A truly independent
web browser
Ladybird is a new browser engine built from scratch. Not a fork. No user monetization. Backed by a 501(c)(3) non-profit.
About
The web is the most important platform in computing, yet only a small number of browser engines power the entire thing, each controlled by a company with its own agenda.
Ladybird is building something new: an independent engine, driven by web standards, and free from conflicts of interest.
Our first Alpha release for Linux and macOS is coming in 2026.
What makes Ladybird different
Truly independent
No code from other browsers. We're building a new engine from scratch, based on web standards.
Singular focus
We are focused on one thing: building a web browser.
No monetization
No "default search deals", crypto tokens, or other forms of user monetization.
News
Bringing in a browser industry veteran to raise the bar.
Ensuring that the OSS community has a seat at the table.
Launching our 501(c)(3) non-profit.
Co-founder Chris Wanstrath shares his thoughts.
Announcing the split, and what it means for both projects.
Get involved
We welcome new contributors every week across all areas of the engine. Clone the code, build it, and come say hi.
$ git clone https://github.com/LadybirdBrowser/ladybird.git
$ cd ladybird
$ ./Meta/ladybird.py runSource code: github.com/LadybirdBrowser/ladybird
Community chat: Discord
Sponsors
Platinum
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Copper
Optimising.com.au , Guillaume Knispel, Broadband Map , Jonathan Lahijani , Puter , Follower24.de , Travis Heinström , Sjors Witteveen , Philip Lonsing , Clément Sibille , b1ack0wl , Gian Giovani , Timely Learning , Coursiv , Andrew Mead , styfle , Tyler Horvath , Hnefatafl Org , Softwired Technologies
Infrastructure Sponsors
Support the project
Ladybird is funded entirely by donations and sponsorships. No search deals, no data collection, no ads. Just people and companies who believe in an open web.
Become a sponsor
Sponsors are recognized on our website and in project updates. Sponsorships run for one year.
| Platinum | $100,000 |
| Gold | $50,000 |
| Silver | $10,000 |
| Bronze | $5,000 |
| Copper | $1,000 |
For sponsorship inquiries, email contact@ladybird.org.
Individual donations
One-time or recurring monthly donations via Donorbox. Every contribution helps.
DonateFor larger donations, please contact us directly to avoid processing fees.
Frequently asked questions
When is it coming?
We are targeting 2026 for a first Alpha version on Linux and macOS. This will be aimed at developers and early adopters.
How many people are working on the browser today?
We currently have 8 paid full-time engineers working on Ladybird. There is also a large community of volunteer contributors.
What's the hiring plan?
We are growing the team at a reasonable pace, as budget allows. Building the right team is more important than building it quickly.
We will strive to maintain 18 months of runway at all times.
What does "No code from other browsers" really mean?
The focus of the Ladybird project is to build a new browser engine from the ground up. We don't use code from Blink, WebKit, Gecko, or any other browser engine.
For historical reasons, the browser uses various libraries from the SerenityOS project, which has a strong culture of writing everything from scratch. Now that Ladybird has forked from SerenityOS, it is no longer bound by this culture, and we will be making use of 3rd party libraries for common functionality (e.g image/audio/video formats, encryption, graphics, etc.)
We are already using some of the same 3rd party libraries that other browsers use, but we will never adopt another browser engine instead of building our own.
Will Ladybird work on Windows?
We don't have anyone actively working on Windows support, and there are considerable changes required to make it work well outside a Unix-like environment.
We would like to do Windows eventually, but it's not a priority at the moment.
Will Ladybird work on mobile devices?
We don't have anyone actively working on an Android or iOS port. More effort will be put into mobile once we have the desktop versions in a good state.
While there is the start of an Android port in the project repository, mobile is not a priority at the moment.
How can you be "independent" if you have sponsors?
All sponsorships are in the form of unrestricted donations. Board seats and other forms of influence are not for sale.
Why build a new browser in C++ when safer and more modern languages are available?
Ladybird started as a C++ project, and we now have almost half a million lines of modern C++ to maintain. We are currently evaluating options for a successor language and will share more when we're ready.