iphone browser other than safari

10 Best iPhone Browsers: Top Safari Alternatives For 2022

Do you think S afari is not the best browser for iPhone? We have just the list for you. There are many other Safari alternatives that are among the best browsers for your iPhone outside the Apple ecosystem . These browsers also come with their own unique set of features that improve your browsing experience.

To help you choose the best browser for iPhone, we have compiled a list, and we have also highlighted the pros and cons of each. After iOS 14, and now with iOS 15, you can change your iPhone’s default browser using the steps here .

Before having a peek at the features of the shortlisted iPhone browser apps, have a look at the  best photo editing apps for iPhone to enhance your pictures in 2022.

10 Best iPhone Web Browser Apps for 2022

1. google chrome – best browser app for cross-platform syncing, 2. firefox focus – browser app for iphone to browse anonymously, 3. microsoft edge – bring your ms account to iphone, 4. duckduckgo browser – couple of neat features, 5. brave browser – iphone browser with its own news app, 6. aloha browser – iphone browser app with in-built vpn, 7. opera – iphone browser with built-in crypto wallet, 8. ghostery dawn – most private browser for iphone, 9. puffin browser – a fast iphone web browser app, 10. maxthon cloud web browser – a cloud-based ios browser.

Google Chrome is one of the best browser apps available for Windows and Android devices. Google’s famous browser is also available for iOS. While Chrome isn’t the most private browsing experience, it is refined. It has a number of extensions, decent privacy controls, and a neat user interface.

Chrome is available across platforms, so everything can be synced between all your devices. It also comes with an Omnibox address bar, quick search, tab groups, and other neat features. It is among the best iPhone browser apps for those who like to work on multiple devices running on different operating systems.

However, if you’re looking for a privacy-focused browser for iPhone, you should consider the other options on the list. While Chrome has gotten rid of cookies, Google FLoC is still a questionable privacy feature from the company.

Pros And Cons of Google Chrome

Firefox is not a shocking name in the web browsers list. Firefox for desktop has received applauds from many tech enthusiasts for its set of advanced features. Firefox Focus is a privacy-focused browser .

You don’t need to turn or any incognito mode to escape trackers; the stealth mode is always turned on in the browser. It blocks ads and trackers by default, making your browsing experience clean and tracking-free.

Firefox Focus is a basic app with advanced privacy protection features that you can surely give a try when looking for the best web browser for iPhone. Lack of tabs can be annoying at times, but otherwise, it is a decent browser app for iPhone if you want to hide your identity from the online world.

Pros and Cons of Firefox Focus

If you like Microsoft Edge on desktop, you can also use it as a Safari alternative on iPhone. Edge offers a neat and easily customizable homepage experience with secure browsing.

You can also choose to block all cookies, select your own default search engine, and use features like contextual search. One of the best features of Microsoft Edge is the homepage. You can customize it with a push of a button to show beautiful backgrounds, latest news, or enter focus mode.

Pros and Cons of Microsoft Edge

DuckDuckGo is also included in our list of the best Google Search alternatives . Now, the DuckDuckGo browser also makes for a capable Safari alternative. This is a privacy-focused browser and blocks many trackers by default.

You can also clear all your browsing data with the tap of a button, and still retain your sign-in information for sites you use. It also comes with DuckDuckGo Email protection , which removes trackers from your emails before you receive them in your inbox. You can also use your @Duck email address to sign up for other services without disclosing your real email address.

Pros and Cons of DuckDuckGo Browser

Brave browser has been making headlines lately. Recently, the company launched Brave Search beta , which is later used to replace Google Search as the default search engine in Brave browser.

Aside from its own search engine, Brave browser also comes with a baked-in VPN that you’ll have to subscribe to separately. You can also turn on Brave News and customize your feed with private RSS feeds. This is good if you want to get updates from set sources without being tracked online.

Pros and Cons of Brave Browser

If privacy is your concern, there is no better option than using a VPN for browsing on the internet. Aloha Browser for iPhone comes with an in-built VPN that allows you to browse anonymously on the internet. The iOS browser app focuses on privacy and hiding the internet footprints of the users.

The interface is straightforward and designed with inspiration from Google Chrome. Aloha Browser for iPhone says that it doesn’t log any of the activity, which is all the more reason to crown it as the best browser for iPhone in this data-hungry world.

There is also a paid version of the browser called Aloha Premium that comes with an even more advanced set of features. For hardcore privacy-focused individuals, Aloha Premium is a Safari alternative.

Pros and Cons of Aloha Browser

Opera Browser replaces Opera Touch and comes packed with a host of advanced features like a native ad blocker , built-in crypto wallet, and pop-ups and cookie dialogs blocker.

If you use the Opera Mini browser on your PC, you will be glad to know that Opera syncs seamlessly with other Opera browsers. You can connect to your PC’s Opera browser by simply scanning a QR code from inside the Opera iOS app. Once connected, you can share files on the go.

Pros and Cons of Opera iPhone browser

Ghostery started as a tracking blocker addon. Their browser offering is one of the best privacy browsers for iOS devices. Its remarkable privacy and tracking blocker features have made it popular amongst many users who want to surf the internet without trackers following them on every other website.

The browser app warns you if a tracker is trying to track you on a webpage. The basic functions of a browser app are performed effortlessly by the app. It also comes with Ghostery Glow as the default search engine, but you can change it in the settings.

Features of Ghostery Browser

Puffin Web Browser app is a fast web browsing app that is different from any other browser listed on this list. The compressing functionality of the app is pretty efficient, which keeps the page load time to a minimum.

Puffin iPhone browser app is intended for those who are working on resource-limited devices but want pages to load faster. It is unarguably one of the fastest iOS browsers you can download. With its virtual trackpad and dedicated video player, the app offers a unique web browsing experience to users.

Pros and Cons of Puffin Browser

Maxthon Cloud Web Browser app for iPhone is another lightweight browser that comes with good features such as a built-in ad-blocker, a note-taking tool, and a password manager. Being based on the cloud engine, Maxthon offers the facility to sync your data across Apple as well as non-Apple devices.

It is a great contender for the best iOS browser app with plenty of advanced features. What I liked most about the app is the feature to sync data between different platforms and the inbuilt password manager.

Pros and Cons of Maxthon Cloud Web Browser

How to choose the best browser for iphone.

With this list, we hope that you would be able to choose the best browser for iPhone in 2022. Picking out a browser app largely depends on your browsing interests and patterns. Different iPhone browsers offer a different set of features. Some users prefer apps that focus on privacy, while others like to use apps that minimize data consumption.

You may be looking for a Safari alternative to find a better browser for your iPhone. This list of Safari alternatives tells you the most popular browsers that we’ve tried and rated for a seamless browsing experience.

All the iPhone browser apps that we have mentioned above can be downloaded for free from the Apple App Store. Do tell us your favorite iPhone browser app from the list, and if you think there are other noteworthy Safari alternatives, let us know in the comments.

Best iPhone Browsers FAQs:

Chrome and Safari offer at par smoothness and optimization. If you’re looking for a more privacy-focused browser, Safari is the better choice. However, Chrome offers better integration across platforms.

All the browsers in our Safari alternatives list are safe and secure. While some are more private than others, all of the browsers provide basic features like disabling cookies and trackers to give you a safe browsing experience.

Different browsers apply different ways to limit power consumption. Most of the browsers today are optimized to sip little battery and deliver more performance. However, if you’re looking for super lightweight browsers, the cloud browsers from our list are the least resource-intensive and work well with older phones.

Anmol is a tech journalist who handles reportage of cybersecurity and Apple and OnePlus devices at Fossbytes. He's an ambivert who is striving hard to appease existential crisis by eating, writing, and scrolling through memes.

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Safari alternatives: 11 smart iOS browser options

While all ios browsers use the same core rendering engine as safari, many of them offer additional functions useful in business. here are a handful of safari alternatives to test drive..

Chances are your corporate IT policy dictates which browser you use on your laptop or desktop. On your iPhone, though, you may be free to choose a more exotic browser. We’ve rounded up a dozen Safari alternatives for iOS that may suit you better.

Ever since the release of iOS 14 in 2020, Apple has allowed users to select a default browser (the one that opens when you tap on a link in an email or an app) other than Safari. Many alternate browsers will even ask if you want to set them as your default the first time you launch them, though you might want to test drive them for a bit before committing to one.

It’s worth noting, however, that Apple requires developers to use the same WebKit rendering engine as Safari to display web pages on screen, so iOS web browsers are really all just WebKit in a different wrapper. That said, some alternative browsers offer quite different interfaces and/or more expansive feature sets. For instance, one entrant on this list includes a VPN that can be used to secure connections and port your requests through a different location or country.

Check out these options to see if one or more might have a place in your business browsing. Unless otherwise noted, these browsers are free.

Aloha Browser

Aloha is a feature-laden mobile browser that packs a whole lot of Polynesian personality. Beyond the Hawaiian-themed start screen, Aloha offers privacy features including ad blocking; private tabs; a crypto wallet; an internal file manager for downloads, media, and documents; syncing across devices; and a VPN. A premium subscription ($6 per month or $50 per year) enables advanced VPN capabilities like automatic startup/reconnect and encrypting all traffic from your iPhone, instead of just the Aloha browser itself.

The Aloha browser pairs a laid-back Hawaiian look with serious privacy controls.

Google Chrome might be the most popular mobile browser overall, but that’s mostly due to Android’s dominance in the global smartphone market. On iPhones, it comes in as a distant second to Apple’s own Safari.

If you use the Chrome desktop browser, you can sync bookmarks and recently visited sites via your Google account, replicating Safari’s Handoff feature. There’s also one-touch access to Google Translate, voice search using Google Assistant rather than Siri, and a handy QR-code scanner above the virtual keyboard. Chrome’s Incognito mode doesn’t send cookies or store browser history.

Like many alternative iOS browsers, Chrome invites you to make it your default browser.

Dolphin Mobile Browser

The Dolphin browser has one of the longest feature lists of any of the mobile browsers. You can tell Dolphin where you want to go by tapping on one of its speed-dial buttons; selecting a destination from the bookmarks, history, or open tabs it has synchronized with your PC; or typing its address. You can also use touch gestures to select favorite destinations — perhaps tracing a C for Computerworld.com — and you can even control the browser by shaking your phone or speaking to it. On top of all that, you also get ad and tracking blocking and a useful drawer (tap the Dolphin icon) that makes it easy to access the bevy of features Dolphin Browser has to offer. 

The Dolphin browser offers a plethora of features.

DuckDuckGo Private Browser

It’s not just a search engine. In addition to giving the world a way to search the web free from tracking, monitoring, and monetizing your searches, DuckDuckGo offers its own browser . As you might guess, the big focus is on privacy, and it allows you surf the web without being tracked or leaving a trail from your phone.

A Fire button is prominently displayed in the toolbar below web pages; tapping it closes all tabs and clears all browsing data (and does it with your choice of four different animations). You can also “fireproof” sites, marking them as able to set cookies for things like logins, shopping carts, and so forth — but third-party trackers will still be blocked.

DuckDuckGo offers both privacy-focused search and privacy-focused browsing.

Microsoft Edge will sync favorites and passwords between all your devices logged into Microsoft’s cloud servers. Using its “Send to devices” command, you can send a tab from your phone to your other connected devices, and the Collections feature lets you gather and organize web content for later reference. Edge also offers voice search, tracking prevention, an ad blocker, InPrivate tabs that won’t store browsing data, and the ability use both personal and business Microsoft accounts.

If you sign into your Microsoft account, the Edge browser syncs favorites, passwords, Collections, and more between your devices.

Using Mozilla Firefox on the iPhone is a smart choice if you’re already using Firefox on other devices, since it will sync bookmarks, passwords and other information between them all to keep you up to speed. Its customizable home page includes shortcuts, recently visited sites, and more. Firefox on iOS also features the same anti-ad tracking technology found on the desktop and sports large visual tabs for fast retrieval.

Firefox offers a customizable home page and a rich set of features.

Firefox Focus

In addition to the mainstream Firefox web browser, Mozilla also offers a streamlined, distraction-free option called Firefox Focus . If you’re easily distracted, have ADHD, or just want a little help staying on task, it’s worth checking out as an alternative or addition to Apple’s Focus modes that are built into iOS. Firefox Focus blocks ads and trackers by default, and you can erase your browsing history, passwords, and cookies with a single tap on its ever-present trashcan icon.

The minimalist interface of Firefox Focus reduces distractions.

Onion Browser

Tor is a distributed system for anonymizing internet traffic. Developed by the Tor Project, the original (desktop) Tor Browser uses the Tor network to keep your identity and online activity secret — important protection for journalists, activists, whistleblowers, and people who live under repressive regimes that limit internet freedom. If you’re very serious about privacy, using a Tor browser provides far more protection than other options. Note, however, that routing traffic through Tor slows down your browsing, and many websites won’t work properly. For most users, a Tor browser isn’t necessary.

Several third-party developers have ported Tor to iOS. None are directly affiliated with the Tor Project, and the project notes that the WebKit engine underlying all iOS browsers prevents them from having privacy protections as extensive as its own Tor Browser. That said, the project recommends the Onion Browser , which uses Tor routing to ensure that your ISP can’t see what you’re browsing and websites can’t see your IP address.

If you’re an experienced Tor user, you’ll be able to configure the browser’s advanced settings. Otherwise, the Onion Browser makes configuration simple with three security-level presets (Gold, Silver, and Bronze).

The Onion Browser has an array of advanced security settings but also offers simple presets for varying levels of protection.

Orion Browser

At first glance, Orion seems like a very basic browser with the typical feature set. Look at the browser’s settings, however, and there’s a bit more to discover, including different modes to help you focus, streamline your data use, and even conserve battery life.

Orion also blocks ads and trackers. In addition to syncing content between multiple devices, you can protect private browsing tabs or the entire browser using Face/Touch ID or your phone’s passcode.

The Orion browser offers focus, data-saving, and low-power modes.

The name says it all. Search All is designed to search for almost anything, almost anywhere, all at once. You can select from more than 50 different sites to search across several categories including search engines, online stores, video sites, image repositories, wiki-based knowledge sites, some social networks, and even comics libraries and get results from each of them in separate tabs.

While it may not be a go-to browser for everyday use for most people, the ability to instantly search for anything across so many services is incredibly useful when you’re researching a fact, trying to find a specific video clip, comparing prices, or need a specific picture for a project.

Tap into the power of searching multiple sites simultaneously with Search All.

SPIN Safe Browser

The primary focus of the SPIN Safe Browser is safe browsing (hence the name). In addition to privacy controls, it includes content filtering that can hide questionable images and content as you browse. This makes it a good choice if you have kids or want to avoid looking at certain things on a device that you use for work.

What makes SPIN unique on this list is that the developer is focused on the education and enterprise market. It offers a $20 version of the browser that you can customize via an AppConfig-compatible mobile device management (MDM) platform, such as Jamf or Hexnode. This means that IT departments can deploy the browser and have a full set of controls for managing it throughout a school or company.

The SPIN Safe Browser offers standard features but also blocks NSFW content and can be managed via MDM software.

This article was originally published in October 2017 and most recently updated in May 2023.

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Safari is a pretty good browser, but it falls shorts in several aspects. For instance, not all sites perform optimally, and it doesn’t feature the best tab management options. Thankfully, there are plenty of Safari alternatives for iPhone and iPad that are fast, secure, and feature-rich.

Moreover, with the ability to change the default browser in iOS 14, you can use your favorite one conveniently. Want to know what my choice is? Keep reading as I review some of the most popular iPhone browsers.

1. Google Chrome

I love Google Chrome so much that I did a detailed comparison with Safari to explain my reasons. Primarily, the stand-out feature is the seamless sync across devices, thanks to signing in with your Google account.

You can access recently opened pages, bookmarks, and favorites on any device that you’re signed into. For instance, I use Google Chrome across my iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android device, and Windows PC, and my data syncs across all to ease my workflow. This cross-platform support makes it the best for those who work on multiple devices.

Of course, there are loads of other attractive options such as efficient tab management and incognito mode for privacy.

• Impeccable cross-platform sync
• Great tab management features
• Built-in Google Voice Search to avoid manual typing
• Mighty Google Translate to convert web pages from one language to another.
• Data saver mode automatically compresses the web pages for faster loading
• Incognito mode which does not record history, cache, and cookies
• Tracks user data
• Hogs resources

2. Firefox and Firefox Focus

This one’s a close second to Chrome and boasts a similar clean UI. One of the most notable features is that it automatically blocks image(s) to reduce sites’ loading time. Of course, it’s pretty good at blocking ads and popups, too, for your safety.

For more privacy, you can go for the Firefox Focus browser, in which stealth mode is always on. It seamlessly blocks many common web trackers without needing to meddle with the settings.

• Private Browsing Mode makes sure that none of your online activities are being recorded.
• Enhanced Tracking Protection is known to block all harmful trackers, including crypto miners and fingerprints.
• Syncs passwords, bookmarks, and history across devices
• You need to create a Firefox account to allow data to sync
• No tracking protection in Private Browsing mode.

Firefox Focus

3. Microsoft Edge

Long gone are the days of Internet Explorer. Microsoft has created one of the best browsers in the form of Edge. It has a straightforward UI with many helpful features such as private tabs, swipe gestures, translate webpages, etc.

I especially appreciate the picture-in-picture functionality for video on most sites, including YouTube. I also love using the “Read aloud” feature that reads the text to you at the tap of a button.

Further, it comes with Adblock Plus built-in to block unwanted ads. The downside is that the default search engine is Bing, but you can easily change this to Google, Yahoo, etc.

• Minimal resource consumption
• Tracking Prevention to stop third-party trackers from accessing your browsing activity.
• Built-in Ad-Block Plus to stop intrusive ads
• InPrivate browsing Mode
• Immersive Reader Mode allows for a distraction-free experience.
• Password Manager to handle all your saved passwords
• You must have a Microsoft Account to make the most of the features.
• Sync is a bit slow
• Interface and navigation could be more responsive

4. Brave Browser

Here’s the best Safari alternative that puts privacy first. It blocks all ads by default that considerably decreases the page load time. Brave claims to be three times faster than Chrome while putting less strain on your device battery.

But, if ads are blocked, how do websites make revenue? Well, Brave supports publishers by compensating them at the end of each month, depending on your interaction with websites. Further, with HTTPS Everywhere, you can rest assured that you’re only visiting safe sites.

Moreover, you can also use TouchID/FaceID to unlock this browser. And there’s also an in-built Private VPN that allows you to hide your actual IP address and browse anonymously.

• Best security and privacy features
• Speedy browser
• In-built VPN
• Less resource consumption
• Data sync is a bit complicated to setup
• Payment methodology needs to be simplified for more developers and publishers to be on board.

Here’s another top browser for those concerned about privacy. It doesn’t log any of your activity, so you can freely browse without worrying about how your data will be used.

The interface takes inspiration from Google Chrome and is a breeze to navigate. Like Microsoft Edge, this browser’s highlight is how it lets you play YouTube and other videos in picture-in-picture mode. This is incredibly handy when you want to watch something while also carrying on with other tasks on your phone.

Moreover, Aloha claims to load webpages two times faster using hardware acceleration. Simultaneously, there is also a paid version of the browser called Aloha Premium that boasts even more advanced features such as an in-built VPN to browse anonymously and safeguard your privacy.

