Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Medium VS Side Space

Compare Medium VS Side Space and see what are their differences

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Medium logo Medium

Welcome to Medium, a place to read, write, and interact with the stories that matter most to you.

Side Space logo Side Space

The World's First Al Assistant for Your Tabs
  • Medium Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-08
  • Side Space
    Image date //
    2025-11-17
  • Side Space
    Image date //
    2025-05-13

An Al-powered vertical tabs manager in your side panel.

An alternative to Arc’s Sidebar and Edge’s Vertical Tabs — now upgraded with a built-in AI assistant.

Side Space gives you complete control over your browsing experience with powerful vertical tab management and Side Copilot, an AI that helps you research, organize, and automate your workflow directly from the side panel.

🚀 How do vertical tabs work?

When vertical tabs are enabled, your open tabs are moved from the top of the browser window to the left side panel. This layout stacks tabs vertically instead of horizontally, giving you more space, better visibility, and easier navigation—especially when working with many tabs.

Features

  • ⚡️ Vertical Tabs Panel — Manage tabs and tab groups efficiently in a clean, space-saving sidebar.
  • 🗂️ Save, restore, and reorder tabs or tab groups with intuitive drag-and-drop.
  • 🔄 Side-by-side layout that keeps all your open tabs visible at a glance.
  • 🔍 Fuzzy search to instantly find the tab you're looking for.
  • 🧹 Suspend tabs to save memory and keep your browser running smoothly.
  • ☁️ Cloud sync (cross-browser) with a single login.
  • 🌛 Dark Mode support.
  • 💾 Space Backup Solutions

    • 📑 Export sessions as JSON
    • ☁️ Sync to the cloud via login
  • AI-powered Tab Grouping for automatically organizing related tabs.

  • 🔗 Group Guardian automatically groups tabs based on URL patterns.

🤖 Introducing Side Copilot — Your AI Assistant in the Side Panel

Side Copilot brings AI directly into your browsing workflow:

  • Ask questions about the page you're viewing
  • Research topics with auto-opened results
  • Summarize long articles instantly
  • Organize tabs and windows through natural language commands
  • Trigger automated actions across your browser

Just open AI Chat in the extension and start talking to your browser — it does the rest.

Medium

Website
medium.com
Pricing URL
-
$ Details
Platforms
-
Release Date
-
Startup details
Country
United States

Side Space

$ Details
Free Trial $39 / One-off
Platforms
Google Chrome Firefox Edge Brave Comet Opera
Release Date
2023 October
Startup details
Country
Hong Kong
Founder(s)
Robert Shaw
Employees
1 - 9

Medium features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Medium offers an easy-to-use interface that makes it simple for anyone to start writing and publishing content without any technical knowledge.
  • Built-in Audience
    The platform has a large and active user base, so new content has the potential to reach a wide audience quickly.
  • Publishing Tools
    Medium provides versatile publishing tools that support text, images, and various media formats, which helps in creating rich and engaging content.
  • SEO Benefits
    Articles posted on Medium tend to rank well in search engine results, thanks to the platform's high domain authority.
  • Community and Interaction
    Medium encourages reader engagement through comments, claps, and highlights, fostering a sense of community among writers and readers.

Possible disadvantages of Medium

  • Monetization
    While Medium has a Partner Program, it may not be as lucrative as other methods of monetization available on independent blogging platforms.
  • Control and Customization
    Medium offers limited customization options compared to dedicated blog platforms like WordPress, restricting how you can brand and personalize your blog.
  • Content Ownership
    By publishing on Medium, you agree to their terms and conditions, which may include giving up some control over how your content is used and distributed.
  • Paywall Issues
    Some articles are placed behind a paywall, which might limit the reach of your content if you want it to be freely accessible to everyone.
  • Dependency on Platform
    Relying solely on Medium means that any changes to the platform's policies or algorithms can directly impact your reach and engagement.

Side Space features and specs

  • 🌈 Arc-like Side Panel
    We’ve built an Arc-like side panel that transforms your tabs into a sleek vertical layout, making it easier than ever to navigate and manage your workspace.
  • 🧠 Smart AI Grouping
    It’s not just about organizing tabs—it’s about doing it intelligently. Our AI grouping feature clusters tabs based on content for a streamlined experience. Plus, you have control with our Group Guardian feature, letting you customize tab groupings using URL matches to set your own organizational rules.
  • ☁️ Spaces & Cloud Sync
    Take productivity to the next level! Save your tabs into different Spaces and we automatically sync them to the cloud. Your organized tabs are accessible across devices, so you can browse seamlessly wherever you are.
  • 🤖 AI Assistant
    Research, summarize, and organize, chat with your tabs and let Al Assistant help you browse smarter.

Analysis of Medium

Overall verdict

  • Medium can be considered a good platform for those who enjoy a wide array of content and appreciate quality writing on diverse subjects. However, the value of Medium depends on individual preferences and whether the topics and writing styles align with what the reader is looking for.

