There’s a flood of Firefox forks, and they almost always feel and look the same—at least on the surface. Most promise privacy tweaks, stripped telemetry, and performance improvements. While they typically deliver, the novelty wears off after your third fork.
So, when I used Floorp, I wasn’t expecting what I got. It was the outlier. For the first time, I experienced a Firefox fork that was thinking about UI in a way that actually made a difference. This was even more impressive because Floorp retains Firefox’s strong privacy defaults, such as fingerprinting protection and telemetry blocking. It even disables Mozilla’s telemetry outright and lets you optionally disable WebGL and WebRTC, closing off more avenues for tracking.
I now get the privacy perks of Firefox’s Gecko engine and a flexibility in UI that lets the browser adapt to my workflow. I stopped using Firefox a while ago, but maybe it’s time to try Floorp as a daily driver.
Firefox spin-offs
Why they exist and why most fall short
Firefox is built on open-source code, creating an incentive for developers to fork, tinker, and reimagine the browser. This has led to numerous spin-offs, such as Waterfox, LibreWolf, Basilisk, and others, whose mission is typically to build upon the foundation of Firefox and create something more specialized.
LibreWolf aggressively strips down tracking features and telemetry; Waterfox focuses more on performance tweaks and legacy compatibility, and IceCat doubles down on Firefox’s privacy-first branding and digital freedom. These are great options for anyone obsessing over privacy.
However, Firefox wasn’t initially just about privacy. It once championed user-centric customization and even introduced innovations like toolbar customization and advanced CSS customization. But it has pulled back on interface flexibility, and many forks ignore this gap. Even though some offer minor UI tweaks, they typically don’t give you the level of flexibility that lets you bend the UI the way a power user may want to.
Hence, most forks feel constrained and familiar. Floorp fills this gap. It’s not solely chasing privacy points; rather, it’s putting user control over the UI front and center.
Floorp’s radical approach
A browser you can bend to your will
Floorp goes beyond tweaking the Firefox interface by allowing deeper UI customization. Floorp’s toolbars and tabs are more flexible: I can resize toolbars, stack tabs into multiple rows, or organize frequently used tabs into sections. The workspace adapts to my workflow.
Floorp takes customization a step further with an efficient sidebar where you access bookmarks, history, and extensions. You can even add additional elements to the sidebar—a huge shift from Firefox-based browsers and their confined menu elements. With Floorp, these elements float freely, even across multiple monitors. You also get dual sidebar support and a split-view mode. With this, you can run two panels side by side for an even more flexible layout.
I also find the workspaces responsive enough to adapt to what I’m doing. They’re integrated into the browser menu, and I can switch between a reading-focused setup, a research-heavy layout, or a multitasking grid, all saved for future sessions. This workspace integration aligns with Firefox’s early ethos of user-centric customization and flexibility.
Additionally, Floorp’s aesthetic customization is a notable upgrade. You can swap colors and themes as expected, but you can also pick from default presets like Lepton or Photon, then fine-tune spacing, icon density, and button placement. These tweaks make the browser feel distinctly personal.
The UI difference matters
Comparing Floorp with other Firefox spin-offs
Many Firefox forks have narrowly defined goals. For example, Waterfox aims for legacy support and performance tweaks, and LibreWolf’s branding centers on telemetry stripping and privacy hardening. But the question is: how should the browser feel to the person using it? That’s something these spin-offs rarely address, but Floorp has tackled it head-on, combining solid privacy foundations with extended UI freedom.
In essence, where most forks of Firefox don’t deliver on appearance and user experience, Floorp thrives, offering a fresh experience that emphasizes collaboration between the browser and the user. This is made more evident in practical use cases: I can float panels across monitors and manage multiple tabs with minimal friction. Doing this in LibreWolf or most Firefox forks is cumbersome and limited.
Floorp’s updates are consistent with its user-centric philosophy. Most forks prioritize frequent security patches without major UI improvements, but Floorp updates balance essential maintenance with interface innovation. Floorp recently switched from Firefox’s Extended Support Release (ESR) base to the rapid release channel in version 12.1.0 (August 2025). Now, new features land faster while keeping that same focus on customization.
The Impact
Who actually benefits from Floorp’s UI freedom
If you’re thinking beyond one tab at a time, then Floorp’s flexibility becomes a practical advantage. It’s a browser ideal for the power user who misses the days of the fully customizable Firefox. You’ll be able to adapt every aspect of your workspace, from tab organization to panel behavior.
It’s also the browser for anyone focused on productivity. I fall into this category. Because my work spans multiple projects, documents, or research tabs, I get the most out of Floorp’s ability to save and switch between different layouts. I can have one layer optimized for writing reports that coexists with another for web research. My browsing stops feeling like one-size-fits-all.
However, even minimalists will find Floorp a very useful pick. They can remove menus they don’t need, hide panes, consolidate buttons, and create a distraction-free browser environment. It’s rare to see a browser with this kind of versatility.
A browser that works the way you do
Floorp does not always seem to fit the “Firefox fork” mold. It does more than a traditional spin-off. However, it remains one of the best Firefox-based browsers. While privacy matters and should be a priority, you can’t be productive if your browser doesn’t adapt perfectly to your workflow.
You can even use the same privacy add-ons that work for Firefox on Floorp to enjoy more privacy on top of the control the UI gives. I, however, understand that most people rarely switch browsers, so the question is: are Floorp’s customization features enough to make you try it?