• Ad-free browsing experience
• In-built VR player allows you to enjoy VR videos
• Picture-in-picture / background play for videos
• Fast and secures
• Need to pay for full features

Price : Premium subscription starts at $2.99

6. Opera Browser

This iOS browser app has undergone a complete overhaul in recent times. One of the highlights of this is the Fast Action Button. This is inspired by Apple’s Control Center, and a single tap is enough to invoke quite a few functionalities such as refreshing the tab, closing it, or opening a new one.

Further, the ‘Flow’ feature allows you to link the device’s browser with its desktop version. You could then easily exchange the desired data from either end. It also comes with a built-in QR Code scanner, which blends well with its Flow feature.

Lastly, its ad and popup blocker ensures an immersive browsing experience.

• Ad-blocker and cryptocurrency mining protection
• Easy to use
• Fast Action Button for easy one-hand usage
• Lack of bookmark management
• No online data sync

7. DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser

This is the leading name among the most secure web browsers for iPhone and iPad. It gives equal attention to both privacy and customizations. Moreover, what makes it stand out is that it has a built-in search engine that doesn’t hog or track your data the way Google does. It is consistently scaling up to offer a better browsing experience.

Further, a badge beside the address bar shows the privacy grade of each website you visit which helps you stay safe and instantly gauge the site’s reliability.

• Blocks all third-party trackers by default
• Private search engine compared to Google
• Enforce Encryption makes sure that you always land upon the HTTPS version of a site rather than the HTTP (if available).
• Privacy scores from A to F for each site
• TouchID/ FaceID lock
• Detailed customization settings are time-consuming
• The default search engine is DuckDuckGo and cannot be changed

8. Yandex Browser

Yandex browser is all about safe and secure browsing. It reduces data usage and speeds up page load time with its special Turbo mode.

Its uniqueness lies in its ability to change the look of tabs using preset background designs or photos from your device. Pretty neat when you’re bored of the plain look of other browsers.

The browser also offers you recommended content, including news, articles, and videos based on your interests. You can also access all your favorite websites and bookmarks on any of your devices with a Yandex account.

• Voice search in multiple languages, including Russian, Turkish, and Ukrainian.
• Customized look and content to
• In-built ad blocker
• Fast and secure
• Some websites don’t display correctly
• Need to create a Yandex account for sync

This one’s more of a search engine than a full-fledged browser, but it’s the best choice if you care about the earth and sustainability.

For approximately every 45 searches you do, Ecosia plants a tree. Given how we are all constantly searching for things, this is an easy way to do something small for the planet.

For more information about their work and transparency, you can check out the Projects tab at the browser’s bottom. However, since Ecosia is primarily a search engine, it lacks many essential features such as tabs and privacy controls.

So, it would be preferable to use this within another browser at the URL ecosia.org.

• Uses search revenue to plant trees
• Save your favorite webpages
• Clean, beautiful look
• Search results not as accurate as Google
• Not a full-fledged browser

With so many options, you can find a Safari alternative that perfectly fits your unique needs. Which browser do you love using on your iPhone or iPad? Share your preference with me in the comments below.

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Mehak has a master’s degree in communication and over ten years of writing experience. Her passion for technology and Apple products led her to iGeeksBlog, where she specializes in writing product roundups and app recommendations for fellow Apple users. When not typing away on her MacBook Pro, she loves being lost in a book or out exploring the world.

🗣️ Our site is supported by our readers like you. When you purchase through our links, we earn a small commission. Read Disclaimer .

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16 Best Web Browsers for iPhone (Safari Alternatives)

Aside from Safari, prepare to explore some of the best web browsers for iPhone!

In this digital era, finding the best browser can significantly impact your surfing experience. Choosing one that provides smooth performance, strong security, and user-friendly features is critical with so many alternatives. In this article, we will look for the best web browser for iPhone.

Table of Contents

Best Web Browsers for iPhone (Safari Alternatives)

Even though Safari is the default web browser for all Apple devices. Sometimes, you may want some other alternatives for the best user experience. If You are one such person who is looking for a switch from your default browser, we have compiled a list of the top Safari alternatives for Apple users.

1. Google Chrome

If you were an Android user and switched to an iPhone, Google Chrome would be a better option as you are already familiar with this platform. It also provides excellent features like syncing the browsing history and all your bookmarks , across all devices, on your iPhone and iPad by signing in with your Gmail account . So this will be the best Safari alternative for iPhone and iPad.

2. Firefox Focus

Firefox Focus is considered as best Safari alternative for iPhone free as it offers excellent privacy features, including Enhanced Tracking Protection, and supports add-ons for customization . The private browsing mode prevents remembering your browsing history. It will also allow the deletion of any saved information and account with one tap, putting you in complete control of your internet history.

3. Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge is a full-featured browser with tabs, a password manager , a reading list, a language translator , and many other useful features like built-in tracking prevention . It’s the best Safari alternative for iPhone and iPad use. However, the disadvantage is that you must have a Microsoft account.

Also Read: 21 Best Web Browsers for Your Roku Device

Brave is known for its privacy-focused approach with built-in ad blocking and tracking protection. This browser is approximately six times faster than Chrome, Firefox, or Safari for iPhone and iOS. Hence it is considered as best iOS web browser for iPhone. It has no private mode like many other browsers but allows you to hide your browsing history from prying eyes when using the internet.

5. DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo Browser may be the best iOS web browser for iPhone if you value privacy and wish to browse the web without being monitored . It’s ideal for people worried about their online privacy and who wish to limit the amount of information gathered about their browsing history.

Opera was designed for people who are always on the move and is considered one of the fastest browsers for iPhone users. Its user interface and unique features cater to users who appreciate innovative design , seamless cross-device synchronization , and intuitive navigation. It’s worth trying Opera Touch to see if its features align with your preferences and browsing habits.

Also Read: 14 Best Fastest Browsers for Android

The Puffin browser is a fast iPhone Web Browser on the net, which cannot go unnoticed. It is not free to download , but you can do so after making a nominal payment for its services . Puffin browser’s cloud-based architecture and its support for Flash content set it apart from many other mobile browsers. Users looking for quick browsing speeds and users who need to access Flash-based material will find it especially helpful.

Dolphin Browser is yet another best web browsers for iPhone users. It’s well-known for its gesture-based navigation , customizability, and user-friendly interference. The browser also features the Sonar voice search and control option. This can be activated by simply shaking the device through a clever shake and speak option , but downloading this feature involves a nominal cost. The Dolphin browser also allows you to choose from plenty of themes.

Maxthon is a lightweight cloud-based iOS web browser that is free to download and use with iPhones. It has numerous features, and because it is cloud-based, you can sync your data with both iOS and non-iOS devices , allowing you to use your data at all times. It includes an ad blocker to help you avoid unwanted pop-ups and advertising while you work. This will enable you to keep your work pace without interruptions. The night mode feature lets you browse the internet without straining your eyes.

10. Ghostery

Ghostery is one of the best web browsers for iPhone and is ideal for individuals adamant about maintaining anonymity and privacy while avoiding annoying adverts, etc., on their iOS devices. For increased anonymity, it uses DuckDuckGo as its default search engine rather than the standard search engines such as Bing , Yahoo, or Google. This browser also has tracker blocking and can turn off cookies and caches with a single click. Unless you allow Ghostery to construct its database , no signups or data are collected by the app.

Also Read: Top 11 Best Private Browsers For Android

The Aloha web browser is a versatile and privacy-focused internet browser known for its user-friendly interface and advanced security features. With built-in ad-blocker , VPN, and enhanced tracking protection, Aloha aims to provide a seamless and secure browsing experience for users, ensuring their online activities remain private and protected.

12. Ad-block web browser

An Ad-block web browser is intended to provide consumers with a smooth and ad-free browsing experience . These browsers prioritize user privacy , faster page loading speeds, and decreased distractions by automatically eliminating annoying adverts , pop-ups, and trackers, boosting the overall online experience.

13. Yandex Browser

Yandex browser is known for its speed and security features, the browser integrates with Yandex’s search engine and offers built-in protection against malicious websites and phishing scams. Its user-friendly interface and customizable options make it a favored choice for users seeking a reliable browsing experience.

14. Onion Browser

Onion browser is free and open-source software for iOS, which enables browsing the internet over the Tor VPN browser. It helps access the internet with complete privacy and safety at no extra cost. It disables trackers and also keeps you safe from insecure wireless networks and ISPs when browsing the World Wide Web over the Internet. Those .onion sites that are only accessible over Tor can also be connected using this browser.

Also Read: 25 Best Android Browsers for Surfing the Internet

15. Private Browser

A private browser, commonly referred to as incognito or private mode , is a function provided by web browsers that enables users to access the internet without saving their browsing, cookie, or search histories . The purpose of this option is to increase privacy by prohibiting the browser from saving any data about the user’s online activities while they are using it.

16. Tor VPN Browser

The Tor VPN Browser is a virtual private network (VPN)-based web browsing solution with a privacy-focused approach that combines the anonymity of the Tor network with security. Users’ identities and online activities are hidden by the system by routing traffic across several encrypted nodes . This effective solution is a popular option for anyone looking to preserve their digital footprint because it provides improved online privacy and security against spying. 

These are the best web browsers for iPhone users, but the final call is left to the user to pick up, as it all boils down to personal preference and meeting your needs and wants. Those interested in downloading may go to the Apple Play Store, as most are free.

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There are a lot of excellent web browsers available for the iPhone  and, for any device running iOS 14 or later,  Apple   has a fast and easy way to replace Safari as the default browser of choice . Whether it be Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or something else, iPhone users are no longer limited to using Safari for their browsing needs.

While third-party web browsers have been available for the iPhone for quite a few years, it was only with the iOS 14 update that Apple allowed users to choose a default browser for their device. Tapping a link used to always open it in Safari regardless of if other browsers were installed and favored. After lots of patiently waiting, however, that has finally changed.

Related:  How To Allow (Or Block) Safari Pop-Ups On An iPhone

To replace Safari, Apple reassures  that the process is pretty simple. Open the Settings app, scroll all the way down to the list of installed applications, and then tap on the browser that's going to be used (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, etc.). After tapping on the preferred browser, tap 'Default Browser App' and then select the new browser from the list of options. Once that's done, tapping a link to a website will now open it up in the new browser that's been chosen . That's it!

Best iPhone Web Browsers To Use Instead Of Safari

One of the most popular web browsers — and the one iPhone users are most likely to use in place of Safari — is Google Chrome. Chrome has become the go-to browser for a lot of people over the years and having it be the default choice on iPhone just makes sense if it's already being used as someone's default desktop browser. The Google Chrome iOS app is incredibly fast, seamlessly syncs with a user's desktop browsing history, and has an autofill feature for easily filling out passwords and payment information.

Another great browser choice is Microsoft Edge. While Edge received its fair share of criticism when it was first launched, it's since matured into a legitimately great option. It's just as fast as Google Chrome and also syncs with the Edge desktop browser , but Microsoft went a step further by adding a  ton  of extra features to make the whole experience feel more complete. Just about every aspect of Microsoft Edge can be customized to a user's exact liking, there are robust privacy controls and users can earn Microsoft Rewards points just by using Edge — points that can be redeemed for gift cards, sweepstakes entries, and more.

Last but not least, there's DuckDuckGo. The main draw to DuckDuckGo is its strong focus on privacy/security and, compared to any other major web browser, nothing else comes close. DuckDuckGo allows users to erase their entire browsing history with just one tap, the Privacy Grade feature gives all websites a clear privacy rating, and users can enable Privacy Protection to get more peace of mind when browsing an un-secure site.

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6 awesome web browsers for iPhone

Then came the iPhone. Safari, Apple’s proprietary web browser, sported a streamlined interface, remarkable speed, and a toolset worthy of competing with even the most industrious desktop browsers on the market, but it’s no longer the only available option. Everyone from the aforementioned Google to Ghostery now touts an exclusive mobile app, bringing tabbed and private browsing , cross-platform syncing, and the utmost simplicity to the forefront of mobile web browsing. Now, it’s only a question of personal taste.

Here are our top picks for the best web browsers for the iPhone, so you can make the most of the web wherever you have a network connection.

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Chrome is Google’s answer to Safari, a heavy-handed counterpart offering a slew of valuable tools and reveling in a deep-seeded integration with the Google ecosystem. Once properly synced, Chrome grants you access to nearly all data associated with your account, including passwords, search history, bookmarks, open tabs and the like. It’s exceptionally quick, offering an address bar that conveniently doubles as a search box while touting the ability to swap between an infinite number of tabs or privately browse the web using the software’s built-in Incognito tab.

Chrome even takes a well-executed shot at Apple’s personal assistant with Chrome voice search, allowing you to enter search inquiries with your voice, even when using an older iPhone that doesn’t support Siri. The app’s interface is minimalist and simple, taking a direct cue from its desktop brethren and encasing a slew of functionality inside Chrome’s default, gray exterior. Like any mobile browser, an excess number of tabs can make navigation difficult on a small screen, but browsing is still done in such a way that it never feels burdensome – especially considering the app showcases your top sites whenever you choose to open a new tab.

Best for: Those already heavily immersed in the Google ecosystem.

Ghostery is the perfect mobile browser for anyone that doesn’t want advertising companies to know, or see, what they’re doing online. You can even allow the browser to catalog which trackers you encounter and the sites they appear on because the main goal of this browser is to maintain your privacy and anonymity. Cookies can also be completely disabled from the iPhone’s Settings. The browser gives users a list of trackers to enable or disable for whatever site they’re visiting — complete with a red-numbered notification in the bottom-right corner — and there are none of the usual search engine options (i.e. Google, Yahoo, Bing). Instead, there’s ‘Ghostery,’ which is powered by DuckDuckGo.

Ghostery isn’t as fast as other mobile browsers on this list, so if you really want to keep your browsing history safe, be prepared to sacrifice a bit of speed for it. The design isn’t particularly pleasing either, though the privacy and anonymity features do set it aside from other browsers. Ghostery also has a feature that lets people protect their Wi-Fi connection from advertisers, which can then be used to block trackers in other apps, provided you’re still using the same internet connection. The feature is in the experimental stage, meaning you might run into some problems while using it, and using it in combination with the Safari browser will likely lead to some performance issues. If you’re really serious about protecting yourself online, though, that may not be a huge issue.

Best for: Those who prefer privacy over speed and design.

Opera Mini Web Browser

Opera Mini began as a simple pilot project in 2004, derived from the king of open-source desktop browsers and built from the ground up to fetch all web content through a proxy server. Being the case, the mobile browser is one of the fastest — if not  the  fastest — pieces of software on our roundup, quickly compressing data by up to 90 percent before downloading and displaying webpages and similar content on even the most crowded of networks. It’s lightweight and designed to run on limited bandwidth, so it doesn’t offer the myriad of standard features that rivals bake in.

Although options are limited, bookmarks and top sites can still be synced between the mobile and desktop versions of the software, and various multimedia content can be saved by simply tapping and holding said image, link, text or another content type on the screen. The equipped interface, dark and adorned with larger icons than are typically present in mobile browsers, is also a nice touch, allowing you to easily navigate between tabbed webpages and the dashboard tray at a moment’s notice. If desired, you can view webpages in a welcoming full-screen mode or take a glance at various data usage statistics highlighting the amount of data used in the current session or during the entirety of the app’s lifespan on your phone. And then there’s the informative Help menu outlining each component of the app.

Best for:  Those who seek speed and an easy-to-navigate interface.

Dolphin Browser

Mobotap’s mobile browser could be the most remarkable browser on our list based on the name alone, but it doesn’t stop there. Though it sports a somewhat high learning curve, it’s an incredibly stable browser, one coupled with a girth of valuable features and intrinsically rooted in social networking like Facebook , Twitter, and YouTube. Once synced with the appropriate accounts, you can share content across social networks with a single click, or save the content directly to their Evernote or Box account. Additional options for altering the homepage’s background image, adjusting the font size, and initiating full-screen mode are also present, as is the opportunity to privately browse the web and block unwanted ads and various pop-up content.

Despite the mobile browser’s stark contrasts with Safari, it’s just as fast in terms of speed and boasts syncing capabilities for saving your history, passwords, bookmarks, and other data across mobile and desktop accounts. Although more of a novelty than a crucial function, Dolphin incorporates a Pictionary-esque gesture navigation, encouraging you to draw a swath of recognizable symbols that will, in turn, initiate various actions. For instance, scribbling the letter “N’ on the dedicated input screen will automatically open a new tab, while drawing the letter “T” will direct the current tab to the main Twitter homepage. It’s not the most useful action, but it is inventive and surprisingly accurate. Dolphin also supports voice search thanks to its Dolphin Sonar feature, but users will have to pay $0.99 first before they can use it.

Best for: Those who desire greater customization and novelty navigation.

Before Chrome took over our desktops, Mozilla Firefox was the go-to web browser if you wanted something more powerful than Internet Explorer. Firefox for iOS has all the features that other similar web browsers have, such as sign-in to sync settings, history, bookmarks, and passwords. Firefox’s private browsing mode prevents the browser from remembering your browsing history, and it will also allow you to delete any and all saved information with one tap.

If you dig a little deeper into the settings, you will see why you may prefer Firefox to other mobile browsers. For example, Firefox will let you choose whether or not you want to allow it to work with a third-party keyboard. Some third-party keyboards can transmit things that you type back to the developer, so it is good to have an option for this setting. Another very important privacy-related setting is the integration of Touch ID & Passcodes. An example of when this might be useful is if someone else has access to your smartphone . In Chrome, for instance, someone can borrow your smartphone and access the saved passwords section by going to the settings. In Firefox, you can turn on Touch ID & Passcodes, and when you want access to saved log-ins, Firefox will ask you for a passcode or fingerprint. We believe all mobile browsers should have this feature.

Best for: Those who share their smartphone with others.

It’s also the fastest web browser on our list thanks to its exclusive JavaScript engine while remaining feature-laden enough to compete with the best. Moreover, Safari offers voice search capabilities similar to Chrome, but being the software is an Apple product, it relies on voice assistance through Siri. The coupled iCloud Keychain is also a standout, saving and automatically inputting account names, passwords, and credit card numbers whenever you need to sign into a site or shop online, as is the ability to save images to the photo album by pressing said content for several seconds. Other features abound, but it’s the built-in convenience and Safari’s innate ease of use making it one of our top five picks.

Best for: Those seeking merely the bare minimum.

This article was originally published on 1-17-2014 by Brandon Widder, and last updated by Carlos Vega on 4-18-2017 to include Firefox. Kyree Leary also contributed to this article.

Editors' Recommendations

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Review: Third-party browsers for the iPhone

Our verdict.

While there are many questions I’m used to answering about my iPhone—from “What’s your favorite app?” to “How’s the battery life?”—there’s one type of question I never thought I’d have to answer: “What’s your favorite iPhone browser?” Until just recently, the only possible answer to that question was “Mobile Safari,” because that’s all there was.

But now, there are more than half-a-dozen browsers available from the App Store from companies other than Apple. This sudden plethora of new browsers results from Apple’s decision to allow third-party browsers in the App Store—as long as they’re based on WebKit , Apple’s open source browser engine.

So why might you want a browser other than Safari on your iPhone? Each of the eight browsers reviewed here has found a rationale for its existence, whether that be faster page loading by skipping images, implementing tabbed browsing, or some other such reason. But how well do they work, and can any of these alternatives supplant Safari’s role as the primary Web browser for iPhone users? To answer those questions, I loaded eight browsers on my iPhone, then started testing.

I didn’t get very far before I ran into the first limitation—none of the eight browser’s would open my family’s password-protected Web site. I don’t know why, but it seems that sites that use the standard Apache access controls can’t be accessed from a third-party browser.

