An AI browser puts an assistant inside the browser itself. It can read the page you are on, summarize it, answer questions about it, and in some products carry out steps for you, such as filling a form or comparing prices. The market moved fast in the last year: Perplexity made Comet free, Microsoft retired Copilot Mode, Dia turned into a paid product, Arc went into maintenance, and OpenAI's ChatGPT Atlas was reported shut down in August 2026. This guide compares ten options and says plainly where a claim could not be confirmed.
In short: for most people the safest starting point is a browser you already trust with an AI assistant added: Microsoft Edge or Brave (Leo) are free, and Chrome has Gemini in supported regions. Choose Comet if you want a free agent-style browser from a search company, Dia if you want an AI-first browser and accept a paid plan, and Wavebox or Fellou only if their specific workflows match yours.
📊 Quick comparison
| Browser | Price (October 2026) | Platforms | Status and caveat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perplexity Comet | Free; Comet Plus news add-on reported at $5 a month | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android | Free since October 2, 2025; some advanced features are paid |
| Microsoft Edge | Free browser; Browse with Copilot needs Microsoft 365 Premium | Windows, Mac and mobile | Copilot Mode retired in May 2026; agent actions are US only |
| Dia | Free browser; AI plans $10 or $20 and $100 a month | macOS and Windows | Owned by Atlassian; paid plans rolling out on Mac |
| Opera Neon | $19.90 a month | Not confirmed | Public since December 2025; Opera's site not readable |
| Arc | Free download (no price shown) | Mac and Windows | Chromium updates only; Arc points users to Dia |
| Brave with Leo | Free; Premium available | Not re-checked | Chats not retained, history stored locally |
| Genspark Browser | Free download | macOS 15+ and Windows | On-device AI claim is Genspark's own |
| SigmaOS | Free download | Mac | Site shows no 2026 updates; plan prices not confirmed |
| Fellou | Free; Plus $19, Pro $39.90, Ultra $199.90 a month | Not stated on the page | Task limits are counted in credits called Sparks |
| Wavebox | Free Basic; Pro $99 a year; Teams $150 per seat | Desktop | AI assistant (Brainbox) is part of Pro |
🧭 How AI browsers differ from a browser with an extension
A normal browser shows pages and leaves the reading to you. An AI browser adds an assistant that sees the page you have open (and in some products your other tabs), and answers in plain language. The more advanced “agent” features go further and act for you: opening pages, clicking, filling forms or running a multi-step task. Those agent features are where products differ most, and where the paid plans and regional limits are.
🏆 The ten browsers, one by one
1. Perplexity Comet: free and agent-style
Comet is Perplexity's browser, available for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android according to its page. Perplexity's own examples include asking the assistant to explain how different outlets cover a story, draft an email reply, build a study plan, or buy a chair. It was limited to subscribers of the $200 Max plan when it launched, and Perplexity made it free for everyone on October 2, 2025; Engadget quoted Perplexity saying it “will always be free.”
Price: free. A news add-on called Comet Plus was reported at $5 a month, included with the Pro and Max plans. Press coverage said free users have some feature limits and that most advanced features are paid, and Perplexity's own FAQ answer could not be read for this update, so check what the free plan includes before you rely on a feature.
Good for: people who already use Perplexity for search and want an assistant in the browser. Watch out: shopping and email examples mean the agent can act on your accounts, so review actions.
2. Microsoft Edge: Copilot built into a familiar browser
Edge is a free browser with Copilot built in. On May 13, 2026 Microsoft announced it was retiring Copilot Mode and building the features into Edge, with existing users keeping priority access through Copilot in Edge Preview. What used to be Copilot Actions is now “Browse with Copilot,” available on Edge desktop for Microsoft 365 Premium subscribers in the U.S. only, with usage limits. Journeys, which groups your browsing by topic, is on Edge desktop in English markets (US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India and Singapore) and on mobile in the U.S. only.
