Browser Speed Comparisons

[g-smooth2k]

Source: DSL Reports

Slashdot points to an independent browser speed comparison that compares CSS rendering, cold and warm starts, table rendering, script execution, as well as multiple image display times. The result? Opera is the fastest browser for Windows. Firefox and IE are similar, though the former gets the edge on security.

Source: How to Create

What is this about?
There is a speed war on the web. Browsers compete on many fronts; security, standards support, features and speed. Most people are aware of which major browser fails on three of these, but one of them is still open for grabs. Speed.

Many organisations and users try to claim that their browser is the fastest. The Opera site claims that Opera is The Fastest Browser on Earth!. The Mozilla site claims that Firefox 1.0 empowers you to browse faster (faster than what?). Mozilla itself is quoted as being an alternative to Microsoft IE and it's faster to boot. Apple's Safari pages claim that Safari loads pages more quickly than any other Mac web browser (although they failed to show any results for Opera, and their charts fail to show results for pages that contain images). Internet Explorer users often claim that they use it because of its speed, as the alternatives take longer to start and load pages.

Opera and Firefox users are quite vocal on the subject, but none of them can actually show any research to back up their statements, ususally just saying "X takes way longer than Y to start" or "my friend uses X and it is much slower on his computer than Y is on mine". Those that did try more than one usually say "X just felt faster than Y when I tried them" (although this may refer to familiarity with the individual user interface - something that I do not cover here). I have even heard people comparing Firefox and Opera, then realised they were referring to Opera 6 (even though historically, Opera 6 is about equivalent to Netscape 4), something that was replaced with a completely new engine long before Firefox even existed.

Well, I've had enough of these unfounded arguments. I present my research. This is an honest, unbiased view (or as unbiased as I can be). Unlike most people, I not only test all the browsers, I test them all on the same computer as each other - grouped into Linux, Mac and Windows (using the same or equivalent hardware for each). This, I hope, gives an accurate comparison, not only of the browsers compared with each other, but for those that work on multiple platforms, it also gives a fairly accurate comparison of the different optimisations for each platform.

Summarise
So overall, Opera seems to be the fastest browser for windows. Firefox is not faster than Internet Explorer, except for scripting, but for standards support, security and features, it is a better choice. However, it is still not as fast as Opera, and Opera also offers a high level of standards support, security and features.

On Linux, Konqueror is the fastest for starting and viewing basic pages on KDE, but as soon as script or images are involved, or you want to use the back or forward buttons, or if you use Gnome, Opera is a faster choice, even though on KDE it will take a few seconds longer to start. Mozilla and Firefox give an overall good performance, but their script, cache handling and image-based page speed still cannot compare with Opera.

On Mac OS X, Opera and Safari are both very fast, with Safari 2 being faster at starting and rendering CSS, but with Opera still being distinguishably faster for rendering tables, scripting and history (especially compared with the much slower Safari 1.2). Camino is fast to start, but then it joins its sisters Mozilla and Firefox further down the list. Neither Mozilla, Firefox nor IE perform very well on Mac, being generally slower than on other operating systems.

On Mac OS 9, no single browser stands out as the fastest. In fact, my condolences to anyone who has to use one of them, they all perform badly.

These results are drawn from my tests as shown above, and are confirmed by my personal use. Please do not send me hate mail saying I have insulted your browser or whatever. If you get different results, try doing what I did. Perform a set of tests like these that cover the major areas of use. Make sure you do it unbiased, cross platform, using the same or equivalent spec on each (make sure you use the same amount of RAM in each). Once you are done, don't tell me about it. Publish your own results, as I have done, with a discussion of why you did each test and what it represents. Facts and figures are everything. Oh, and don't just say "I couldn't get it to install so I didn't bother" - you have no idea how much work I put into getting all these browsers to install on these operating systems (as my wife and the IRC community would be able to testify to). If you can't get it to install, then that is your problem, it says nothing about speed, and simply makes your results incomplete.

[Rajarius]

Saw this. Opera, even though it IS the fastest (admit it), is not as secure or compatible as Firefox. I'm not really looking for speed anymore. Saving an extra 2 seconds is not worth it if I am constantly under attack by malware or whatever.

[Betamax]

All Opera really needs is some Ad-block type function and a better in-page search function, and maybe some plug-in support for weather reports etc. The tabs work much better than in Firefoxand it has M2, the built in e-mail client. I'll wait for the next Opera before I switch back.

///

[Stownplayer]

Get a good firewall and all your excuses not to use opera are useless. Opera does block the majority of pop-ups and the in page search function is powerful. What are you talking about "a better in-page search function". CTRL F is all you have to do. Opera is very secure. No browser is perfect and firefox has many flaws also. Firefox and opera are head to head on security but opera kicks ass in speed, ease of use, and integrated email client.

Firefox takes too many add ons and configuration changes before it can even come close to running like opera. Opera pretty much runs perfect out of the box, although you probably want to change the skin and views to your preference.

