Most browsers out of the box are… fine. But with the right extensions, you can turn them into something more powerful and personal. Honestly, there are a lot ofgreat add-ons out there, but I like to stick to as few as possible.
All of these are all open-source, and more importantly, they solve real problems I deal with every single day. They help me read better, browse safer, stay organized, and waste less time fighting annoying design choices on the web. And the best part about these is that they are available on almost every popular browser out there.
Hypothesis
Turn any webpage into your notebook
My work involves reading a lot of articles throughout the day, and most of them are not light reads.Hypothesis lets me highlight text on any webpage and add notes directly on top of it. By default, all these notes stay private, but there is an option to share them publicly with others and start a discussion.
This is great for deep reading and research, especially when I am bouncing between long documentation and dense technical posts. When I come across something, I can highlight it and leave a note. The best part is that when I close and come back to the same page later, Hypothesis shows all my saved notes and highlights so I can pick up where I left off.
I can also share them with a colleague to collaborate on something, very similar to how you wouldwork together inside Google Docs. Hypothesis also works beautifully with PDFs, which is great if you use your browser as the default PDF viewer.
DuckDuckGo Search & Tracker Protection
Browse without being followed
One of the common problems while browsing is the amount of data that gets quietly collected about you. That’s why I like to installDuckDuckGo Search & Tracker Protection before I get started.
You may already know DuckDuckGo for its privacy-focused search engine, which does not track your searches or build a profile around you. But this extension goes a step further. It actively blocks trackers on the pages you visit and even those embedded in your emails.
It also blocks tracking cookies, so sites cannot recognize or follow me around. Finally, it forces websites to use HTTPS whenever possible, which ensures that the connection is encrypted and harder to intercept.
uBlock Origin Lite
A cleaner web, instantly
uBlock Origin Lite is a lightweight version of the legendary uBlock Origin, built specifically for modern browser extension standards. It blocks intrusive ads, popups, and banners right out of the box. This allows pages to load quicker, and news sites become readable again because I no longer have to fight through layers of visual clutter.
One feature I use all the time is the ability to remove elements from a page. If there’s a sticky header, a floating chat box, or some annoying widget distracting me, I can use this extension to get rid of it.
Another thing I appreciate is how easy it makes moving between browsers. It lets me back up and restore all my settings, custom filters, and preferences in a few clicks. For someone who constantly switches between different browsers, this saves me a huge amount of time and keeps my setup consistent everywhere.
Bitwarden Password Manager
A free vault for all your passwords
Almost every browser offers the option to save passwords, butI prefer to avoid them for a few good reasons. Instead, I rely onBitwarden, which is an open-source password manager.
With Bitwarden, all my passwords live in one encrypted vault. I can access them on any browser, any device and everything stays in sync. It does everything you’d expect a password manager tool to do. It can generate complex passwords, autofill information on websites, and keep everything organized.
The free tier does more than enough for my needs, which is rare these days. But even if you were to upgrade, it’s one of the most affordable password managers at $10 a year. For something that protects your entire digital life, that feels like an easy decision.
I'm a Security Expert, and This Is My Favorite Free Password Manager
I've used so many password managers over the years, and this is the one I always come back to.
Dark Reader
Make browsing easy on your eyes
When you spend long hours staring at browsers, you know how harsh bright white webpages can get. Thankfully, most websites these days come with a dark mode toggle, but plenty still do not. And honestly, jumping between dark and blindingly white websites at night can be a nightmare.
Dark Reader solves that problem by turning almost any website into a clean, dark mode experience. Instead of relying on whether a site supports dark mode and enabling it manually, I get the same eye-friendly look everywhere. It makes long reading sessions and late night work much more comfortable.
What I like most is how customizable it is. I can adjust brightness and contrast, tweak the grayscale and even automate it based on the time of day. Dark during the night, light during the day, without me having to think about it.
You do not need dozens of extensions to make a difference. Sometimes, just a select few are enough to completely change how your browser feels. These extensions are the ones that make the browsing a lot smoother for me. And the fact that they are free and open source is just a bonus.
