I Built My Own Browser… and Now I’m Never Going Back | Shift Browser

About this video

Kevin, in partnership with Shift, presents Shift as a Chromium-based browser you build yourself, free to start, compatible with extensions, the same sites and usual keyboard shortcuts. Instead of a one-size-fits-all layout, you start from one of six templates built around work styles or build from scratch, customizing where tabs go, toolbars, controls, apps and themes. In the Build Your Own Browser builder he walks through its four tabs — templates, bars, controls and apps — naming templates including the Organizer for maximum flexibility, the Original Shiftie with everything pinned to the sidebar, the Maverick with tools pinned to the bottom, and the Creative with a collapsible sidebar and grid app layout. He drags bars to reposition or remove them (e.g. removing the bookmarks bar), drags controls such as the space switcher and a carbon meter into the top toolbar while removing forward/back buttons, and organizes apps by dragging them into place. Shift offers over 1,500 apps; adding Gmail as an app makes it persistent like a pinned dock rather than a temporary tab, with unread badges for apps like Gmail, LinkedIn, Slack and Asana. Spaces act like smarter profiles: each space — such as work at the Kevin Cookie Company, personal projects and demos — has its own apps, theme, icon, notification badges and sign-ins, with cookies and account data kept separate so switching between work and personal Gmail takes one click with no logging in and out. Shift also has a built-in carbon meter that estimates browsing emissions using a model backed by open-source research and UN data and offsets it quarterly, partnering with vetted environmental groups to offset 100% of emissions. Shift is free for up to two spaces and five apps per space, with a paid tier for more.

Key takeaways

• Shift is Chromium-based and free to start, keeping Chrome/Edge familiarity — extensions, sites and keyboard shortcuts — while letting you redesign layout, toolbars, controls and themes
• Build from six templates (including Organizer, Original Shiftie, Maverick and Creative) using the builder’s templates, bars, controls and apps tabs, dragging items to move or remove them
• Add from over 1,500 apps as persistent, dock-like apps with one-click access and unread badges, rather than temporary tabs you reopen each time
• Use Spaces to separate work, personal and other contexts, each with its own apps, theme and isolated cookies/sign-ins so multiple accounts need no logging in and out
• The built-in carbon meter estimates your browsing footprint and Shift offsets it quarterly at 100%; the free tier covers up to two spaces and five apps per space, with a paid tier for more

Episode details: published July 16, 2025 · 12:48 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Kevin Stratvert’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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