The new Firefox design lands in today. This is what you can expect

[AshleyT]

Firefox has evolved significantly over the past year and now, its look has evolved too. 

The design begins rolling out today, with Firefox 157, bringing a cleaner, more cohesive , and more adaptable experience. It is still the Firefox you know and trust, with the same commitment to independence, privacy, customization, and user control. 

The Mozilla Connect community has helped shape this work from the beginning by sharing feedback on the early designs, tested the experience in Nightly starting in July, filed bugs, and shared with us what worked and what didn’t.

Here’s what landed today.

A cleaner, more cohesive design

• Softer tab shapes
• Redrawn icons that hold up better across light and dark themes
• Rebalanced spacing throughout the interface
• A refreshed color palette featuring the glow of the active tab, deeper purples, and warmer light tones

The updated design brought bolder color choices to Firefox — and your feedback made clear that opinions on browser color run the full spectrum. In response, we created additional themes, accessible through add-ons and a new theme picker off Firefox Home, so you have greater control over how Firefox looks. 

More ways to make Firefox yours

Firefox is becoming more customizable, giving you more ways to shape the browser around how you browse. These options include:

• A new theme picker in the customization panel on the Firefox Home page. Additional community themes remain available through about:addons.
• New Firefox themes and wallpapers
• A dedicated space to pin and organize shortcuts so sites you use all the time stay put.
• Compact Mode for a denser browsing experience

Compact mode now officially supported!

Compact Mode is now available as its own dedicated setting. It will also switch on automatically on smaller screens, reducing the space between interface elements so more fits on the screen.

This is one of the clearest examples of how community feedback shaped Nova. Many of you told us that maintaining a denser interface was important, and we listened.

Faster performance

The refreshed experience also includes improvements to Firefox’s startup, page-loading, and scrolling speeds.

Frequently asked questions

Will my existing themes and add-ons continue to work?

Themes and add-ons should continue to work. Nova is built on the same Firefox foundation, and the extension and theming architecture has not changed.

Will my userChrome.css customizations continue to work?

Some customizations may require minor adjustments, depending on how closely they rely on element names or layout structures from the previous interface. 

But keep in mind that Mozilla does not officially support customizations made through userChrome.css. They can cause unexpected behavior or even break Firefox, and future updates may affect them as Firefox continues to evolve. If you choose to use userChrome.css, please proceed carefully.

You can learn more in Firefox advanced customization and configuration options.

Can I opt out of the update?

The new Firefox design becomes the default experience starting with Firefox 157. However, you have several ways to adjust how Firefox looks and feels, including Compact Mode, themes, wallpapers, and New Tab customization. 

Keep shaping Firefox with us

Nova may be shipping today, but the work doesn’t stop here. Many of these updates grew directly from the bugs you filed and the conversations you started while the design was being developed.

Update to Firefox 157 to try the refreshed experience, then let us know what works well and what could still be improved. Your feedback will continue to help shape what comes next.

[Zip83]

You keep talking about "user control", while automatically enabling a redesign and burying the way to disable it in about:config. Your answer to "Can I opt out?" points to themes and wallpapers. That is dodging the question, not offering a choice.

Firefox is a browser I use for hours every working day. Nova’s colors, glowing outlines, and pill-shaped tabs are uncomfortable on my eyes. Turning it off made an immediate improvement. Judging by the replies here, I’m far from the only person frustrated by this.

A design that looks fashionable but makes daily work less comfortable is a UX failure. Users should not have to dig through forum comments to undo a change they never asked for.

Keep a permanent, clearly visible option to use the previous interface. Stop treating an established working environment as something users must relearn whenever you want a visual refresh. If you make Nova mandatory, I’ll move to another browser.

[dftf]

You have two longer-term options:

1. Move to something called the "ESR" version of Firefox to avoid Nova for longer.  See:
https://tips.navas.us/2026/10/firefox-ui-debacle.html 

2. Look into some of the "forks" of Firefox and see if any have a UI you'd prefer:
Basilisk • Floorp • Librewolf • Pale Moon • Waterfox

[EmileBV]

Not sure if any Mozilla devs are reading these comments anymore but I just wanted add a little something:

I seems to me like companies are forgetting that a product is supposed to be "finished" at some point. The Firefox UI has been unchanged for a very long time because it evolved to reach that point. It iterated, it got improved, it got a lot of criticism that turned into positive feedback over time as issues got fixed. Now barely anyone dislikes the Firefox UI because it has been refined and perfected over long development cycles. It's finished, it's completed, you can move on to other things that actually need fixing in the software.

