Take Project Nova for a spin in Nightly!

[AshleyT]

Hi there! I'm Ashley, Senior Staff Product Manager for Firefox. After months of updates on Project Nova, it's finally in Nightly, ready for you to see for yourself. We're modernizing Firefox from the ground up to ensure it remains a fast, secure, and highly customizable companion for today’s internet.

This is still early days, so you'll notice some rough edges — a few things may look unfinished or inconsistent for now. Keep your Nightly up to date to see the latest. 

As a reminder, the Project Nova updates include:

• Simpler navigation and a redesigned Settings experience, now live in release
• Refreshed tabs, icons, spacing, and browser surfaces
• More ways to make it yours, with rich new themes, wallpapers, and personalization options that let Firefox match your style.

We're grateful for all the thoughtful feedback we got on our earlier Connect post, on social media, and through user research. Based on what we heard, we've made some changes:

• We'll be experimenting with corner roundness settings for tabs to give you more options — coming soon in Firefox Labs.
• We brought back Compact Mode so there’s more space for web content and tabs
• We added more neutral standard theme options.

You can learn more in our blog post.

See it first in Nightly

Nightly is where this work takes shape in the open, and we wanted you to be among the first to see where it's headed. Since much of what’s changed so far focuses on the look of the interface, keep an eye out for how these layouts feel during your day-to-day browsing. We're aiming for a clean, intuitive experience —so please look out for anything that feels off, like icons, spacing, alignment, or how things hold up across themes, window sizes, different languages, screen readers, and keyboard navigation. If something catches your eye, we'd love to hear about it.

Download the latest version of Nightly to see what's new.

Something's not right? File a bug.

If you find visual or functional issues with the Nova style changes in Nightly, please follow these steps:

1. Click this link to file a Bugzilla issue. We're asking everyone to file bugs this way, so we can easily keep track of all issues reported.
2. In the bug, please add steps to reproduce the issue, and if possible screenshots or screencasts. Please don't add severity and priority to the bugs — our triaging teams will handle that.
3. You can see all Nova testing bugs filed here.

Have overall feedback? Let us know here in Connect.

Drop a comment here to let us know your thoughts and suggestions. Thanks for being part of this.

[WildcatRay]

Of what I have seen so far, I like what I have seen.

I believe I made this suggestion in another thread here. Outline all tabs. A simple line on the outside of inactive tabs would suffice.

Another browser I use did something similar eliminating lines around inactive tabs as well as the toolbar and bookmark bar. I did find a theme that added back lines around the inactive tabs.

Add the tweak of outlining inactive tabs and this theme will be very good if not excellent.

[Lanwara]

Overall not bad.

The rounded corners is... alright, but yeah I'm definitely looking forward to be able to customize the border radius. I think EVERYTHING being 100% is a little too much. The new gradient is also fine.

"Compact" mode is a bit of a joke at the moment with Nova. I use vertical tabs and they have noticeably taken up much more space with all the extra spacing that has been introduced. The whole reason I use vertical tabs + compact mode so I can see as many tabs as I can!

Please remember that Compact mode means COMPACT, and that means removing all those extraneous 2-3 pixel gaps between everything.

[Nye]

the redesign looks horrendously ugly, how do I revert it??

[Lanwara]

1. Go to about:config
2. Dismiss the warning
3. Search for "nova"
4. Set "browser.nova.enabled" to false
5. Restart your browser

[Nye]

ty, actually got rid of it without restarting too.

but it's a temporary fix. I cannot bear to look at tab group icons, it's the worst thing I have seen in browser design.

[Osmose]

I would really like an option to remove the margin/gap between sections (e.g. between the top bars and the edge of the window) without having to resort to compact spacing.

[LavaFox]

Love everything about the redesign! But please add a way for the vertical tabs to be fully gone when collapsed, similar how the Zen browser handles them. 

Also off topic, but add a built in ad blocker and I will fully switch over! 🙂

[Mte90]

Experience

Broke the actual theme I was using, so there isn't support I think for all the themes available in the marketplace but all of them it will require an update.

Rant

Honestly this is not modernizing this is doing something different from the usual browsers experience.

