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Krypton

Helium alternative for Windows

Krypton vs Helium

Comparing Helium and Krypton? Both put privacy first, and Helium is part of Krypton’s open-source foundations.

Krypton adds its own tab sidebar, nested folders, workspaces and a theme editor. Glance opens a link over the page you are reading.

Download for Windows

Free for 64-bit Windows 10 and 11

The Krypton homepage open in Helium
The Krypton homepage open in Krypton, compared with Helium

Drag the divider, or focus it and use the arrow keys.Krypton and Helium, side by side.

Krypton and Helium at a glance

Helium includes content blocking and Chromium extension support too. Try Krypton if its tab organisation and customisation suit your work.

Selected differences between Krypton and Helium
What mattersKryptonHelium
FoundationsChromium, ungoogled-chromium and HeliumChromium-based, open-source browser
ExtensionsChrome Web Store extensionsChromium extension support
CustomisationWorkspace themes and per-site BoostsLayouts, toolbars, colour themes and Frameless mode

Shared foundations, different daily workflows

Helium is part of Krypton’s open-source foundations, alongside Chromium and ungoogled-chromium. Both browsers include content blocking and support Chromium extensions. The choice is more useful when you look at how you manage a day’s worth of pages.

Helium offers layout choices, toolbar customisation, colour themes and Frameless mode. Krypton centres its workflow on a tab sidebar, workspaces, nested folders and a theme editor. Try a real project in each layout instead of choosing from a feature count.

Krypton’s tools for reading and arranging pages

Krypton’s Glance opens a link over your current page with Alt-click. Keep it when it belongs in your project, or close it and return to your place. For sustained comparison work, split view can hold up to four pages.

Boost lets you restyle individual websites and keep those preferences for future visits. Helium also has its own split-view and customisation features; this comparison is about which workflow you prefer, rather than assuming only one browser has those tools.

Try one project first

Moving from Helium to Krypton

  1. Install Krypton alongside Helium and keep your Helium profile while you compare.
  2. Use Krypton’s setup to import your Helium bookmarks, then check the result.
  3. Install your essential extensions and organise one project into a workspace with folders.
  4. Try a workspace theme, a Glance and a per-site Boost before choosing your default browser.
Back to the homepage comparison

Sources and further reading

Use the official documentation to check the features you depend on. Screenshots show krypton.run with the captured settings; browser layouts, themes and extensions can change the result.

Updated