Zen: A Milestone in my ideal browser hunt

As someone who practically lives in their browser, I’ve spent years chasing the perfect browsing experience. I wanted a tool that’s sleek, powerful, and respects my time and privacy. After falling in love with Arc for its innovative features, I thought I’d found my match—until 2024, when I discovered Zen Browser. This Firefox-based, open-source gem has redefined what a browser can be, checking every box on my wishlist and then some. Let’s dive into why Zen Browser is the calm, focused digital environment I’ve been dreaming of! 😍

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🔍 My Browser Wishlist

Whenever, I am trying out a new web browser, the following is what I desire:

• Vertical tabs for saving my viewing real estate

• Shrinked Top Navigation Bar

• Floating URL Bar - to switch tabs seamlessly

• Customizable Side Bar - ability to control the position, theme and tab organization

• Copy Current URL to Clipboard - CTRL/CMD + Shift + C

• Customizable hotkeys - which are not overridden by website defaults

• Lightweight - should not be battery drainer or memory monster

• Free of any ads or Web3 stuff under the hood

• Dedicated Split-screen feature

• Workspace feature - to compartmentalize different websites/applications used in different purposes

• (preferably) Open Source

• Strong privacy protections to keep my data safe

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🎉 Introducing Zen Browser

Zen Browser is a breath of fresh air in the crowded browser market. Built on Mozilla Firefox’s robust Gecko engine, this open-source project (licensed under MPL 2.0) prioritizes a “less is more” philosophy. Launched in July 2024 as an alpha, it’s rapidly evolved into a stable, feature-rich contender by April 2025, now at version 1.11.4b.

The Zen team, driven by a passionate community of over 100 contributors, aims to create a calmer internet. Their tagline—“Welcome to a calmer internet”—perfectly captures the serene, distraction-free experience they deliver. Whether you’re a power user or just want a cleaner browsing setup, Zen’s sleek design and innovative features make it a standout.

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🔬 Key Features That Shine

🖼️ Compact Mode: Distraction-Free Bliss

It hides the entire browser interface—toolbars, sidebars, and all—leaving just the webpage. This immersive view is perfect for reading, writing, or diving deep into content without distractions.

Without Compact Mode

With Compact Mode

How to Use:

• (Preferred) Alt + Ctrl/Cmd + C

• (Alternate) Right-click an empty toolbar area > Select Compact Mode > Click Enable Compact Mode.

  Hover at the top or left of the screen to temporarily reveal the URL bar or sidebar.

🌐 Intelligent URL Bar: Navigation Redefined

Zen’s URL bar is more than just a search tool—it’s a floating, context-aware powerhouse. Type a query, press Enter, and navigate or search without opening a new tab. Its “Super URL Bar” mod (available via Zen Mods) centers the text, rounds edges, and lets you tweak colors and icons for a personalized look.

How to Use:

• Click the URL bar or press Ctrl/Cmd + L to activate.

• Type a URL or search term and hit Enter.

• Install the Super URL Bar mod from the Zen Mods store for extra customization (Settings > Zen Mods > Browse Mods).

📹 Picture-in-Picture: Multitasking Made Easy

Zen’s Picture-in-Picture (PiP) mode pops videos into a floating, always-on-top window, ideal for watching while working. The Auto-Play in Mini Player feature automatically switches videos to PiP when you change tabs.

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How to Use:

• Hover over a video > Click the Zen PiP toggle (or use the address bar icon for single-video pages).

• Enable Auto-Play in Mini Player: Go to about:config > Set media.videocontrols.picture-in-picture.enable-when-switching-tabs.enabled to true.

🖥️ Split Screen: Native Multitasking

Zen’s split-screen feature lets you view multiple tabs side by side within one window, no extensions needed. It’s a lifesaver for comparing content or multitasking.

How to Use:

• Select tabs: Hold Ctrl + Left-Click to highlight multiple tabs.

• Right-click a selected tab > Choose Split X Tabs (X is the number of tabs).

• Adjust layouts: Use keybindings (e.g., side-by-side, tiled, or horizontal) via Settings > Keybindings.