But instead, since nobody is giving feedback anymore, I imagine the higher ups start freaking out thinking they need to "innovate" (whatever that means nowadays). And we end up with this sort of complete redesign for the entire UI that nobody asked for. it's happening everywhere, not just in Firefox. VSCode is another disgusting example of the exact same problem happening. And on top of it all, the setting to disable the new UI is hidden behind weird steps that aren't part of the basic settings or are named with strange words that you really need to look up to figure out. "Why yes, obviously the new rounded ugly UI is called Nova, don't you know that?"

Please, just have the brain to accept that actual decades of work have been put into the Firefox UI and it's finally finished. Don't touch it. Let it be. Move on. Firefox could literally just stay up to date with new web standards and security updates and it would continue being awesome. Don't ruin hundreds of thousands of hours of work and feedback and development cycles just to please some shareholders that don't even use the product.

[JNavas]

> Don't touch it. Let it be. Move on. 

But first:

• Fix longstanding bugs!
• Bring functionality up to date! (PWA, hello!)

There's no excuse for messing with the UI before fixing bugs and bringing functionality up to date!

[cadwellm]

I have officially moved from Firefox to another browser. Waterfox is the closest fork to Firefox and will accept the current FF profile for exporting from FF to WF.

I also tried ESR but there's this weird tab overflow scrolling glitch I couldn't get rid of.  

So, I will make Floorp my WF backup and I'm done with the original FF until they stop doing stupid crap.

[JNavas]

> I also tried ESR but there's this weird tab overflow scrolling glitch I couldn't get rid of. 

Can you be more specific?
I've never seen anything like that on ESR. What version were you using?
On ESR 153.4 (for me at least), when tab space fills up, it smoothly scrolls both left and right (horizontal tabs) or up and down (vertical tabs).

[cadwellm]

ESR 153.4 is what I went to. It's probably an overflow problem. I know the ESR had a tab overflow bug awhile back and this is probably that same thing. It's because I have a lot of grouped tabs. Too annoying for me so now I'm in Waterfox and very happy.

[dftf]

Do the staff here never remove any of these obvious spam posts?

Surely whatever AI or moderator bots you use on this site should be removing these? 🤔

[sosasees]

This Design doesn’t look slick, so i stopped Linux Mint from updating Firefox 156 to any newer Version.

The Changes Nova needs are to reduce the rounded Corner Radius until the Boxes are actual Rectangles, and to select grey Themes by Default, so the Browser Chrome doesn’t distract me.

And remove the horizontal Gradients from the Tabs and the Toolbars. 

It isn’t lost on me that this would make Nova look very similar to the previous Proton Design. That’s good because Proton works.

[JNavas]

There is a simple Nova UI solution (at least for the next year or two) which is to switch from regular Firefox to Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release), which retains the classic UI and is more stable. You can download ESR release 153.4.0 (not the earlier version) here: https://www.firefox.com/download/all/desktop-esr/

[dftf]

If the user is on Linux, it's probably best they get the ESR from their distro's own packaging.

Perhaps you could update https://tips.navas.us/2026/10/firefox-ui-debacle.html with the steps?

For Debian-based ones (Debian, elementaryOS, Mint, Ubuntu, Zorin) this would be:
1.  Open the Terminal app
2.  Type sudo apt-get install firefox-esr then enter their admin password
3.  If they need Firefox in a language other than English US, they'd also need this after:
sudo apt-get install firefox-esr-l10n-??
replacing ?? with the language required (e.g. en-CA for Candian English; fr for French)

If the user is on a Linux that uses Redhat Package Manager (RPM), I'm not-sure then what the commands would be, but useful if you could include those in your article. 👍🏻

[JNavas]

I don't normally include Linux-specific content in my blog, but I've now added a Linux section with a link to https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux

[dftf]

Great.

I'd probably also suggest revising this:

You should then switch Settings > About Firefox > Firefox updates from Automatic (the default) to Check & choose, so that you can get security updates (for at least a year), but avoid a version update as long as possible

To

You should then visit Menu > Settings > About Firefox > Firefox updates and switch from "Automatically install updates" (the default) to "Check for updates, but choose when to install", so that you can get security updates (for at least a year), but avoid a version update as long as possible

"Check & choose" may not be obvious to some users that is referring to the "Check for updates, but choose when to install" setting.  Best to use the actual setting names

[dftf]

On your Linux Mint, open the "Terminal" app on there and type

sudo apt-get install firefox-esr

then press ENTER.  Enter your admin password to confirm.  That will install the 153.4.0 ESR.

