open-source browser from Mozilla with tracker blocking built in
Free
How we grade them
| 3.2GPADuckDuckGo BrowserVery good | 4.0GPAFirefoxExcellent | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BThe browser is free. Plus is $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year, about the going rate, and it bundles a whole-device VPN on up to 5 devices with advanced AI models, Personal Information Removal and Identity Theft Restoration. Pro is $19.99 for the top AI models. | AIt's free with no paid tier, so there's nothing to weigh up. The only thing Mozilla sells nearby is its separate VPN service, at $59.88 a year or $9.99 a month, and the browser works fine without it. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe whole browser is free on every platform: private search, tracker, ad and cookie pop-up blocking, a password manager, Email Protection and the basic Duck.ai models. Plenty of people will never need to pay. | AAll of it is free: tracker blocking, sync, the PDF editor, translation and, on desktop, a VPN for up to 50 GB a month. Sync needs a Mozilla account, which is free too. The homepage shows optional ads, and you can turn them off. |
| Features | BIt blocks third-party trackers and most ads, YouTube video ads included, opts you out of cookie pop-ups and clears everything with one button. A password manager and anonymous AI chat are built in. Nothing on the listing about extensions, though, and the VPN is paid. | AKnown trackers blocked by default and each site's cookies kept apart. Then tab groups, vertical tabs, a sidebar that hosts ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude or Copilot, reader mode, a PDF editor that fills and signs, and translation done in the browser. |
| Ease of use | BNo App Store rating to go on. The blocking is on by default with nothing to configure, and you can import passwords and bookmarks from browsers such as Chrome. | A4.6 from about 218,000 App Store ratings. Tracker blocking is on from the start, and a shield in the address bar shows what got blocked. AI stays out of the way unless you ask for it. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, iPhone and Android. No Linux version is listed, and there are no integrations or API on record. The paid extras are reached through this browser. | AWindows, Mac, Linux, Android and iPhone, with bookmarks, history, passwords and tabs synced with end-to-end encryption. Send Tab pushes a page from one device to another. The VPN hasn't reached the phone apps yet. |
| Best for | private browsing with nothing to set up | a free browser that isn't built on Chromium |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: DuckDuckGo Browser and Firefox. How we grade
Where they differ
- DuckDuckGo Browser starts at $9.99 per month, or $99.99 per year (Plus subscription). Firefox is free.
- Only Firefox lists a Linux app.
- Firefox is open source and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
In commonFree planWindowsmacOSiOSAndroidAI featuresPassword managerWeb browser
At a glance
| DuckDuckGo Browser | Firefox | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | $9.99 per month, or $99.99 per year (Plus subscription) | Free |
| Free plan | The browser is free on every platform, with private search, tracker, ad and cookie pop-up blocking, Email Protection, a password manager and the basic Duck.ai chat models. | The browser is free with no paid tier. The built-in VPN is free for up to 50 GB of browser traffic per month, and sync uses a free Mozilla account. |
| Free trial | Free trial of the subscription for new subscribers; its length was not shown when read | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | DuckDuckGo | Mozilla Corporation |
| Price read from | duckduckgo.com | firefox.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
DuckDuckGo Browser
- People who want tracker and ad blocking with no setup
- Private search and anonymous AI chat in one app
- Those who want a VPN and identity services bundled with their browser
Firefox
- People who want tracker blocking switched on by default
- Users who prefer an open-source browser that is not based on Chromium
- Those who want to pick their own AI chatbot, or turn AI off
- Anyone moving between Windows, macOS, Linux and a phone
Worth knowing
DuckDuckGo Browser
- The VPN, advanced AI models, Personal Information Removal and Identity Theft Restoration need a subscription from $9.99 per month.
- The subscription is sold only in the US, Canada, the UK and listed EU countries, and its features are accessed through the DuckDuckGo browser.
- The desktop browser is available only for Windows and Mac; no Linux version is listed.
- DuckDuckGo says no service can block all hidden tracking, and it keeps a list of exceptions to avoid breaking websites.
Firefox
- The built-in VPN is capped at 50 GB per month and protects browser traffic only. Mozilla's paid VPN service costs $59.88 per year or $9.99 per month, plus tax.
- Firefox shows optional ads on its homepage to fund development. They can be turned off.
- The built-in VPN has not reached Firefox for Android or iOS; Mozilla's roadmap lists VPN on mobile as upcoming work.
- Windows 8.1 and below and macOS 10.14 and below are no longer supported by the standard release; they need Firefox ESR.
Key features
DuckDuckGo Browser
- Tracker and ad blocking
- Third-party trackers from companies such as Google and Facebook are blocked by default, along with most ads before they load, including ads on YouTube videos.
- Cookie pop-up handling
- The browser detects cookie consent pop-ups and, where possible, opts out automatically so the pop-up never appears.
- One-button data clearing
- A single button deletes all open tabs, history and browsing data, so nothing from a session is left behind on the device.
- Private search and Duck.ai
- DuckDuckGo Search is built in and does not track searches. Duck.ai offers anonymized chats with models such as ChatGPT and Claude that are not used for training, and it can be turned off.
- Password manager and Email Protection
- A built-in password manager stores logins, passwords and bookmarks can be imported from browsers such as Chrome, and Email Protection blocks hidden trackers in emails.
- Subscription protections
- Subscribers get a VPN that covers the whole device, advanced Duck.ai models, Personal Information Removal from data broker sites and Identity Theft Restoration, all reached through the browser.
Firefox
- Tracking and cookie protection
- Enhanced Tracking Protection blocks known trackers by default, and Total Cookie Protection keeps each site's cookies separate. The shield icon in the address bar shows what was blocked.
- Built-in VPN
- A VPN toggle in the desktop toolbar routes browser traffic through a proxy server to hide the IP address, free for up to 50 GB per month. It covers the browser only, not other apps on the device.
- Tab groups, vertical tabs and sidebar
- Tabs can be grouped and color coded or stacked vertically, and a customizable sidebar gives one-click access to bookmarks, history, synced tabs and other tools.
- AI chatbots in the sidebar
- The sidebar can host a third-party assistant such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude or Mistral Chat. AI features are optional and can be turned off entirely.
- Sync with a Mozilla account
- Bookmarks, history, saved passwords and open tabs sync across desktop and mobile with end-to-end encryption, and Send Tab pushes a page from one device to another.
- Reader mode, PDF editor and translation
- Reader mode strips clutter from articles, a built-in editor fills, signs and annotates PDFs, and pages are translated in the browser without sharing the data with anyone else.
Plans
DuckDuckGo Browser
Free$0
The full browser with private search, tracker and cookie pop-up blocking, Email Protection, a password manager and basic Duck.ai models.
Plus$9.99
per month, or $99.99 per year, plus tax if applicable
Adds a full-device VPN on up to 5 devices at once, advanced AI models in Duck.ai, Personal Information Removal and Identity Theft Restoration.
Pro$19.99
per month, or $199.99 per year, plus tax if applicable
Everything in Plus, with the most advanced Duck.ai models, higher reasoning effort and 2x the Plus usage limits.
Firefox
Free$0
The full browser on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS, including tracker blocking, sync and, on desktop, the built-in VPN up to 50 GB a month.
Ways to pay less
DuckDuckGo Browser
- Annual discount
About 17% off with yearly billing
Plus is $99.99 a year against $9.99 a month, and Pro is $199.99 a year against $19.99 a month, a saving of about 17% over twelve monthly payments.
Firefox
No public discounts listed.
