Opera GX vs Google Chrome: Can the browser for gamers win over Chrome?

When it comes to top browsers, Chrome remains the dominant force in the market. We do have other browsers trying to usurp Chrome from the throne, but it’s a big task. Is Opera’s gamer-focused Opera GX browser up for the task? Does it have enough features to sway long-time Chrome users to switch? We find out in this Chrome vs Opera GX browser comparison.

User interface

Chrome provides a very familiar UI to its users, focusing on a clean and white interface. Opera GX is radically different, adopting a predominantly dark UI with black backgrounds and red accents. You can change the UI with different themes, though, and Opera GX guides you through the process during onboarding.

Chrome is almost ready-to-use as soon as you install it. Opera GX offers a good onboarding setup that lets you choose your browser theme, sounds, shaders, wallpaper, and even set background music.

Neither Chrome nor Opera GX block ads in their default states. However, Opera GX offers the option to turn on an ad blocker during its setup, while you need an ad block extension for Chrome.

On Android, the same story continues. Chrome keeps to its minimalistic roots, while Opera GX goes for radical.

In addition to letting you select a theme on onboarding, Opera GX also lets you select navigation, with the standard bottom navigation bar and the radical Fast Action Button.

Opera GX is trying to woo gamers, and it really leans into the aesthetics of it. If you’re not a gamer but still enjoy immersive themes and customizations, Opera GX is the browser for it. If you prefer a standard web interface with just a dash of color with some lightweight themes, then you’d like Google Chrome.

Opera GX vs Chrome: Features

Both Opera GX and Chrome are very capable browsers with a slew of features to appeal to their audiences.

Common features

Here are some common features across both Opera GX and Chrome:

• Based on Chromium: While Chrome is directly based on Chromium, Opera GX is a modified version of the Opera browser that is based on Chromium.
• Unified search and address bar: The address bar doubles up as a search input.
• Device Sync: Both Opera GX and Chrome support device syncing by signing into an Opera and Google account, respectively.
• Google Search: Both browsers default to Google Search, but you can switch the default to another search engine. This also enables instant results in Address bar queries on both.
• Extensions: Both browsers support Chrome extensions.
• Profiles: Both browsers support user profiles.
• In-browser screenshot tool: Both browsers include their own screenshot tools.
• Picture-in-picture: Both browsers allow you to have videos pop out of their page and continue playing in a floating window while you browse other web pages.

There are plenty of features that Opera GX includes, but Chrome does not include:

• GX Control: What gives Opera GX some of its gamer-focused functionality is GX Control, which allows you to limit the performance of the browser itself. This includes placing limits on the browser’s bandwidth, RAM, and CPU usage. So if you need to run the browser while you are running a game, you can have the browser run without compromising your gaming performance. GX Control also identifies if any particular tab is consuming too much of your compute resources and lets you selectively kill it.
• GX Cleaner: This feature lets you clean up junk browser files.
• GX Corner: Opera offers some free games, deals, gaming news, and a game release calendar within the browser.
• Immersive themes: Themes on Opera GX are a lot more immersive than the minimal Chrome themes. You can even mix and match elements from different themes.
• Tracker blocking: Opera GX includes tracker blocking to prevent ad trackers from tracking your internet browsing habits and stop them from profiling you. It also blocks crypto miners.
• Integrations: Opera GX has several integrations present in its left sidebar. These include:
  • Twitch
  • Discord
  • Apple Music
  • Spotify
  • YouTube Music
  • Facebook Messenger
  • Telegram
  • TikTok
  • WhatsApp
  • Vkontakte
• Pinboards: You can save web content for later and create a Pinterest-style pinboard.
• Flow: You can connect your computer and mobile devices with a QR code scan to send links, notes, and files between them easily.
• Free VPN: Opera GX includes a free VPN that you can use to route all your browser traffic. The Pro version of the VPN allows device-wide traffic to pass through the VPN.
• Ad-blocker: Opera GX includes a built-in ad-blocker.
• Video pickup: On Opera GX, you can start a video on your computer and continue watching it on your phone or tablet.
• Razer Chroma integration: You can configure the RGB on your Razer Chroma-enabled devices to match your browser actions and notifications.
• Crypto Wallet: Allows cryptocurrency transactions.

Opera GX is fairly loaded, so it does not really miss out on much. The only feature that we could spot on Chrome but not on Opera GX is a password manager. Chrome has a built-in password manager that suggests secure and unique passwords for every website that you sign up to. Opera GX only includes local password autofill and not comprehensive password management.

Benchmarks

Both Chrome and Opera GX are very fast browsers that return good scores in most benchmark apps.

If you go purely by benchmark scores, Chrome scores marginally better than Opera GX in all but one benchmark. In fact, in MotionMark, a benchmark that measures the graphics performance of the browser, the difference is a lot more pronounced and entirely in favor of Chrome. This is despite Opera GX being marketed as a browser for gamers. You’re unlikely to notice the difference in regular usage, though.

RAM usage

If there’s something that would push users to look for a Chrome alternative, however, it is the fact that Chrome can end up using a lot of RAM very frequently. But if you picked up Opera GX for this reason, you’d be disappointed, as this browser is equally RAM-hungry.

We opened twelve of the same tabs on both Chrome and Opera GX side-by-side, with new user profiles and no extensions or performance settings enabled. The difference in RAM usage between the two was just 200MB, which isn’t very high to tip the boat in favor of Opera GX.

On lighter workloads, Chrome hovers around 300-500MB, while Opera GX was over double the RAM usage at 600-900MB.

If performance and RAM usage are your main criterion for choosing a browser, you should prefer Chrome over Opera GX. Opera GX’s key advantage, however, is the fact that you can limit resources through GX Control.

However, this comes at the cost of a compromised browsing experience. This comes in very handy if you do not want to starve other parts of your computing experience, like when you are gaming.

Opera GX vs Google Chrome: Which browser should you choose?

Both Opera GX and Google Chrome are great browsers with lots of features and great privacy and security, and you wouldn’t be wrong in choosing one over the other. But it’s clear that they are aiming for very different audiences.

Google Chrome remains absolutely simple to use, which is a big draw for users who just want a browser that works. The approach is rather minimal and no-frills, but it works for the average user.

Opera GX, on the other hand, is clearly made for gamers and other enthusiasts. These are people who know what they want and aren’t afraid to toggle a few settings to achieve the perfect experience for themselves. There are a ton of features to explore, and you’d get a fulfilling web experience at the end of it.

We recommend enthusiasts try out Opera GX and see if they can appreciate the experience. For most users, Google Chrome will still remain the default browser.

If you liked this browser comparison, you’d also be interested in our Chrome vs Edge, Chrome vs Firefox, and Chrome vs Safari comparisons.