You can then install the relevant language to display the Firefox UI in your preferred one:

sudo apt-get install firefox-esr-l10n-??

replace "??" with the 2 or 3-digit code for your language, e.g. "es-es" for Spanish, "fr" for French.
If you want English US, you don't need to run the second command: just use the first one only.

You can see all available languages here:
https://packages.debian.org/search?keywords=firefox-esr&searchon=names&suite=stable&section=all 

[supernova1877]

I am begging you, turn it back. It looks so bad.

[dftf]

You can mostly turn it back (until around late November) with these steps:

URL bar -> about:config -> ENTER -> accept warning -> search nova ->
double-click line "browser.nova.enabled" to change to "false"

Or look into a version of Firefox called "ESR" as this site explains:

https://tips.navas.us/2026/10/firefox-ui-debacle.html 

[DrSinek]

We'd rather not have any updates than whatever this is. The new rounded corners look absolutely horrid. And I mean it.

[dftf]

No updates (turning them off) would be bad for security.

Look into a version of Firefox called "ESR" to undo Nova (for around 12-15 months), but still get regular security updates.  Refer to: https://tips.navas.us/2026/10/firefox-ui-debacle.html 

[DrSinek]

No updates to ui is what I meant. Obviously security updates are essential

[Agentvirtuel]

Bonsoir

See also, this discussion thread
https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/discussions/just-allow-people-to-disable-nova-on-settings-gt-appearan...

To complement, see this discussion thread
https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/discussions/the-new-firefox-design-lands-in-today-this-is-what-you-ca...

Just for information. About, how can i change the time when firefox updates
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1613640

(e.g. below) Mises à jour désactivées par votre organisation, l'organisation c'est moi.

[I_eat_solder]

Mozilla, I love what you generally do with Firefox and what it means against the Chromium monopoly.

But why on earth would you make your browser have the same, soulless, round "Times new Corporate"/current Android design look. This is not modern, this is flat, wannabe friendly, replaceable soulless design slop. If I wanted Chrome, I would just use Chrome. I'd rather use a browser looking like an old Windows submenu from the 95 days than yet another Google looking software. Its not making Google and friends better, more ethical acting companies and it will not help your case either. You already got a cute mascot, if you wanted you didn't even need to try for brand identification.
Your browser not being built on Chromium is a huge USP for Firefox on its own. You don't need to look like every other big tech UI for people to choose you.
Same for the Icons. Since when does EVERYTHING need to look flat and alike? Give me my sick, 3D Fox, not some corporate bull**bleep** cardboard collage. Have an identity. And if you feel like you need it to get people to switch, then please, just make it an easy, prominently advertised toggle.
Also, would you kindly refrain from integrating more AI bs in the next upgrade? I don't want a chatbot of my choice integrated or speak to my browser. With how this update seems to push Firefox looking and working like every other big tech product. There is already enough slop out there, my browser doesnt need to be one either.

[Z3roTollRanc3]

Nobody liked it when Microslop rounded the corners on everything, what made you think that things would be different with this recent update?  Thankfully, it took one quick search to determine how to disable the nova update.  Honestly I don't understand why developers focus on constantly changing the look of their software when there are so many other things they could be focusing on in the first place.

[sosasees]

---

@Z3roTollRanc3 wrote:

Honestly I don't understand why developers focus on constantly changing the look of their software when there are so many other things they could be focusing on in the first place.

---

Small Dev Teams don’t make this Mistake.

Something like Firefox Nova happens when a Dev Team has too many internal Designers,
so the Designers (or their Employer) desperately try to justify the Designers’ Employment with a complete Redesign because the previous Design can’t be meaningfully improved anymore.

[JNavas]

> Something like Firefox Nova happens when a Dev Team has too many internal Designers

Or when it's laid off and otherwise lost so much of its key development talent (in the case of Mozilla) that it turns to 'easy' UI changes instead of hard core functionality improvements and bug fixes, so it can appear to be doing something. And by aping more successful products it can claim to be making 'improvements' while losing distinctiveness. I've seen this pattern several times over my professional career, and it never works.

[nullptr]

I thought I was a waste of space, and the new update is wasting so much space, so rounded. Why? It's impossible to tell where the tab ends and the next begins. See how the old design is so much clearer? What's with the entire industry jumping off a cliff and using pills everywhere? 

I do not understand. Why is mozilla shooting themselves in the foot so many times? Do you _want_ me to stop using firefox? Stop caring about the project? Why all this self-sabotage? 

I do NOT want the nova update. It looks ungodly ugly, is a nightmare of noise that I can't parse at all. 

