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Browser extensions can add important and useful functionality to a browser. While the most popular extensions are ad blockers (for obvious reasons), extensions can offer a number of features, from grammar checking (such as Grammarly) to password managers (such as 1Password and Bitwarden).
Below are 10 of my favorite browser extensions for Chrome (and Chromium-based browsers like Edge), Firefox, and/or Safari. I note Safari has fewer extensions overall versus Chrome/Chromium and Firefox. Those using Safari on the Mac might want to consider keeping Firefox installed as a secondary browser. Also note I’m focused on the desktop versions of browsers, as most mobile browsers don’t support plugins.
AdGuard (Safari)
AdGuard is an ad blocker for Safari. While I don’t like it as much as uBlock Origin (see below), that one isn’t available on Safari, and AdGuard fills the same role well.
AutoplayStopper (Chrome)
AutoplayStopper is an extension that blocks autoplaying videos in Chromium-based browsers. Very useful, given the state of the modern internet and video-heavy sites like CNN.
I note that Firefox and Safari have built-in autoplay block features. Unfortunately, how well all of these browsers/extensions work at blocking autoplay video varies.
Bitwarden (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)
Extension (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)
Bitwarden is an open source freemium password manager. While a paid tier is optional (offering extra features), the free version will work fine for most people. Bitwarden has also avoided some of the problems plaguing commercial proprietary services like LastPass. There’s also a desktop version of Bitwarden.
Disable Google Search Text Highlights (Chrome)
When searching Google in Chrome, clicking through to a URL in the results will often scroll to highlighted search text, versus just displaying the page. Chrome will also add the highlighted text to URLs, making copying/pasting URLs a pain. This extension removes all of this, making Google search and Chrome/Chromium browsers work as they’re supposed to: a search engine and browser respectively.
Facebook Container (Firefox)
Facebook Container places Facebook and Instagram pages within their own privacy “containers” in Firefox, blocking tracking on non-Meta websites. It’s one of Firefox’s most popular extensions, for obvious reasons.
Library Extension (Chrome, Firefox)
Extension (Chrome, Firefox)
Library Extension displays (in a sidebar) whether books/ebooks on Amazon, etc. are available for free at your local library, both physically and through library-related resources like Hoopla. It helps users save money and make use of public libraries.
Picture-in-Picture Extension (by Google) (Chrome)
This extension provides easy one-click access in Chrome to picture-in-picture for videos. (Firefox and Safari have a similar feature built in by default.)
Screenshot YouTube (Chrome) / YouTube Screenshot (Firefox)
While different extensions, they both perform the same function: taking screenshots of YouTube videos. For myself, this is a useful feature when writing posts that don’t require embedding an entire video, or as a way to make my own desktop wallpaper (for videos in 1080p HD).
Share to Mastodon (Chrome, Firefox)
Share to Mastodon displays in the browser toolbar a button that lets you share whatever site you’re reading on Mastodon. Given Mastodon share buttons in articles aren’t widespread across sites yet, this is a useful way to share articles.
uBlock Origin (Chrome, Firefox)
uBlock Origin is a popular ad blocking extension. The extension works easily, is regularly updated, and offers many features (such as privacy aspects) by default. ublock Origin has become one of the most popular browser extensions.
Note uBlock Origin is completely unrelated to the similarly-named extension “uBlock.”
Image by Mudassar Iqbal from Pixabay
