There are many web browsers that we can use for our web browsing activity. They all come with almost similar features and differ just in speed and security aspects. Normally, we trust open-source browsers like Mozilla Firefox, Pale Moon, etc, as their code is available publicly to vet. There is a lot of discussion going on on internet forums to select the better among Firefox and Pale Moon. In this guide, we compare Firefox and Pale Moon browsers in a detailed way.
If I were to describe the Pale Moon browser in a sentence, it would be, “Pale Moon browser is a stripped-down version of Firefox, that leaves out certain features to focus on speed of browsing”. Instead of the default Google search that most browsers use, Pale Moon employs DuckDuckGo search engine, so that your searches are not stored anywhere.
Firefox vs Pale Moon browser – Which one is better?
There are many aspects where both Firefox and Pale Moon seem similar yet work differently. The following are some of their features.
- Open Source Web browsers
- Availability across multiple platforms
- Privacy features
- Interface
- Browser Extensions
Let’s get into the details of each aspect.
1] Open Source Web browsers
Both Firefox and Pale Moon are free and open-source web browsers whose code is available to the public. Anyone can review the code and find the issues if there are any. Firefox and Pale Moon have their own rendering engines to display web pages according to the current standards. Pale Moon uses the Goanna rendering engine, while Firefox uses the Gecko rendering engine. Since both their rendering engines are developed on their own without relying on third-party engines, they can eliminate privacy concerns.
Though initially built upon Firefox code, the Pale Moon browser does not need Firefox anymore. It can provide its updates as any mainstream browser does. The base code of Pale Moon has shifted from that of Firefox to a significant extent. While that makes Pale Moon browser free of Firefox and brings it into the category of mainstream browsers, it still needs some work – on extensions. Goanna is the Open Source layout engine as used in Pale Moon and in the FossaMail mail client.
2] Availability across multiple platforms
Firefox is available across multiple platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, etc. You can sync the web browsing activity across these platforms just by signing in to the browser. Coming to Pale Moon which is currently available only on Windows and Linux on their official website. Pale Moon lags behind Firefox in terms of availability across platforms.
3] Privacy features
Pale Moon is a privacy-conscious web browser that has zero ads, no telemetry, spyware, or data collection from users. Even the updates are developed with privacy and security as their main objective. Whereas Firefox collects telemetry and user data to improve user experience with the upcoming updates. There are some privacy features like third-party cookie blocking, fingerprinter blocking, crypto miner blocking, etc on Firefox to safeguard user privacy.
4] Interface
Firefox has a modern interface with many features to customize themes, colors, and homepage. Pale Moon has an old interface but you can customize the themes, colors, and homepage but does not look as attractive as Firefox because of its old look.
5] Browser Extensions
There are thousands of browser extensions or add-ons available for Firefox in its add-ons library. You can download them according to your need. Pale Moon too has many add-ons but they lack in number as compared to Firefox. Pale Moon employs rigorous add-ons review process to protect users’ privacy before making an add-on public. On Firefox, add-ons are first automatically reviewed and available for the public and then they are reviewed afterward by the monitoring team.
These are the different features of Firefox and Pale Moon browsers. They are both better in their own ways, but Firefox takes the lead in certain aspects like interface, add-ons, etc.
Related read: Pale Moon not responding on Windows PC.
Is Pale Moon better than Firefox?
No, Pale Moon is not better than Firefox as they both have their own merits and shortcomings. Firefox is actively updated in every aspect regularly, whereas Pale Moon is more of a privacy-friendly browser where the updates are done mostly to safeguard users’ privacy. If you want privacy and don’t bother old look and interface, then Pale Moon might be better than Firefox.
Is Pale Moon a good browser?
Yes, Pale Moon is definitely a good browser that is a free and open source browser developed and supported by a non-profit organization. Pale Moon has good features like every other major browser and supports user privacy.
What is a better browser than Firefox?
Almost every major browser that is available on the internet is similar in its features except for a few. If you prioritize privacy over anything, you can choose Pale Moon, if you choose speeds, you can choose Chrome and Edge.
Post updated on 28th June 2022.