Price: the browser and the basic Copilot features are free; the agent that acts for you needs a paid Microsoft 365 plan and the U.S. Good for: beginners, and anyone who wants AI summaries in a mainstream browser. Watch out: older guides still describe Copilot Mode and Copilot Actions as free previews.
3. Dia: an AI-first browser, now with paid plans
Dia comes from The Browser Company, the makers of Arc, which Atlassian agreed to buy for $610 million in September 2025 (reported; the deal was reported as completed on October 21, 2025). Dia's home page says it is available for macOS and Windows, with a free download, and it describes pulling answers from your connected tools such as Gmail, Slack and Notion.
Price: Dia's plans page lists a free “Better Browser” with no AI features, a “Better Answers” plan with AI chat on any page, and a “Better Days” plan at $100 a month with a daily morning brief, reports and meeting prep. The Better Answers price is shown as $10 a month on the plan card and $20 a month in the page's FAQ, so confirm it before you pay. New users get a 14-day trial of Better Days, and the page says existing users keep their current free access with at least 30 days' email notice before paid plans apply. Paid plans began rolling out to Mac users in August, and the page says Windows stays as it is for now. Good for: Mac users who want the most AI-centered browser and accept a subscription.
4. Opera Neon: a paid agentic browser
Opera Neon is the paid, AI-first browser Opera previewed in May 2025 and opened to select users in October 2025. TechCrunch reported on December 11, 2025 that Opera had made it publicly available at $19.90 a month. The article describes an AI chatbot in the interface that can use your browsing history, Cards (reusable prompt-based tasks), a deep research agent, and Tasks, which are workspaces that combine AI chats and tabs, plus access to models such as Gemini 3 Pro and GPT-5.1 for subscribers.
Price: $19.90 a month as reported in December 2025. Opera's own site could not be opened for this update, so current pricing and platforms are not confirmed. Good for: people who want to organize several research projects in separate workspaces and will pay for it.
5. Arc: still works, but it is not where the new AI work is
Arc's own site now says Arc receives Chromium updates only and points users to Dia “for active security patches”; it calls Dia the next evolution of Arc. The page still offers downloads for Windows and Mac and highlights Spaces, Profiles, Split View and Themes. It announces no new features, and it describes no AI features, although the navigation still links to Arc Max.
Price: not shown on the page. Good for: existing Arc fans. If you are choosing a browser today, the maker's own page suggests looking at Dia instead.
6. Brave with Leo: the privacy-first assistant
Brave's Leo assistant is free to use and needs no account. Brave says Leo offers the latest models from Mixtral, Anthropic's Claude and Meta's Llama and that it does not retain or share chats or use them to train models, with chat history stored locally on your device. A Premium tier adds more models and faster responses (the price is on Brave's upgrade page), and Premium accounts are described as unlinkable to Leo usage. You can also connect your own local or remote model with Bring Your Own Model.
Price: free; Premium is optional. Good for: anyone who wants summaries and questions on a page with a strong privacy stance. Watch out: older guides say Leo runs entirely on your device. Brave's own FAQ says the browser shares your latest prompt, the conversation and, when needed, context from the page with its servers. Only a model you run yourself keeps prompts on your machine.
7. Genspark Browser: on-device AI and a built-in agent
Genspark's browser page advertises on-device free AI (models run locally with no internet required), a super agent that compares products and reviews on any site, an Autopilot mode that browses for you, a built-in MCP store with 700+ tools such as Discord, GitHub, Notion and Slack, and an ad blocker. It is offered for macOS 15 or later and for Windows. For the company behind it, read the Genspark AI review.
Price: the download is free. Good for: people who want to try local AI and an agent in one browser. Watch out: the “runs offline with a large set of models” claim is Genspark's own; No independent 2026 test of the local models' quality or the hardware they need was found, and launch coverage quoted 169 models without a dated hands-on check.
Do not confuse the web app with the browser: the supplied image below shows the Genspark Super Agent home screen, including a Genspark Browser entry. It helps identify the service, but it does not show a web page open beside a browser agent panel. The screenshot identifies the web service; the browser features described here are research-based, rather than demonstrated in this capture.