One of the browser’s description pages in the iTunes Store noted that “pop up links are not working due to a limitation on iPhone SDK.” So perhaps, somehow, the pop-up window that appears when you reach a password-protected site qualifies as a pop-up link. If true, then it seems that Safari will remain the only way to access such sites, at least until Apple changes the iPhone software development kit.

With that relatively large caveat out of the way, here’s my look at each of the browsers, covering first those browsers that—for me at least—didn’t seem to be fully functional. After that, I cover three more promising prospects.

The not-quite-there-yets

Unfortunately, during my testing, there were only about six Web sites total that appeared when I shook the iPhone, and at least two of those were directly related to the program’s author, Mark Schmatz IT .

The others included a couple related to the Ruby programming language, and a couple of German-language sites. No reddit, no Digg, no Slashdot, nothing that even struck my memory synapses as remotely popular.

If Hot Browser were a decent browser on its own merits, the relatively lame shake-to-see feature could be overlooked. But it’s not. It lacks all the basics of a browser—no forward/back buttons, no history, no bookmarks, no preferences.

In short, this feels more like one programmer’s experimentation with iPhone and WebKit than it does a serious alternative to Mobile Safari.

While I can potentially see the usefulness of this feature—Mobile Safari’s penchant for switching orientation at the slightest tilt is frustrating—it’s not worth giving up nearly every other browser feature to get it.

iBrowser doesn’t support tabs (or multiple pages), bookmarks, history, changing your home page, emailing a link to a page, zooming via pinch, or any preferences for cookies and scripts.

If you absolutely, positively, completely and totally detest the occasional page rotation in Mobile Safari, then perhaps iBrowser is useful—but even then, I’d recommend Incognito or QuickSurf, two browsers we’ll talk about later that offer the same locking feature but with other capabilities.

In theory, this could be quite useful. In practice, while riding in our car, the end result is more distracting than helpful. The page does move around, but it doesn’t seem to be in sync with where the iPhone’s actually moving, and the end result gave me a bit of a headache after trying to follow the bouncing screen with my eyes.

The browser itself is also quite limited, with no support for tabs, multiple pages, bookmarks, history, autocompletion, or any of the other niceties one expects in a web browser.

Edge Browser lacks most of the standard browser features, such as a URL bar, backward and forward buttons, and support for bookmarks and history. Instead, it’s designed to view one site, and one site only, with no onscreen interface clutter.

You specify the Web site to load in the program’s preferences (in the iPhone’s Settings page), along with any required login information, then load Edge Browser.

Your site then appears in full-screen mode, unobstructed by any interface elements. Because of its lack of an interface, it works best for sites that exist only on one page, such as a webcam, or perhaps a bank’s account balance screen.

It would be nice if the program supported multiple sites (perhaps by letting you input three sites in its preferences), because as it stands now, it’s strictly a one-site pony.

Unfortunately, Edge Browser wouldn’t load the page for our home’s password-protected webcam, nor any other password-protected page I asked it to load. I thought about contacting support for help with my problems. However, that was impossible, as the link from the iTunes Store led to a site that was clearly not relevant to my questions.

Edge Browser is definitely not intended to replace Mobile Safari as your every day browser. But if you have a single-page site you visit often, Edge Browser may be a good alternative—assuming it’s capable of loading the page, of course.

Settings are minimal, being limited to a definable home page, and to lock the screen in either portrait or landscape mode. You won’t find tabs or multiple pages, either—Incognito is a one-site-at-a-time browser. There’s also no Google search box, and the program forgets which page you were on each time you relaunch it. (This is probably a feature, given the no-trace objective of the browser, but it’s still annoying.) The browser worked fine on the sites I tested it with (password-protected sites excluded, of course).

Is Dan Park’s Incognito worth $1? If you visit sites that, for whatever reason, you’d rather not leave any trace of on your iPhone, then perhaps it is. It works well enough as a basic browser, as long as you don’t want to visit any password-protected web sites, create bookmarks, or work with more than one site at a time.

The promising prospects

That’s the theory, at least. In my testing, however, this wasn’t necessarily the case. While some sites loaded more quickly, others took about as long as they did in Safari. Some images also managed to trickle through on certain sites, for reasons that aren’t clear to me.

Once a page has loaded, a row of buttons along the bottom of the screen provides some useful options—back and forward; toggle between quick (no images) and normal (all images) views; enter full screen mode; and a pop-up menu to open the current page in Safari, add it to the quick launch screen, lock the page’s orientation to portrait or landscape, and visit the Settings screen.

On the Settings screen, you can toggle the ad blocker and history tracking on and off; disable history, and you’ll have a fairly stealthy browser that only leaves a trail on your iPhone if you add pages to the quick launch screen.

While QuickSurf generally worked OK, there are some rough edges. Toggling between quick and normal views is a slow proposition, even if you’re going the normal with-images view to the no-images view—the page is downloaded again in full from the server each time you toggle this setting. The full-screen mode is nice, but scrolling around is problematic; many of my swipes were ignored, or acted on a second or two after I made them. QuickSurf doesn’t include a search box, so searching the net will require visiting a search site. The program also crashed on me a couple of times during my testing.

Overall, QuickSurf shows promise. The full-screen mode is nice, and many image-heavy sites do load much faster than they do in Safari.

Amongst other things, iBlueAngel can select and copy blocks of text on a Web page, and then e-mail that copied text (along with the page URL) via the iPhone’s Mail program. You can’t select just any text you want, however—only blocks (paragraphs) of text. Still, this can be quite useful when you want to give someone a portion of a page, and not just send them a link.

You can also paste the text into the URL box (which doubles as a Google search box if you don’t enter a recognized URL) to search the Web for that text. Documents can also be saved for offline viewing, and the program handles a number of formats: PDF, Word and Excel, text, and images (PNG, JPG, GIF). Saving happens in the background, too, so you can return to surfing while your file saves. I tested this with both PDF and image files, and it worked very well. The saved files are available on a dedicated screen, and can be viewed at any time, regardless of network connectivity.

To get to all of these features, you use the magic dashboard, activated by a tap in the upper left corner of the screen. The magic dashboard is a screen overlay, populated with some somewhat cryptic icons, as seen in the screenshot at right. These icons control text selection mode, copying and pasting, mailing, bookmarks, history, and saving files locally. It may look a bit intimidating, but a quick read of the iBlueAngel user manual explained things well enough.

The other thing that iBlueAngel really does well is tabbed browsing. Using a simple controller at the bottom of the screen, you can add and delete tabs, and move between them. The program caches the contents of the visible page, so moving between tabs takes no time at all. Tabs are remembered between launches of the program, too, so everything you left open will be open when you return. I’d love to be able to horizontally swipe to switch tabs, but tapping a screen button isn’t too hard.

iBlueAngel isn’t quite ready to replace Safari, though. It doesn’t support landscape mode, and the program is also somewhat buggy, crashing on me a half-dozen times in the span of a day. Still, the feature set is compelling, and if the bugs get squashed, landscape mode support is added, and more sites work with it, it will make a serious run at replacing Mobile Safari on my iPhone.

The main interface in WebMate has a URL box, forward/back arrows, and a reload icon at the top of the screen, and a row of buttons at the bottom to control the tabbed browsing experience. The leftmost On/Off button is the key to WebMate; when set to On, any link you tap will open in a new background tab. When set to Off, links open as usual, in the current window. The next set of icons lets you switch tabs, and shows you your current tab and total number of opened tabs. Finally, a trash can icon lets you delete the currently-viewed tab.

WebMate doesn’t include any sort of bookmarking or history features; it’s really designed to speedily browse through link-heavy sites. (It does, however, work in both portrait and landscape modes.)

Using WebMate on a site like Digg is a joy, at least initially. Load the site, make sure the switch in the lower left is set to On, then start tapping links of interest. After you’ve built up a collection of tabs, tap the Next Tab button and start reading. Well, that’s what should happen, but it’s not what does happen.

When you create a new tab from of a link on the first page, WebMate doesn’t actually load the linked site—not until you switch to that tab does it start loading the page. So instead of working in the background while you were clicking links, WebMate was merely noting the URL in preparation for loading. As you switch forward through your tabs, you wait for each page to load—why couldn’t this have happened while you were viewing the first page?

What’s even worse is that there’s seemingly no caching at all—if you load a tab, switch to the next tab and wait for it to load, then hit the Previous Tab button, you’ll wait for that page to load again in its entirety. Between the lack of pre-loading and no caching, you spend a lot of time waiting on WebMate. On a wireless network, it’s not too bad…but on 3G or EDGE, the waiting is interminable.

Sure, it’s no more of a wait than it is to load a similar set of pages in Safari, but the interface shows so much promise—if this worked as expected, WebMate would be the slickest tabbed browser implementation available, because it’s the only one that lets you easily open links in background tabs. The program’s description page states that a major update is coming soon, so perhaps changes are in the works to add pre-loading and caching. I’m looking forward to the update, in the hopes that it delivers on the promise seen in the first version of this browser.

Final thoughts

In summary, none of these browsers can possibly replace Safari in their current forms. Even overlooking the restriction on password-protected pages, none of them offers the right mix of features, stability, and performance to supplant Safari. A few of them, though, do show great promise as Safari supplements, if you will. iBlueAngel offers a compelling set of features that really let you do more with your browser, QuickSurf can speed page loading, especially for image-heavy sites on slower network connections, and WebMate holds the promise of being the best tabbed browser implementation available.

So which one should you use? Possibly one, possibly several, possibly none. It really depends on what sort of browser enhancements you’re looking for. Hopefully these capsule reviews have given you a good sense for the state of each browser, as well as their capabilities. Remember, too, that the history of third-party browsers on the iPhone is very short, and I expect all of these browsers will gain features and bug fixes in the weeks and months to come.

Edge Browser and Shaking Web work with any iPhone running the iPhone 2.1 and 2.2 software updates, respectively. Hot Browser runs on any iPhone and second-generation iPod touch running the iPhone 2.1 update. QuickSurf, WebMate, iBrowser, iBlueAngel, and Incognito run on all iPhone and iPod touch models; iBrowser and iBlueAngel run on the iPhone 2.x software update, Incognito runs on iPhone 2.1, and QuickSurf, and WebMate require iPhone 2.2.

[ Rob Griffiths is a senior editor for Macworld . ]

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Safari and Chrome are two of the biggest players in the browser world. While Safari comes ready-to-go on Apple devices, that doesn’t mean it’s the best option — especially as Chrome is often touted as the best browser out there. See who wins in our Safari vs Chrome comparison.

Last Updated: 01 Feb'24 2024-02-01T09:54:22+00:00

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It’s that time of year again where we put two of the most famous browsers in our virtual boxing ring for the battle of Safari vs Chrome. All Mac users will be familiar with Safari; it’s the default browser for Mac devices and iPhones. 

However, just because Safari comes pre-installed by default, that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily the best. With applications available for the Google Chrome browser on both Apple desktops and iOS, you might be wondering if you should make the switch.

Key Takeaways:

• While Safari and Chrome are both decent browsers, Chrome’s vast library of extensions and customization capabilities means it’s a slightly better choice
• In the battle of performance, Chrome also comes up tops, offering better speed and graphics execution
• The only round where Chrome lags a little is privacy and browsing data collection, which is why we advise using this browser in conjunction with a VPN

To help you decide, we’ve done a bit of research for you, comparing Safari and Google Chrome across Mac and iOS to see which one is better. If you’re not a Mac user, then this article won’t be one for you, so we suggest you check out our Microsoft Edge vs Chrome review for Windows devices instead.

Cloudwards completed a fresh comparison of Safari vs Chrome. Since our last review, Chrome and Safari have remained relatively unchanged, making for a neck-and-neck race. 

Safari vs Chrome: Rounds & Criteria

Our showdown between Safari and Google Chrome will take the form of five rounds, each focused on a different strength: features, ease of use, performance, security and privacy.

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At the end of each round, one browser will come up tops and earn a point. Whichever of the two browsers scores three points overall will be the final winner. Is Chrome better than Safari? Let’s find out. 

1. Features

First up in our Google Chrome vs Safari showdown, we’ll explore each of the browser’s features. It’s fair to say that Safari and Google both cover the basics of a good browsing experience pretty well but, in this day and age, most of us want more than basic functionality. Native tools, customization and extensions were all things we considered in this round.

Customization

Safari is pretty minimalist in design and functionality. While you can customize the look and feel of the browser on Mac, your options are limited. For example, you can change the background of the Safari home screen, but not the overarching color and theme of the desktop.

By contrast, Google Chrome gives you a lot more options. You can choose from over 24 color themes, or even customize your background with an image of your choice. It’s a similar story over on the mobile applications for both.

Safari’s home screen feels minimalist and static, while the Google Chrome mobile device app offers higher levels of customization. You can, for example, set your homepage to show you the latest trending news from Google News.

Google Extensions vs the Apple Ecosystem

Google Chrome also leads when it comes to extensions. Like Firefox, the Chrome extensions library is huge, varied and offers lots of applications for free. Read our Chrome vs Firefox review here . 

Safari’s library of extensions, in comparison, feels relatively limited. While you can access big names like Honey and 1Password, you’ll also find that a lot of applications aren’t compatible with Safari.

This is especially true for VPNs. Right now, none of the top VPN providers offer a browser extension for the latest version of Safari, but they do for Google Chrome. In essence, Chrome offers much more expandability and customization than Safari. 

Syncing 

Both web browsers offer solid syncing features. We like how Safari works in conjunction with a range of Apple features to offer a seamless browsing experience across all Apple products.

Combined with iCloud sync and Apple’s iCloud keychain software, you can move from your iPhone to your iPad to your Mac laptop without your browsing experience being interrupted, and your browsing history will also save automatically. Here’s the lowdown on how to get started with iCloud .

Safari also integrates into Mac’s other applications by default. So, if you use Mac apps like Apple Mail, Apple Calendar and iMessage, you’ll experience excellent continuity. We also like how, with compatible websites, you can use Apple Pay to pay for online shopping.

Google Chrome, though, also performs well on the continuity front. If you have a Google account, you can also sync your browsing experience across your other devices. While Google Chrome doesn’t enable Apple Pay, it has its own option — Google Pay — which you can enable for a faster payment experience.

So, Google Chrome and Safari are pretty much neck and neck when it comes to features but, with its greater levels of customization and vast library of web extensions, Google Chrome takes the lead in this round.

2. Ease of Use

Both Safari and Google Chrome are straightforward to use on desktop and mobile devices, so in this round, we analyzed which user interface felt more pleasant to use. Across iPhone and Mac, Chrome takes a slight lead here. 

Safari’s user interface is minimalist and easy to get your head around. The search bar is at the top of the screen on both desktop and mobile. The home screen is then decorated with widgets showing frequently visited websites, favorite websites and suggested reading based on your browsing experience. 

The experience is satisfactory and we also like how, if you open multiple tabs, you can click the four-square icon in the top right-hand corner of the browser to zoom out of all your open web pages, so it’s easy to find what you need.

Chrome is also really easy to use. The homepage — unless you change it — features the famous Google search bar, along with frequently visited websites below it. There’s also widgets in the top right-hand corner of the page, which give you quick access to Google applications like Gmail, Google Drive, Google Photos, Google Translate and YouTube. 

In terms of finding bookmarks, Google Chrome’s bookmarks are more seamlessly integrated into the browser, showing as small widgets below the search bar at the top of the page. To show bookmarks in Safari, you have to either manually click the bookmark tab in the control panel or enable the bookmark pane, which is quite big and invasive. 

Overall, while both are easy to use, the Google Chrome browser feels a bit more dynamic and user-friendly than Apple’s browser. 

3. Performance

We’ve come to what is arguably the most important round: the Safari vs Chrome speed test. We performed a benchmark test using Speedometer 2.0, JetStream 2 and MotionMark to compare Safari vs Chrome performance. 

We used a MacBook Pro with 16GB of RAM and an Intel Core i5 CPU running at 2 GHz to run these tests. 

Benchmark Test Results

When it comes to speed, Chrome is the clear winner, reading 122.5 compared to 113.8 on Safari. While both are respectable scores, Chrome is undoubtedly the faster option. 

On JetStream, the tables turned. Safari’s reading was 125.705, putting it in the lead as Chrome’s score was 118.675. JetStream tests a browser’s ability to deal with complex JavaScript workloads. This indicates that Safari will perform better when executing complex applications — but only marginally. 

The last test we performed was MotionMark, which analyzes how the browser handles complex graphics. Chrome really shone in this test, coming in at 403.6 to Safari’s 356.31. This means that Chrome’s user experience and responsiveness outperforms Safari. 

One thing worth noting is that Safari is a more lightweight browser than Chrome. While it might not be as quick, Safari is more economical for iOS and Mac performance than Chrome in terms of battery life, especially with multiple tabs open. 

Despite this, with Chrome winning on two out of three of these mini rounds in the Safari vs Chrome benchmark test, it’s fair to say that Chrome is the overall winner when it comes to performance. 

4. Security

Both Safari and Chrome use Google’s Safe Browsing database to keep users safe from phishing and malware. They also both offer password management functionality.

If you use Google’s password manager or Safari’s iCloud keychain, you’ll also benefit from dark web monitoring, a feature that uses data analytics to alert you to the exposure of your passwords and email addresses in data leaks and breaches. 

Despite these similarities, Chrome slightly takes the lead in terms of security features. We like that Google sends out frequent browser updates for Chrome, ensuring regular patching from potential vulnerabilities. Safari’s updates, by contrast, are much more infrequent. 

Over the last few years, Google has gotten in trouble with data privacy regulators numerous times for its use of cookies and improper collection of personal data. Apple, by contrast, has managed to stay out of the headlines for these reasons. 

We’ve taken an in-depth look at the best browsers for your privacy , which you can take a look at here. 

While Google appears to have learned from its mistakes and is taking steps to bolster user privacy, Apple takes the lead in this round. We like that Safari features a dedicated “privacy report” feature, which shows how the browser is protecting you from online profiling and cross-site tracking through its intelligent tracking prevention software.

Chrome also offers a “privacy checkup” function, but it’s far less granular than Safari. Also, by default, your privacy isn’t prioritized. Google automatically enables personalized ads, as opposed to blocking them. Incognito mode, as always, doesn’t do much do actually protect your privacy.

This makes sense, as advertising is such a huge part of Google’s business model, but it means that you should probably use a VPN in conjunction with Chrome. For this reason, Safari wins this round. 

The Verdict

Ultimately, Safari and Chrome are both solid browser choices. For iPhone, iPad and Mac users looking for simplicity and deep integration across the Apple ecosystem, Safari is a good choice — and comes ready to go. 

However, it’s also well worth downloading Chrome and setting up a Google account if you haven’t already. Chrome is a leading browser for a reason. It’s fast, easy to use and comes with unparalleled customization options. 

Because of this, Chrome is our ultimate winner, but we do recommend you use it in conjunction with a VPN to ensure your online privacy. 

What are your thoughts on the battle between Chrome vs Safari? Do you agree that Chrome is the better browser overall, and why or why not? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading! 

Both Safari and Chrome are good browser choices for Apple users. However, Chrome takes the lead over Safari in terms of performance, ease of use and customization, making it a better all-round browser choice.

Safari and Chrome are both secure, and Safari actually uses Google’s Safe Browsing database. They are pretty much neck and neck when it comes to privacy and security, but if you’re concerned about your online privacy, we’d advise using a VPN.

Probably not. If you’re using Chrome, then Safari won’t offer you anything that you haven’t got already.

Great comparison, and I agree chrome wins in most everything. Review is missing a critical comparison, power consumption.

You mean on mobile?

