FormFiller vs. Browser Built-in Autofill: What's the Difference?

People sometimes ask us how FormFiller compares to Chrome or Firefox's built-in autofill. The honest answer: they're not the same thing at all. They solve completely different problems.

Understanding the difference will help you know when to use each one.

Browser Autofill: Your Real Information, Saved

Browser autofill exists to store and insert your actual personal data. Your real name, your real address, your real phone number, your real credit card. When you're buying something online or filling out a form that genuinely needs your information, browser autofill saves you from typing the same details over and over.

This is useful and convenient. If you're checking out on Amazon or submitting a job application, you want your real information in those fields.

FormFiller: Fake Data, Generated Instantly

FormFiller does something entirely different. It generates realistic but fictional data on demand. Fake names. Fake addresses. Fake phone numbers. Fake emails. All created instantly and locally in your browser.

Why would you want fake data? More reasons than you might think.

When You Need Fake Data (Not Your Real Info)

Testing websites and applications. If you're a developer or QA tester, you need to fill out forms hundreds of times with varied data. You're not going to use your real information for every test case. You need realistic test data that you can generate endlessly. FormFiller gives you that with a single click.

Signing up for things you don't trust. That website wants your email before showing you a price quote. That app requires a phone number to create an account. That newsletter signup won't leave you alone. You don't want to hand over your real contact information to every random site. FormFiller lets you complete these forms without exposing yourself to spam or unwanted contact.

Avoiding marketing databases. Every form you fill with your real information adds you to another marketing list. Sometimes you just want to access content or try a service without becoming a lead in someone's CRM.

Privacy protection. The less your real information is scattered across the internet, the better. FormFiller helps you keep your actual details private while still being able to interact with web forms.

Demo and training environments. Setting up demo accounts, training new employees, or populating staging environments all require form data that isn't tied to real people.

The Key Distinction

Here's the simplest way to think about it:

Browser autofill = "Fill this form with MY real information"

FormFiller = "Fill this form with FAKE realistic information"

They're not competing tools. They're tools for different situations.

How They Work Differently

Browser autofill matches field names to your saved profile. It looks for fields labeled "email" or "address" and inserts what you've stored.

FormFiller uses smart pattern matching to understand what type of data each field expects, then generates appropriate fake data on the spot. A name field gets a realistic name. An email field gets a properly formatted email address. A phone field gets a valid-looking phone number. None of it is real, but all of it looks real.

This means FormFiller works even on unusual forms with non-standard field names. It doesn't need to have seen the form before or have data saved for it. It figures out what's needed and creates it.

Using Both

Most people use both tools, just in different contexts.

Buying something from a trusted retailer? Use browser autofill with your real payment and shipping info.

Signing up for a free trial you might not keep? Testing a form you're building? Creating a throwaway account? Use FormFiller.

The two tools complement each other. Browser autofill handles the forms where you genuinely want to be you. FormFiller handles everything else.

Privacy by Design

One more thing worth mentioning: FormFiller processes everything locally. The fake data it generates never leaves your browser. There's no account to create, no data synced to the cloud, no information sent anywhere.

Browser autofill, by contrast, typically syncs your real personal data through your browser account across all your devices. That's convenient, but it also means your real information lives on external servers.

With FormFiller, there's nothing to sync because the data is generated fresh each time and isn't real to begin with.

Try It Yourself

FormFiller is free for Chrome and Firefox. Install it, right-click on any form, and watch it fill with realistic fake data instantly.

Next time you hit a form that wants information you'd rather not give, you'll be glad you have it.