A "start page" or "home page" is what you see when you open Firefox or click the home button. A "new tab page" is what you see when you open a new tab. These can be the same thing or different things.
Here's how to configure both, and what your options are.
The Difference Between Start Page and New Tab
Start page: Opens when Firefox starts, or when you click the home button (the house icon, if visible).
New tab page: Opens every time you press Ctrl+T or click the new tab icon.
By default, both show Firefox's built-in new tab (with Pocket recommendations and top sites). You can set them to the same or different pages.
Settings → Home:
- "Homepage and new windows" — what opens when Firefox starts
- "New tabs" — what opens for each new tab
Options for each:
- Firefox Home (default)
- Custom URL (any web address)
- Blank page
If you set a custom URL, the start page becomes whatever URL you specify — a web page, a local file, or any valid URL.
Option 1: Blank New Tab
The simplest option. Settings → Home → New tabs → Blank Page.
Result: every new tab is an empty white (or dark) page with the address bar focused. Fast, minimal, zero distraction.
Best for: people who don't want any suggestions, recommendations, or content on the new tab. Keyboard-driven navigation where you always type what you want.
Option 2: Custom Start Page (Local HTML File)
You can create a custom start page as a local HTML file and set it as your new tab/home page.
Create /home/user/startpage.html with whatever HTML/CSS you want, then set the URL to file:///home/user/startpage.html in Firefox.
This approach: complete control, no extension required, survives Firefox updates. Requires some HTML knowledge to create/maintain.
Option 3: r/startpages Community Pages
The r/startpages subreddit (35k members) is full of custom start page projects, many open source. GitHub searches for "firefox startpage" return hundreds of projects.
Popular ones include:
- Nighttab (hosted at nighttab.com): configurable, minimal, clock-focused
- Tabliss: available as both an extension and standalone page
- Various custom HTML projects on GitHub
Option 4: New Tab Extension
Extensions replace the new tab completely and typically provide more functionality than a static HTML page: live weather, dynamic content, clocks, etc.
Weather & Clock Dashboard is a new tab extension that shows live weather + 3-day forecast + world clocks + search bar. The key advantage over a static HTML start page: it pulls live data (weather, time) on each open.
For a purely static display: a local HTML file is simpler. For live data: an extension is more appropriate.
The r/startpages Aesthetic vs. Functional
The start page community (r/startpages, r/unixporn) often prioritizes aesthetics — beautiful, minimal designs with clocks and calendars. These are impressive visually but often sacrifice functionality.
A functional start page prioritizes information value: what do you need to know as you start a new browsing task? Weather, time, world clocks, and a search bar are functional. A beautiful wallpaper with a centered clock is aesthetic.
Both are valid goals. Know which you're building.
The Awesome Lists
If you want to explore what others have built:
- jnmcfly/awesome-startpage on GitHub: curated list of start page extensions and custom HTML projects for Firefox
- r/startpages: active community with screenshots and source links
Firefox extensions on AMO are a subset; the custom HTML ecosystem is larger.
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