I have win but I haven’t received any thing

I am pretty sure he means you didn’t include power consumption for desktop and mobile.

I use Safari because of the battery life and performance being pretty good. It does lack a robust extension store and isn’t cross platform outside of Apple’s OS ecosystem. Chrome has a significant market share on Mac OS because its cross platform and updates better if security is a priority for you. Safari lags in updates due to being tied to OS updates. WebKit is open sourced but mostly developed by Apple and is a fork of Chromium/Blink which Google and most other browsers use. Firefox is an option as well, but its always been slow and battery hungry as well.

Blink is actually a fork of WebKit, not the other way around.

fyi chrome uses safari’s rendering engine on iOS (as they’re not allowed to do otherwise) so speed is the same on iOS.

Firefox is much better nowadays in terms of performance and battery consumption (on MacBooks).

I Think Chrome is the browser with more day to day security and updates, for years I was a fan of Google Apps, but the fact that all of its apps are so resources’ hungry is annoying, I recently upgraded to 12GB RAM on my MacBook and the more RAM I add to my system the more RAM it uses, it’s incredibly annoying, when Safari handles everything faster with its simpler yet powerful and tidy design, using about 1/4 or less of the RAM used by Chrome, using the same websites, and the same amount of tabs open at the same time. Once I finish transferring my files from Google Drive I’ll switch everything to iCloud, it’s the way to go on a MacOS System.

Antonio, Please explain your like of Icloud. It’s the biggest annoyance.

It’s syncs seamlessly across all your devices – you can access them anywhere you can connect to the internet. It’s smart and even anticipates your needs, based on your file/folder usage behaviour.

If you’re finding it a massive annoyance then I imagine you’re *expecting* it to behave like Dropbox or Google Drive when that’s not what it was ever designed for.

Most people who find it frustrating do so because they don’t understand its purpose – I admit I fell in this camp for several years myself!

Took me years to realise that if you’re a Mac user, it’s pointless paying for eg 2TB of iCloud storage, if you don’t have 2TB of storage locally on your Mac. It’s not a storage extender like an external HD. It essentially replicates what’s on your Mac.

Not an ad, and am no way connected to him, but the ‘MacMost’ YT channel is an excellent free resource for both newcomers to Mac and experienced hands. Gary, the chap who runs it, has been around forever and watching his tutorial videos is like being taught by a friendly uncle. He has a rich, searchable back catalogue (with several on understanding iCloud!)

Regarding Chrome, I still love it – chiefly because of the vast library of extensions. I have 105 installed, but I’ve become far stricter about not keeping them all switched on all the time. I generally have about 12-15 on constantly; the rest I toggle on and off just when I need them. Seems the best of both worlds to me.

Chrome on iOS is more performant by safari. That is because, if you can choose safari, you have iOS. On iOS, chrome is always faster because it uses the same browser engine, webkit, with its own code to make it faster.

If you are on an Android phone with Google sync all across Google & Android products, Chrome is the winner!

The security on safari seems a little more liable other wise both are best but customisation wise chrome is a bit good

Liable to whom, and for what exactly? Or do you mean reliable? I’m unsure… Liable means legally responsible – do you mean Safari is run in a more legally compliant way? Please can you elaborate? Thanks

I reverted to Safari after I found that I couldn’t get a reader mode with Chrome for my iPhone and iPad.

Can’t use chrome extensions on iPad. It’s dumb.

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8 iPhone browser apps you should use instead of Safari

iOS 14 allows you to change the default web browser on an iPhone to your favorite browser's app — here's how to do it

• You can change the default web browser on an iPhone running iOS 14, if you want to use a browser other than Safari, such as Google Chrome.
• Once you've set your default browser, links you click will open in that browser's app.
• If you've tried to set your default browser before and it kept reversing, make sure your software is up to date.

Clicking on a link only to have it open in a browser you never use is one of those small annoyances iPhone users have had to just live with. But with iOS 14 , Apple built in an easy way to change your default browser. 

With your preferred web browser set as the default, you won't have to worry about links from texts or emails opening in the wrong one.

Be aware — Apple released software update 14.0.1 to fix a bug that undid this setting, so make sure you have the latest software installed.

How to change the default browser on an iPhone running iOS 14

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

2. Scroll down to find your favorite browser and tap it. It will likely be fairly far down the list, in the section right below "TV Provider."

3. Tap the "Default Browser App" option.

4. A list of any browsers you've installed other than Safari will appear. Tap your preferred browser. A check mark should appear next to it.

Now, any link you click will open in your preferred browser.

Related coverage from  Tech Reference :

How to make google chrome the default browser on your android phone in 5 simple steps, how to change your default web browser on windows 10, where you can install and switch between different browsers, how to update the safari browser on your mac computer by installing the latest version of macos, how to change your default browser on mac, through the system preferences menu or the new browser's settings, how to clear the cache on a safari browser to make it run more efficiently, watch: i've used the iphone for 10 years and these are my favorite tips and tricks.

• Main content

iOS 17: How to Set a Default Browser Other Than Safari

The iOS 17 update makes it easier for users to change their default browser. Apple is seemingly encouraging users to try other browsers. Although this change is currently exclusive to those from EU countries, it could become a permanent feature once newer public iOS versions are available.

How to Set a Default Browser Other Than Safari in iOS 17

Time needed:  2 minutes

Apple will automatically show a choice screen the first time you open Safari after upgrading to iOS 17. The pop-up displays the most popular browsers in your region. Here’s how to change your default browser engine through it:

In an email to the Apple Developer Program members, Apple shared which web browsers it will display to EU users. The list included:

• Aloha Browser
• Brave Browser
• Microsoft Edge
• Mozilla Firefox
• Onion Browser
• Opera Touch
• Private Browser Deluxe
• Vivaldi Browser
• You.com AI Search Assistant

Apple’s letting other web browser engines in as well. So browsers like Chrome won’t be stuck using just the WebKit engine.

Can We Change the Default Browser in Other iOS Versions?

I want to clarify that iPhone users have been able to change their default browser settings since iOS 14 launched in 2020 .

Apple made this change in compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) requirements in the European Union (EU). Users outside its regions won’t see this pop-up yet. But don’t fret too much because nothing changed in terms of functionality—it’s merely a mandatory pop-up for fair trade compliance. You can still explore the best alternatives to Safari .

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• Jose Luansing Jr.

AAPL Company

New iphone browsers on the way without webkit; apple prepping safari for competition.

We may soon see entirely new iPhone browsers available, as both Google and Mozilla anticipate the end of Apple’s insistence that all iOS browsers use the same WebKit engine as Safari .

This will enable new versions of Chrome and Firefox to offer greater feature differentiation, and for the first time allow them to aim for faster performance than Safari …

Currently, anyone can create a new iPhone browser, but with one huge restriction: Apple insists that it uses the same WebKit rendering engine as Safari.

That effectively means that all iOS browsers are the same under the hood. This limits the number of new features which can be offered by competing browsers, and also means it’s impossible to create an iPhone browser which renders pages faster than Safari.

However, the growing antitrust pressure facing Apple includes claims that the WebKit requirement is anticompetitive . For example, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that:

Apple bans alternatives to its own browser engine on its mobile devices; a restriction that is unique to Apple. The CMA is concerned this severely limits the potential for rival browsers to differentiate themselves from Safari (for example, on features such as speed and functionality) and limits Apple’s incentives to invest in its browser engine. This restriction also seriously inhibits the capability of web apps – apps that run on a browser rather than having to be individually downloaded – depriving consumers and businesses of the full benefits of this innovative technology.

Apple is therefore expected to drop the WebKit requirement sooner rather than later. In particular, the European Digital Markets Act looks set to force the hand of the iPhone maker, with reports that Apple will drop the requirement as part of iOS 17 later this year.

New iPhone browsers without WebKit

Both Google and Mozilla are now working on new iOS browsers which use the same rendering engines as their desktop browsers.

For Google’s Chrome, that’s Blink :

Google’s Chromium team has moved full steam ahead on porting Blink to iOS, introducing dozens of related code changes in the past week. At the pace things are progressing, we may have our first look at the browser engine for Chrome — and Microsoft Edge, Opera, and more — running on iOS in the coming weeks.

Top comment by pika2000

Apple needs to put Safari on Windows (again) and Android if they want Safari to not die out. Keeping Safari only on Apple device will seal its fate.

For Mozilla’s Firefox, it’s Gecko :

Mozilla is planning for the day when Apple will no longer require its competitors to use the WebKit browser engine in iOS. Mozilla conducted similar experiments that never went anywhere years ago but in October 2022 posted an issue in the GitHub repository housing the code for the iOS version of Firefox that includes a reference to GeckoView, a wrapper for Firefox’s Gecko rendering engine.

The latter had seemed at the time to be for internal use only, but now appears to be aiming for a public app.

Apple preparing for Safari competition

The Register reports that Apple recognizes the threat posed by real competition in iPhone browsers, and is beefing up its development team.

Safari developed a reputation for lagging behind Chrome and Firefox. Apple, however, appears to be aware of the risk posed by regulators and has added more staff to the WebKit team to close the capabilities gap.

Photo:  Sameer / Unsplash

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Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!

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Arc Search for iPhone.

Every once in a while, I come across a new app whose design, feature set, or combination of the two redefines my expectations for a particular category of software. The new Arc Search app for iPhone , which is launching today on the App Store as a separate app from The Browser Company ’s previous Arc Companion utility , is one of those experiences.

From the first moment I tried Arc Search for iOS, I knew I wanted to use it as my default iPhone browser. And the reason isn’t because Arc Search does more than Safari (there’s actually a long list of missing features that I’ll cover below), but because despite offering less functionality, the essence of how Arc Search rethinks one-handed web browsing on a phone is so refined and thoughtful, going back to another browser feels like a downgrade.

Arc Search has a long way to go to become a full-featured, mature browser for iOS, and it doesn’t even come with an iPad counterpart yet. But, at the same time, it’s the best take on mobile web browsing I’ve seen in years.

Browsing with Arc Search

Let me be clear upfront: I’m not a die-hard Arc fan like our Jonathan is . In fact, before Arc Search, I wasn’t an Arc user at all: Arc is only available on macOS, and my main computer, as you know, is the iPad Pro .

I started testing Arc Search from the perspective of someone who’s been observing The Browser Company’s work with a mix of fascination and skepticism. On the one hand, I love how they’re willing to rethink every single interaction we take for granted in web browsers by adding features other companies would never dream of ( easels , anyone?); on the other, I’m not so sure I want to spend my life working inside a browser. I love native apps and have made a living out of reviewing and talking about them.

What made Arc Search an intriguing subject for me is that the last interesting thing that happened in the mobile browser space was Apple’s redesign of Safari for iPhone and iPad in 2021 . Heavily criticized at the time for its initial shortcomings and eventually improved by Apple following community feedback, Safari’s bottom-facing address bar went on to become a de-facto industry standard that can now be found in other mobile browsers, including Chrome . There have been other innovations in web browsers in recent years, such as profiles and tab groups in Safari or AI-based features in Edge. While welcome, none of those have fundamentally reimagined what browsing the web on a smartphone should feel like as much as the Safari for iPhone redesign did almost three years ago. The most interesting changes in browsers have been happening on desktop 1 (including Arc itself), so you can see why I think that Apple was the last company to really rethink mobile browsing.

When it comes to mobile browser UIs, Safari walked so the new Arc Search app could run. Here’s the deal: the new Arc Search app is an iPhone-only browser focused on finding things as fast as possible; it provides you with a series of bottom-oriented controls that mostly stay out of the way but, when invoked, let you search and reopen your favorite websites very quickly. It comes with built-in blocking for ads, trackers, and cookie consent notices and offers native summarization of web results via AI.

Oh, and its tab UI looks like an iPhone app switcher.

An easy pitch for Arc Search would be: it’s Safari, but slimmed down, and with the bottom UI taken to its extreme conclusion. That’s why the app instantly clicked with me in spite of its extensive list of missing features. It does less than other browsers, but when it comes to mobile web browsing, Arc Search covers the basics better than anything else.

By default, the Arc Search interface stays out of your way with a minimized toolbar docked at the bottom of the screen, similar to Safari. Unlike Apple’s app, Arc doesn’t display the address bar in this collapsed state; it only shows buttons to view tabs, search, and open a menu with actions for the current webpage.

Safari (left) and Arc Search.

What I find so intelligent about this approach is that Arc’s toolbar boils down common user actions to three buttons: one for searching and going to other websites; one for performing actions on the current one; another for viewing the other pages you have open.

The search button is the one I found myself reaching for the most. Tapping it opens an integrated search screen that, similar to Safari, displays your favorites but also lets you search; as you search, favorites are replaced onscreen by suggested search results, which you can select and open in a new tab. While Arc clearly was inspired by Safari for iPhone here, there’s a small change that has made a big difference for me: favorites are displayed immediately above the keyboard , making them very easy to reach with your thumb. As a result, opening Arc, tapping the search button, and checking one favorite after the other feels faster than doing the same in Safari.

Safari’s approach to favorites (left) is more visually impactful, but Arc’s is easier and faster to use with one thumb.

A sense of speed and one-handed efficiency permeates Arc Search and is the strongest aspect of the app. The animations, besides being lovely to see (not a surprise given The Browser Company’s exquisite taste in UI design), are fast. Consider the tab switcher: open the tab grid in Safari for iPhone, then do the same in Arc Search. Visual differences aside, Safari feels like it’s operating in slow motion. The transitions in Arc Search are fluid and snappy, which is the ideal outcome for a mobile browser that needs to give you answers in a few seconds.

Safari (left) has much slower tab animations than Arc Search. Replay

I should note that the tab picker, modeled after the typical multitasking UI of modern smartphones, is another delightful touch I appreciate it. Yes, its information density is lower than Safari’s tab grid and you won’t find the versatility of Vivaldi for iPhone’s desktop-style tabs on mobile here. But boy is it fast and fun to use. You can use the tab switcher just like the app switcher on your iPhone: you can scroll the gallery of recent tabs in chronological order (from oldest to newest left to right) and, just like with apps, you can swipe up to close a page. The automatic tab archival feature of Arc desktop has found its way to Arc Search: with an archive button at the bottom of the tab switcher, you can view and search among all the pages that were automatically archived by the browser. 2

Accessing the tab archive (right) from the tab switcher.

There’s one more thing I want to mention about the tab switcher. As you can see, it displays thumbnails for the two most recently visited webpages. At any point, you can flick up on the thumbnails to instantly toggle between the current webpage and the one you opened before it. I love this gesture because it makes it so easy to alternate between two pages, and it quickly became second nature for me. Of course I should be able to toggle between two pages in my iPhone’s browser , I’ve kept thinking for the past week. The gesture does sometimes conflict with the iPhone’s Home indicator at the bottom of the screen, which is why it takes a while to get used to it. To overcome that issue, I wish The Browser Company would also add a double-tap gesture in addition to the aforementioned vertical swipe.

The chevron button in the bottom-right corner opens a more standard menu with a set of essential options. This is where you can view the address bar, mark a website as favorite, view website settings, and access large and comfortable buttons for opening reader mode, finding text on the current page, copying the URL, and sharing a link via the share sheet. In a nice touch, if you want to share links more quickly, you can tap and hold the chevron to immediately open the share sheet.

I’m not a big believer in AI tools that can summarize webpages for you since I’m a bit of a control freak and want to check each webpage myself, with my own eyes. That said, Arc’s ‘Browse For Me’ feature is pretty neat. When searching, you can press the ‘Browse For Me’ button next to a search suggestion and the app will put together a personalized page for you with key takeaways for the query you were searching for, extracted from different websites.

Browse For Me aggregates and summarizes results from a variety of sources, which are always linked.

Unlike other AI tools, Arc Search can actually browse the web looking for news about current events and summarize them.

The summary makes good use of sections and lists all the sources it used, which you can tap to open in separate tabs. This is not a feature I personally used much, but I can see why it may turn out to be a hit with the general public. Interestingly, ‘Browse For Me’ may also show us a glimpse of Arc moving beyond traditional Google search to embrace results aggregated, summarized, and presented by AI inside the browser – Google’s worst nightmare.

A Solid Debut with Lots of Missing Features

As I wrote at the outset, there is a long list of features that are currently missing from Arc Search.

The biggest one is that, much to my surprise, Arc Search does not sync with your Arc account from the desktop app, so you’ll be starting from scratch with this app. I’m told sync is on the roadmap, but I find the omission at launch quite peculiar since it creates an unnecessary fragmentation of the user experience that’s directly opposed to Arc’s whole ethos. Oddly enough, Arc Search doesn’t offer the same functionalities as the previous Arc Companion app either, and I’m left wondering if features of that original app will be gradually rolled into Arc Search now. Whatever the strategy is, I hope The Browser Company is going to build proper Arc experiences for iPhone and iPad in the future, joining the existing Mac and Windows apps (the latter one is currently in closed beta).

The list is much longer, though. Besides the lack of an iPad app and integration with Arc desktop, there are no Shortcuts actions or widgets for Arc Search; there is no equivalent to Safari’s excellent ‘Paste and Go’ and ‘Paste and Search’ address bar actions; you cannot rename your favorites or sort them into folders; there is no built-in reading list; you can’t download files; 1Password auto-fill sometimes doesn’t work. If you get a lot of work done on your iPhone using Safari and if that work includes relying on extensions (which Arc doesn’t support) or features shared across platforms (such as tab groups, profiles, or shortcuts), it’d be hard to recommend Arc Search right now.

So why am I using Arc Search as my iPhone’s default browser? It’s a fast, delightful app that lets me find stuff and navigate to my favorites quickly; it’s comfortable to use with one hand and it’s refreshingly intuitive compared to other browsers. Put simply: it’s the distillation of what I want from a mobile browser.

Arc for Mac and Arc Search for iPhone are, on the surface, diametrically opposed: one rethinks what the browser should do thanks to all its features designed for spending as much time as possible being productive inside a browser; the other reimagines what a browser that swiftly gets out of your way should feel like . The trick that The Browser Company pulled off, however, is that both apps have one characteristic in common: they’re fun . Arc Search, just like Tweetie, Reeder, Things, Ivory, and other illustrious predecessors on iOS, has that special something that we love to see at MacStories, which tends to be hard to quantify and is often best conveyed with: “It’s fun”.

Perhaps my hope is misplaced, and The Browser Company won’t evolve Arc Search farther than this. Perhaps they’ll never build out an ecosystem of browsers with feature parity across Mac, iPhone, and iPad. I don’t know what their exact plans are, but judging from their recent expansion on Windows and their CEO’s status updates , it sounds like the company doesn’t want to stop at being just a fancy web browser for Mac with a watered-down iPhone companion app.

What I know today is that, for the first time in years, I’ve found a browser for iPhone that is compelling enough for me to switch from Safari. Arc Search is an excellent 1.0 version of an app that wants to reimagine how we browse the web on our iPhones; I just want to believe it won’t stop here.

Arc Search is a free download on the App Store .

• There’s an obvious reason for that on Apple platforms: the inability for developers to offer mobile browsers that weren’t mere reskins of Safari. This will begin to change with the arrival of non-WebKit browsers for European users starting with iOS 17.4.  ↩︎
• I chose to archive mine after 12 hours in the app’s settings.  ↩︎

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In This Article

What are the best web browsers for iphone, how to change web browser on iphone, does iphone web browser support flash, related articles, top 7 web browsers for iphone in 2024 [fastest & safest].

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Updated on: February 08, 2024

What is the best web browser for iPhone? The answer to this will depend largely on the intent you have for the browser.

