Choosing the best secure browser for Android (2020 rating)

2022-10-27

Your browser knows a lot about you: what sites you visit, when and with what regularity. The cache stores /files of the visited pages, cookies store your site settings and personal data.

Fast or just "better" browser - alas, these are not the concepts, which should be used in 2020. Now the phones are equipped with fast hardware, and the software is of high quality. Let's find out which browser is best for certain tasks. Also we will talk about what browser to install instead of the default one, to prevent the leak of confidential data that could be useful for advertising agencies (who dream to spy on the users).

The list of recommended browsers for Android is as follows:

Download all mentioned browsers for Android in this section.

For comparison you can also read the article about the best browsers for Android and iOS from Loleknbolek.com where you can find a very good description of the browsers for tablets and iOS, not only for Android phones.

Tor Browser - the best browser for digital anonymity

The Tor browser is available for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. It is known for its excellent encryption system. All outgoing traffic goes through a series of intermediate servers. When you go offline, your data remains untouched (unless encrypted in another way).

The method is not perfect, and it certainly has its drawbacks, but if digital and physical anonymity are the ultimate goal, the Tor browser is an excellent way to provide it.

Tor encryption allows:

• stay anonymous on the Web,
• ignore tracking scripts,
• block ads.

The browser is powered by the Firefox Quantum engine. At the same time, most of the unnecessary features have been removed from the core and disabled through settings. Therefore a data leakage while visiting websites through the browser is basically impossible.

In addition, Tor tries to make all browser users look the same, to prevent any user identification (which is often used by advertisers to tailor ads to your interests).

In addition to this, you can manually disable trackers, clear cookies and history every time you end a session (i.e. close the browser).

Anonym mode in Tor is implemented via a local HTTP proxy and standard SOCKS4A / SOCKS5 proxy interfaces over network protocols. It has the ability to transparently collapse all TCP traffic on your device as long as the correct permissions and system libraries are installed.

You may install a portable Tor build that will run autonomously on other devices with an untrusted operating system.

Download Tor Browser for Android

Chrome is the top browser on Android (often installed by default)

As an Android user, you already know about Chrome browser. It was probably preloaded on your phone or you just didn't notice it. Google Chrome for Android is a powerful extension of the Chrome browser for Windows and OSX. One of its best features of the browser is syncing browser tabs across devices, so you can search for something on your laptop and phone at the same time. If you're an Android 5.0+ user, Chrome for Android can also split tabs into separate windows to make them look like standalone apps in a mobile environment.

Also, this Android browser is great for navigating the web. Chrome offers a great combination of fast mobile features and a full-featured desktop browser depending on your needs, and also offers data saving and incognito mode for browsing sites you don't want to track and record in history. For many users, Chrome is the best browser on Android that needs no replacement.

How to make Chrome anonymous

If you still would like to use Chrome browser instead of a more secure solution, here are some tips to make being on the web anonymous.

1. Always start the browser in Incognito mode (private access).
2. Turn on all possible privacy features available through Chrome settings.
3. Change your default search engine to a privacy-oriented site such as DuckDuckGo.
4. Install extensions that help protect your privacy.
5. Use a VPN to encrypt all your traffic.
6. Use an ad blocker, such as AdBlock Plus.
7. Automatically clear your browser cache and history when you close it.
8. Use HTTPS/SSL wherever possible.

Download Chrome

Brave: Disable ads and user tracking features

Autonomous browser for mobile (iOS, Android) and desktop platforms (Windows, macOS). It runs on the well-known Chromium engine, so you will have no problems mastering it. At the same time,

• Brave lacks the functions of sending data to Google.
• The same goes for the other settings which affect anonymity/confidentiality of the users in one way or another.
• You manage all the options manually.
• Brave's stats maintenance is initially disabled (no need to investigate which options are enabled or disabled, compromising anonymity).
• Browser does not collect data.
• All advertisements are blocked, including third-party training codes. You may display banners at any time (if you wish to reward webmasters or site owners).
• The latest version of the HTTPS protocol works forcefully on all sites. If you cannot connect via HTTPS, the site is blocked, a warning is issued.

The Brave browser is therefore very suitable for users who would like to manage advertising on their own and do not bother to disable data collection and statistics.

Download Brave

Firefox Focus is an open source browser with anti-tracking features

Firefox is the closest competitor to Chrome. Available for download on Windows / Linux / Mac OS / iOS / Android platforms.

The mobile version, Firefox Focus, stands out for its scrolling gesture support, touchscreen and simple interface that works well on smartphones and tablets. The feature set of the mobile version of Firefox is, in principle, much like the standard browser.

