Now, things have changed. The advancement of technology brought Android to far greater heights. Due to this, surfing the web was not as simple as how it was before. Now, it’s also about using the best and the fastest browser app available for Android. Speaking of fast, one of the most searched information on Google is about the fastest Android browser. With this in mind, we selected and tested 17 of the most downloaded Android internet browser app on the Google Play store. What’s left now is the answer to the ultimate question of “What is the fastest browser for Android?”
17 Best Browsers for Android Tested for Speed
To know which app is the fastest Internet browser for Android, we selected 17 of the most downloaded and used web surfing app available on the Google Play store. Using each browser apps, we run a couple of benchmark tools for Android. This will let us get an actual performance of each browser in numbers. By doing so, we can easily determine which Android browser app performs well and which is the fastest.
Android Browser App Testing Methodology
For our test, we will be using a couple of tools that are listed below.
Benchmarking Hardware
Huawei P10
Benchmarking Platforms
JetStream 1.1ARES-6MotionMarkSpeedometer 2.0
Android Browser Apps
Google ChromeMozilla FirefoxUC BrowserDolphin BrowserOperaBrave BrowserCake BrowserMicrosoft EdgeMint BrowserCM BrowserDuckDuckGo BrowserKiwi BrowserSamsung BrowserPhoenix BrowserPuffinPure BrowserStargon Browser
Benchmarking Test Result
When doing benchmarks, one of our main procedure is to restart our testing device for each test. By doing so, this eliminates any possible performance interference due to background processes of certain apps. This would also prevent any potential bottleneck performance issues. Furthermore, our testing device is being charged for each and every benchmark. Additionally, our testing device was set to factory default while having the latest firmware and system update. So we could get the most accurate result for each benchmark possible.
JetStream 1.1
JetStream is a popular JavaScript benchmarking tool that focuses on advanced web applications. Basically, it is a combined variety of advanced JavaScript workloads and programming techniques. For this benchmark, the higher the score, the better the performance. So for this benchmark, we benchmarked each app 6 times and each run performs 3 iterations. In these 6 runs, we recorded the best score that the app could get. After testing all 17 browser apps, Puffin Browser leads by an enormous margin followed by CM Browser. Puffin is also the only browser that exceeded a 100 score mark. Basically, this means that the Puffin browser is more responsive and faster than the rest drastically.
ARES-6
ARES-6 is a benchmarking tool that simply measures the execution time of the newest features of JavaScript. Generally, it is comprised of 4 different sub-tests such as Air, Basic, Babylon, and ML. For this benchmark, we benchmarked each browser for 6 times. Each run also performs 6 iterations. After performing 6 runs, we only recorded the best result that each app could get. The Puffin Browser app yet leads again in this benchmark. Puffin finishes in just 34.37 ms which is about 960% faster than FireFox, finishing at 330.75 ms. We were expecting somewhat similar results with a 10 to 20% difference but we were not expecting FireFox to be this slow.
MotionMark
One of the main benchmark test found on BrowserBench is MotionMark. This benchmarking tool puts the browser to graphics rendering performance test. Basically, this benchmark draws different multiple 2D rendering elements. Pushing the rendering performance of the browser to its limits. For this test, we performed 3 runs per app. In each run, tons of 2D rendering tests are done. As expected, Puffin exceptionally outperforms the other browser apps. Puffin is also the only browser app for Android that exceeded a 100 score mark.
Speedometer 2.0
Last but not least, we have the Speedometer benchmark. This benchmarking tool measures the browser’s Web app responsiveness. Timing simulated user interactions for adding, completing, and removing to-do items via TodoMVC. Basically, this app simulates actual user usage. This will then test the overall responsiveness of the app. We also performed 6 runs for this benchmark when each run performs 12 iterations. Puffin yet again wins this test by scoring 45.1 runs per minute on average. It’s almost 200% faster and better in terms of performance compared to the second fastest app, the CM Browser. This goes to show that Puffin is really the faster browser for Android available on Google Play store.
Fastest Browser for Android Overall Benchmark Result
Summing up all the data we got from each benchmark results, we can conclude that the Puffin Browser is the fastest Android Internet Browser app. It exceptionally performs well and it gave us outstanding results from all of our tests. Now, let’s take a closer look at 6 of the apps that performed well on our tests.
Top 5 of the Fastest Browser for Android (Based on our Tests)
After performing various benchmarking tests on all 17 Android Browser apps, we can conclude that our top 5 fastest browsers for Android are Puffin, CM, Brave, DuckDuckGo, and Cake.