8. SigmaOS: tab management with an assistant
SigmaOS is a Mac browser built on WebKit (like Safari), with workspaces, vertical tabs, split screen, a built-in ad blocker and Airis, an assistant that understands the page you are on, can search the web and can simplify a page into a short summary. Its page offers a free download, and Autosync restores your setup on any Mac.
Price: the browser is free. Plan prices for the higher Airis tiers were reported inconsistently and are not confirmed here. Good for: Mac users who live in many tabs. Watch out: the site shows no 2026 updates, so check that the product is still being developed before you commit your workflow to it.
9. Fellou: an agentic browser priced in credits
Fellou describes itself as an agentic browser: it offers deep search, cross-app workflow automation and agentic memory, and it shows you its plan for approval before it executes. Its pricing page uses credits called Sparks: the Free plan gives 1,000 Sparks as a new-user bonus (about 4 tasks), Plus is $19 a month for 2,000 Sparks a month (about 8 tasks), Pro is $39.90 for 5,000 (about 20 tasks) and Ultra is $199.90 with unlimited Sparks “for a limited time.” Annual billing saves 20%.
Good for: research and repetitive web tasks where you will check the plan. Watch out: the page says actual consumption varies with workflow complexity, and the task estimates are for reference only. The page does not name supported operating systems.
10. Wavebox: many web apps in one workspace
Wavebox is a workspace browser for people who live in many web apps. Its plans page lists a free Basic plan (2 Spaces, 2 Groups with 2 apps each, 1 Chrome extension and 1 dashboard), Pro at $99 a year without those limits and with profile sync, and Teams at $150 per seat. Brainbox AI is among the Pro features. A 7-day trial gives full Pro access.
Good for: professionals who juggle several accounts and apps. Watch out: the AI assistant is part of the paid plan, and the free plan is limited.
🧩 Two names you will still see in older guides
- Gemini in Chrome. Google's help page says Gemini in Chrome is not available to all users and is being rolled out gradually. It needs a Chromebook Plus, Mac or Windows computer with the latest Chrome, a signed-in profile (not Incognito), a supported region and language, and an administrator's approval on work or school accounts. The page lists an auto browse permission (“Let Gemini browse for you”), is silent on price, and says users under 18 cannot use auto browse. Press coverage in April and May 2026 reported auto browse limited to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in the U.S.
- ChatGPT Atlas. OpenAI's AI browser is described as discontinued. Wikipedia, citing TechRepublic and Lifehacker, reports it shut down on August 9, 2026, after OpenAI said in March 2026 that it would combine Atlas, the ChatGPT desktop app and Codex into one desktop application. OpenAI's own shutdown notice was not found, so treat the date as reported.
🎯 How to choose
- You want something free and familiar: Microsoft Edge or Brave. Use Chrome with Gemini if it is available in your region.
- You want an agent that acts on the web: Comet (free) or Fellou (credits) first, and check each action before approving it.
- You want the most AI-centered browser and accept a subscription: Dia (Mac, Windows) or Opera Neon.
- You care most about privacy: Brave's Leo, or Leo with a model you run yourself. Treat any “fully on-device” claim as the vendor's own until it is independently tested.
- You manage many web apps: Wavebox, or SigmaOS if you use a Mac.
Try the free options for a week or two before you pay, and keep your main browser installed. If the assistant is the main attraction, compare the assistant itself too: see the Genspark review for one example of an AI tool that has its own browser. And if what you need is AI for your meetings or your own documents rather than for browsing, read the Fireflies.ai review and the CustomGPT.ai review.
❓ Frequently asked questions about AI browsers
❓ Are AI browsers safe?
❓ Do I need technical skills?
❓ What is the difference between an AI browser and a browser with an AI extension?
❓ Which AI browsers are free?
❓ Which is best for a beginner?
❓ Is ChatGPT Atlas still available?
❓ Does Brave Leo run on my device?
❓ Is Dia available on Windows?
Which AI browser do you use, and what did it do well or badly? Leave a comment so other readers can learn from it.
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