head to head · open source
Zen Browser vs browser-agent
Zen Browser has 44,486 GitHub stars, 1,755 forks, 689 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. browser-agent has 4,128 stars, 238 forks, 34 open issues and last shipped 7 months ago. Zen Browser leads on adoption by 978% (44,486 vs 4,128 stars). Zen Browser is written in C++ under MPL-2.0; browser-agent is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. Zen Browser has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, browser-agent 6%. Zen Browser was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Zen Browser | browser-agent | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 44K | ★ 4.1K |
| License | MPL-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | C++ | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-02-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.8K | ⑂ 238 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Zen Browser if
- You weight community size — 44K stars and counting
- You want the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick browser-agent if
- You want the browser-agent feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and browser-agent fits your workflow better
About Zen Browser
Zen Browser is a privacy focused, open source web browser built on Firefox’s Gecko engine. It inherits Firefox’s compatibility and extension ecosystem while introducing a streamlined interface and productivity oriented features. The project lives in the desktop browser ecosystem, targeting users who want a Firefox based experience with reduced clutter and enhanced customization.
read the full Zen Browser overview →
About browser-agent
Magnitude is an open source, vision first browser agent written in TypeScript that lets developers control a real browser with natural language, and it is aimed at engineers who need to automate repetitive web work, move data between applications that lack APIs, or test web interfaces rather than click through them by hand.
read the full browser-agent overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Zen Browser or browser-agent more popular?
Zen Browser has 44,486 GitHub stars and browser-agent has 4,128. Zen Browser has the larger community by that measure.
Are Zen Browser and browser-agent free?
Both are open source. Zen Browser is licensed under MPL-2.0 and browser-agent under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Zen Browser and browser-agent?
Zen Browser is written in C++ and browser-agent in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Zen Browser or browser-agent?
Choose Zen Browser if you want the larger community (44,486 stars) or its MPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose browser-agent if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.