Safari is pre-installed on every new iOS device by default, but there are many excellent alternatives. In the past, Safari held an advantage because it was impossible to change the default browser, but with iOS 14, you can now select which browser opens when you click on links.

Do you have a Mac Computer? Then check out The Best 10 Web Browsers For Mac !

In light of this, we have reviewed and ranked seven of the best web browsers for iPhone , including Apple’s own Safari. This analysis will explore the features and benefits of each iPhone web browser to help you make an informed decision. Let’s dive right in!

Having an iPhone means having Safari, and you can’t remove it. You should not feel embarrassed about using the apps that come with your phone.

Apple created Safari specifically for iPhone users, optimized it for Apple’s ecosystem, and designed it to be very easy to use even for those among us with little technical expertise.

Despite this, it lacks some of the extra features found in other web browsers for iPhone discussed in this article. Safari does not support collections, crypto wallets, special searches, or VPNs.

Safari now allows you to watch WebM videos on iPhone .

However, it does cover the basics such as syncing web history, storing passwords, private browsing, download manager, bookmarks, and more.

Safari is likely the best choice for those who are simply seeking a safe web browser for iPhone that works and don’t care about their browser being the fastest or the best at blocking cookies.

2. Google Chrome Web Browser for iPhone

If you are a part of the Google ecosystem, which most people are, Chrome is the best web browser for iPhone. It is no surprise that Chrome is the most widely used iPhone web browser after Safari.

Performance, reliability, and stability are the primary reasons for the app’s popularity. The Chrome application syncs easily between your desktop and mobile devices. So your browsing history, passwords, bookmarks, and more are all at your fingertips no matter what device you’re using.

A disadvantage of using Chrome on iPhone or iPad is that Chrome extension won’t be as easy to use. Check out how to use Chrome Extensions on iPad and how to use Chrome extensions on iOS for more info on this.

As with any Google product, Chrome tracks everything you do. That’s the price you pay for such powerful tools. It is impossible to match the quality of Google’s search results in Chrome or any other browser.

In case you are concerned about your searches and browsing history, you can always change your default search engine and lock down your privacy settings. Even so, this may reduce the usefulness of the tools you originally downloaded the app for.

3. Opera Touch

Opera’s iPhone web browser features a surprisingly minimalist design. Their desktop browser, on the other hand, is quite robust. Still, it’s a good option if you use Opera on your desktop.

With My Flow, you can connect your mobile Opera browser to your desktop. Everything syncs automatically after you scan a QR code.

Opera excels at providing a wide range of default search engine options. There are also foreign search engines like Qwant and Yandex that you can use besides the usual suspects like Google, DuckDuckGo, and Bing.

They are also more site-specific than other web browsers for iPhone. It also allows searching on Wikipedia, Amazon, IMDB, and eBay.

Opera also offers a crypto-currency wallet, so you can buy things with crypto directly from your browser. There is a good chance this feature will be added to all the browsers on this list in the near future.

There’s more to Brave than just a privacy-focused web browser for iPhone.

It is a self-contained ecosystem with features like a personalized news feed, cryptocurrency wallet, search engine, media player, and more. In addition to blocking third-party trackers, Brave Shields allows users to opt-in to the rewards program by watching ads tailored to their preferences.

Additionally, the app offers a Brave Firewall + VPN (provided by Guardian), which adds a layer of security as you browse, shop, and scroll. You can get it for $99.99 a year or $9.99 a month.

Brave also provides an integrated video call service similar to Google Meet and Skype, which other browsers don’t. You can also sync your mobile app with your desktop browser.

It is great to be able to pick up where you left off regardless of where you are or what device you are using. One of the best web browsers for the iPhone.

5. Mozilla Firefox for iPhone

With Firefox’s two decades of existence, it is no surprise that its mobile app is up to par. This application syncs easily with your desktop browser has a lot of privacy protection features and allows you to customize your home screen.

The default search engine for most mobile browsers is Google, and you can change it like other browsers. You can also select Bing or DuckDuckGo. Firefox’s search bar can be used to scan popular websites like Amazon, Wikipedia, and Twitter.

You can add articles you would like to read later to your reading list in Firefox much like Edge’s Collections feature. If you’re browsing and find an article you’d like to read later, it only takes a few taps to add it to your reading list.

Additionally, Firefox’s hamburger menu offers a variety of one-click options, such as “Find in Page,” “Send Link to Device,” “Copy Link,” and more, which saves a lot of time that you’d otherwise have to copy and paste the text into other applications.

6. Microsoft Edge

Edge is the perfect web browser for iPhone users with one foot in the Microsoft world and the other in the Apple world. It makes sense to pair Edge with your iPhone since it’s the default browser on all Windows machines today.

The Edge mobile app syncs data such as passwords, browsing and search history, and other bits and pieces to your Windows desktop browser after you sign in with your Microsoft account. Bing is the default search engine when you use Edge, but you can switch to Google, DuckDuckGo, or Yahoo.

The Edge browser also has a handy feature called “Collections.” These act much like bookmarks but are more contextually focused. So, you can make a list of potential news stories, Christmas gifts, meal ideas, and almost anything else you can think of.

Once a collection is on your phone, you can access it not only from your desktop browser, but you can also access it offline. When you’re outside the range of your cell phone and want to check the news or list made previously, this feature can come in handy.

7. DuckDuck Go Web Browser

DuckDuckGo may be the best iPhone web browser for you if privacy is your main concern online. Initially, the app was a search engine that didn’t track you. Today, it’s a security app that allows you to surf the web without being tracked.

It’s not surprising that the app is simple given its simple premise. DuckDuckGo tries to keep its bells and whistles to a minimum.

The flame icon at the bottom of the interface is the most impressive feature outside the search engine. With a single tap on the fire, you can close all your open tabs and erase your browsing history forever.

Related article: Fastest Web Browser For Mac

Even though the search results aren’t as good as those of Google (but whose are?) they’re still pretty good. DuckDuckGo has yet to make me wish I had used Google instead, which is more than I can say for many other non-Google search engines.

If you want to make one of the browsers discussed above your default iPhone web browser or you just don’t like using Safari as the default browser, follow this guide for how to change the default browser in iOS 14.

Step 1: Launch the Settings app.

**Step 2:** Look for the Browser App you want to use as default, such as Chrome. Find it on the available list of web browsers for iPhone and tap it.

**Step 3:**Tap “Default Browser App” in your browser settings.

Step 4: A blue checkmark will appear when you have selected your new default browser.

Unfortunately, Adobe Flash isn’t natively supported in the Safari browser on your iPhone, but you can download well-known developers’ browsers that support the technology.

For those who aren’t familiar, Adobe Flash is a multimedia software program used to create animations, rich web applications, mobile apps, games, and embedded web browser video players.

Learn more about why why did browsers stop supporting flash .

The best web browsers for the iPhone support different levels of Flash content, from watching videos to running interactive Flash applications for training purposes. Though not all do, you can check out apps like the Onion web browser featured above.

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• How To Enable Third-Party Cookies on Safari [iPhone]
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Brave vs Safari

A side-by-side comparison

As the default on Apple devices, Safari is the second most widely used browser in the world. It’s generally considered more private than Chrome, and is optimized for iOS and macOS. But despite Apple’s best efforts, it still doesn’t match up to a privacy-and-performance browser like Brave.

Brave is faster and more private, even on macOS and iOS devices. And—unlike Safari—it also works on every other device and operating system. So which is right for you?

Let’s compare.

Is Brave more private than Safari?

Apple is one of the most valuable companies in the world. But unlike other Big Tech players like Google or Facebook, Apple is far less dependent on advertising revenue; most of their money comes from sales of hardware and software. As such, they have less incentive to collect your data (or allow it to be collected), and more incentive to protect you online.

Still, Safari doesn’t go nearly as far as it could in terms of specific privacy and security protections . Brave, meanwhile, blocks nearly every attempt to track you:

• Blocks third-party ads
• Blocks cross-site trackers
• Blocks third-party cookies
• Protects against fingerprinting
• Blocks cookie-consent banners
• Global privacy control (GPC) enabled
• Auto-upgrades to HTTPS
• Network state partitioning
• Filters query parameters
• Blocks bounce tracking

Chart describes default settings.

• Full protection
• Limited protection
• No protection, or off by default

As you can see, Safari still allows ads and trackers to appear on the webpages you visit. It still allows some fingerprinting techniques, and even those annoying cookie-consent notices (which Brave blocks by default). With Safari, you’re still followed across the Web. Your browsing and search history are recorded and linked directly with you—all without your knowledge or consent.

Brave, meanwhile, is private by default .

Does Brave have more features than Safari?

Brave is built on the open-source Chromium browser engine (the same one that powers Chrome, Edge, Opera, and Vivaldi). 1 Safari is powered by Apple’s open-source WebKit engine.

Basic functions like bookmarks and tabs are there in both Brave and Safari. For Safari extensions, you’ll need to visit the Apple App Store; for Brave extensions, you can visit the much larger selection in the Chrome Web Store. But with all of Brave’s  built-in features, you likely won’t need any extensions. 

Beyond these core similarities, Brave has lots of custom features that are missing in Safari:

Better browsing

• Built-in ad blocker
• YouTube ad blocker
• AI assistant
• Vertical tabs
• Offline media playlists
• News & RSS reader
• Reader mode
• Translations
• Cross-device profile syncing

Privacy & security

• Default private search
• Built-in VPN
• Built-in, private video calls
• Tor browsing
• WebTorrent integration
• Secure, built-in wallet
• Crypto rewards program
• Full functionality
• Limited functionality
• No functionality, or off by default

Some sub-features like Translations and Tab groups are available in both browsers. But to get real parity in Safari, you’d need to install multiple extensions that, unfortunately, can introduce security risks and slow down your Web browsing.

When looking at browser functionality, Brave far outperforms Safari.

Brave cleans up webpages, giving you a less distracting browsing experience on every site—including YouTube.

Safari, on the other hand, shows pages cluttered with ads…and countless other junk you can’t see. One look at a side-by-side, and you’ll immediately notice the difference.

Grab the slider to see the difference between Brave and Safari and try a few sites below

All Recipes

Brave works on all Mac laptop and desktop computers. It performs far better on macOS machines than Safari does. By blocking ads and trackers , it uses less RAM and CPU, and saves memory.

Brave works on all Apple mobile devices. It performs far better on iOS devices than Safari does. By blocking ads and trackers, it uses less battery, less bandwidth, and less mobile data.

Brave is available on Android and iOS, macOS and Windows, and even Linux. No matter which device or operating system you use, Brave will run better than the default browser—or any other browser you might install—on that device.

Safari is owned by Apple, one of the largest (and richest) companies in the world. Brave, meanwhile, is truly independent. It’s a North American company, and since it’s not owned by Big Tech, it’s not beholden to Big Tech.

Safari does not have its own search engine, so Safari users must default to Google or Bing, or one of the “alternative” engines that are in fact just powered by Big Tech. The default search engine in the Brave browser is Brave Search, which is built to keep you private and secure. Brave Search can’t sell, lose, or use your data—we don’t collect it in the first place.

As for quality, Brave Search has indexed more than 18 billion pages (and counting). And while Google’s index has far more pages, it’s important to note that a huge percentage of that is either duplicate content, spam pages, or other junk. Brave Search actually delivers results that are higher in relevance, timeliness, and utility.

And of course, any other search engine will work in Brave as well.

Yes, Brave has the same feature, though we call them private windows instead. But it’s important to note that Incognito windows are not some privacy hack. All these windows do is delete cookies from that particular browsing session, so they’re not connected to future Incognito sessions, or browsing you do in a regular window. When you browse in an Incognito window, you’re still being watched by trackers on the sites you visit.

Chromium is the browser engine for desktop & Android; on iOS both Brave and Safari use Apple WebKit. 

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You’re just 60 seconds away from the best privacy online, download brave, run the installer, import settings.

If your download didn’t start automatically, click here .

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The best browser for mac users (and safari alternatives).

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Key Takeaways

• Safari is highly optimized for Apple hardware, but it may have limited web app compatibility and fewer extensions compared to browsers like Chrome.
• Firefox is a privacy-conscious alternative to Safari, offering features like Do Not Track and blocking invisible trackers. Chrome is the most popular browser, known for its compatibility and wide range of extensions, but it may compromise privacy. Consider trying other browsers like Edge and Vivaldi, or unique options like Arc for a different browsing experience.

Your choice of web browser can have a big impact on your Mac experience. From integration with the services you use to power efficiency and reliability, here’s how to decide which is best for you.

Safari is (Arguably) the Best Mac Browser

There are a few good reasons to pick Safari as your browser of choice if you’re a Mac user, especially if you use other Apple devices like an iPhone or iPad . It might surprise you to find out that you’re not alone, with Safari being the second most popular browser on the web thanks to its inclusion on both mobile and desktop devices.

Apple tightly optimizes Safari for use exclusively on Apple hardware. This means that Safari is highly power efficient on a Mac. When Apple gives an estimate of battery life on its latest Mac models for performing activities like “wireless web” they’re specifically referring to the use of Safari. The company is in a position where both the hardware and the software are designed in unison, so Apple is not bound by thousands of different hardware possibilities.

That helps Safari remain performant on Apple hardware too, a fact you can see for yourself using browser benchmarks like Speedometer 2.0 . In use, Safari feels snappy. The UI is small and non-intrusive, and you can even customize the toolbar using the right-click menu as you can other native Apple apps.

Safari is also loaded with familiar features and technology. iCloud makes it possible to share tab groups, browsing sessions, bookmarks, a Reading List, and even extensions with your iPhone or iPad. The Share menu works just as it does on the iPhone. Continuity makes it possible to quickly jump between devices by placing a small icon in your Mac dock.

Apple’s services work especially well in Safari. You can log in with your Apple ID using your fingerprint, pay for items using Apple Pay right in your browser, and use a variety of Shortcuts actions to build workflows that work using Safari .

Apple also makes it easy to add extensions using the Mac App Store. This isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it adds an additional layer of protection against potentially harmful extensions. You can still choose to install unsigned extensions by enabling the Develop menu if you want.

In terms of privacy, Safari isn’t the best browser you can get your hands on but it’s far from the worst. The browser works with Apple’s iCloud Private Relay for iCloud+ subscribers, which anonymizes web requests using a two-step process . Do Not Track is enabled by default, and it provides partial protection against trackers.

You can’t get rid of Safari from your Mac, so it’s ready and waiting for you with every new Apple computer purchase (or every time you reset the operating system ). Apple is always updating and building upon Safari with enhancements, like macOS Sonoma’s ability to turn websites into app-like instances.

Want to Ditch Safari? Here's What to Use Instead

Though Safari is suitable for a wide range of users, it’s far from the last word when it comes to web browsers. It’s convenient and always there if you want it, but it’s not without its critics. One reason you might want to switch is web app compatibility, which can be limited on Safari due to its relatively narrow user base. A lot of Safari users are mobile users, and many services prefer to funnel these users into dedicated apps.

Safari lacks the compatibility of a browser like Chrome or Edge, which means some web apps will simply refuse to work in Safari and demand that you use something else instead. Perhaps worse still, some websites won’t warn you before they refuse to function as intended. You might get glitchy behavior that can be avoided by using another browser.

Safari also isn’t a “platform” quite in the same way that Chrome and similar browsers are. There is a huge range of extensions made with Chrome in mind (including browsers like Edge and Vivaldi), which might make such a platform more desirable if you live inside of browser extensions.

You may even find yourself with no choice but to use an alternative for work or education purposes. Some institutions refuse to support certain browsers, and since Safari is limited to Apple devices it’s easier to tailor an experience to a browser that has cross-platform compatibility.

If privacy is your main concern, Safari might not go far enough to protect you, and you may be tempted to move to something like Firefox instead.

Firefox is the Privacy-Conscious Safari Alternative

Mozilla’s browser is a solid alternative to Safari, with some excellent privacy considerations. Firefox enables Do Not Track by default and blocks both invisible trackers and tracking ads. Firefox even uses DuckDuckGo as its default search engine.

Firefox tests slower than Safari and Chrome in many benchmarks, but how much time this will save you during your daily surfing sessions is up for debate. The browser also enjoys a far wider range of extensions than Safari, though it still falls short of the Chromium family.

Like Safari, Firefox Sync allows you to share browsing sessions and bookmarks with other devices including Windows PCs and mobile platforms like iOS and Android. Firefox remains a browser of choice for those mostly concerned with web privacy and enjoys a loyal (if small) base of users.

Chrome is Number One for Compatibility and Extensions

Google Chrome is the behemoth of web browsers, with more than 60% of all web users choosing to use it. As such, it enjoys excellent compatibility with most websites and web apps, and some even insist on its use (or a similar Chromium-based browser).

Google Chrome fares poorly from a privacy standpoint , with Do Not Track disabled by default, and both invisible trackers and tracking ads able to track you unless you limit this behavior with extensions. On the plus side, there are a huge number of extensions and apps available for Chrome that can help remedy the problem.

Though Chrome has a bit of a reputation for being a resource hog, Google has attempted to address the problem with a feature called Chrome Memory Saver that is designed to purge websites from memory after a period of inactivity. The company also improved Chrome’s energy efficiency with Chrome Energy Saver Mode .

Chromium-Based Browsers Offer Unique Alternatives to Chrome

Chromium is the core open-source browser core on which Chrome and similar projects are built. This means you can have Chrome’s speed, compatibility, and even the full range of extensions without having to use the Google-branded variant.

There are plenty of other Chromium-based browser to choose from, such as Microsoft Edge which falls into the same privacy pitfalls as Chrome; Vivaldi with its customizable interface and email client; and Brave Browser which delivers a slightly confusing combination of cryptocurrency features, opt-in adverts, and privacy considerations.

For a no-frills experience, there’s also vanilla Chromium , the open-source version of Chrome to which Google contributes. Then there are projects like Ungoogled Chromium , which removes dependency on Google services and makes tweaks to enhance privacy.

Alternatively, Try Something Completely Unique

Arc is a browser that does things a little differently than most. Not only does it cull your tabs for you, but it also includes some unique features like side-by-side tab mode, note-taking and whiteboard functionality within the app, and a macOS Spotlight-esque command interface for getting around without touching your mouse.

We reviewed Arc in March 2023 and loved it, though the fledgling browser wasn’t without issues surrounding power consumption and general jitteriness. It’s now out of beta and things have settled down somewhat, so it might be worth a shot if you’re looking for a web browser that helps you stay neat and organized.

It’s far from the only weirdo browser out there though. Colibri is a browser that lacks tabs and emphasizes an uncluttered experience. It’s designed to force you into more mindful browser sessions. Tor is a browser designed for browsing the dark web , but there are other private browsers like Mulvad and Waterfox that you might want to use instead.

The Case for Multiple Browsers

There are so many compelling reasons to use Safari that we think it’s the best choice for most users. Failing that, Firefox offers a solid browsing experience that respects your privacy.

It’s a good idea to have more than one browser installed for those times when you encounter difficulties with your primary choice. On top of this, you can kit a second browser out with extensions that might make certain web operations easier to complete.

• Web Browsers

Google Chrome 17+

Fast & secure web browser.

• #2 in Utilities
• 4.6 • 1.3M Ratings

Screenshots

Description.

