Download LibreWolf — Hardened Firefox Fork with uBlock Origin for Windows PC v159.0-1 for Windows PC

Community Firefox fork with hardened privacy defaults for Windows: uBlock Origin preinstalled, strict tracking protection, resistFingerprinting, no telemetry...

Features

• uBlock Origin comes preinstalled and active from the very first launch, so ads and trackers are blocked immediately without visiting an extensions store or configuring a single filter list yourself.
• Strict tracking protection and resistFingerprinting are enabled by default, reducing cross-site tracking and making your browser considerably harder to identify uniquely across the different websites you visit daily.
• Telemetry, Pocket and other Firefox data collection features are removed or disabled completely, so the browser does not send usage reports back to any vendor by default at all.
• Cookies and site storage are cleared automatically when you close LibreWolf, which limits long-term tracking by advertisers and reduces how long stray account logins remain active on your machine.
• LibreWolf is built directly from Firefox, so most Firefox extensions, themes and familiar settings work normally, making the switch from standard Firefox comparatively easy for most existing users.

Considerations

• Strict privacy defaults break some websites until you relax individual settings for them, which frustrates users who expect every login and embedded widget to work immediately everywhere.
• Streaming services such as Netflix need Widevine DRM enabled manually in Settings, because DRM support is deliberately switched off by default in the hardened configuration here.
• Updates trail new Firefox releases by several days and support is entirely community-only, so there is no vendor help desk to call when something breaks.

Install standard Firefox and privacy is a project: you change tracking protection, search for telemetry switches and add a blocker. LibreWolf reverses that starting point. uBlock Origin is already installed, Enhanced Tracking Protection is strict, and the resistFingerprinting setting rounds or spoofs several values sites use to identify a browser, such as window size behaviour. Letterboxing can appear because of that protection. Cookies and site data are set to clear on close, so a login that persists for months in another browser becomes a per-session login here unless you add an exception. Pocket, sponsored shortcuts and data reporting are gone rather than merely hidden. The settings are grouped so you can loosen one item, for example allowing cookies for a single trusted site, without turning off the whole model. The result is measurable in daily use: fewer trackers load, fewer accounts stay signed in, and a few more sites ask you to prove you are not a bot. Those defaults also mean the browser behaves the same on a fresh install on any machine, with no personal checklist to reapply each time you set one up.

LibreWolf suits people who already understand the privacy trade-off and are tired of reapplying it after every Firefox install. Journalists, researchers, students on shared machines and anyone who wants sessions wiped on close get the most from it, especially the automatic clearing of cookies and storage. It also suits users who prefer community open source software with no account requirement. Start elsewhere if your browsing is mostly streaming, banking apps with aggressive bot checks, or work portals that demand a completely standard browser. Those users will spend their first week creating exceptions. It is also a poor fit if you depend on Firefox Sync, because account services are not the focus here and some will not work as expected. A practical middle path is to run LibreWolf as your main private browser and keep standard Firefox or a Chromium browser installed for the few stubborn services that refuse hardened settings. Keeping that second browser installed is not a failure of the approach; it is how most experienced LibreWolf users handle the small incompatible corner of the web.

A real session begins with no sign-in prompt and no sponsored tiles. You open news and reference sites and uBlock Origin's counter shows trackers blocked on almost every page. Because cookies clear on close, yesterday's shopping login is gone, which is mildly annoying and exactly the point: the session does not silently continue. Mid-session you open a streaming site and hit a DRM error, so you enable Widevine once in Settings and reload. A government or banking page that loops on a fingerprint check gets a site-specific exception rather than a global change. At the end you close the browser and the local history of cookies and site storage is wiped, while bookmarks and your saved exceptions remain for tomorrow. The pattern after a week is consistent: most of the web works untouched, a handful of sites live on your exception list, and nothing required a research project to set up. After that first week, most users stop adjusting settings entirely, because the exception list stops growing once their regular sites have each been handled once.

Run librewolf-159.0-1-windows-x86_64-setup.exe and complete the standard Windows installation. LibreWolf installs separately from Firefox, so your existing Firefox profile is not overwritten.

On first launch, import bookmarks from Firefox or another browser if you need them. Leave sync off if you want the default no-account setup, and confirm uBlock Origin is present in the toolbar.

Visit your essential sites once. If a streaming or banking site fails, enable DRM in Settings or relax the specific protection for that site instead of disabling protections globally.

Is LibreWolf — Hardened Firefox Fork with uBlock Origin for Windows PC free and open source?

Yes. LibreWolf — Hardened Firefox Fork with uBlock Origin for Windows PC is completely free and open-source software. You can download and use it at no cost, and its source code is publicly available.

What is the difference between LibreWolf and Firefox?

LibreWolf starts from Firefox code but changes the defaults: telemetry and Pocket are removed, uBlock Origin is preinstalled, tracking protection is strict, resistFingerprinting is on, and cookies clear on close. Firefox ships with more permissive defaults aimed at compatibility. LibreWolf also has no Firefox account integration by default. In short, Firefox prioritises working everywhere; LibreWolf prioritises privacy first.

How can I enable DRM content playback in LibreWolf?

Open Settings, search for DRM, and enable the option to play DRM-controlled content, which downloads Google Widevine. You may also need to allow the site in uBlock Origin and check that fingerprinting protection is not blocking the player. Restart the browser after enabling it. Without Widevine, services such as Netflix and Spotify Web Player will refuse to stream protected video and audio.

Why does Netflix not work in LibreWolf?

Netflix requires Widevine DRM, which LibreWolf leaves disabled by default because DRM is proprietary and can be used for identification. Enable DRM playback in Settings to install Widevine, then reload Netflix and allow any blocked player scripts in uBlock Origin. If playback still fails, temporarily relax resistFingerprinting for that site. The breakage is intentional default behaviour, not a bug in the browser.

Does LibreWolf support Firefox extensions?

Yes. Because LibreWolf is built from Firefox, most extensions from the Firefox Add-ons store install and work normally, including password managers, note tools and translation add-ons. uBlock Origin is already preinstalled, so you do not need to add it yourself. A small number of extensions that rely on Firefox accounts, sync or telemetry-related services may not function fully under LibreWolf's hardened defaults.

How often is LibreWolf updated?

LibreWolf follows Firefox releases, but builds appear a few days later because the small community team must apply its patches, test them and publish installers. Version 159.0-1, for example, tracks Firefox 159.0 with LibreWolf's own build number after the dash. Check for updates inside the browser or on librewolf.net. That short delay is normal and is the main update trade-off versus using Firefox directly.