简体中文
EnglishWhy Firefox Needs PWAsForFirefox to Install PWAs
Updated
Firefox supports many Progressive Web App APIs, but it does not support installing a PWA as a standalone system app with an app-like experience. That missing capability — often called a Site Specific Browser (SSB) — is exactly what PWAsForFirefox provides. It does this by creating a custom modified Firefox runtime, then adding a console tool and a browser extension to install, manage, and run PWAs.
What Firefox already does — and what it doesn't
Progressive Web Apps use web APIs and progressive enhancement to deliver a native app-like experience across platforms. Firefox handles a large share of those APIs. What it lacks is the packaging and launch layer: turning a website into its own installable app that opens in a dedicated window, appears in the start/app menu, and behaves like a desktop program rather than a tab.
That gap is the SSB feature. Without it, a site you use constantly still lives inside a normal browser window with tabs and an address bar.
How PWAsForFirefox fills the gap
PWAsForFirefox builds a separate, modified Firefox runtime and an isolated Firefox installation and profile(s) to store the PWAs. On top of that runtime it provides:
- A command-line tool to install, manage, and run PWAs in Firefox.
- A browser extension to set up native programs and to install, manage, and run PWAs and their profiles directly from the main Firefox browser.
The result is that installed PWAs get their own start/app menu entry and taskbar icon, live in their own window, and have no tabs or address bar — the app-like feel Firefox alone doesn't deliver.
What you get once a site is installed
| Capability | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Standalone window | The PWA opens on its own, not as a tab |
| No tabs or address bar | Cleaner, app-like interface |
| Start/app menu entry and taskbar icon | Launches like a normal desktop app |
| Isolated installation and profile(s) | PWAs are stored separately from your main Firefox |
| Any website installable | Support for installing all websites as PWAs |
| Add-ons and Firefox features | Support for all Firefox extensions and built-in features |
| Automatic installation and patching | User-triggered installation and patching of the installation and profile(s) |
When this is the right tool
Choose PWAsForFirefox if you want to keep using Firefox as your browser but still want certain sites — mail, chat, dashboards, docs — to run as standalone apps with their own window and launcher entry. It is also the practical route if you want those apps isolated from your main browsing profile while retaining Firefox add-on support.
If you are satisfied opening those sites as ordinary tabs, or you already use a browser that installs PWAs natively, the extra runtime and setup may not be worth it.
Getting started
The project's own guidance is to install the browser extension and follow the in-browser installation instructions, with the installation page covering setup details. For day-to-day use, the user guide and related pages cover the workflow. If setup or usage goes wrong, the help section — especially the FAQ page — is the first place to check.