🎹 Hotkey Support

Zen has a comprehensive support for customizable hotkeys. Furthermore, the most used hotkeys one may be familiar in other browsers are already implemented by default

How to Use:

• Open Settings

• Go to Keyboard Shortcuts section

• Modify any action you want to achieve via keyboard combinations

Some of my commonly used ones

• CTRL + Shift + C: Copy Current URL to Clipboard

• CTRL + W: Close Tab

• CTRL + 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9 - Switch to Tab n

• ALT + 1/2/3/4 - Switch to Workspace

📚 Workspaces & Container Tabs: Organized Chaos

Workspaces are Zen’s answer to tab overload. They let you group tabs by task, project, or theme, making it easy to switch contexts without losing your place. Paired with Container Tabs, which isolate cookie sessions, you can log into multiple accounts on the same site simultaneously.

How to Use:

• Go to Settings > General > Container Tabs to manage containers (default: Personal, Work, Banking, Shopping).

• Create a new workspace: Click the sidebar’s + icon > Name your workspace (e.g., “Blog Research”).

• Assign tabs to workspaces by dragging them or right-clicking > Move to Workspace.

• Switch containers: Right-click a tab > Select a container (e.g., Work for a second Gmail login).

👀 Glance: Preview Without Commitment

Glance is a nifty feature that lets you preview a webpage without fully opening it. It’s perfect for quick checks without disrupting your workflow.

How to Use:

• Hold Alt and click a link to open a preview overlay.

• Options in Glance:

  • Close: Click outside or the close button.

  • Expand: Convert to a full tab.

  • Split: Open in split-screen view.

🔌Firefox Extensions

Zen supports all extensions supported by Firefox

How to Use:

• Install extensions: Click the Extensions button (jigsaw icon) > Browse the Mozilla Add-ons store

👔 Zen Mods

Zen Mods is a CSS-based theming system for tweaking the UI. This is separate from plugins it supports where some additional behavior is added for a set of webpages

How to Use:

• Add Zen Mods: Go to Settings > Zen Mods > Browse the store (91 mods as of March 2025)

🔄 Cross-Device Sync: Seamless Continuity

Zen integrates with Firefox Sync, syncing bookmarks, history, passwords, and add-ons across devices. Since Zen isn’t available on mobile yet, you can use Firefox mobile with the same Mozilla account.

How to Use:

• Go to Settings > Sync > Sign in with your Mozilla account.

• Select data to sync (e.g., bookmarks, passwords).

• On mobile, install Firefox and sign in to the same account.

⚡ Resource Efficiency & Privacy: Lean and Secure

Zen optimizes Firefox’s Gecko engine for lower memory usage and better battery life compared to Chromium-based browsers like Chrome or Arc. It inherits Firefox’s robust privacy features, including tracker blocking, private browsing, and cookie management. Container Tabs add extra session isolation.

🔐 Privacy First Mindset

• Tracking Protection: Blocks third-party trackers by default.

• OCSP Support: Verifies SSL certificates for secure connections.

• HTTPS-Only Mode: Ensures secure browsing.

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⚠️ Current Limitations: DRM Support

Zen Browser lacks a Widevine license, meaning no DRM support. This affects streaming services like:

• Netflix

• HBO Max

• Disney+

• Amazon Prime Video

• Spotify

• Apple Music

Workaround: Use dedicated apps (e.g., Netflix’s desktop app) or a secondary browser like Edge or Brave for streaming

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🔥 Why Zen Browser Stands Out

Zen Browser isn’t just another Firefox fork—it’s a love letter to users who crave control and simplicity. Here’s why it’s my new favorite:

• Arc-Like Innovation, Firefox Roots: Combines Arc’s modern UI with Firefox’s privacy and open-source ethos.

• Community-Driven: With 104 contributors and an active Reddit community, Zen evolves fast, often fixing bugs within days.

• Customizability: Zen Mods and hotkey tweaks let you tailor the browser to your workflow.

• Performance: Optimized for speed and efficiency, it’s a lightweight alternative to Chrome and Arc.

• Privacy First: No Google tracking, robust blocker tools, and session isolation via Container Tabs.

Compared to alternatives:

• Vs. Chrome: Zen is lighter and privacy-focused, avoiding Google’s data empire.

• Vs. Arc: Zen is open-source, actively developed, and less resource-intensive.

• Vs. Firefox: Zen adds vertical tabs, workspaces, and a modern UI missing in standard Firefox.

• Vs. Brave: Zen skips crypto baggage and offers a cleaner, more customizable interface.

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📋 Closing Notes

Zen Browser is the nearest I've come to my ideal web browsing experience in over a decade. Having used it as my default browser since its beta phase six months ago, I'm optimistic about its future given its rapid development. It’s also refreshing to enjoy a browsing experience outside the Chromium ecosystem.