Orion Browser by Kagi vs Crest Browser
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Orion Browser by Kagi
Experience a fast and private web browsing experience on your iPhone and iPad. This browser blocks ads and trackers by default, ensuring your online activity remains confidential. It's designed with a strong focus on user privacy, preventing personal information from leaving the app.
- Fast web browsing
- No ads
- No telemetry
- Privacy-respecting design
- Industry-leading anti-tracking
- Built-in ad-blocker
Read full descriptionHide full description
Orion is a fast, free, web browser for iPhone and iPad with no ads, no telemetry. Check also Orion for your Mac desktop. Orion has been engineered from ground up as a truly privacy-respecting browser. We did it by embracing a simple principle - Orion is a zero telemetry browser. Your private information will never leave Orion by default. And to protect your privacy on the web, Orion comes with industry-leading anti-tracking technology as well as a powerful built-in ad-blocker. --- Privacy Policy: https://orionbrowser.com/privacy License Agreement: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Crest Browser
Organize your online life with distinct browsing contexts for work, personal use, and private browsing. Each context has its own tabs, history, and data, ensuring a clean separation of your digital activities.
- Isolated browsing contexts (Spaces)
- Separate tabs, history, and cookies per Space
- Customizable Space identity
- Focused sidebar for tabs and history
- Peek for temporary link previews
- Optional iCloud sync
Read full descriptionHide full description
Work, personal life, and everything between deserve their own Space. Crest is a native browser for iPhone and iPad that keeps your accounts separate, your tabs organized, and your browsing distinctly yours. KEEP YOUR ACCOUNTS SEPARATE Each Space has its own tabs, cookies, website data, history, passwords, and site permissions. Stay signed in to different accounts on the same website. Switch from work to personal browsing without carrying the wrong session with you. GIVE EVERY TAB A PLACE Pin the sites you use every day. Save pages in folders. Keep today's tabs close and completed work in the archive. Select and move tabs, folders, and Split View groups together. On iPhone, bring in the sidebar with a gesture; on iPad, keep it beside your page. MAKE IT YOUR OWN Start with a Winter, Lion, or other crest template in Crest Studio, then change the colors, artwork, and background. Choose a crest, emoji, monogram, or symbol. Look and Feel lets you adjust the sidebar's edge, tab appearance, borders, icon colors, and default page zoom, with a live preview. KEEP RELATED PAGES TOGETHER Group two to four pages in Split View. On iPad, browse them side by side and resize the columns. On iPhone, swipe across the compact toolbar to move between pages in the group. Peek lets you check supported links without losing your place, then keep the page as a tab when you need it. TOOLS FOR EVERYDAY BROWSING Translate webpages on device with Apple's Translation framework. Read supported articles in Reader, find text on a page, adjust zoom, share links, and export pages. Content blocking and site permissions give you control over each Space. Language availability varies, and translation may require a language download. PRIVATE WHEN YOU NEED IT Private Browsing uses temporary website storage. Private tabs stay out of saved history, restoration, archive, and sync. Crest does not run an advertising SDK, collect browsing analytics, or require a Crest account. PICK UP ON ANOTHER DEVICE Optional iCloud sync keeps supported Space and tab organization available across your Apple devices through your private iCloud database. Crest is also available for Mac. Crest is free and open source, built with Apple's WebKit. Requires iOS 26.1 or iPadOS 26.1 or later. Some website features and integrations vary by device.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Orion Browser by Kagi at 56% against Crest Browser's 0%. Orion Browser by Kagi also leads on ratings volume (1.2K vs 3) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.1). Crest Browser's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 9) and rating (4.3 vs 4.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Orion Browser by Kagi sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $5.00 per month. Crest Browser asks for nothing beyond the download.
Crest Browser holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Orion Browser by Kagi has 1.2K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 56% of Orion Browser by Kagi's written reviews are positive against 0% of Crest Browser's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Orion Browser by Kagi ships an update every 11 days, Crest Browser every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Orion Browser by Kagi | Crest Browser |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (1.2K ratings) | 4.3 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 55.5% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1.2K — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 11 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 135 MB | 57 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Kagi Inc. | Paul Davis |
Customer experience
Orion Browser by Kagi
Crest Browser
Bugs and requests
Orion Browser by Kagi
Reported bugs
5 issues- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Extensions not working properly
- Tab management issues (tabs disappearing, not loading correctly)
- Rendering problems on certain websites
- Sync issues between devices
Requested features
5 requests- Dark mode option
- Improved tab management and organization
- Better extension compatibility and customization
- Seamless cross-device sync
- Ability to disable specific features (e.g., ad-blocker)
Crest Browser
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Orion Browser by Kagi
- Orion+ Monthly$5.001 Month
- Orion+ Yearly$50.001 Year
- Small Tip$5.00
- Medium Tip$10.00
- Large Tip$20.00
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Generous Tip$30.00
- Super Tip$50.00
- Amazing Tip$100.00
- Orion+ Lifetime$150.00
Crest Browser
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Orion Browser by Kagi free?
Is Crest Browser free?
Which has better reviews, Orion Browser by Kagi or Crest Browser?
Do Orion Browser by Kagi or Crest Browser have ads?
Which is updated more often, Orion Browser by Kagi or Crest Browser?
Other comparisons















