Besides, Vivaldi is a privacy-focused browser that does not use Google's data-mining probes or controversial APIs.Ĭhrome's average overall performance is another proof of why it is the most popular browser. Vivaldi could be your best choice if you need a browser that provides solid battery life compared to the competition and does not require enabling energy-saving modes. Efficiency mode let Edge crush the competition and finish first with 8 minutes ahead of Vivaldi.

The browser got a major battery life boost, gaining more than one extra hour. Edge scored 5 hours and 31 minutes, and Firefox came last, showing a time of only 4 hours and 43 minutes.Īnd then Microsoft Edge pulled its efficiency mode wildcard. Unlike the previous test, Chrome came second with 5 hours and 48 minutes. Vivaldi finished first (spoiler: not for long) with a solid time of 6 hours and 27 minutes. Note: Chrome, Edge, and Vivaldi used the VP9 codec while Firefox picked AV1. Unfortunately, in addition to inferior performance, Firefox users must deal with worse energy efficiency. 25 minutes might not sound impressive, but it is still a solid result overall.įinally, Firefox finished with 5 hours and 27 minutes of YouTube playback, proving once again that developers optimize their websites and services primarily for Chromium-based browsers. It helped Edge gain 25 extra minutes, proving that efficiency mode is not just a marketing gimmick. Microsoft's browser has a built-in efficiency mode that reduces CPU usage to improve battery life. Still, Edge was not giving up that easily. The ability to watch one or even two more episodes of your favorite series is no joke. A one-hour difference is a significant blow to Edge, which could make users consider other browsers to get the best battery life for media consumption. Vivaldi came second with an almost identical time of 6 hours and 56 minutes.Īlthough Microsoft Edge uses Chromium just like Chrome and Vivaldi, it showed notably worse battery performance when playing YouTube - 5 hours and 59 minutes.

Unsurprisingly, Chrome showed the best energy efficiency when playing YouTube, and it lasted for 6 hours and 57 minutes. Important: You might experience slightly different results depending on software and hardware configuration.

We enabled sync in all four browsers, added several extensions, and disabled ad-blockers for an extra strain to simulate how the average user browses the internet. We attempted to find the most energy-efficient browser by running two tests: a looping YouTube video playback at 1080p and refreshing two 'heavy' websites every 60 seconds (hard-refresh with cache).

Microsoft edge vs chrome battery drain