Built on Zen · Free and open source
A calm browser,
doors locked.
Xiao is Zen Browser with ad and tracker blocking built into the browser itself, its privacy settings turned up, and tabs that go through Tor when you ask for them.
For macOS, Windows and Linux. Your own Zen stays as it is.
Try the start page
This is Xiao's real start page. Search, or press Edit start page to choose your sites and search engine. In Xiao it opens with every new tab; the numbers here are made up.
What Xiao adds to Zen
Private by default, calm by design.
The add-on process, with six busy sites open
290 → 39 MB
- Whole browser, after a minute
- 3,193 → 2,179 MB
- Whole browser, after freeing memory
- 2,026 → 1,821 MB
- Telemetry, studies and remote experiments18
- Sponsored content and recommendations8
- Tracking protection14
- Connections14
- Requests made before you ask (also keeps the Tor container clean)13
- WebRTC: never reveal local addresses3
- Safe Browsing stays on; downloads are not sent to Google3
How it is made
Small on purpose.
Xiao is a thin layer on other people's careful work. Five rules keep it that way.
- Care. Every colour pair is readable, motion stops when you ask your system for less, and the limits are as easy to find as the features.
- Simplify. One accent, one mark, two typefaces. Defaults that work without a settings page.
- Unite. The start page, the browser, Xiao Search and this site share one set of design files.
- Trust. Every setting Xiao changes is listed. Tor tabs are always violet, and Tor being on is written out, not just tinted.
- Elevate. Zen's calm, with protection that otherwise takes an evening of add-ons and about:config.
Two ways to run it
| The kit | The build | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A copy of the Zen you already have, with Xiao's code inside and a profile of its own. Your normal Zen is left alone. | Zen's source, renamed and rebuilt with Xiao's code inside. |
| Available | Now | Set up in this repository, not yet compiled. |
| Updates | When Zen updates, Xiao rebuilds its copy at the next start. Run the installer again for a new Xiao. | Download each new release. |
| Tor and search | The installer can add Tor and Xiao Search; both run only while Xiao is open. | Tor tabs if a tor is already running on port 9160; built-in Tor is planned. |
What it doesn't do
- It doesn't make you anonymous. Tor tabs hide your address, but the browser itself is still recognisable as Xiao. When that matters, use Tor Browser.
- It doesn't block everything. Filter lists catch most ads and trackers, not all, and a few sites need blocking switched off to work.
- It isn't audited. The settings come from well-known projects, but no one has reviewed Xiao as a whole.