Chrome has the same design in years and it is the most used browser in the whole internet but Firefox change logo and design too much often compared to the real needs like this.

If you are looking how to disable Nova on Nightly there is an option in about:config browser.nova.enabled that is not documented nowhere (including the blog post announcement).

[hi_bye]

I'm liking it so far and haven't found the change to be too jarring. I do agree with the comments that everything is very round, no other way to describe it I guess, but it does look more current. Silly request but I would like to see more of the new Kit mascot thing. Might be a fun touch. 

[roots]

Wouldn't say I love the pills, but what's less appealing as others have mentioned.

A) Nova shrinks the window footprint with a buffer zone around the edge which I don't think benefits anyone, and
B) the pill like tabs can't be selected/closed when your mouse pointer is on the top of the screen, so you can't quickly snap to the top of your monitor to select or close tabs you have to actively move your mouse down. 

[Cabbage]

In compact mode the borders between all the different windows everything has been separated into look pretty busy and sometimes are so close together they just seem like a single, oddly thick border. Compact mode might need a bit more time in the oven.

[passthecurry]

I have a suggestion! I LOVE the new nightly themes but i wish they applied to more than just the tab bar section! Like with the themes before nightly, i would suggest they take up the area below as well, where the shortcuts are and the address bar is etc. Basically apply them to where pre nova themes would be be applied to, if that makes sense

[ERobim94]

Hello, I'm enjoying the changes even if there are some bugs here and there but that's okay, it's part and I'm enjoying the new firefox design

[Sakurakun999]

Feedback regarding icon spacing under the Compact density setting:

Address bar (right side): Spacing feels too cramped. Suggesting a slight increase in padding or a smaller icon size.

Vertical tabs (bottom section): Spacing is overly wide, restricting the number of visible icons. Suggesting tighter spacing in Compact mode.

[japeter]

I'm not a fan of the gradient in the address bar, particularly on the dark theme.

The very rounded corners (for example, in the ctrl + f box, or the menu bar) feel off because text comes very close to the corners.  (This may be specific to compact.)

[haudi]

I just wanted to ask that you please leave the option to disable nova from about:config for the foreseeable future (next decade at least). I really hate this UI update, and I think it goes strongly in the direction of form over function.

[Synchro]

Can I please have a standart mode but without empty frames? I know that a compact one doesn't have them but I prefer standart size of the interface elements.

[japeter]

One more that seems like a tiny thing but is really annoying in actual use: if my mouse is at the top of the screen, it no longer counts as over the tab.  That means that I can't just flick my mouse (or finger on a touchpad) to the top of a screen to change a tab, close a tab (with scrollwheel or three fingers), or preview a tab; I have to be super precise.

[Akiyama]

Generally speaking the look is okay to me, but the borders around everything have got to go. Especially the one around the entire window.

[llwexammm]

I’d recommend not putting everything in a card. It’s goes against visual hierarchy and wastes space. Please consider having just one be a card and not everything. Thank you! I love Firefox! 

[SamTe1]

I don't want live corners, I want to interact with the tabs without clicking at the browser itself. It's not in windows mode after all. It feels ugly.

[aliwali]

I like it so far. I think it would be nice if in the setup process it allowed you to choose one of the default themes. I'm not a huge fan of the default one —I don't think I'd be able to use this browser if it was the only available theme— but I find "Sun" to be good, for example. Same with enabling/disabling vertical tabs.

[aliwali]

The sidebar animation is a bit too long/janky. Something snappier would be nice! Also, thank you for making Firefox!

[Roko]

Rounded corners are much worst

[wutongtaiwan]

I hope to add a setting in Firefox Nova that allows me to search in the search box instead of the address bar. I like using the search box, but when I type, the text appears in the address bar. I still don’t know how to set it up, and I hope there can be a toggle for this feature in Firefox Nova’s settings.

[Agentvirtuel]

Hello

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1583718

browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.improvesearch.handoffToAwesomebar, is it your question

[wutongtaiwan]

This isn't a problem I submitted. I know I can fix my issue through about:config, but sometimes I reinstall Firefox, and then I have to go back into about:config to set it up again. At that point, I forget which setting can solve my problem. That's why I suggested adding this toggle in the settings.