Download the new Google Chrome for your iPhone and iPad. Now more simple, secure and faster than ever. Get the best of Google Search, and easily sync your bookmarks and passwords with Chrome on your laptop. Download the fast, secure browser recommended by Google. NEW - You can now set Chrome as your default browser. Follow the in-app prompt or go to Settings > Google Chrome to set Chrome as default. All web links will automatically open in Chrome. • SEARCH WITH GOOGLE - Chrome is the browser with Google built in. Search and get answers on Google fast. • BROWSE FAST - Choose from personalized search results that instantly appear as you type and quickly browse previously-visited websites. • SEARCH FROM YOUR HOME SCREEN - Access Chrome from your iOS home screen with the new widget. • ACCESS YOUR CHROME ACROSS DEVICES - When you sign in to Chrome, you can save bookmarks, passwords and more in your Google Account, so you can access them on your other devices. • STORE PASSWORDS & PAYMENT METHODS - Chrome can save your passwords and payment information, and automatically fill them into forms when you need them. • VOICE SEARCH - Use Google voice search to get answers without typing. • MANAGE TABS EASILY - See all your tabs in a single view and easily organize them into groups. • ARTICLES FOR YOU - Chrome surfaces articles, blogs, and content that we think you might like. The more you use Chrome, the more personalized it gets. You’ll always have what’s most relevant to you at your fingertips. • GOOGLE TRANSLATE - Chrome lets you translate an entire site in a single click with Google Translate built in. • INCOGNITO MODE - Use Incognito mode to browse without saving your history (learn more at http://goo.gl/WUx02) • SAVE YOUR SITES - Save pages for later with bookmarks in Chrome.

Version 126.0.6478.54

Thanks for choosing Chrome! This version includes: • Now you can simply sign in to get your saved bookmarks, passwords and more • The default Standard protection mode of Safe Browsing now gives you real-time URL protection • Stability and performance improvements.

Ratings and Reviews

1.3M Ratings

Please read our suggestions… small feature! Plz

It would make a WORLD of difference for someone like me who has hundreds of tabs & windows open (IPad & laptop) at any given time…... a small timeline view/hint when you’re scrolling through all open tabs in that window - like when the tab was first opened/created or modified last , or something similar. Another addition - To Name/title any open Chrome window. Not only folders of open tabs like Safari allows (bc that syncs to any open window) or bookmarks folders. But the windows themselves. I like to have multiple windows open at a time so this would be a small help when sorting through all my shhhtuff. Hope y’all read this soon, otherwise great work!

App getting worse and not listening to the community

I honestly switched to this from safari cause the middle search bar button allowed you to type on the search bar a lot easier. Now it's a new tab button, the community has expressed time and time again about how stupid this is and it has made reaching the search bar at the top hard especially on bigger phones. Despite the fanfare, the team working on this app has never done anything to solve this issue and my experience with this app has been going down ever since. As of now I'll stop using this app and new features that they push out for this app has negligible gain while they don't solve the issues that users feedback. I don't want to use a product where the team doesn't listen to their community and do what they want to do instead of what consumers want. I have feedback this issue time and time again on their support page to no constructive response so it's finally time I switch to other browsers like Firefox with the search bar at the bottom.

Terrible privacy problems. Find a better browser

It lets me sync my bookmarks with my laptop (on which I also use Chrome). That’s a nice feature. But it’s so mind-blowingly awful with privacy that I’ve deleted it from all mobile devices. iOS Chrome is completely lacking in every basic privacy control one would expect of any browser built after 2014. This thing doesn’t just track and save everything you do; it presents a list of all recently-visited sites any time you open a new tab... and there’s no way to opt out of this or turn it off. You can’t even delete in bulk; you have to remove these recently-visited sites one by one unless you’re willing to clear your entire browser history. The new tab also automatically loads a selection of news stories, and there’s no way to turn off that feature. It’s like logging onto AOL circa 1996. Sure, you could use incognito mode, but it shouldn’t be an all or nothing choice. If I want to have my cookies and history saved without my search history being immediately presented to anyone who picks up my iPad, that should be an option. (And why, when visiting Google sites, does it assume I want to use the most recently added Google account used in my Gmail app? Wouldn't it make more sense to assume I'm using the default/primary one if it's going to autofill the login screen? And why make it so difficult to log out so that I can log in to the proper account?)

App Privacy

The developer, Google , indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .

Data Linked to You

The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:

• Financial Info
• Contact Info
• User Content
• Search History
• Browsing History
• Identifiers
• Diagnostics

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

Information

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iOS 18 makes iPhone more personal, capable, and intelligent than ever

New Levels of Customization and Capability

Photos Gets a Unified View, New Collections, and Customization

Powerful Ways to Stay Connected in Messages

Enhancements to Mail

Big Updates to Safari

Introducing the Passwords App

New Privacy Features Designed to Empower Users

Apple Intelligence Transforms the iPhone Experience

• In Apple Maps , users can browse thousands of hikes across national parks in the United States and easily create their own custom walking routes, which they can access offline. Maps users can also save their favorite national park hikes, custom walking routes, and locations to an all-new Places Library and add personal notes about each spot.
• Game Mode enhances the gaming experience with more consistent frame rates, especially during long play sessions, and makes wireless accessories like AirPods and game controllers incredibly responsive.
• Users get new ways to pay with Apple Pay , including the ability to redeem rewards and access installments from their eligible credit or debit cards. 5 With Tap to Cash, users can send and receive Apple Cash by simply holding two iPhone devices together. 6 Tickets in Apple Wallet bring a richer experience for fans, putting key event information like stadium details, recommended Apple Music playlists, and more at their fingertips. 7
• SharePlay with Apple Music allows even more users to share control of music playing from HomePod, Apple TV, or any Bluetooth-enabled speaker, making listening together more fun and engaging.
• The AirPods experience gets even more personal, private, and convenient with Siri Interactions, allowing AirPods Pro (2nd generation) users to simply nod their head yes or gently shake their head no to respond to Siri announcements. For even clearer call quality, Voice Isolation comes to AirPods Pro, ensuring the caller’s voice is heard in loud or windy environments. AirPods updates also provide the best wireless audio latency Apple has ever delivered for mobile gaming, and add Personalized Spatial Audio for even more immersive gameplay.
• In the Notes app , formulas and equations entered while typing are solved instantly with Math Notes. New collapsible sections and highlighting make it easier to emphasize what’s important.
• In Journal , an all-new insights view helps users keep track of their journaling goals, and the ability to search and sort entries makes it easy to enjoy past memories. Time spent journaling can be saved as mindful minutes in the Health app, and users can log their state of mind right in Journal. A Journal widget is now available for users to quickly start an entry from the Home Screen or Lock Screen, audio recordings are automatically transcribed, and users can export and print journal entries.
• Calendar becomes even more helpful by showing both events and tasks from Reminders . Users can create, edit, and complete reminders right from Calendar, and the updated month view provides an overview of events and tasks at a glance.
• In the Health app , Medical ID has been redesigned to make it even easier for first responders to find the most important information in an emergency. The Health app can help users better understand their data during pregnancy by making adjustments and recommendations to reflect changes in their physical and mental health.
• Emergency SOS Live Video allows users to share context through streaming video and recorded media. In the middle of an emergency call, participating emergency dispatchers can send a request for a user to share live video or media from the user’s camera roll over a secure connection, making it easier and faster to get help.
• The Home app introduces guest access, providing users with easy ways to grant guests control of select smart home accessories, set schedules for when guests can access the home, and more. For an effortless home entry experience, hands-free unlock with home keys leverages Ultra Wideband technology to allow users to instantly open supported entry locks as soon as they are six feet away from their door. With convenient updates to the Energy category, the Home app makes it easier for eligible users to access, understand, and make more informed decisions about their home electricity use.
• Accessibility updates include Eye Tracking, a built-in option for navigating iPhone with just eyes; Music Haptics, a new way for users who are deaf or hard of hearing to experience music using the Taptic Engine in iPhone; and Vocal Shortcuts that enable users to perform tasks by making a custom sound.

Text of this article

June 10, 2024

PRESS RELEASE

The release introduces all-new customization options, the biggest-ever redesign of Photos, powerful updates for staying connected, and Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA  Apple today previewed iOS 18 , a major release that features more customization options, the biggest redesign ever of the Photos app, new ways for users to manage their inbox in Mail, Messages over satellite, and so much more. Users will be able to arrange apps and widgets in any open space on the Home Screen, customize the buttons at the bottom of the Lock Screen, and quickly access more controls in Control Center. Photo libraries are automatically organized in a new single view in Photos, and helpful new collections keep favorites easily accessible. Mail simplifies the inbox by sorting email into categories using on-device intelligence, and all-new text effects come to iMessage. Powered by the same groundbreaking technology as existing iPhone satellite capabilities, users can now communicate over satellite in the Messages app when a cellular or Wi-Fi connection isn’t available. 1

iOS 18 also introduces Apple Intelligence , the personal intelligence system for iPhone, iPad, and Mac that combines the power of generative models with personal context to deliver intelligence that’s incredibly useful and relevant. 2 Built with privacy from the ground up, Apple Intelligence is deeply integrated into iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia. It harnesses the power of Apple silicon to understand and create language and images, take action across apps, and draw from personal context, to simplify and accelerate everyday tasks.

“We are thrilled to introduce iOS 18. It is a huge release with incredible features, including new levels of customization and capability, a redesigned Photos app, and powerful ways to stay connected with Messages. There are so many benefits for everyone,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering. “This release also marks the beginning of a tremendously exciting new era of personal intelligence with Apple Intelligence delivering intuitive, powerful, and instantly useful experiences that will transform the iPhone experience, all with privacy at the core. We can’t wait for users to experience it.”

iPhone users have new ways to customize the Home Screen, Lock Screen, and Control Center. Users can now arrange apps and widgets in any open space on the Home Screen, including placing them right above the dock for easy access or perfectly framing a wallpaper. App icons and widgets can take on a new look with a dark or tinted effect, and users can make them appear larger to create the experience that is perfect for them.

Control Center has been redesigned to provide easier access to many of the things users do every day, and it gets new levels of customization and flexibility. The redesign delivers quick access to new groups of a user’s most-utilized controls, such as media playback, Home controls, and connectivity, as well as the ability to easily swipe between each. Users can now add controls from supported third-party apps into Control Center to quickly unlock a vehicle or jump right into capturing content for social media — all from one place. The new controls gallery displays the full set of available options, and users can customize how the controls are laid out, including adjusting them to the ideal size and creating entirely new groups.

For the first time, users can now switch the controls at the bottom of the Lock Screen, including choosing from options available in the controls gallery or removing them entirely. With the Action button available on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, users can quickly invoke controls available in the gallery.

Photos receives its biggest-ever redesign to help users easily find and relive special moments. A simplified, single view displays a familiar grid, and new collections help users browse by themes without having to organize content into albums. Plus, collections can be pinned to keep favorites easily accessible. A new carousel view presents highlights that update each day and feature favorite people, pets, places, and more. Autoplaying content throughout the app brings libraries to life, so past moments can be enjoyed while browsing. Because each user’s photo library is unique, the app is customizable, so users can organize collections, pin collections to access frequently, and include what’s most important to them in the carousel view.

iMessage receives all-new text effects that bring conversations to life by amplifying any letter, word, phrase, or emoji with dynamic, animated appearances. Users can better express tone by adding formatting like bold, underline, italics, and strikethrough. Tapbacks expand to include any emoji or sticker, and now users can compose a message and schedule to send it at a later time.

When messaging contacts who do not have an Apple device, the Messages app now supports RCS for richer media and more reliable group messaging compared to SMS and MMS.

iOS 18 introduces Messages via satellite for the times when cellular and Wi-Fi connections aren’t available. Powered by the same groundbreaking technology as existing iPhone satellite capabilities, Messages via satellite automatically prompts users to connect to their nearest satellite right from the Messages app to send and receive texts, emoji, and Tapbacks over iMessage and SMS. 3 With Dynamic Island, users always know when they are connected to a satellite. Because iMessage was built to protect user privacy, iMessages sent via satellite are end-to-end encrypted.

Later this year, Mail will introduce new ways for users to manage their inbox and stay up to date. On-device categorization organizes and sorts incoming email into Primary for personal and time-sensitive emails, Transactions for confirmations and receipts, Updates for news and social notifications, and Promotions for marketing emails and coupons. Mail also features a new digest view that pulls together all of the relevant emails from a business, allowing users to quickly scan for what’s important in the moment.

Safari, the world’s fastest browser, 4 now offers an even easier way to discover information on the web with Highlights and a redesigned Reader experience. Using machine learning, Safari can surface key information about a webpage. For example, users can review a summary to get the gist of an article; quickly see the location of a restaurant, hotel, or landmark; or listen to an artist’s track right from an article about the song or album. Reader has been redesigned to offer even more ways to enjoy articles without distraction, with a summary and table of contents included for longer articles.

Building on the foundation of Keychain, which was first introduced more than 25 years ago, the new Passwords app makes it easy for users to access their passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and verification codes. The app also includes alerts for users regarding common weaknesses, such as passwords that are easily guessed or used multiple times and those that appear in known data leaks.

iOS 18 gives users even more control with tools to manage who can see their apps, how contacts are shared, and how their iPhone connects to accessories.

Locked and hidden apps offer users peace of mind that information they want to keep private, such as app notifications and content, will not inadvertently be seen by others. Users can now lock an app; and for additional privacy, they can hide an app, moving it to a locked, hidden apps folder. When an app is locked or hidden, content like messages or emails inside the app are hidden from search, notifications, and other places across the system.

iOS 18 puts users in control by letting them choose to share only specific contacts with an app. In addition, developers now have a way to seamlessly connect third-party accessories with iPhone without letting an app see all the other devices on a user’s network, keeping a user’s devices private and making pairing seamless.

Deeply integrated into iOS 18 and built with privacy from the ground up, Apple Intelligence unlocks new ways for users to enhance their writing and communicate more effectively. With brand-new systemwide Writing Tools built into iOS 18, users can rewrite, proofread, and summarize text nearly everywhere they write, including Mail, Notes, Pages, and third-party apps.

New image capabilities make communication and self-expression even more fun. With Image Playground, users can create playful images in seconds, choosing from three styles: Animation, Illustration, or Sketch. Image Playground is easy to use, built right into apps like Messages, and also available in a dedicated app.

Memories in Photos lets users create the stories they want to see just by typing a description. Apple Intelligence will pick out the best photos and videos based on the description, craft a storyline with chapters based on themes identified from the photos, and arrange them into a movie with its own narrative arc. In addition, a new Clean Up tool can identify and remove distracting objects in the background of a photo — without accidentally altering the subject.

With the power of Apple Intelligence, Siri takes a major step forward, becoming even more natural, contextually relevant, and personal. Users can type to Siri, and switch between text and voice to communicate with Siri in whatever way feels right for the moment.

With Private Cloud Compute, Apple sets a new standard for privacy in AI, with the ability to flex and scale computational capacity between on-device processing, and larger, server-based models that run on dedicated Apple silicon servers. When requests are routed to Private Cloud Compute, data is not stored or made accessible to Apple and is only used to fulfill the user’s requests, and independent experts can verify this privacy.

Additionally, access to ChatGPT is integrated into Siri and systemwide Writing Tools across Apple’s platforms, allowing users to access its expertise — as well as its image- and document-understanding capabilities — without needing to jump between tools.

Additional features in iOS 18 include: 

Availability

The developer beta of iOS 18 is available through the Apple Developer Program at developer.apple.com starting today, and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at beta.apple.com . iOS 18 will be available this fall as a free software update for iPhone Xs and later. Apple Intelligence will be available in beta on iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad and Mac with M1 and later, with Siri and device language set to U.S. English, as part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia this fall. For more information, visit apple.com/ios/ios-18-preview and apple.com/apple-intelligence . Features are subject to change. Some features are not available in all regions, all languages, or on all devices. For more information about availability, visit apple.com .

• Messages via satellite will be available in iOS 18 along with Apple’s existing satellite features in the U.S. on iPhone 14 and later.
• Users with an eligible iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and Siri and device language set to English (U.S.) can sign up this fall to access the Apple Intelligence beta.
• SMS availability will depend on carrier. Carrier fees may apply. Users should check with their carrier for details.
• Testing was conducted by Apple in May 2023. See apple.com/safari  for more information.
• The new Apple Pay features are available on cards from participating banks and card providers in certain markets. Subject to eligibility and approval.
• Apple Cash services are provided by Green Dot Bank, Member FDIC, and only available in the U.S. on eligible devices. Learn more about the terms and conditions . To send and receive money with an Apple Cash account, users must be 18 and a U.S. resident, or if under 18, part of an Apple Cash Family account. Tap to Cash transaction limits are subject to change, including lowering limits, at any time during the developer or public betas without notice.
• Ticket enhancements in Apple Wallet are available for events from participating ticket issuers.

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iOS 18 Enables You to Use Apple Pay With Chrome and More on Desktop

Apple this week previewed a new system that will allow iPhone users who update to iOS 18 to use Apple Pay in any desktop web browser, such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and others. The computer running the browser can even be a Windows PC.

Apple Pay on the desktop web was previously limited to Safari on a Mac, so this is a much-awaited expansion of the feature to more browsers and devices.

iOS 18 is currently in beta, and it should be widely released in September.

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Anyone else think they’re opening up more and more to sell as not being a monopoly and hopefully have less eyes on them?

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WebKit in Safari 18 beta">News from WWDC24: WebKit in Safari 18 beta

Jun 10, 2024

by Jen Simmons, Jon Davis, Karl Dubost, Anne van Kesteren, Marcos Cáceres, Ada Rose Canon, Tim Nguyen, Sanjana Aithal, Pascoe, and Garrett Davidson

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Safari extensions, spatial media, web inspector, deprecations, bug fixes and more, help us beta test.

The last year has been a great one for WebKit. After unveiling Safari 17 beta at WWDC23, we’ve shipped six releases of Safari 17.x with a total of 200 new web technologies. And we’ve been hard at work on multiple architectural improvement projects that strengthen WebKit for the long-term.

Now, we are pleased to announce WebKit for Safari 18 beta. It adds another 48 web platform features, as well as 18 deprecations and 174 bug fixes. Test it today on iOS 18 beta, iPadOS 18 beta, visionOS 2 beta, and macOS Sequoia beta.

Safari 18 for visionOS 2 beta adds support for immersive WebXR . Now you can create fully immersive experiences and deliver them on the web to people using Apple Vision Pro . Safari on visionOS 2 beta supports immersive-vr sessions. WebXR scenes are displayed using hardware-accelerated graphics driven by WebGL .

Safari for visionOS 2 beta supports the new WebXR transient-pointer input mode. It lets you make the most of natural input on visionOS, and allow your users to interact with a look and a pinch.

If you want to animate a 3D model of the user’s hands, Safari for visionOS 2 beta also includes support for WebXR hand tracking . To ensure privacy, permission to allow hand tracking will be requested from users at the start of their WebXR session.

Learn all about WebXR on visionOS 2 beta by watching Build immersive web experiences with WebXR at WWDC24, available Wednesday June 12. And learn more about transient-pointer input mode by reading Introducing natural input for WebXR in Apple Vision Pro .

View Transitions

WebKit added support for the View Transitions API in Safari 18 beta. It provides an optimized browser API to animate elements from one state to another. Safari supports the CSS View Transitions Module Level 1 specification that adds new CSS properties and pseudo-elements for defining transition animations, along with a new browser API to start transition animations and react to different transition states. It works by capturing the current (old) state of the page and applying an animated transition to the new state. By default, the browser applies a cross-fade between the states.

Call the document.startViewTransition() method to initiate the capture. You can pass a callback function as the first argument to make DOM state changes between the old and new captures. The method returns a ViewTransition object which contains promises that can be used to track when the view transition starts or ends.

