Brave Browser Review: The Ad-Blocker Built Into the Browser, and What It Actually Costs You

The pitch is simple: Brave is a Chrome-based browser that blocks ads and trackers by default. No extensions, no configuration, it just works out of the box. This Brave Browser review covers what that actually means in daily use, what you lose compared to Chrome, and whether the crypto Rewards thing is worth caring about.

What Brave gets right, immediately

Install Brave, open any news site, and the difference is instant. No pop-ups, no cookie banners begging you to accept, no auto-playing video ads. Pages load 2-3x faster than the same site in Chrome, because the browser never downloads the trackers and ad scripts in the first place. Battery lasts longer. Data usage on mobile drops noticeably.

The built-in shields work on every site by default, and you can tap the lion icon in the address bar to see exactly what was blocked on any given page. Numbers get funny fast — a typical news article blocks 40-60 trackers.

Under the hood, it’s still Chrome

Brave uses the same Chromium engine as Chrome, which means every site that works in Chrome works in Brave. Every Chrome extension installs. Your bookmarks, saved passwords, and history can import from Chrome in one click. The learning curve is zero — it looks and feels like Chrome, minus the Google tracking.

The Rewards program — the part people argue about

Brave offers to show you privacy-respecting ads (as system notifications, not on the pages you visit) and pays you in BAT tokens for viewing them. You can turn this off entirely — it’s off by default — or turn it on and earn a few dollars a month in crypto that you can convert or tip to sites you like.

Honest take: the earnings are small and the cash-out process is annoying. If you care about crypto or supporting creators, it’s a nice feature. If you don’t, ignore it and you’ll never see it again. It does not affect the browser’s core function.

Brave Search and the AI answer thing

The default search is now Brave Search — an independent search engine that doesn’t track you and doesn’t send your queries to Google. Results are 80% as good as Google for common queries and noticeably worse for local/shopping/niche stuff. You can switch back to Google in settings if you want.

The new AI Answer feature at the top of Brave Search results summarizes web content, similar to Google’s AI Overviews but without the tracking. It’s useful for quick facts and mediocre for anything specific.

The built-in VPN

Brave includes a paid VPN option ($10/month) that routes traffic through Brave’s own servers. It’s fine — cheaper than most standalone VPNs but with fewer server locations than NordVPN or Mullvad. If you already have a VPN, skip this. If you don’t and want one, it’s a reasonable choice.

Where Brave falls short

Some sites break. A small number of banking, streaming, or payment sites don’t render properly with shields on, and you have to tap the lion icon to lower shields for that site. This is rare but annoying when it happens.

Google services (Docs, Meet, YouTube) work but Google occasionally serves the “please use Chrome” nag. Google Pay and Google Sign-In sometimes require you to disable shields. If you live inside Google’s ecosystem, Brave adds occasional friction.

Privacy — the honest picture

Brave doesn’t track your browsing. It doesn’t sell your data. Its business model is the optional Rewards ads and the optional VPN, not selling you to advertisers. Compared to Chrome (which is Google’s data collection funnel), this is a significant privacy upgrade for zero configuration effort.

Compared to Firefox with strict tracking protection, Brave is roughly equivalent on privacy but faster and easier for the default user. Compared to Tor Browser, Brave is much easier to use but much less anonymous. Pick based on your threat model.

Should you use Brave?

If you’re currently using Chrome and want ad blocking + tracker blocking without installing extensions, yes — switch to Brave, import your Chrome data in one click, and stop paying attention to it. Everything works, everything’s faster, and the surveillance is quieter. Skip the Rewards and VPN unless you specifically want them. It’s the browser most people should install by default.