


This factors into how quick the page loads, and how much data the website is requesting. We monitored data being downloaded and uploaded by websites. Microsoft’s Edge also removed the most trackers on the Daily Mail website: It's worth bearing in mind, though, that cookies aren't necessarily bad and can even be useful (scroll down to read more about the downsides of ad blockers).

Chrome let 138 be active on The Guardian's website, whereas just 47 were active when browsing to it in Edge. It excelled in our test and is also simple to install and familiar to use.Īlongside Brave, Edge (download from the Microsoft site ) and Firefox (download from Mozilla's site ) also blocked cookies. If you're privacy conscious and want a reasonably locked-down browser for daily use, it's worth switching to Brave (you can download it from ). Join Which? Tech Support – stay on top of your tech and get unlimited expert one-to-one support by phone, email, remote fix and in print.Īlongside the Chrome plug-ins we tested, only the Brave browser actually removed any advertising panels, banners and other items on the eight websites we used in our test. Read on for the results of our in-depth browser privacy test. But not everyone wants to be spammed with ads and tracked extensively as result of what they’re browsing online.Ĭhoosing the right web browser setup can help you surf the web in relative peace, but doing so is not without downsides. This can include remembering what item you've added to a shopping basket, measuring what content is popular so a website can be improved, and to build a profile of you to show relevant ads. If you click ‘Got it’ on the cookies warning, more than 1,400 companies – from advertising to analytics – are activated by default.Ĭookies and trackers aren't necessarily 'bad' and are used for a variety of reasons.

Take the .uk, one of the most popular sites in the UK that serves ads. Every time you search the internet, visit a website or make an online booking, an invisible host of data firms, digital marketers and more are tracking every click you make.