Once the states are captured, a pseudo-element tree is built which can be targeted with CSS, allowing you to modify the CSS animations used for the transitions. The animations out of the old page state and into the new page state can be modified via the ::view-transition-new(*) and ::view-transition-old(*) selectors. You can also ask the browser to independently track state changes for a specific element by naming it with the CSS view-transition-name property. You can then use the pseudo-element to customize animations for it.

The example below demonstrates state management with tabbed navigation. Each tab view has a custom transition animation out and a subtly different animation in, while the tabs themselves rely on the default page transition.

Style Queries

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for Style Queries when testing CSS Custom Properties. Similar to how developers can use Sass mixins, Style Queries can be used to define a set of reusable styles that get applied as a group.

Here, if the --background custom property is set to black, then certain styles will be applied — in this case to make the headline and paragraph text color white.

Don’t forget to pay attention the HTML structure. By default, Style Queries reference the styles on the direct parent element. You can create a different reference through the use of Container Query names.

currentcolor and system color keywords in Relative Color Syntax

Support for Relative Color Syntax shipped in Safari 16.4 . It lets you define colors in a more dynamic fashion, creating a new color from an existing color. The value lch(from var(--color) calc(L / 2) C H) for instance uses the lch color space to take the variable --color and calculate a new color that’s half its lightness, calc(L / 2) .

Now, starting in WebKit for Safari 18 beta, you can reference the currentcolor or a system color keyword as you define the new color. For example, this code will set the background color to be the same color as the text color, only 4 times lighter, as calculated in the oklch color space.

Being able to reference system color keywords opens up another world of options. System colors are like variables that represent the default colors established by the OS, browser, or user — defaults that change depending on whether the system is set to light mode, dark mode, high contrast mode, etc. For example, canvas represents the current default background color of the HTML page, while fieldtext matches the color of text inside form fields. Find the full list of system colors in CSS Color level 4 .

Relative Color Syntax lets you define dynamic connections between colors in your CSS, lessening the need to control color through variables in a tightly-regimented design system. Learn more about Relative Color Syntax by watching this portion of What’s new in CSS from WWDC23.

Animating display

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for transition animation of the display property.

Many developers are excited to use @starting-style along with transition-behavior and display: none interpolation. WebKit for Safari 17.4 added general support for transition-behavior , including transition-behavior: allow-discrete . WebKit for Safari 17.5 added support for @starting-style , letting you define starting values for transitioning an element as it’s created (or re-created). Now in WebKit for Safari 18 beta, you can use these features together to transition the display property.

Shaping interaction regions on visionOS

As a web developer, you’re very familiar with how link styling works on the web. For decades you’ve been able to use CSS to style text-decoration , color and more for :link , :hover , :active , and :visited states. You’ve also been able to adjust the size of the invisible tap target through use of padding.

Apple Vision Pro adds a new dimension to how links work — tap targets are visible on visionOS. Anytime a user looks at an interactive element, it’s highlighted to let them know that it can be tapped. And you as a designer or developer can intentionally design how an interaction region looks. You may want to add padding, for instance, or even a rounded corner to the otherwise invisible box.

Now in Safari in visionOS 2 beta, when you use CSS clip-path to change the shape of tappable area of a link, the visible interaction region will change shape as well. Interactive UI elements built with SVG will also be highlighted with the proper shape. Learn more by watching Optimize for the spatial web at WWDC24, available Tuesday June 11.

Backdrop Filter

Originally shipped in Safari 9.0, backdrop filter provides a way to apply graphics effects to the content behind a particular element. You can apply backdrop-filter to a headline, for example, and everything behind the headline will be blurred, or have decreased saturation, or increased contrast. Any of the filter functions from SVG can be used — blur() , brightness() , contrast() , drop-shadow() , grayscale() , hue-rotate() , invert() , opacity() , saturate() , and sepia() .

For many years, backdrop filter only worked in Safari. It was available when you prefixed the property with -webkit-backdrop-filter . Now, starting in Safari 18 beta, you don’t need the prefix. We also improved our implementation, fixing bugs and boosting interoperability.

This demo shows eight different filters and what you might do with each one alone. You can, of course, combine filters to create even more interesting results. With backdrop filter supported in Safari since 2015, Edge since 2018, Chrome since 2019, Samsung Internet since 2020, and Firefox since 2022, this is a great time to consider the kind of graphic design possibilities it enables.

safe in Flexbox

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the safe keyword for alignment in Flexbox. This provides a mechanism for refining how flex items overflow. Let’s look at an example of a simple navigation menu — a classic use of Flexbox.

The following CSS creates a simple layout that wraps when there’s not enough space on one line for the menu, while centering the items in the available space.

By default, justify-content: center will always keep the items centered, even when the content is overflowing the containing box. You might prefer, however, that the content not be centered when it overflows — being centered cuts off both the beginning and end of the word, making the content harder to understand when the overflow is not visible.

The safe keyword lets you change how alignment works when content overflows. The justify-content: safe center rule will instead start align any item that is overflowing, while continuing to center the items that are not overflowing.

If you want to override the safe keyword, you can use unsafe . The justify-content: unsafe center rule will do the same thing as justify-content: center . The unsafe keyword has been supported in WebKit for Safari for quite some time.

Content visibility

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for content-visibility . This property controls whether or not an element renders its contents in a fashion that’s useful for making performance optimizations. It lets you communicate to the browser that certain portions of the page will likely be initially offscreen, and suggest they be omitted from layout and rendering. This can make the page load faster.

Last year , we added support for web apps in macOS Sonoma. You can add any website to your dock — whether or not it was built with a Manifest file, Service Worker, or other technology to customize the web app experience. Go to the site in Safari, then File > Add to Dock… where you can customize the icon, change the name, and even clean up the URL. Then, just click on the web app icon in your Dock, and it will open as an app.

This year brings two improvements to web apps on Mac.

Opening links

macOS Sequoia beta adds support for opening links directly in web apps. Now, when a user clicks a link, if it matches the scope of a web app that the user has added to their Dock, that link will open in the web app instead of their default web browser.

For example, imagine you have added MDN Web Docs to the Dock. Then a colleague sends you a link to an MDN page in Messages, Mail, Slack, Discord, IRC, or any non-browser application on your Mac. Now when you click on that link, it will open in the MDN Web Docs web app instead of your default browser.

Clicking a link within a browser will maintain the current behavior. This feature only affects links opened elsewhere. (When a user is in Safari, clicking on a link that matches the scope of a web app that is added to Dock, they will see an “Open in web app” banner, unless they have previously dismissed the banner.)

By default, this behavior applies when the link matches the host of the web page used to create the web app. As a developer, you can refine this experience by defining the range of URLs that should open in the web app with the scope member in the web app manifest .

Extension support

Now you can personalize web apps on Mac with Safari Web Extensions and Content Blockers. Navigate to the web app’s Settings menu to access all your installed Content Blockers and Web Extensions. Any enabled in Safari will be on by default in the web app. Each web app is uniquely customizable, just like Safari profiles.

Safari 18 beta also adds support for Mobile Device Management of extension enabled state, private browsing state, and website access on managed devices. This means schools and businesses that manage iOS, iPadOS, or macOS devices can now include the configuration of Safari App Extensions, Content Blockers, and Web Extensions in their management.

One of the amazing experiences you can have on Apple Vision Pro is looking at spatial photos and panoramas. When you open the Photos app in visionOS, you see a montage of your photos. Tap an image, it appears alone in a floating frame in front of you, while the rest of the app disappears.

A spatial photo appears at just the right height and viewing angle to make it feel like you’ve gone back to a moment in time. A second tap of the UI breaks it out of the frame, as it grows and becomes even more immersive. Similarly, a panorama floats in a frame on first tap. Then on second tap of the UI, it expands to wrap all around you, creating a fully immersive experience.

Now in Safari 18 for visionOS 2 beta, you can use the Fullscreen API to create the same experience on the web. You can embed the photo in a web page, and provide the ability to tap. The photo will pop into a floating frame as the Safari window disappears. Then when the user taps on the spatial photo or panorama UI that visionOS provides, the photo will further expand to create a fully immersive experience. When they exit the image, the Safari window will return.

Let’s walk through how to support experiencing a spatial photo or panorama on the web using Fullscreen API. First, include the image on your web page using any of the techniques we’ve used on the web for years. Here, we can embed a flattened panoramic photo into the web page using simple HTML.

Then using JavaScript, we’ll trigger .requestFullscreen() on tap. Perhaps like this.

You could, of course, create your own UI for the user to tap, rather than making the entire photo the tap target.

Spatial images work just the same, although it’s likely we want to provide fallbacks for browsers that do not support HEIC files . We can do so with the picture element.

Spatial images are stereoscopic, with both a left and right channel. In Safari, when the image is embedded in the web page, the browser will show the left channel. And there’s no need to worry about providing a fallback of any sort for Safari on macOS, iOS, or iPadOS — the stereoscopic HEIC file works great.

This technique will also cause images to go fullscreen in any browser that supports Fullscreen API. Learn more about adding panorama and spatial photos to your websites by watching Optimize for the spatial web at WWDC24, available Tuesday June 11.

Writing Suggestions

At last year’s WWDC, Apple unveiled inline predictive text on iOS, iPadOS, macOS and more. It helps users input text faster by predicting what they might be typing and finishing the word, phrase or even a whole sentence when the user taps the space bar. Now, WebKit for Safari 18 beta on iOS, iPadOS, visionOS, macOS Sequoia and macOS Sonoma brings inline predictive text to the web.

While inline predictive text makes for a fantastic, personalized user experience, there might be specific situations on the web where it’s better to not have predictions. WebKit for Safari 18 beta on iOS, iPadOS, visionOS, macOS Sequoia and macOS Sonoma gives web developers the opportunity to disable inline predictions through the writingsuggestions attribute. By default, writing suggestions is set to true. You can turn off the capability by including the writingsuggestions="false" attribute on any type of text input field.

WebKit for Safari on iOS 18 beta adds haptic feedback for <input type=checkbox switch> . This means, now when a user taps a switch control on iPhone, a single tap is felt — just like how toggling a switch feels in Settings app on iOS. Try this demo to see what it’s like.

Date and time inputs

WebKit for Safari 18 beta on macOS improves accessibility support for date and time input field types. Now <input type="date"> , <input type="datetime-local"> , and <input type="time"> elements work properly with VoiceOver.

Usually elements have the labels they need, but sometimes there is no text label for a particular button or UI. In this situation, ARIA can be used to provide an accessible label. The aria-label attribute provides names of labels while aria-roledescription provides the description for the role of an element.

On very rare occasions, you may need to override aria-label or aria-roledescription to provide different names or descriptions specifically for braille. The aria-braillelabel and aria-brailleroledescription attributes provide such an ability. They exist to solve very specific needs, including educational contexts where the site needs to render the specific braille table dot pattern. If you do use braille-related ARIA attributes, be sure to test them using a braille reader. If in doubt, relying on the accessible name from content or aria-label / aria-roledescription is almost always the better user experience . WebKit has supported these ARIA attributes for years.

Now, WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the ariaBrailleLabel and ariaBrailleRoleDescription element reflection properties. These make it possible to get and set the aria-braillelabel and aria-brailleroledescription ARIA attributes on DOM elements directly via JavaScript APIs, rather than by using setAttribute and getAttribute .

Watch video without distractions in Viewer for Safari 18 beta on macOS.

When you play in Viewer, the video fills the Safari window, while providing full access to system playback controls. Then it automatically enters picture-in-picture anytime you switch tabs, close the window, or occlude the web page with another window. Look for Video Viewer in the new page menu in Safari whenever you are on a web page with a prominent video element.

Video on visionOS

Managed Media Source

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds Workers support for both Managed Media Source (MMS) and Media Source Extensions ( MSE ). This can be especially helpful on complex websites that want to ensure continuous and smooth video playback even when other site activity (such as live commenting) causes a very busy main thread. You can see the performance difference in this demo .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the WebRTC HEVC RFC 7789 RTP Payload Format. Previously, the WebRTC HEVC used generic packetization instead of RFC 7789 packetization. This payload format provides a new option for improving videoconferencing, video streaming, and delivering high-bitrate movies and TV shows.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for MediaStreamTrack processing in a dedicated worker. And it adds support for missing WebRTC stats.

Two years ago at WWDC22, we announced support for passkeys — a groundbreaking industry-standard way to login to websites and app services. Passkeys provide people with an extremely easy user experience, while delivering a profound increase in security. To learn more, watch Meet Passkeys or read Supporting passkeys .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for three new features as we continue to improve passkeys. First, Safari 18 beta adds support for using mediation=conditional for web authentication credential creation. This allows websites to automatically upgrade existing password-based accounts to use passkeys. Learn more by watching Streamline sign-in with passkey upgrades and credential managers at WWDC24, available on Tuesday, June 11.

Second, WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for using passkeys across related origins. This lets websites use the same passkey across a limited number of domains which share a credential backend.

And third, WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the WebAuthn prf extension. It allows for retrieving a symmetric key from a passkey to use for the encryption of user data.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for secure HTTPS for all images, video, and audio by upgrading passive subresource requests in mixed content settings. This means that if some files for a website are served using HTTPS and some are served using HTTP (known as “mixed content”), all images and media will now be auto-upgraded to HTTPS, in adherence with Mixed Content Level 2 .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for Unicode 15.1.0 characters in RegExp. Unicode 15.1 added 627 characters, bringing the total of characters to 149,813. Now, these new characters can be used in regular expressions.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta also adds support for the v flag with RegExp.prototype[Symbol.matchAll] . providing more powerful ways to match Unicode characters, as specified in the ECMAScript 2024 standard.

For example, you can now specify to only match on Latin characters, while avoiding matching on Cyrillic script characters.

Or split a string matching on Emojis.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for URL.parse() , a way to parse URLs which returns null rather than an exception when parsing fails.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta expands Declarative Shadow tree support by adding the shadowRootDelegatesFocus and shadowRootClonable IDL attributes to the <template> element. It also adds the shadowRootSerializable attribute and shadowRootSerializable IDL attribute to the <template> element, enabling those using Declarative Shadow roots to opt into making them serializable. Serializing can be done through the new getHTML() method that has been added at the same time.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for PopStateEvent ’s hasUAVisualTransition , indicating whether the user agent has a visual transition in place for the fragment navigation.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for subresource integrity in imported module scripts, which gives cryptographic assurances about the integrity of contents of externally-hosted module scripts.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the bytes() method to the Request, Response , Blob , and PushMessageData objects. This replaces the need for web developers to call arrayBuffer() , which can be difficult to use, and wraps the result in a Uint8Array . Calling bytes() is now the recommended way going forward when you need to access the underlying bytes of the data these objects represent.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for feature detecting text fragments by exposing document.fragmentDirective . Note that the returned object (a FragmentDirective ) doesn’t provide any functionality, but it’s helpful if you need to know if Fragment Directives are supported by the browser.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for the willReadFrequently context attribute for the getContext() method. It indicates whether or not a lot of read-back operations are planned. It forces the use of a software accelerated 2D or offscreen canvas, instead of hardware accelerated. This can improve performance when calling getImageData() frequently.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta extends 2D canvas support for currentcolor . It can now be used inside color-mix() or Relative Color Syntax. Here currentcolor will default to the computed color property value on the canvas element.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for six new WebGL extensions:

• EXT_texture_mirror_clamp_to_edge
• WEBGL_render_shared_exponent
• WEBGL_stencil_texturing
• EXT_render_snorm
• OES_sample_variables
• OES_shader_multisample_interpolation

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for fuzzy search code completion in the Web Inspector’s CSS source editor.

WebKit for iOS 18 beta, iPadOS 18 beta, visionOS 2 beta, and macOS Sequoia beta adds support for two new API — the Writing Tools API and an API to control adaptive image glyph insertion. Learn more about these API by watching Get started with Writing Tools and Bring expression to your app with Genmoji at WWDC24, both available Tuesday June 11.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta adds support for Apple Pay funds transfer.

While it’s rare to deprecate older technology from the web, there are occasions when it makes sense. We’ve been busy removing -webkit prefixed properties that were never standardized, aging media formats that were never supported in other browsers, and more. This helps align browser engines, improve interoperability, and prevent compatibility problems by reducing the possibility that a website depends on something that’s not a web standard.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes support for OffscreenCanvasRenderingContext2D ’s commit() method.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta deprecates support for a number of rarely used -webkit prefixed CSS pseudo-classes and properties — and even one -khtml prefixed property.

• -webkit-alt and alt properties
• :-webkit-animating-full-screen-transition pseudo-class
• :-webkit-full-screen-ancestor pseudo-class
• :-webkit-full-screen-controls-hidden pseudo-class
• :-webkit-full-page-media pseudo-class
• :-webkit-full-screen-document pseudo-class
• :-khtml-drag pseudo-class

WebKit for Safari 18 beta also deprecates support for the resize: auto rule. Support for the resize property remains, just as it’s been since Safari 4. The values Safari continues to support include : none , both , horizontal , vertical , block , inline , plus the global values. Early versions of CSS Basic User Interface Module Level 3 defined auto , but it was later written out of the web standard.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta also deprecates support for non-standardize WEBKIT_KEYFRAMES_RULE and WEBKIT_KEYFRAME_RULE API in CSSRule .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes support for the JPEG2000 image format. Safari was the only browser to ever provide support.

If you’ve been serving JPEG2000 files using best practices, then your site is using the picture element to offer multiple file format options to every browser. Safari 18 beta will simply no longer choose JPEG2000, and instead use a file compressed in JPEG XL, AVIF, WebP, HEIC, JPG/JPEG, PNG, or Gif — choosing the file that’s best for each user. Only one image will be downloaded when you use <picture> , and the browser does all the heavy lifting.

We have noticed that some Content Deliver Networks (CDN) use User Agent sniffing to provide one file to each UA, offering only JPEG2000 images to Safari — especially on iPhone and iPad. If you expect this might be happening with your site, we recommend testing in Safari 18 beta on both macOS Sequoia and iOS or iPadOS 18. If you see problems, contact your SaaS provider or change your image delivery settings to ensure your website provides fallback images using industry best practices.

If you notice a broken site, please file an issue at webcompat.com .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes support for non-standard VTTRegion.prototype.track .

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes the last bits of support for AppCache.

When AppCache first appeared in 2009, in Safari 4, it held a lot of promise as a tool for caching web pages for use offline. It was imagined as “HTML5 Application Cache” back when HTML itself was being further expanded to handle more use cases for web applications. A developer could create a simple cache manifest file with a list of files to be cached. Its simplicity looked elegant, but there was no mechanism for cache busting, and that made both developing a site and evolving the site over time quite frustrating. AppCache also had security challenges. So new web standards were created to replace it. Today, developers use Service Workers and Cache Storage instead.

WebKit deprecated AppCache with a warning to the Console in Safari 11.0. Then in 2021, we removed support for AppCache from Safari 15.0, with a few exceptions for third-party users of WKWebView . Now we are removing those exceptions. This change to WebKit will only affect the rare web content loaded in older third-party apps that have JavaScript code which relies on the existence of AppCache related interfaces.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes the SVGAnimateColorElement interface.

WebKit for Safari 18 beta removes support for four non-standard Web APIs:

• KeyboardEvent.altGraphKey
• AES-CFB support from WebCrypto
• KeyboardEvent.prototype.keyLocation
• HashChangeEvent ’s non-standard initHashChangeEvent() method

In addition to all the new features, WebKit for Safari 18 beta includes work to polish existing features.

