While browsers have been getting AI features left and right since the AI boom began, there are now full-fledged browsers built with AI at their core. These browsers are designed to go beyond traditional browsers that just display web pages and allow you to browse with AI as your assistant. I've been testing pretty much every AI browser that launches, including Perplexity's Comet, ChatGPT's Atlas, Norton's Neo, and even Microsoft Edge's AI mode!

The very first AI browser I tried, though, was Opera's Neon. The folks at Opera were kind enough to walk me through its features in a demo and give me access to the developer beta. And while I frankly didn't have high hopes when I first tested it, since the concept of an "AI browser" didn't sit well with me, the browser was impressive enough to make me keep using it as my primary browser. Today, Neon is finally open to everyone.

Opera Neon costs $19.99 a month and here’s what you get

As announced via a blog post on Opera's Newsroom, the browser company has officially opened public access to Opera Neon. You can download it by clicking this link, but keep in mind that it's a subscription-based service. Neon retails for $19.90/month!

As someone who's tested Neon out through its stages and essentially watched its development unfold, I can say it’s one of the most capable AI browsers I’ve used. However, as impressive as I've found it, I'm not sure if I (and the average user) would be willing to pay the subscription fee just yet, especially if you only want a browser for basic browsing or occasional AI assistance.

If you're thinking "hey, didn't it already launch publicly a few weeks ago" — your confusion is totally, totally valid. On the 30th of September, Opera announced Neon's general release. At that time, Neon was essentially leaving its developer beta phase. Even though it was available "generally," you still needed to join a waitlist to get access to it and try it out hands-on.

So, the general release was what Opera now describes as the closed "Founders" phase, during which Opera directly worked with the community to incorporate their feedback and improve Neon.

Today, this waitlist has been removed, and anyone can subscribe to Opera Neon to explore its capabilities firsthand. Neon comes with three different modes: Chat, Do, and Make.

Chat is the basic conversational mode, where you can ask questions, get information, or have AI-assisted discussions. Do, on the other hand, is what I think is the most impressive part of Neon. It uses agentic AI to actually take action for you and perform tasks like ordering your coffee, booking trips, making playlists, etc.

Finally, the Make mode can actually create full-fledged projects for you like games, websites, apps, etc. You can give it a prompt, go do something else, while it works in the background to bring your project to life. With Neon, you get access to "top-tier models" like Gemini 3 Pro, GPT-5.1, Veo 3.1, and Nano Banana Pro.

Neon is still my default browser, and even after testing so many AI browsers, I keep coming back to it because of how capable it is. It has the best agentic AI I've come across so far, and it's genuinely helped me save so much time. But again, it does cost $19.99/month, and paying for a browser is just something that might feel unusual for many users, especially when free browsers already include similar AI features (like Perplexity's Comet).