Google Chrome vs Opera GX in 2026

Opera GX is the browser most people consider when they game on the same PC they browse on, and Chrome is what they are usually leaving. Both are built on Chromium, so pages render the same and Chrome Web Store extensions install in both. The decision comes down to what Opera adds on top, and whether you want the look that comes with it.

What GX adds

GX Control is the feature that justifies the browser. It lets you cap how much RAM, CPU and network bandwidth the browser may use, so a dozen tabs on a second monitor stop competing with the game in front of you. Chrome has memory saver modes, but nothing that sets hard limits. Around that, GX adds a Twitch and Discord sidebar, GX Corner with game deals and release calendars, Razer Chroma support, and themes that reach as far as custom sound effects.

GX also ships things Chrome leaves to extensions: a native ad and tracker blocker and a free built-in VPN. That is why GX scores 3 for privacy and Chrome scores 2. Chrome blocks no trackers or ads of its own, and since Chrome removed Manifest V2 in 2026, the full version of uBlock Origin no longer runs in it at all.

The VPN and blocker do not make GX a privacy browser, though. It has no fingerprinting protection, its code is closed like Chrome's, and Opera is a public company controlled by China's Kunlun Tech, which holds about 68% of its shares. You are trading one large company's data practices for another's.

Where Chrome stays ahead

Chrome scores 5 for speed against GX's 4, and every site is tested against it first. Updates come fast: since September 2026, Chrome ships a new version every two weeks. Google account sync is the most mature of any browser, and Gemini in Chrome is the more capable AI. It can read your tabs and, on Google's paid AI Pro and Ultra plans in a few countries, browse for you. GX matches Chrome's 5 for AI features with Opera AI, formerly called Aria, which is free and needs no account.

Otherwise they are level: both score 4 for ease of use, customizability and extensions, both run on all five major platforms (GX reached Linux in March 2026), and both have split view, vertical tabs and tab groups.

Which should you choose?

Choose Chrome if you live in Google's services, want the fastest engine and the quickest security updates, and would rather keep your browser plain. For most people who don't game on their PC, it is the simpler choice.

Choose Opera GX if you game on the machine you browse on and want hard limits on what the browser can take, or you want an ad blocker and free VPN without installing anything. Turn the theme down if the neon gets old. The limiters are the real feature, and no other mainstream browser has them.