The fact that the post as 10 likes and the top comment has 200+ should tell you how tone-deaf firefox / mozilla has become. At this point I have to assume bad actors are intentionally sabotaging firefox. 

And no, about:config is NOT a fix because it'll be removed in the future and firefox devs have shamed users for asking about about:config. 

[JNavas]

There is a simple Nova UI solution (at least for the next year or two) which is to switch from regular Firefox to Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release), which retains the classic UI and is more stable. You can download ESR release 153.4.0 (not the earlier version) here: https://www.firefox.com/download/all/desktop-esr/

[Larrel]

Разноцветные разработчики опять делают обновления ради обновлений.

Спасибо что пока ещё можно отключить эту круглую хромоподобную хунйю.

[dftf]

Рассмотрите возможность перехода на версию Firefox с расширенной поддержкой (ESR). Это позволит вам не использовать визуальный стиль «Nova» в течение примерно 12–15 месяцев.

См.: https://tips.navas.us/2026/10/firefox-ui-debacle.html 

[floeru]

Please give me back control over the grid in the start tab. And while you're at it, you could also let me have more than four...

[JNavas]

> Please give me back control over the grid in the start tab. And while you're at it, you could also let me have more than four...

Shortcuts on Android? If so, then the loss of side-swiping was indeed annoying, but you can have two (2) rows of shortcuts for a total of 8 visible. For more than 8 (up to 16) you have to touch Show All.

[dftf]

They will mean on the desktop (Windows, macOS, Linux) version.

If you have the news feed enabled on Firefox Home, and use that on your new tab page, zoom-out on that page (Menu > Zoom) and you'll never get more than four story boxes in any row.

[JNavas]

I could be wrong, but I think that the "four" reference is to Shortcuts on Android.
On desktop you can have many more shortcuts, and a great many Stories are displayed 2 up.

[dftf]

Difficult to say, as the original post is a bit vague as they just refer to a "grid" and wanting "more than four".

On the desktop versions of Firefox, the news stories on the Firefox Home feed are often presented in a grid, and no matter how-much you zoom-out, four-in-a-row is the limit:

Hence me thinking this might be what they could be referring to.

[mxjp]

"rebalanced spacing" ?

[Chuckscrazed]

This new UI is distracting to the point of being bad. The super Bright-Dark new Active Tab for starters stands out more then some entire websites, and the ability to have active tab closer in color to the background tabs would solve Everything for me. Until then I simply have to disable it until you remove that ability fro me, because of Course User options are forbidden! But hey, if its not for me its not for me, and this kind of update is certainly for Firefox not its Users. 

[Ray_McKigney]

Fix it so we can make the side panel smaller, like it was before. With the new one, the smallest possible width the side panel can be adjusted to is about a half inch wider than it was previously. 

[dftf]

To revert to the previous side-panel look:

URL bar -> about:config -> ENTER -> accept any warning -> search for revamp ->
double-click the value "sidebar.revamp" to set it to "false"

[indiana]

Messing again with my setup of NewTab Page.

null entries are finally ignored. If true or false doesn't matter:

browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.nova.enabled

So that's the way to loose more and more users. For me it will be Vivaldi after I started over 20 years ago with Firebird!

[caustic1q]

I have been using Firefox for the past 20 years and never felt the need to write a critical review. However, over the last two or three years, I have been struggling with more and more website compatibility issues, and the latest updates have been so disappointing that I finally feel the need to say something.

I never used Firefox or Thunderbird because of their design. I used them because of their functionality and because their look and usability remained consistent over time. Unlike with many Microsoft products, I did not have to worry every day about buttons and features being moved around or suddenly becoming almost impossible to find.

Unfortunately, this has now completely changed.

Firefox and Thunderbird have become increasingly unattractive to me because of constant design changes. Even the simplest and most useful features that have existed for years are now often hidden behind unnecessary extra steps.

At this point, the browser simply offers me no real added value anymore.

I fully agree with everyone who says: make the browser lean, fast, and highly compatible. Give it good, high-performance scripting engines and strong security, and you have a winning product.

But with constant visual redesigns and unnecessary “clicky, colorful” changes, you are only losing the trust of long-time users.

[ab0mbs]

Overall, not a fan of the redesign. The rounded corners of the tabs cause wasted space and make the tab names harder to read. Can we adjust the radius to make them into regular rectangles again? In combination with the containers, the colored bars on top of the tabs, when rounded, cut off the tab names.

The gradient is also extremely distracting. Having an easy setting to turn it off would be beneficial, as my current Dark theme still utilizes the gradient for some reason and, in my opinion, shouldn't.