Accessibility

• Fixed role assignment for <header> inside <main> and sectioning elements.
• Fixed range input not firing an input event when incremented or decremented via accessibility APIs.
• Fixed setting aria-hidden on a slot not hiding the slot’s assigned nodes.
• Fixed comboboxes to expose their linked objects correctly.
• Fixed time input accessibility by adding labels to subfields.
• Fixed aria-hidden=true to be ignored on the <body> and <html> elements.
• Fixed datetime values being exposed to assistive technologies in the wrong timezone.
• Fixed time control accessibility by adding a label to the meridiem component.
• Fixed wrong datetime value being exposed to assistive technologies for datetime-local inputs.
• Fixed ignored CSS content property replacement text when it is an empty string.
• Fixed the computed role for these elements: dd , details , dt , em , hgroup , option , s , and strong .
• Fixed hidden elements targeted by aria-labelledby to expose their entire subtree text, not just their direct child text.
• Fixed accessible name computation for elements with visibility: visible inside a container with visibility: hidden .
• Fixed updating table accessibility text when its caption dynamically changes.
• Fixed updating aria-describedby text after the targeted element changes its subtree.
• Fixed the transition property to produce the shortest serialization.
• Fixed the animation property to produce the shortest serialization.

Authentication

• Fixed navigator.credentials.create() rejects with “NotAllowedError: Operation Failed” after a conditional UI request is aborted.
• Fixed renaming DigitalCredential’s response attribute to data .
• Fixed setting the cancel flag once the cancel completes regardless of a subsequent request occurring.
• Fixed drawImage(detachedOffscreenCanvas) to throw an exception.
• Fixed OffscreenCanvas failing to render to the placeholder with nested workers.
• Fixed losing the contents layer of the placeholder canvas of OffscreenCanvas when switching off the tab.
• Fixed drawImage to not alter the input source or the destination rectangles.
• Fixed toggling the visibility on a canvas parent undoing the effect of clearRect() .
• Fixed the Canvas drawImage() API to throw an exception when the image is in broken state.
• Fixed setting white-space to a non-default value dynamically on a whitespace or a new line.
• Fixed turning text-spacing properties into font properties.
• Fixed custom counter styles extending disclosure-open and disclosure-closed to point to the correct direction in right-to-left.
• Fixed backface-visibility to create a stacking context and containing block.
• Fixed getComputedStyle() to work with functional pseudo-elements like ::highlight() .
• Fixed: Aliased :-webkit-full-screen pseudo-class to :fullscreen .
• Fixed: Aliased :-webkit-any-link to :any-link and :matches() to :is() .
• Fixed getComputedStyle() pseudo-element parsing to support the full range of CSS syntax.
• Fixed @supports to correctly handle support for some -webkit prefixed pseudo-elements that were incorrectly treated as unsupported.
• Fixed updating media-query sensitive meta tags after style changes.
• Fixed changing color scheme to update gradients with system colors or light-dark() .
• Fixed incorrect inline element size when using font-variant-caps: all-small-caps with font-synthesis .
• Fixed :empty selector to work with animations.
• Fixed preserving whitespace when serializing custom properties.
• Fixed updating style correctly for non-inherited custom property mutations.
• Fixed element removed by parent to end up losing the last remembered size.
• Fixed an incorrect difference between implicit and explicit initial values for custom properties.
• Fixed the contrast of Menu and MenuText system colors.
• Fixed keeping the shorthand value for CSS gap as-is in serialized and computed values.
• Fixed the style adjuster for @starting-style incorrectly invoking with a null element.
• Fixed excluding -apple-pay-button from applying to any element that supports appearance: auto and is not a button.
• Fixed missing color interpretation methods added to CSS color specifications.
• Fixed hsl() and hsla() implementation to match the latest spec changes.
• Fixed the implementation of rgb() and rgba() to match the latest spec.
• Fixed the hwb() implementation to match the latest spec.
• Fixed the remaining color types to be synced with the latest spec changes.
• Fixed carrying analogous components forward when interpolating colors
• Fixed applying the fill layer pattern for mask-mode .
• Fixed displayed datalist dropdown to sync its options elements after a DOM update.
• Fixed <select multiple> scrollbars to match the used color scheme.
• Fixed updating the input value when selecting an <option> from a <datalist> element.
• Fixed the value attribute not getting displayed in an input element with type="email" and the multiple attribute.
• Fixed the iOS animation for <input type=checkbox switch> .
• Fixed form controls drawing with an active appearance when the window is inactive.
• Fixed constructed FormData object to not include entries for the image button submitter by default.
• Fixed the properties of History to throw a SecurityError when not in a fully active Document.
• Fixed “about:blank” document.referrer initialization.
• Fixed parsing a self-closing SVG script element. It now successfully executes.
• Fixed RegExp.prototype.@@split to update the following legacy RegExp static properties: RegExp.input , RegExp.lastMatch , RegExp.lastParen , RegExp.leftContext , RegExp.rightContext , and RegExp.$1, ... RegExp.$9 .
• Fixed String.prototype.replace to not take the fast path if the pattern is RegExp Object and the lastIndex is not numeric. (
• Fixed spec compliance for Async / Await, Generators, Async Functions, and Async Generators.
• Fixed async functions and generators to properly handle promises with throwing “constructor” getter.
• Fixed return in async generators to correctly await its value.
• Fixed Symbol.species getters to not share a single JS Function.
• Fixed throwing a RangeError if Set methods are called on an object with negative size property.
• Fixed eval() function from another realm to not cause a direct eval call.
• Fixed eval() call with ...spread syntaxt to be a direct call.
• Fixed try/catch to not intercept errors originated in [[Construct]] of derived class.
• direct eval() in a default value expression inside a rest parameter creates a variable in the environment of the function rather than the separate one of the parameters;
• a ReferenceError is thrown when accessing a binding, which is defined inside rest parameter, in eval() , or a closure created in a default value expression of a preceding parameter, but only if there is a var binding by the same name;
• a closure, created in the default value expression inside a rest parameter, is created in a different VariableEnvironment of the function than its counterparts in preceding parameters which causes the incorrect environment to be consulted when querying or modifying parameter names that are “shadowed” by var bindings.
• Fixed TypedArray sorting methods to have a special-case for camparator returning false .
• Fixed programming style for bitwise and in setExpectionPorts.
• Fixed emitReturn() to load this value from arrow function lexical environment prior to the TDZ check.
• Fixed NFKC normalization to work with Latin-1 characters.
• Fixed parsing of private names with Unicode start characters.
• Fixed instanceof to not get RHS prototype when LHS is primitive.
• Fixed bracket update expression to resolve property key at most once.
• Fixed bracket compound assignement to resolve the property key at most once.
• Fixed Object.groupBy and Map.groupBy to work for non-objects.
• Fixed Array.fromAsync to not call the Array constructor twice.
• Fixed inconsistent output of Function.prototype.toString for accessor properties.
• Fixed Set#symmetricDifference to call this.has in each iteration.
• Fixed logical assignment expressions to throw a syntax error when the left side of the assignment is a function call.
• Fixed throwing a syntax error for nested duplicate-named capturing groups in RegEx.
• Fixed ArrayBuffer and SharedArrayBuffer constructor to check length before creating an instance.
• Fixed Intl implementation to ensure canonicalizing “GMT” to “UTC” based on a spec update.
• Fixed RegEx lookbehinds differing from v8.
• Fixed fractionalDigits of Intl.DurationFormat to be treated as at most 9 digits if it is omitted.
• Fixed navigator.cookieEnabled to return false when cookies are blocked.
• Fixed video sound coming from another window after changing tabs in the Tab Bar in visionOS.
• Fixed playback for MSE videos on some sites.
• Fixed allowing a video’s currentTime to be further than the gap’s start time.
• Fixed broken audio playback for a WebM file with a Vorbis track.
• Fixed sampleRate and numberOfChanges to be required and non-zero in a valid AudioEncoderConfig.
• Fixed media elements appending the same media segment twice.
• Fixedrejecting valid NPT strings if ‘hours’ is defined using 1 digit.
• Fixed an issue where Safari audio may be emitted from the wrong window in visionOS.
• Fixed upgrading inactive or passive subresource requests and fetches in would-be mixed security contexts to match standards.
• Fixed incorrect Sec-Fetch-Site value for navigation of a nested document.
• Fixed loading WebArchives with a non-persistent datastore.
• Fixed Timing-Allow-Origin to not apply to an HTTP 302 response.
• Fixed print buttons with a print action implementation.
• Fixed Open in Preview for a PDF with a space in its name.
• Fixed Greek uppercase transforms failing for some characters.
• Fixed resizing a <textarea> element with 1rem padding.
• Fixed the color correctness of the color matrix filter.
• Fixed backdrop-filter to apply to the border area of an element with a border-radius .
• Fixed intrinsic inline size calculators to account for whitespace before an empty child with nonzero margins.
• Fixed overlapping elements with flex box when height: 100% is applied on nested content.
• Fixed incorrect grid item positioning with out-of-flow sibling.
• Fixed break-word with a float discarding text.
• Fixed min-content calculation for unstyled only-child inlines elements.
• Fixed ellipsis rendering multiple times when position: relative and top are used.
• Fixed a bug for inline elements inserted in reverse order after a block in a continuation.
• Fixed the flash of a page background-colored bar in the footer when the window is resized.
• Fixed the cursor not updating as content scrolls under it on some pages.
• Fixed the SVG parser to interpret “form feed” as white space.
• Fixed error handling for invalid filter primitive references.
• Fixed displaying an SVG element inside a <switch> element.
• Fixed SVG title to have display: none as the default UA style rule.
• Fixed the UA stylesheet for links in SVGs to apply cursor: pointer matching standards.
• Fixed returning the initial value for the SVG gradient stop-color if it is not rendered in the page.
• Fixed the SVG marker segment calculations if the marker path consists of sub-paths.
• Fixed SVGLength to sync with the WebIDL specification.

Web Animations

• Fixed percentage transform animations when width and height are animated.
• Fixed updating an animation when changing the value of a transform property while that property is animated with an implicit keyframe.
• Fixed animating with color-mix .
• Fixed cssText setter to change the style attribute when the serialization differs.
• Fixed history.pushState() and history.replaceState() to ignore the title argument.
• Fixed URL text fragment directives not fully stripped from JavaScript.
• Fixed showPicker() method to trigger suggestions from a datalist .
• Fixed lang attribute in no namespace to only apply to HTML and SVG elements.
• Fixed unnecessarily unsetting the iframe fullscreen flag.
• Fixed DOM Range to correctly account for CDATASection nodes.
• Fixed getGamepads() to no longer trigger an insecure contexts warning.
• Fixed inserting a <picture> element displaying the same image twice.
• Fixed throwing exceptions in navigation methods if in a detached state.
• Fixed a minor issue in URL’s host setter.
• Fixed cloning of ShadowRoot nodes following a DOM Standard clarification.
• Fixed GeolocationCoordinates to expose a toJSON() method.
• Fixed GeolocationPosition to expose a toJSON() method.
• Fixed setting CustomEvent.target when dispatching an event.
• Fixed navigator.language only returning the system language in iOS 17.4.
• Fixed: Removed presentational hints from the width attribute for <hr> .
• Fixed resolving www. sub-domain for Associated Domains for all web apps.

Web Assembly

• Fixed initialization of portable reference typed globals.
• Fixed font sizes in the Audits tab.
• Fixed expanded sections of Storage to not collapse
• Fixed CSS font property values marked !important not getting overridden when using the interactive editing controls.
• Fixed an issue where the Web Inspector viewport might appear cut off.
• Fixed runtimes to be aligned in the Audit tab.
• Fixed remembering the message type selection in the Console tab.
• Fixed autocomplete for the text-indent property suggesting prefixed properties instead of each-line or hanging .
• Fixed background autocompletion suggestion to include repeating-conic-gradient .
• Fixed console clearing unexpectedly when Web Inspector reopens
• Fixed console code completion to be case-insensitive.
• Fixed overflow: scroll elements to scroll as expected when highlighting an element from the DOM tree.
• Fixed showing additional Safari tabs from an iOS device in the Develop menu.
• Fixed Console and code editor completion not auto-scrolling the suggestion into view.
• Fixed search in the DOM tree view unexpectedly chaning the text display.
• Fixed clicking the “goto” arrow for computed CSS when “show independent Styles sidebar” is disabled.
• Fixed inspectable tabs from Safari in the visionOS Simulator don’t appear in Developer menu on the host macOS.
• Fixed Gamepad API in WKWebView.
• Fixed repainting HTML elements when their width or height change in legacy WebView.
• Fixed VideoTrackGenerator writer to close when its generator track (and all its clones) are stopped.
• Fixed WebRTC AV1 HW decoding on iPhone 15 Pro.
• Fixed black stripes with screen sharing windows.
• Fixed black stripes with getDisplayMedia captured windows when the window is resized.

You can test Safari 18 beta by installing the beta of macOS 15, iOS 18, or iPadOS 18. Or, if you’d like, you can try out Safari 18 beta on macOS Sonoma or macOS Ventura by downloading the Safari 18 beta , once it’s available. (Sign in using a free Apple ID to download. Installing Safari 18 beta on macOS Sonoma or macOS Ventura will replace your existing version of Safari with no way to revert to an earlier version.) You can also help test many of these features in Safari Technology Preview .

We love hearing from you. To share your thoughts on Safari 18 beta, find us on Mastodon at @[email protected] and @[email protected] . Or send a reply on X to @webkit . You can also follow WebKit on LinkedIn . If you run into any issues, we welcome your feedback on Safari UI (learn more about filing Feedback ), or your WebKit bug report about web technologies or Web Inspector. If you notice a website that seems broken in Safari, but not in other browsers, please file a report at webcompat.com . Filing issues really does make a difference.

Download the latest Safari Technology Preview on macOS to stay at the forefront of the web platform and to use the latest Web Inspector features.

You can also find this information in the Safari 18 beta release notes .

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Tools, documentation, forums, videos, and more.

Safari Technology Preview

Get a sneak peek at upcoming web technologies in macOS and iOS with Safari Technology Preview and experiment with these technologies in your websites and extensions.

• Safari Technology Preview for macOS Sequoia Support for macOS 15 beta coming soon
• Safari Technology Preview for macOS Sonoma Requires macOS 14 or later
• Safari Technology Preview for macOS Ventura Requires macOS 13 or later
• Release Notes

June 5, 2024

Safari beta

Try out the next version of Safari for upcoming macOS releases. To access the latest beta versions of Safari, sign in with your Apple ID.

View downloads

Release Date

September 20, 2021

Guides and sample code

Get details on implementing web technologies with guides, reference, and sample code.

• Safari Web Extensions
• Apple Pay on the Web
• Security Keys
• Video Content in Safari
• More Safari Documentation

Watch and learn from our engineers as they show how to bring the latest web technologies to your websites on Safari.

• Watch Safari and Web Videos

Ask questions and discuss a variety of web development topics with Apple engineers and other developers.

• Apple Developer Forums

Featured web technologies

Safari extensions.

Safari extensions are a powerful way to add new features to Safari. They are built in Xcode with web technologies, such as HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript and powerful native APIs. Now you can distribute and sell them through the App Store on Mac, iPhone and iPad.

• Meet Safari Web Extensions on iOS
• Explore Safari Web Extension improvements
• Converting a Web Extension for Safari
• Creating a Content Blocker
• Submit Your Extension

Universal links

Seamlessly link to content within your app or on your website in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. With universal links, you can always give users the most integrated mobile experience, even when your app isn’t installed on their device.

• Universal Links

Smart App Banners

Make it easy for people to discover and download your app using iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. With Safari Smart App Banners, you can display a banner that provides a direct link to your app on the App Store, or opens the app if the user already has it installed. Smart App Banners integrate seamlessly and are easy to implement.

• Promoting Apps with Smart App Banners

HTTP Live Streaming (HLS)

Deliver streaming media to apps on iOS and iPadOS or HTML5-based websites using an ordinary web server.

• HTTP Live Streaming

Safari iCloud Keychain

Easily create more secure logins for users in iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS Monterey or later using iCloud Keychain verification codes. Take advantage of verification codes, AutoFill, iCloud Keychain sync, and two-tap setup to simplify the multistep sign-in process.

• Secure login with iCloud Keychain verification codes
• Securing Logins with iCloud Keychain Verification Codes
• Safari Push Notifications

Use the Apple Push Notifications Service to send notifications to your website vistors, right on their Mac desktop — even when Safari isn’t running. These notifications display your website icon and notification text, which people can click to go right to your website.

• Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles

Introduced by Apple, WebKit is the most advanced rendering engine, drawing the web pages in Safari on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.

• WebKit Open Source Project

Write automated tests to exercise web content in Safari to ensure a good user experience, and run those same tests against other browsers with a WebDriver-compliant driver.

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Attention Mac and iPhone users – Your browser might be leaking Google search history

By Kim Komando

Every time you visit a website or search for something in your Safari browser, it keeps a record of your actions. Apple’s Safari browser saves a copy of your browsing history with website cookies. Tap or click here to lock down Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari for maximum security.

It is easy to go back to a specific website that you didn’t bookmark or forgot its URL through the browsing history. Complete browsing history is usually kept until you manually delete it.

For the most part, your browsing history is only available to you, so you are free to search without prying eyes. But read on to see how your data can be exposed to other websites, risking your privacy.

Here’s the backstory

Your browsing history is supposed to remain private to you. But a newly discovered flaw shows that Apple’s Safari browser can leak your data to websites you visit.

Website cookies store essential data about you. This includes the device you are using, where you are from, your connection, and sometimes your shopping habits. Sites use these cookies to serve you product recommendations or targeted advertising.

The Safari browser holds on to these cookies and delivers the relevant data to websites that request them. But one thing that it seemingly gives out willingly is your browsing history, with the bug found by browser fingerprinting and fraud detection service FingerprintJS.

Without going into too many technical details, the IndexedDB is designed to hold user data and follow the Same-origin policy. Essentially, it restricts how “documents or scripts loaded from one origin can interact with resources from other origins.”

But FingerprintJS claims Safari 15’s IndexedDB violates this security measure. “The fact that database names leak across different origins is an obvious privacy violation. It lets arbitrary websites learn what websites the user visits in different tabs or windows,” the company said in a blog post.

What you can do about it

The private browsing session in Safari shouldn’t track your search and web history, right? Well, FingerprintJS found that not to be the case. Typically, a private browsing session on Safari is restricted to a single tab. But if you visit multiple websites within that tab, your history can be exposed.

The worst part of this data leak is there isn’t much Safari users can do about it. The flaw can be found in all versions of Safari, including your Mac, iPhone and iPad browsers.

Apple must develop a patch for the issue before it can be corrected. If you are concerned about your data leaking, you could switch to a different browser. Here are some privacy-focused options:

• Brave : The Brave browser has been built with maximum privacy in mind, as the app doesn’t see or store any of your browsing sessions. By default, the browser will block harmful files and malware from your device, as well as advertising and trackers.
• Mozilla Firefox : One of the most popular alternatives, Firefox has a robust policy centered around privacy. You don’t need an email address to sign up, and the browser collects very little information from you.
• Microsoft Edge : Say what you want about its predecessor, but Edge has been given the full workup to be more secure and privacy-focused. While it feels like Google Chrome, it offers to block unwanted trackers, cookies, or targeted advertising.

Keep reading

Browser feeling sluggish? Speed up Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge

How to use Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge to remember your passwords

Tags: Apple , Brave , browsing history , bug , cookies , data leak , Flaw , Google Chrome , iPhone , Mac , Microsoft Edge , Mozilla Firefox , patch , privacy , private browsing , Safari , Safari browser , security