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Software · head to head

Mercury Reader vs Violentmonkey

M

Mercury Reader

Software

Clear clutter from articles instantly

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Violentmonkey logo

Violentmonkey

Software

Open source userscript manager

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Mercury Reader mercury Reader's underlying engine (Postlight Parser) is free open source software licensed under Apache License 2.0, per the GitHub repository, with no paid tier; Violentmonkey smaller script ecosystem compared to Tampermonkey which has larger user base and more available scripts
  • They diverge on capability: Mercury Reader covers Content extraction, Violentmonkey covers Userscript support.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mercury Reader and Violentmonkey actually diverge.

Attributes where Mercury Reader and Violentmonkey differ
AttributeMercury ReaderViolentmonkey
Pricing modelfreeUnknown
Founded20152013

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Chrome, Firefox, Edge), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mercury Reader

  • Content extraction
  • Clean reading view
  • Custom themes
  • Font customization

Only in Violentmonkey

  • Userscript support
  • Clean interface
  • Cloud sync
  • Script editor
  • Opera support

Both cover

  • Chrome support
  • Firefox support
  • Edge support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mercury Reader

No use cases recorded yet. See the Mercury Reader review.

Violentmonkey

  • Run open-source userscripts to customize or automate web pagesnot Mercury Reader
  • Import scripts compatible with Greasemonkey and Tampermonkey formatsnot Mercury Reader
  • Sync scripts and settings across browsers via Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, or WebDAVnot Mercury Reader
  • Batch import/export scripts as zip filesnot Mercury Reader

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mercury Reader

  • Mercury Reader's underlying engine (Postlight Parser) is free open source software licensed under Apache License 2.0, per the GitHub repository, with no paid tier

Violentmonkey

  • Smaller script ecosystem compared to Tampermonkey which has larger user base and more available scripts
  • Less marketing and visibility results in lower adoption compared to more widely-known alternatives
  • Community maintenance model means slower feature development compared to commercial alternatives

Pricing, plan by plan

Mercury Reader

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Clutter removal
    • Clean reading
    • Custom themes

Violentmonkey

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Violentmonkey review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Mercury Reader if

  • You need content extraction.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Chrome, Firefox, Edge.
  • You also want clean reading view.
Mercury Reader review

Choose Violentmonkey if

  • You need userscript support.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Chrome, Firefox, Edge.
  • You also want clean interface.
Violentmonkey review

Questions people ask

Is Mercury Reader or Violentmonkey better?
Neither clearly leads. Mercury Reader starts at Free and Violentmonkey at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mercury Reader or Violentmonkey?
Mercury Reader starts at Free and Violentmonkey at Free.
Does Mercury Reader or Violentmonkey run on more platforms?
Both run on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Mercury Reader for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What can Mercury Reader do that Violentmonkey cannot?
Mercury Reader covers Content extraction, Clean reading view, Custom themes, Font customization. Violentmonkey covers Userscript support, Clean interface, Cloud sync, Script editor. Both handle Chrome support, Firefox support, Edge support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Violentmonkey: Is Violentmonkey open-source?

Yes. Violentmonkey is fully open-source and available on GitHub, making it free to use and community-maintained unlike Tampermonkey which has a larger proprietary ecosystem.

Source
Violentmonkey: What browsers does Violentmonkey support?

Violentmonkey works on browsers with WebExtensions support, including Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and other Chromium-based browsers.

Source
Violentmonkey: How does Violentmonkey compare to Tampermonkey in performance?

Community benchmarks show Violentmonkey uses about 15 to 30 percent less RAM on Chrome compared to Tampermonkey when managing many open tabs.

Source
Violentmonkey: What is the current version of Violentmonkey?

Violentmonkey reached version 2.46.0 as of July 31, 2026, with active ongoing development and regular updates to the open-source project.

Source
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Related pages

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