The browser is also packed with many security features:

• Advanced tracking blocking.
• anti-fingerprinting feature (protects against advertising providers and push ads).
• anti-cryptomining feature.

While Firefox does not block ads aggressively, you can install the appropriate extensions. You should also be aware that Mozilla's data collection policy includes data collection. When using social networks, you can flexibly customize through extensions how exactly the browser should handle the data.

Download to Android

Opera Mini - Lightweight Internet Browser for Android

Having a frugal web browser that focuses on providing a quality desktop is incredibly important if your plan involves little mobile data. If every kilobyte counts for you, Opera Mini is the best browser for Android in terms of saving money.

Most Android browsers don't make saving data their priority. The best you can get in most situations is image compression and a disabled automatic video playback option. And while these tools can help many, Opera Mini is the best option on Android. This special version of the browser promises to compress up to 90% of the data on your phone.

At first glance, Opera Mini is not so different from the aforementioned Opera version or from any other browser. You can feel the difference by going to any heavy website without a mobile version or even Facebook or Tumblr. Images in Opera Mini are often blurry, distorted - if you compare rendering to other browsers. The compromise often results in huge savings in monthly traffic.

Download Opera Mini browser for Android

Puffin Browser - Android browser with flash player "out of the box"

Remember when Adobe Flash on mobile devices was impressive, and even if the user experience was absolutely terrible, people still wanted to use flash player in the mobile browser. HTML5 got rid of a bunch of conflicts and other technical issues, but it wasn't enough. Flash still exists, and the most elegant solution for quality browsing that also includes Flash on Android is an Android browser with Puffin flash player.

Puffin works well because it cheats the system and the user a bit. In this case, it's a good thing. When you access a site with Flash through Puffin, you are actually accessing that site through the Puffin server. Puffin handles all the complex Flash tasks and provides essentially interactive video on your screen. If you have a decent internet connection, even visually intense games written in Flash are both playable and enjoyable on your mobile device. Plus, Puffin is a great browser for non-Flash pages.

Download a browser for Android for free

Opera - super fast browser for Android

The mobile version of Opera was probably once installed on your phone - at least, one of the ancient versions. Much time has passed since then and there is a good reason to install the browser on your Android again.

The Opera company prides itself on making a good browser for Android: fast, lightweight and safe. The company has successfully maintained the high quality of its product for a long time. The Opera browser for Android is a continuation of the promise. This version of Opera is able to offer more than just access to sites on the Internet.

Today, Android devices often have great iron under the hood, and speed is not much of a surprise anymore. As with many other mobile web browsers, Opera's focus is to enhance the desktop experience on mobile devices. You can sync your bookmarks and "Speed Dial" to sites you visit frequently on different devices. You can also use anonymous mode (Opera Private Mode) and Off-Road to browse on your phone with minimal traffic.

UC Browser (Browser Squirrel) - all browsers for Android in one bottle

In a strange way, venerable infoportals often bypass this browser. At the same time, statistics speak of 100-500 million downloads of Squirrelka (as UC Browser is called in Runet).

In essence, UC Browser integrates the familiar features of other browsers. For example, through the Quick Launch bar, it is possible to open a site with a single touch from the list of favorites.

It may not be the fastest browser for Android after Opera Mini, but it is capable of compressing the traffic. It should also be noted quite a flexible download manager, gesture control (similar to Firefox, including multitouch), support for add-ons. There is a mode of anonymous surfing. Similarly to Chrome, the bookmarks are synchronized between the mobile and the desktop version of the browser, across different devices.

In general, you should install this browser on your phone, if only to familiarize yourself with what the mobile software industry has achieved by 2020.

Download free UC Browser on phone

Yandex Browser for Android

The last browser in our top 2020 is from Yandex.

The Turbo mode helps to save the traffic, but this cannot be called a unique function, almost all mobile browsers already have such a mechanism.

In the sense of security in Yandex Browser the Protect function is interesting. This service pre-scans sites for viruses and blocks unwanted elements (phishing, potentially dangerous advertising, etc.)

Finally, it should be noted convenient interface of Yandex Browser. Executed in pleasant yellow and white colors, has a smart address bar, from which you can request information about exchange rates, weather etc. Home screen Yandex Browser contains recommendations - a selection of articles, news stories.

Thereby, if you prefer the domestic developments among mobile software, Yandex Browser for Android will hardly disappoint you. So download and install it on your smartphone/tablet.

Download Yandex Browser