[Agentvirtuel]

Hello

Preferences
https://mozilla.github.io/policy-templates/#preferences

Maybe use the Windows registry
https://mozilla.github.io/policy-templates/#windows-gpo-91

{
      "browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.improvesearch.handoffToAwesomebar": {
        "Status": "locked",
        "Type": "boolean",
        "Value": false
      }
    }

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Mozilla\Firefox
Or
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Mozilla\Firefox

Your browser is being managed by your organization

[mribeiro]

I love the refreshed look, except for the spacing. TOO. MUCH. PADDING. Aside from that, everything looks great and works really well; congratulations!

[Pixel1001]

Not a fan of the rounded corners of the website you are on, along with the padding that has been around everything. its like having a bezel on my screen, who wants that.

also just feels wasteful of screen space

[vishal]

• I like the themes in about:addons.
• There is unclickable space above the tab. So if I simply scroll my mouse to the top of the tab, I am not able to click it
• The rounded corners can be less rounded.

[Anonymous]

Compact mode can be made nicer IMHO if the spacing around the elements is removed like so:

Horizontal tabs

Vertical tabs

I'm using this userChrome.css snippet for this

@media -moz-pref("browser.nova.enabled") {
  :root[uidensity="compact"] {
    --tab-margin-block: 0 !important;
    &:root:not([inFullscreen], [inDOMFullscreen]) #browser {
      padding-block-start: 0 !important;
      gap: 0 !important;
    }
    #urlbar-container {
      --urlbar-container-height: 28px !important;
    }
  }
}

That aside, thanks for reviving compact mode! 

[Tryni]

Cool design but i don't like the fact that websites are not filling the entire space on borders

[NoKau]

I dislike the separation of the bookmarks, feels clunky.
I don't mind the more pill/oval tabs, however I think that should be an togglable customization not the default
Colour indicating tab usage is nice, but the gradient — especially a gradient from grey — does not work
When a lot of tabs are open the way background tabs fade into the other is off-putting, and when only a select few tabs are open they feel much too large and empty. Potentially the usage of light lines to imitate shape could work here instead?
These are my thoughts so far.

[phucko]

This is ugly and awful!!! I dont want a stupid border around my whole window for no reason. Truly stupid.

[SanguinePar]

Stop. Changing. Everything.

[404usrnamefound]

Is there any plans to add automatic history and cache/session token syncing across devices? I know there's tab syncing but it would be nice to have history and cache/session token, so people don't have to manually sign in on each new device.

[Xufox]

After trying this for a few days, I found the borders around the window to be extremely problematic since it violates the “rule of the infinite edges” (see Fitts’s Law), i.e. UI elements at the edge of the screen are suddenly much harder to reach and click on.

[sosasees]

I tried the Nova Redesign.

I believe it will end up better than current Firefox because it visually differentiates UI Elements much more clearly. But the new Borders are an Overcorrection.

This Sketch shows approximately the actual Nova Borders on the left and how i would change the Borders on the right.

It’s a good Thing that the Borders have become thick and distinct so that i can better tell where each major Section of the Browser UI begins and ends (Top Bar, Sidebar, and Web View).

But the current Design of each Section being inside a Panel looks ridiculous, as if the Firefox Window is a Hardware Device with 3 distinct Screens.

I would get rid of the alternating grey‑white‑grey Borders, instead making them one Color throughout. Then reduce their border-width to 2pt, which looks much more lightweight.

The interactive Borders usable to resize Windows can be thicker than the visible Borders that they overlap. Take Advantage of that Trick.

Edit: I found the Compact Density Setting, which does pretty much exactly that. Only it still needs to make the usable Border for resizing the vertical Tab Bar thicker than the visible Border.

Edit 2: I still believe that making the Borders only one Color would look much more elegant in all Densities.

[sosasees]

The very rounded Borders look very good but i believe Nova has too much of this good Thing right now.

This Shape is effetive in Key Places like the Address Bar, Call‑to‑Action Buttons, and Dialog Buttons.

It’s not so good for denser UI like Tabs and Menus. The Circles everywhere make secondary and tertiary UI Elements feel cramped, even if i set the Density to Touch.