Firefox Adds a Free Built-In VPN With a Catch

Firefox is rolling out a free built-in VPN with 50GB of monthly data. Here’s how it works, its limitations, and what it means for everyday browsing privacy.

Chloe Nakamura Chloe Nakamura . Comments
Firefox Adds a Free Built-In VPN With a Catch

3 Minutes

Free VPNs rarely feel free. Somewhere along the line, you pay—through throttled speeds, tiny data caps, or, worse, your own data quietly being sold off. Mozilla seems ready to challenge that привычка with something baked directly into Firefox.

Starting March 24, alongside the release of Firefox 149, users in the US, UK, France, and Germany will notice something new: a built-in VPN, no extensions, no extra installs, no friction. Just a switch inside the browser.

Flip it on, and your browsing traffic is routed through Mozilla-managed servers, masking your IP address as you move across the web. The company is offering 50GB of free data per month—an unusually generous allowance in a space where limits are often restrictive. For comparison, Microsoft Edge’s similar feature caps usage at just 5GB.

There’s a small trade-off: you’ll need a Mozilla account. But in practical terms, that’s hardly a barrier for most users already living inside the browser.

Where It Works—and Where It Doesn’t

Before you start thinking this replaces your full VPN setup, there’s an important distinction. This protection lives strictly inside Firefox. Open another app, stream through a desktop client, or sync files in the background, and that traffic bypasses the VPN entirely.

It’s a browser shield, not a system-wide cloak.

There’s another limitation that might disappoint some users: no server selection. Firefox connects you automatically to the nearest available server to keep speeds fast and stable. That’s great for everyday privacy, but it rules out using the feature to jump digital borders. If you’re hoping to unlock region-locked content on platforms like Netflix, this won’t get you there.

Still, Mozilla is leaning heavily into its privacy-first reputation. The company says it won’t log your browsing activity, and any account-linked data is wiped after three months. That’s a notable stance in a market where transparency often feels optional.

It’s also worth separating this feature from Mozilla’s paid VPN service. The subscription version offers full-device protection across multiple apps and up to five devices. What’s launching now is a lighter, browser-only alternative—free, but more limited by design.

Mozilla has been quietly testing this since October 2025 with a small pool of users. Now, it’s stepping into the spotlight. For anyone already using Firefox for its privacy credentials, this feels less like a gimmick and more like a natural extension—simple, accessible, and finally, built right where you need it.

Source: phandroid

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