Firefox’s Massive UI Redesign ‘Nova’ Hints at Curved Design, Shift to Gradients & More

Mozilla has introduced a bunch of changes and interesting feature updates for Firefox last year. The ability to toggle off all AI features has to be one of the most talked one. Now, it seems Mozilla is in for a massive design overhaul. The report, first shared by a web developer and tech blogger Söeren Hentzschel, claims that Mozilla is working on Firefox’s next UI update under the internal codename “Nova” (via OMG! Ubuntu)

Hentzschel, in the report, clearly mentioned that the mockups shared by him aren’t from Mozilla. However, the preview of the next UI update offers a glimpse at where the design might be heading as development continues.

Firefox’s “Nova” redesign focuses on rounded elements and a shift from solid color tones to gradients

Based on the early preview seen below, Mozilla appears to be moving towards rounded elements. Tabs appear significantly more curved, while the address bar adopts a subtle shape. The tab bar and navigation toolbar also appear visually connected, forming a single rounded block at the top of the browser.

Other interface sections follow the same design language. The sidebar launcher, website content container, and even the Firefox start page appear grouped into rounded panels. Interestingly, the UI color is reportedly also changing.

Image credit: Söeren Hentzschel

All this time, the Firefox UI mostly used solid color surfaces. Nova, meanwhile, is likely to bring subtle gradients across different UI layers. The mockups show a visible choice of violet tones, although this may depend on themes or user settings. One aforementioned example even shows a mint-green start page with a matching interface accent. The early mockups also hint at several functional tweaks. Vertical tabs also appear to be supported in the Nova UI redesign leak.

Another preview shows two tabs displayed side by side, suggesting Mozilla is experimenting with split-view browsing. To catch you up, Mozilla has been experimenting with this feature for quite some time now. We reported on it last September and even went hands-on with the feature.

Image credit: Söeren Hentzschel

Moving on, the screenshots also include a visible Compact Mode toggle. Firefox technically still supports this mode today, but it requires enabling a hidden setting. From the looks of it, Nova could bring that option back as an official feature again. Last but not least, Hentzschel shared some redesigned panel mockups, too.

Image credit: Söeren Hentzschel

Are you excited about the possible Nova redesign coming to Firefox? Let us know in the comments below.

Article feature image source: Söeren Hentzschel