Firefox Focus
Hacker ApprovedRanked 25 of 53 web browsers by recommenders
Privacy browser people recommend for blocking ads on iOS and wiping tabs when closed. Critics say some sites show adblocker prompts or render text poorly.
Privacy browser people recommend for blocking ads on iOS and wiping tabs when closed. Critics say some sites show adblocker prompts or render text poorly.
21 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 16
- criticize it
- 5
- approval share
- 76%
Recommended in 9 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 16 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 3.2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 9 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Blocks ads well on iOS
“I've been using firefox focus as Safari content blocker to block ads on ios Firefox for years. Works well”
Comment from 2 Sep 2026 in “Introducing Ad Blocker for Firefox on iOS” “This Firefox Focus on iOS does effectively block adds on a recipe site unlike plain Firefox.”
Comment from 16 Jun 2026 in “Google Chrome update will close the door on ad blockers” Clears tabs and session on close
“There is a third path, Firefox focus. Accept everything, the end the session.”
Comment from 3 Mar 2026 in “I'm reluctant to verify my identity or age for any online services” “It is great that it nukes your tabs when you fully close it.”
Comment from 17 Aug 2026 in “Firefox for iOS now has a native adblocker” “You're a new visitor every time.”
Comment from 18 Jun 2026 in “Show HN: Ubercookie – A live demonstration of how websites can track you” Telemetry-free privacy setup
“It didn't involve telemetry, sinister industry collaboration, compromise performance, or implicate Mozilla as a bad industry actor in any meaningful way.”
Comment from 15 Nov 2025 in “I think nobody wants AI in Firefox, Mozilla” “Disable Daily Ping and Crash Reports in Firefox Focus and you too have a telemetry-free browser on iOS.”
Comment from 25 Nov 2025 in “Orion 1.0” Good Mozilla iOS browser
“My first move on iOS is to install Firefox Focus”
Comment from 13 Oct 2026 in “Apple's new 'Switch to Safari' campaign details why you should ditch Chrome” “It's my favorite thing Mozilla has done on iOS.”
Comment from 17 Jun 2026 in “Google Chrome update will close the door on ad blockers” “their Focus mobile browser is nice”
Comment from 13 Jun 2026 in “Leaving Mozilla”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Some pages render incorrectly
“This full article is not rendering all the text in anything but Firefox Focus on my android phone”
Comment from 6 Oct 2026 in “Oracle Triggered the Implosion of the AI Bubble” “Under Firefox Focus I can read it if I manually zoom and scroll. Not ideal.”
Comment from 6 Jun 2026 in “Do Women's Mate Preferences Change Across the Ovulatory Cycle? A Meta-Analysis [pdf]” “I got a blank box (white box on gray background IIRC) in Firefox Focus”
Comment from 19 Dec 2025 in “Is Firefox Firefucked?” - Comment from 26 May 2026 in “AWS Fired the One Employee Who Gave a Damn”
Other web browsers people recommend
The four most recommended other web browsers, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Firefox | 1,572 | 1,371 | 53% | 12 | 16 yrs125 owners | — |
| Google Chrome | 503 | 1,086 | 32% | 12 | 10 yrs11 owners | — |
| Brave | 397 | 248 | 62% | 12 | 4.9 yrs16 owners | — |
| Safari | 307 | 577 | 35% | 12 | 13 yrs27 owners | — |
| Firefox FocusThis page | 16 | 5 | 76% | 9 | — | Approved |
What people said
22 of the 24 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“My first move on iOS is to install Firefox Focus”
“This full article is not rendering all the text in anything but Firefox Focus on my android phone”
“I've been using firefox focus as Safari content blocker to block ads on ios Firefox for years. Works well”
“It is great that it nukes your tabs when you fully close it.”
“terribly misguided product direction of them to ever release this as a separate iOS app”
“Firefox focus is also terrible in all the right ways”
“it works great in Firefox focus on an iPhone 16 Pro”
“You're a new visitor every time.”
“It's my favorite thing Mozilla has done on iOS.”
“Focus does not sync with Firefox desktop, and the sync part is the reason I want to use the SAME one on desktop and mobile.”
“This Firefox Focus on iOS does effectively block adds on a recipe site unlike plain Firefox.”
“their Focus mobile browser is nice”
“Under Firefox Focus I can read it if I manually zoom and scroll. Not ideal.”
“when it's completely broken in Firefox (Focus at least)”
“with firefox focus it's mostly clean but you get a dismissable "please disable adblocker" style prompt”
“There is a third path, Firefox focus. Accept everything, the end the session.”
“On android, these don't work”
“I got a blank box (white box on gray background IIRC) in Firefox Focus”
“was thankful they had them during a time where everything had to use the safari renderer”
“Disable Daily Ping and Crash Reports in Firefox Focus and you too have a telemetry-free browser on iOS.”
“It didn't involve telemetry, sinister industry collaboration, compromise performance, or implicate Mozilla as a bad industry actor in any meaningful way.”
“I think Firefox focus does that on android”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.