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Side-by-side comparison ยท AI Browsers & Agents

Brave vs Microsoft Edge vs Opera Neon

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Brave

3.9

From $14.99/mo

Microsoft Edge

3.9

From $19.99/mo

Opera Neon

3.4

From $19.90/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Best value

Pick it if: Business owners who want an AI helper in the browser but don't want their browsing or chats stored or used for training.

Easiest to use

Pick it if: Windows and Microsoft 365 users who want AI help with reading, comparing and researching in the browser they already have.

Pick it if: Business owners and power users who want an AI that does web tasks for them and are happy to pay for access to several top models in one place.

Overview

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
In one lineA privacy browser with Leo, a free AI assistant that doesn't keep your chats.Microsoft's free browser with Copilot built in to read pages, compare tabs and do tasks.Opera's agentic AI browser that browses, researches and builds things for you.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumFreemium
Starting price$14.99/mo$19.99/mo$19.90/mo
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Works with Claude Code No No Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Overall rating3.93.93.4
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.0
4.5
3.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.
3.5
3.5
4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
3.5
3.5
3.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.5
4.0
3.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
4.0
3.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Mobile app Yes Yes No
Desktop app Yes Yes Yes
Browser extension No Yes No
API access No No Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace No Yes No
Enterprise plan or SSO No Yes No
Connects to other apps No Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files Yes Yes Yes
Understands images Yes Yes Yes
Makes images No Yes Yes
Makes video No No Yes
Writes code No No Yes
Runs agents or automations Yes Yes Yes
Learns your brand or style No No No
Works in many languages Yes Yes Yes
Capabilities score7/ 1712/ 1711/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Plans

FreeOur pick

Free

Everyday summaries and questions while you browse.

FreeOur pick

Free

Most people: summaries, tab comparisons and Journeys.

Free

Free

Trying Neon, or letting your own AI agent use a browser.

Leo Premium

$14.99/mo, or $149.99/yr

Daily users who want better answers and fewer limits.

Microsoft 365 Premium

$19.99/mo, or $199.99/yr

US households and sole traders who want the agent and Office apps in one bill.

StandardOur pick

$19.90/mo

Anyone who wants Neon's agents to do web tasks for them.

Microsoft 365 Copilot (business)

See website

Companies on Microsoft 365 business plans.

Which plan to pickStart free. If you hit the daily limits or the answers feel thin, Premium at $14.99 a month gets you Claude-level quality inside a private browser. If you already pay for ChatGPT or Claude, you may not need Premium at all, since those work in any browser.Stay on free. The side panel, tab comparisons and Journeys cover what most business owners need, and they cost nothing. Microsoft 365 Premium is only worth it if you're in the US and already want Office for the household; don't buy it just for the browser agent, which Microsoft still calls experimental.If you're choosing Neon, it's for the agents, so Standard at $19.90 a month is the plan that matters. Month to month, so try it for one month on a real job. The free plan's chat is more basic than the free AI in Opera One, so only stay on Free if you want to plug in your own Claude or ChatGPT.

Key features

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Standout features
  • Leo in the sidebar
  • Private by design
  • Choice of models
  • Bring your own model
  • AI browsing (early test)
  • Ask Brave
  • Copilot side panel
  • Journeys
  • Browse with Copilot
  • Memory and history
  • Study, write, listen
  • Voice and Vision on mobile
  • Neon Do
  • Neon Make
  • Deep research
  • Tasks and Cards
  • Top models in one place
  • Bring your own AI

Pros and cons

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Pros
  • Free Leo with no account and no chat history kept
  • Open source, with ads and trackers blocked by default
  • Premium includes Claude models for $14.99 a month
  • Can run your own or a local model
  • On Mac, Windows, Linux, Android and iPhone
  • Already installed on Windows, nothing new to learn
  • Free Copilot reads pages and compares open tabs well
  • Journeys makes it easy to pick research back up
  • Chrome extensions and bookmarks work
  • Strong admin controls for businesses on Microsoft 365
  • One of the strongest browser agents in reviews
  • Several top models from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google in one subscription
  • Free plan lets your own AI drive the browser
  • Tasks keep each project's tabs and chat together
  • Month to month, no annual lock-in
Cons
  • The agent is an opt-in experiment hidden in brave://flags
  • Free models give weaker answers than Comet or ChatGPT
  • Reviewers report the odd confidently wrong answer
  • No connections to Gmail, Slack or calendars like Dia
  • Crypto wallet and rewards extras some people find off-putting
  • The agent is US only and needs Microsoft 365 Premium
  • Several features are US or English-language only, so Australian users get less
  • Microsoft calls the agent experimental and warns it can misread instructions
  • Copilot prompts are pushed into many corners of the browser, which some find cluttered
  • Screenshots from agent sessions are kept with the chat for up to 30 days
  • $19.90 a month when Comet and Opera One have free AI sidebars
  • Three separate modes (Chat, Do, Make) confuse new users
  • Windows and Mac only, no mobile app
  • Still labelled experimental by Opera
  • Prompt injection risk, as with every AI browser agent

Who each one is for

AttributeBraveMicrosoft EdgeOpera Neon
Best for
  • Summarising pages, PDFs and Google Docs privately
  • Quick answers with Brave Search sources
  • People who want ad and tracker blocking built in
  • Running your own or a local AI model in the browser
  • Summarising long pages and PDFs
  • Comparing products or quotes across open tabs
  • Picking research back up days later with Journeys
  • Businesses already paying for Microsoft 365
  • Handing off web chores like bookings and form filling
  • Deep research reports on a market or competitor
  • Building quick reports, pages or images from research
  • Letting Claude or ChatGPT use a real browser (free plan)
You'll find it used by
  • Privacy-minded owners
  • Researchers
  • Developers
  • Anyone leaving Chrome
  • Office workers
  • Small business owners
  • Students
  • Windows users
  • Founders
  • Marketers
  • Researchers
  • Power users

Questions people ask

Which is better, Brave, Microsoft Edge or Opera Neon?

They tie on our overall rating (Brave 3.9/5, Microsoft Edge 3.9/5 and Opera Neon 3.4/5). Brave is best for summarising pages, PDFs and Google Docs privately and quick answers with Brave Search sources. Microsoft Edge is best for summarising long pages and PDFs and comparing products or quotes across open tabs. Opera Neon is best for handing off web chores like bookings and form filling and deep research reports on a market or competitor.

Which is cheaper, Brave, Microsoft Edge or Opera Neon?

Brave: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $14.99/mo. Microsoft Edge: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $19.99/mo. Opera Neon: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $19.90/mo.

Which is easier to use, Brave, Microsoft Edge or Opera Neon?

Microsoft Edge rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Windows and Microsoft 365 users who want AI help with reading, comparing and researching in the browser they already have.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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