Mozilla has released Firefox 156 as part of its new fortnightly release cycle, though the update brings only two minor features: an automatic launch option for Mac users and Wikipedia suggestions in French, German and Italian. As the company maintains this rapid release schedule, users frustrated by the pace of updates have increasingly turned to alternative browsers, including numerous Firefox forks that offer different approaches to customisation, privacy and stability.

Mozilla itself provides Firefox ESR and Thunderbird ESR versions that receive only security updates annually, currently on version 153. However, community-maintained alternatives abound: Waterfox (version 6.7) offers no AI integration and slower releases; LibreWolf provides enhanced privacy whilst keeping Firefox's release pace; Floorp (version 12.17.2) emphasises UI customisation with multiple sidebars; and Zen Browser targets users preferring minimal interfaces. For email, Betterbird serves as the primary Thunderbird fork, available across Windows, Linux and Mac with portable USB editions.