# ipfs/ipfs-companion

Browser extension that routes ipfs:// addresses and content-addressed websites through your own local IPFS node

Repository: https://github.com/ipfs/ipfs-companion
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/ipfs-companion
Homepage: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install/ipfs-companion/
Language: JavaScript
License: CC0-1.0
License Family: permissive
Topics: ipfs, p2p, webextension, ipfs-gateway, ipfs-companion, chrome-extension, firefox-extension, protocol, dweb, ipfs-gui
Last push: 2026-08-24T01:50:37+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 86/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 62, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4182, "days_push": 10, "days_rel": 43, "gap_med": 251.5, "n_releases_24m": 3}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2157, forks 338 (observed 2026-08-28T04:06:19.818656+00:00)

## What it is
IPFS Companion is a browser extension that adds native support for ipfs:// and ipns:// addresses to Firefox, Chrome, Brave, Edge, and Opera. It routes content-addressed requests through a local IPFS node's gateway and lets users share files to IPFS directly from the browser.

## Use cases
- open ipfs:// links in my browser
- browse dweb websites via my local IPFS node
- share a file to IPFS from the browser
- redirect IPFS gateway traffic to localhost
- view IPNS-hosted sites in Chrome or Firefox
- access content-addressed websites without a public gateway

## When to choose
- you run a local IPFS node (Kubo or IPFS Desktop) and want browser integration
- you want to load ipfs:// and ipns:// URLs natively instead of public gateways
- you want to pin or share files to IPFS with one click from the browser

## When to avoid
- you have no local IPFS node and only need occasional gateway fetches
- you need a full IPFS node implementation or CLI tooling
- you need IPFS support in a browser that does not support WebExtensions

## Facets
- artifact type: plugin
- maturity: active
- function: proxy, file-upload, developer-tools
- domain: privacy, censorship-circumvention, browser-extensions, web-development, files
- platform: browser-extension, browser, cross-platform
- tags: ipfs, p2p, dweb, webextension, content-addressing, ipfs-gateway, ipns, chrome-extension, firefox-extension

## Member repositories
- ipfs/ipfs-companion (main) score 86

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:19.818656+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T02:50:25.028489+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/ipfs/ipfs-companion (fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:19.818656+00:00, sha 10f2ab95d4ad)
  - homepage: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install/ipfs-companion/ (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.979048+00:00, sha 3b705f1ad43c)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/quickstart/pin-cli (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.997152+00:00, sha 07d23706e5a2)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install/ipfs-desktop (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.999131+00:00, sha 461804ceae39)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install/command-line (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:51.001052+00:00, sha b55f71570a1d)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install/run-ipfs-inside-docker (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:51.002885+00:00, sha a6087a76dbf8)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/ (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.988656+00:00, sha b89d3d0e0e01)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/install (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.991416+00:00, sha 563d207cad62)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/quickstart/retrieve (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.993236+00:00, sha f049ae2a63b4)
  - site_page: https://docs.ipfs.tech/quickstart/pin (fetched 2026-08-29T10:30:50.995099+00:00, sha 23a166e80a6e)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.