[shawners]

IF you could COMPLETELY REMOVE I E From being in the interface in windows... AND Have firefox installed as a factory browser. It be merged into it and can operate just as fast with no ad windows displaying.. YET they havent seen what I E can do when you have spyware that attaches to the browser and hijacks it all the time.

[grab_grab_the_haddock]

Firefox is frankly, lame. The gecko engine is still very much third rate, the technology being buggier and slower than other browsers and rendering many pages in an inferior way.

Opera isn't supported by many websites so opera users will need to keep returning to IE to view pages properly.

Internet Explorer is by far the most superior browser which will view absolutely any web page and because the code is designed to work along with windows it is far faster and smoother with a way shorter loading time.

By all means, try the rest - but you should always come back to the best.

[Stownplayer]

never thought i'd hear anyone other than bill gates say that ie is the best. JESUS!!! By the way, i only use ie for a couple of sites. Opera opens the rest just fine. IF webmasters would stop making pages so they can only be viewed in ie then there would be no problems in the first place. Opera is the best. Besides, you many factors that make a browser the best not just how many pages it can open successfully.

[mfgbypooter]

I have firefox installed but rarely use it for precisely the reasons you mention, grab. Instead I mainly use Avant Browser, which is an IE shell that offers the tabbed browsing and has ad block etc. On my machine it loads and runs faster than firefox or bare bones IE. You don't have to fuck with all that plugin bullshit of firefox either. I never have a pop up or pop under, and I also keep my hosts file up to date so I never see 99.9% of any ads I don't want to see. The only time I really ever run IE is to use windows update for patches etc. Firefox to me is waaaay overated. Firefox & Opera you still have to fall back on IE for some pages. For my money and ease of use, I'll stick with Avant. If anyone is interested check it out.

http://www.avantbrowser.com/


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[grab_grab_the_haddock]

Apps like avant, slimbrowser, myIE etc aren't really browsers - they are just skins for Internet Explorer.

[infringer]

Used Opera Used Firefox but for some odd reason I still like IE the best...

-infringer-

[Betamax]

Get a good firewall and all your excuses not to use opera are useless. Opera does block the majority of pop-ups and the in page search function is powerful. What are you talking about "a better in-page search function". CTRL F is all you have to do. Opera is very secure. No browser is perfect and firefox has many flaws also. Firefox and opera are head to head on security but opera kicks ass in speed, ease of use, and integrated email client.

Firefox takes too many add ons and configuration changes before it can even come close to running like opera. Opera pretty much runs perfect out of the box, although you probably want to change the skin and views to your preference.

Stownplayer,

The page search function in Firefox is much better because you don't have to type in the whole word and press enter before it tells you that the word you typed is not on the page. For example, if you where to search this page for 'supercalifragilisticexpelidocious', you would only have to type 2,3 or 4 letters before Firefos would tell you that the word isn't on the page whereas in Opera you'd have to type in the whole word and press enter before you could confirm whether or not the word was on the page.

I don't think you know what Ad-block is. Ad-block is not a pop-up stopper (this is automatic in Firefox) but rather a tool which allows you to block a wide variety of ads; all types of banner ads, annoying animated-gif avatars, flash ads, basically everything. It makes browsing so much more pleasant beacause pages are render in less space, are less distracting and less bandwidth is consumed. There is something similar which, called Ad-muncher, which will block ads in all your browsers, but I'm not that experienced with it.

That all said, there is a lot that I still like about Opera. Such as the z/x forward/back g to toggle images, the option to block all animated gifs, functional tabs ( as opposed to Firefox tabs, which are barely functional even with TBP).

Hope I'm not forgetting anything.

:

[Abyss00]

...The gecko engine is still very much third rate, the technology being buggier and slower than other browsers and rendering many pages in an inferior way.
...
Internet Explorer is by far the most superior browser which will view absolutely any web page and because the code is designed to work along with windows it is far faster and smoother with a way shorter loading time. ...

grab_grab_the_haddock your post seems to be a couple of years out of date.

Used Opera Used Firefox but for some odd reason I still like IE the best...

-infringer-

My friend had this problem too. He went to the doctor to find out what was wrong with him. Seems he was addicted to viruses and popups. Poor guy just didn't feel like he was getting the whole web browsing eXPerience without them.

[Betamax]

It must be said that, in terms of speed, Firefox + Ad-block absolutely kills both IE and Opera, so if your primary interest is speed than Firefox + Ad-block is the way to go.

>

[muffenme]

:fire

I use IE, Netscape, Firefox, and Opera and for most part they are all good browsers. IE is good as long as activex and scripts aren't enable or as less activex controls is disable. I use both Firefox and Opera as my main browser.

