What is Arc?
Arc replaced the browser's tabs-and-toolbar layout with a vertical sidebar organised into Spaces and Profiles, adding Split View, Peek previews and Boosts that restyle sites. It is free. The most important current fact about Arc is its status: The Browser Company states that Arc receives Chromium updates only and directs users who want active security patches to its successor, Dia. Arc is therefore a browser to install with open eyes — it still works, but it is no longer the product receiving new features.
Verified product facts
- Type
- web browserEditorially reviewed
- Platform
- macOS
- Pricing
- FreeDeveloper-stated
- Developer
- The Browser CompanyDeveloper-stated
- Relationship to Nuanyue
- Third-party product — not published by NuanyueEditorially reviewed
- Current version
- 1.167.1Developer-stated
- Official website
- arc.net/
Last updated . Facts marked developer-stated come from the developer and are not independently confirmed; editorially reviewed marks a Nuanyue judgement.
Key features
What Arc does at a glance.
Vertical sidebar replacing the horizontal tab strip
Spaces and Profiles
For separating contexts
Split View
For two pages side by side
Peek previews
Open links without leaving the page
Boosts
Restyle websites with custom CSS
What you can use Arc for
- Browsing with tabs in a vertical sidebar instead of a horizontal tab strip
- Keeping work, study and personal browsing apart in separate Spaces
- Viewing two pages side by side in Split View
- Previewing a link without leaving the current page
- Restyling a website with a Boost
Who is Arc for?
- Mac users who prefer a sidebar-and-Spaces layout over the standard tab strip
- People who want a Chromium-based browser with a different interface layer
Who is Arc not for?
- Anyone who needs a browser under active feature development — the developer states Arc receives Chromium updates only
- People on macOS 12 or earlier — the Mac build requires macOS 13.0 or later
Limitations
- macOS 13.0 or later is required for the Mac build
- Receives Chromium updates only, with no new feature development
- Apple Silicon support is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks
Strengths and trade-offs
What Arc does well, and what to weigh before choosing it. Points marked developer-stated come from the developer’s own material and have not been independently confirmed.
Strengths
- Replaces tabs with a vertical sidebar organised into Spaces and Profiles.Developer-stated
- Includes Split View, Peek previews of links, and Boosts that restyle websites.Developer-stated
- Free to download and use.Developer-stated
Trade-offs
- The developer states Arc receives Chromium updates only, and directs users who want active security patches to its successor, Dia.
- It is no longer the product receiving new features from The Browser Company, so feature development has effectively stopped.
- The macOS build requires macOS 13.0 or later.Developer-stated
First-use experience
What the app asks of you when you set it up. Only established facts appear here; anything we could not confirm is left out rather than guessed at.
- Installation Developer-stated
- Download a .dmg from arc.net/download; the Mac build requires macOS 13.0 or later.
- First launch Developer-stated
- Onboarding walks through importing data from another browser and creating a first Space.
- System integration Editorially reviewed
- Can be set as the default browser; on macOS it stores its data separately from Safari and Chrome profiles.
What it does
Arc reworks the browser’s layout. Instead of a horizontal strip of tabs above a toolbar, it puts a vertical sidebar on the left, organised into Spaces (separate contexts such as Work, Study and Personal) and Profiles. On top of that it adds Split View for two pages side by side, Peek for previewing a link without leaving the page, and Boosts, which restyle websites by injecting CSS.
Status: maintenance mode
This is the fact that should decide whether you install it. The developer’s own download page carries a notice in plain text:
FYI: Arc receives Chromium updates only. For active security patches and enterprise-grade protection, download Dia instead.
Dia is The Browser Company’s successor product. So Arc still runs and still receives Chromium updates — which is where browser engine security fixes come from — but it is no longer the product receiving new features or the company’s active security work.
Nuanyue records this as a verified fact rather than an editorial judgement because it is the vendor’s own published statement.
Requirements
The macOS build requires macOS 13.0 or later.
Apple Silicon
Recorded as unknown. The download page does not state the build’s architecture, and the absence of that statement is not evidence either way.
Release history
Dated releases recorded for Arc, newest first, each with the source it was read from.
Arc 1.x
The developer states Arc receives Chromium updates only, with no new feature development.
Source: Official website
Questions about Arc
Is Arc still being developed?
Not in the usual sense. The Browser Company states on Arc's own download page that Arc receives Chromium updates only, and tells users who want active security patches and enterprise-grade protection to download Dia instead.
Is Arc safe to keep using?
It continues to receive Chromium updates, which is where browser security fixes come from. The developer's own wording is that it does not receive active security patches beyond that and points to Dia for them — so the honest answer is that it is maintained at a reduced level, not abandoned and not fully supported.
Is Arc free?
Yes. Arc is free to download and use.Developer-stated
Which macOS version does Arc require?
macOS 13.0 or later for the Mac build.Developer-stated
Alternatives to Arc
Apps that could replace this one — the same job, a different trade-off.
Brave
Privacy-first Chromium browser with ad and tracker blocking built in.
Both are Chromium browsers with a distinct interface philosophy; Brave is actively developed and focuses on blocking trackers.
Safari
Apple's WebKit-based browser, included with macOS.
Both are Mac browsers, but Safari uses WebKit and integrates with Apple's ecosystem while Arc is Chromium-based.
Compared with
Head-to-head comparisons Nuanyue has published.
Firefox
Mozilla's open-source browser with its own engine.
Both are alternative browsers, but Firefox is actively developed and independent of Chromium while Arc is Chromium-based and in maintenance.
Similar apps
Related in purpose, but not a straight swap.
Chrome
Google's proprietary Chromium-based browser.
Arc is built on Chromium, so it renders pages the same way Chrome does; the difference is entirely in the interface layer.
Links
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the sources below. Last updated .
