# BrowserWorks/waterfox

The official Waterfox 💧 source code repository

Repository: https://github.com/BrowserWorks/waterfox
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/waterfox
Homepage: https://www.waterfox.com
Language: JavaScript
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Topics: browser, web-browser, waterfox, web, gecko
Last push: 2026-08-26T21:51:09+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 99/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 98, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4342, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 14, "gap_med": 21.0, "n_releases_24m": 35}
- flags: no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 6198, forks 425 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:39.660191+00:00)

## What it is
Waterfox is a free, open-source web browser built on the Mozilla Firefox/Gecko platform with telemetry and data collection disabled at build time. It offers built-in ad blocking, privacy toggles, and extensive interface customization across desktop and Android.

## Use cases
- browse the web without telemetry or data collection
- use a Firefox-based browser with built-in ad blocking
- heavily customize browser appearance and tab layout
- run a privacy-focused browser on Linux, macOS, Windows, or Android
- use legacy Firefox extensions with modern Gecko
- organize tabs with tree tabs, groups, and split view

## When to choose
- you want Firefox compatibility and extension support with telemetry stripped out
- you need deep UI customization like vertical tabs, palettes, and tree tabs
- you want a privacy-respecting browser with documented outbound network requests

## When to avoid
- you need Chromium-specific features or Chrome Web Store extensions
- you require official enterprise support or a permissive license for rebranding
- you want a browser maintained by a large vendor with long-term security guarantees

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: browser-extension, security, privacy
- domain: privacy, web-development, cross-platform
- platform: windows, cross-platform
- tags: web-browser, gecko, firefox-fork, telemetry-free, ad-blocking, customizable-ui, macos, linux, android

## Member repositories
- BrowserWorks/waterfox (main) score 99

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:39.660191+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 2026-08-29T17:47:20.609676+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/BrowserWorks/waterfox (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:39.660191+00:00, sha b4a768a9f66d)
  - homepage: https://www.waterfox.com (fetched 2026-08-29T08:44:10.493776+00:00, sha 6032e9733027)
  - site_page: https://www.waterfox.com/docs/policies (fetched 2026-08-29T08:44:10.505795+00:00, sha 45e3ca689b6c)
  - site_page: https://www.waterfox.com/docs/policies/terms (fetched 2026-08-29T08:44:10.507450+00:00, sha 3c300c65bc17)
  - site_page: https://www.waterfox.com/docs/policies/privacy (fetched 2026-08-29T08:44:10.509366+00:00, sha ae77863cd3e9)
  - site_page: https://www.waterfox.com/releases (fetched 2026-08-29T08:44:10.502985+00:00, sha 42c6259bbed2)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.