1. Puffin Web Browser – CloudMosa, Inc.
The “Puffin Web Browser” by CloudMosa, Inc. is the winner and the fastest browser for Android in our test. It easily took the number 1 spot on all of our 4 benchmarks and thus, we name it as the fastest and best browser for Android. One of the key features that make this app utterly fast is by shifting the workload from your device to the cloud servers. Puffin has over 50 million downloads on Google Play store. Making this app one of the most popular 3rd party browser app available for Android. If you haven’t tried this app yet, we highly recommend that you do so now. You will be amazed by how responsive and fast this browser is. You will conclude saying Puffin is actually the best browser for Android. Pros
23/7 Adobe Flash Over the CloudCloud Servers – Insanely the Fastest BrowserEncrypted Packets from App to Server
Cons
Blocked in Some CountriesThe Premium Version with an Integrated Ad-Blocker Cost $5Miracast or Casting to TV Features Requires Android TV
This app is available in 2 different versions and those are the “Puffin Web Browser,” which is free to download, and the “Puffin Browser Pro,” available to download for $5, both on Google Play store.
2. CM Browser – Cheetah Mobile Communications
The next fastest browser app for Android in our list is the “CM Web Browser.” This app came in 2nd place in our 3 out of 4 benchmark tests. However, it failed to maintain its position for our ARES-6 benchmark. As mentioned above, this benchmark executes the advanced features of JavaScript. For this test, the CM Browser made it to the top 5 only. The “CM (Clean Master) Browser” also has over 50 million downloads on Google Play store. The key features of this app are its integrated ad blocker, integrated anti-virus engine, and the way it deletes any forms of data once you exit the app. Pros
FREE Premium Features Ad-BlockerAnti-Virus EngineExcellent Data Cleaning Feature
Cons
Ironically Contains AdsNo Miracast or Casting to TV Features
The “CM Browser” is available for free on the Google Play store.
3. Brave Browser – Brave Software
The next app in our list of best browsers for Android that’s consistently performing in the top 8, except for the ARES-6, is the “Brave Browser” by Brave Software. The key feature of this app is that everything is free. It being free includes a built-in ad-blocker, pop-ups blocker, tracking protection, script blocking, and 3rd party cookie blocking. With over 10 million downloads, the Brave Web Browser app is definitely one of the most downloaded browser apps for Android. If you want a fast Android web browser app that doesn’t contain any form of Ads while featuring all the necessary browsing security feature for free, then we highly recommend to check out the “Brave Web Browser” app. It is one of the fastest, if not the fastest browser for Android devices. Pros
Premium Features are FREENo Ironic Ads or Any Form of AdsAds Blocker Monitor
Cons
No Miracast or Casting to TV Features
4. DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser – DuckDuckGo
The “DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser” app is one of the top 6 consistent performers in our benchmark. Despite not being in the top 3 fastest browsers for Android, the DuckDuckGo still has its own feature that attracts various users and will remain a good if not the best browser for Android. The key feature of this app is that, like “Brave Browser,” everything is free. Along with its strong “Privacy Protection” feature and a dedicated “Fire Button” to clear all tabs and data. Pros
Privacy Protection PrioritySimplest Browser App in our ListFree Premium Features
Cons
No Miracast or Casting to TV Features
5. Cake Web Browser – Cake Technologies Inc
If you haven’t heard about the “Cake Web Browser” app, don’t worry. We were not familiar with it as well. The “Cake Web Browser” app is one of the underdog apps in our list. To be honest, we didn’t expect it to perform this good. On our 3 benchmarks, this app was consistently performing in top 8s. However, it became the 2nd next to Puffin for our ARES-6 benchmark test that most struggled to perform decently. The Key feature of this app is its user browsing experience. Unlike the first 4 that we mentioned that prioritizes security and speed, the “Cake Web Browser” app prioritized user experience. Some of its features include a patent-pending technology (swipe through search results), built-in ad blocker, pop-up blocker, and more. Pros
Patented Swipe Through ResultFree Premium FeaturesFast Advanced JavaScript Performance
Cons
No Miracast or Casting to TV FeaturesThe Swipe Through Result Feature Can Be An Odd Experience
Bonus Tip
If you’re surfing the web using cellular data or WiFi, the performance of each of these apps would greatly be affected if you have a low cellular signal or outside of the optimal WiFi range area (dead spot) even on the fastest browser for Android. If you’re experiencing this issue, we highly recommend getting a signal booster.
Cellular 4G Signal Booster
NETGEAR WiFi Extender AC1200 Dual Band
If the WiFi signal is an issue at home or in your office, we highly recommend checking out the NETGEAR EX6120. This WiFi Extender features a dual band 2.4GHz and 5GHz simultaneous broadcasting as well as wireless WiFi repeater technology.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the performance of every app that we tested for this article should directly be proportional to the performance of the device being used. If you have a high-end or one of the fastest smartphones or tablets, you will barely notice the difference in terms of performance for each app. However, the performance may quite be noticeable for low-end or slow smartphones and tablets. We hope that this article helped you in choosing your daily Android web browser. If you think that we should include more apps or you have a few suggestions, do let us know in the comment section below! Featured Image