:hole

[g-smooth2k]

IE rendering engine based Browsers
Crazy Browser is pretty good a browser that uses the IE rendering engine.
What is Crazy Browser?
Crazy Browser is a 100% real free freeware.
It is fully multithreaded and it means that you can open several web pages simultaneously in one session.
It is customizable, providing options for changing the way Crazy Browser looks and operates.
How can I see another language on the Crazy Browser screen?
From the View menu select Languages, and then choose the language you'd like to use.
Don't see your language on the list? Click here.
Is Crazy Browser spyware?
Crazy Browser is Freeware, not adware or spyware!
Crazy Browser will never send any data to us!
How to make Crazy Browser my default browser?
On the Tools menu, click Default Browser -> Crazy Browser.
Outlook Opens a Hyperlink in Internet Explorer even though Crazy Browser is my default browser.
It's a bug of Microsoft Outlook 2000 or IE 5.5, for more information click here.
What is your business model?
This is a non-commercial product. It doesn't bring me any profit.

Tips

• Crazy Browser is not IE plug-in or add-on,
  it just uses IE rendering engine to render the Web pages.
  Programming is not so easy, I have been developing Crazy Browser for two years.
• Crazy Browser doesn't support IE plug-ins, e.g. Google toolbar.
  Most IE plug-ins work with a single Webbrowser/IE only,
  but CB can open several web pages simultaneously,
  it's impossible to make these plug-ins work correctly with CB.
  But you can type the information you want to find in the address bar,
  then press Alt + Enter to do a Google search.
• There is no small icon option.
• There is no static name.
• There is no mailing list.
• There is no forum.
• Grey color means the URL can't work offline.

MyIE2 and Maxthon are good browsers that are popular or is downloaded and used by many users.
Also MyIE2 and Maxthon is based on the IE engine.

Avant Browser is another browser that is really popular and it is based on the IE rendering engine.
What is Avant Browser?
Avant Browser can be best described as a custom web browser application.
Avant Browser is a standalone application designed to expand services provided by Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Is Avant Browser spyware?
No, Avant Browser is not spyware.
Avant Browser does not collect any information from users.
Is Avant Browser free?
Yes, Avant Browser is absolutely free!
Avant Browser is freeware.
You can use it for free, no registration is required, and there are NO limitations whatsoever.
However, if you wish to express your appreciation for the time and resources
I've expended developing and supporting it over the years, I do accept and appreciate monetary donations.
If you wish to make a donation, please click here. Your support will keep Avant Browser alive and powerful.
Does Avant Browser come with a uninstaller? Do I need to uninstall the old copy before I install a new version?
Yes, Avant Browser comes with an uninstaller.
It's suggested to uninstall the old copy and reboot your computer before installing a new version.
Does Avant Browser modify settings of Internet Explorer?
The end-user is able to use Avant Browser to modify the home page and bookmarks of Internet Explorer.
But Avant Browser doesn't modify other settings of Internet Explorer,
though there are internet settings that may be modified such as the browser identification string.
Is Avant Browser a secure browser?
Yes, Avant Browser is secure.
Since it's based on Internet Explorer, Avant Browser is as secure as Internet Explorer.
Avant Browser supports all SSL secured websites.
Avant Browser's encryption length is the same as Internet Explorer's.
Why can I not access backward/forward dropdown menus?
To enable history backward/forward dropdown menus, Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher version should be installed.
Why does Outlook Express always open links in Internet Explorer?
This is a bug of Outlook Express.
Please upgrade Outlook Express to version 6.0.
How does Avant Browser work?
Based on services provided by Microsoft Internet Explorer, Avant Browser renders and navigates HTML.
How does Avant Browser improve Internet browsing?
Avant Browser is an Application built with MDI (Multiple-Document-Interface) technology.
With MDI technology, fewer system resources are used,
web page loading is faster, and all opened pages can be easily controlled at user's pleasure.
What is the Integrated Search Engine?
Avant Browser is integrated with Yahoo/Google, the most powerful search engine in the world.
User can search the internet with Avant Browser directly, without opening Yahoo/Google's homepage.
What is the system requirements for Avant Browser?
You will need a Pentium 166 PC or higher, 16MB RAM or more.
The operating system should be Windows 95, Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME or Windows XP.
For Windows 95 systems, IE 5.5 or higher version should be installed.
For Windows NT systems, Service Pack 6 and IE 5.5 should be installed, and IE 6.0 are recommended.

For ideal performance:
A user should have at least Windows 98 and Internet Explorer 6.0 installed, and Windows 2000 installed if at all possible.

Tested System:
AMD K6 400 / 64 Ram / Windows 95 / Internet Explorer 5.5
Pentium II 333 / 64M Ram / Windows NT + Service Pack 6 / Internet Explorer 4.01
Celeron 500 / 128 Ram / Windows 98 / Internet Explorer 5
Celeron 1.7G / 128 Ram / Windows 2000 / Internet Explorer 5.5
AMD K7 800 / 256 Ram / Windows XP Home Edition / Internet Explorer 6
Pentium-4 2.4G / 512 Ram / Windows XP Professinal + Service Pack 1 / Internet Explorer 6 SP1
I have more questions - whom should I write to?
Please send your additional questions to [email protected] .

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