How to Install, Update, and Remove Firefox on Linux

Firefox is among the most popular browsers and without a doubt the number one browser in the open-source community that directly competes with property browsers like Google Chrome.

You can imagine its popularity from the fact that it’s the top choice for the most popular Linux distribution and is shipped by default with the system.

For instance, if it’s not found on your system or if you’re looking for other ways to install the latest version of Firefox on your preferred Linux distribution, then this article is for you.

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Tutorial Details

How to Install Firefox on Linux

You can install Firefox on your preferred Linux distribution in several ways, and we’ll start by using the officially recommended package manager method.

Installing Firefox using the Package Manager

Open your terminal and run one of the commands based on your Linux distribution to install Firefox from the package manager.

$ sudo apt install firefox                                                                                     #For Debian or Ubuntu
$ sudo yum install firefox                                                                                   #For RHEL or Fedora
$ sudo pacman -S firefox                                                                                   #For Arch Linux or Manjaro
$ sudo emerge -a www-client/firefox                                                             #For Gentoo Linux
$ sudo apk add firefox                                                                                        #For Alpine Linux
$ sudo zypper install firefox                                                                               #For OpenSUSE

The above command will ensure that all the required dependencies, libraries, and codecs required for Firefox functionality are correctly installed, including Firefox itself.

After the installation is complete, you can locate it from the application search menu.

Installing Firefox using the Flatpak

If you have installed and configured Flatpak on your Linux system, then you can easily install the Firefox Flatpak variant using the following command:

$ flatpak install flathub org.mozilla.firefox

After the installation is complete, you can launch it with the following command or locate it from the application search menu.

$ flatpak run org.mozilla.firefox

Installing Firefox using the Snap

If you have Snap installed and configured on your Linux system and you prefer to install the Firefox Snap package, then begin by running the following command:

$ sudo snap install firefox

Once the installation is finished, you can either launch it using the following command or find it in the application search menu.

$ snap run firefox

Installing Firefox from the Source

Downloading the installer from the Firefox website and using it to run Firefox is a method that would work on any Linux distribution. To begin, follow the below steps in sequence.

First, visit the official Firefox download page from any browser or device and download the latest version of Firefox based on your Linux system.

Now execute the following commands one by one:

$ cd ~/Downloads
$ tar xjf firefox-*.tar.bz2 && sudo mv firefox /opt
$ sudo ln -s /opt/firefox/firefox /usr/local/bin/firefox
$ sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mozilla/sumo-kb/main/install-firefox-linux/firefox.desktop -P /usr/local/share/applications

That’s it! You have successfully installed Firefox from the official source, and you can locate it in the application search menu.

• Firefox nightly for those seeking the latest features, technology, and performance optimization.

How to Update Firefox on Linux

Once you have Firefox installed on your Linux system, it usually updates itself automatically in the background whenever a new version is available.

If you wish to manually initiate an update and have installed it through the package manager, just update your system, and it will include Firefox.

If you’ve installed Firefox via Snap or Flathub, simply use the provided commands to update it.

$ flatpak update org.mozilla.firefox                                                                     #For Flatpak
$ sudo snap refresh firefox                                                                                   #For Snap

How to Remove Firefox from Linux

If Firefox was installed through the standard distro-based package manager, execute the following command:

$ sudo apt purge firefox                                                                                      #For Debian or Ubuntu
$ sudo yum remove firefox                                                                                 #For RHEL or Fedora
$ sudo pacman -R firefox                                                                                    #For Arch Linux or Manjaro
$ sudo emerge --deselect firefox                                                                      #For Gentoo Linux
$ sudo apk del firefox                                                                                           #For Alpine Linux
$ sudo zypper remove firefox                                                                             #For OpenSUSE

If you have installed Firefox via Flatpak or Snap, then run:

$ flatpak uninstall org.mozilla.firefox                                                                  #For Flatpak
$ snap remove firefox                                                                                            #For Snap

If you have installed Firefox from the official site, then delete the “firefox” folder in your home directory and from other locations by running the following commands:

$ sudo rm -rf /opt/firefox/firefox
$ sudo rm -rf /usr/local/share/applications/firefox.desktop
$ rm -rf /home/user/.mozilla/

Final Word

If you have questions or queries related to the article, then feel free to tell us via the comment section.

Till then, peace!