Why this product is good

  • Medium offers a diverse range of articles from both professional and amateur writers, providing readers with numerous perspectives on various topics. Its clean user interface and ease of use make it an appealing platform for both writers and readers. The platform also supports monetization for writers, allowing them to earn from their content.

Recommended for

    Medium is recommended for avid readers seeking a variety of topics ranging from personal development to technology. It's also ideal for writers looking to publish their work to a broad audience and potentially earn revenue through the platform's Partner Program.

Analysis of Side Space

Overall verdict

  • SideSpace is a well-regarded browser productivity tool that helps users organize their tabs and workspaces efficiently, making it a solid choice for anyone who struggles with tab overload.

Why this product is good

  • Helps organize and group browser tabs into dedicated spaces, reducing clutter
  • Improves productivity by allowing quick switching between different projects or contexts
  • Offers a clean, intuitive interface that's easy to adopt
  • Saves and restores tab sessions so you never lose your place
  • Reduces memory usage by managing inactive tabs effectively

Recommended for

  • Power users who juggle many browser tabs at once
  • Professionals managing multiple projects or clients simultaneously
  • Researchers and students who need to organize reference materials
  • Remote workers seeking better digital workspace organization
  • Anyone prone to tab overload looking to streamline their browsing

Medium videos

Medium Review - with Tom Vasel

More videos:

  • Review - Starting a blog on Medium.com? Watch this FIRST.
  • Review - The Medium Review
  • Review - The Medium - Before You Buy
  • Review - I recommend: The Medium (Review)

Side Space videos

Side Space 2.0 | The World First AI Assistant for your Tabs

More videos:

  • Demo - Introducing Side Space 1.0

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Medium and Side Space)
Blogging
100 100%
0% 0
Chrome Extensions
0 0%
100% 100
Blogging Platform
100 100%
0% 0
Productivity
86 86%
14% 14

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing Medium and Side Space.

What makes your product unique?

Side Space's answer:

Side Space combines powerful vertical tab management with an integrated AI assistant, that's something no other browser extension offers.

Instead of choosing between a better tab manager or an AI browser, Side Space gives you both in one clean side panel.

What's the story behind your product?

Side Space's answer:

I am the kind of person who always ends up with too many tabs, too many windows, and no idea where that one page I read yesterday has gone. I tried a bunch of the new AI browsers, but they all felt like replacements for tools I already rely on. I didn’t want a new browser. I just wanted my existing one to feel less chaotic.

So I built Side Copilot for myself first. It helps me manage tabs, jump between windows, find stuff I opened days ago, and generally clean up the mess I constantly create. The thing that changed everything for me was giving it the ability to understand natural commands. I can tell it to group my research tabs or bring back an article from last week and it actually does it. It also has a simple chat mode for quick summaries or translating a page on the spot.

I realized it solved a real problem for me, so I decided to make Side Copilot completely free. I’m curious how other heavy browser users feel about this. Would an assistant like this make your browsing less stressful?

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

Side Space's answer:

  1. The world’s first AI assistant built for your tabs

Most AI tools only analyze text. Side Copilot controls your tabs, windows, history, and pages using real browser APIs. You can research, summarize, organize, open sites, perform searches, restore sessions, and automate actions — all with natural language.

  1. A true vertical tabs manager, not a browser replacement

You don’t need to switch to Arc or Edge. Side Space turns Chrome’s side panel into a clean vertical tabs system with:

Drag-and-drop tab & group management

Fuzzy search

Memory-saving tab suspension

Saved spaces & session restore

Cloud sync

Dark mode

You get a modern browser experience without leaving Chrome.

  1. Dual AI modes for different tasks

Chat Mode → instant content analysis (summary, translation, extraction, quick answers)

Agent Mode → deep automation (organize tabs, clean up windows, run research workflows)

Fast when you need speed, powerful when you need automation.

  1. Page, tab, window, and history tools powered by real browser capabilities

Side Copilot isn’t “just another chatbot.” It uses more than 20 AI MCP tools built on Chrome Extension APIs:

Tab tools: create, close, group, move

Window tools: tile, arrange, focus

History tools: analyze, find, reopen past pages

Page interaction tools: scroll, navigate, search, capture screenshots

Session tools: restore recently closed tabs/windows

This gives Side Space automation capabilities even AI browsers don’t have.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

Side Space's answer:

Side Space is designed for anyone who works, researches, or creates directly in the browser — especially those who manage dozens of tabs every day. If the browser is your workspace, this is for you.

Productivity-Driven Professionals

Marketers, PMs, developers, designers, analysts — anyone who needs a smarter, faster way to organize tabs, windows, and workflows.

Power Browsers with Endless Tabs

For users juggling 20–200+ tabs across multiple windows. Side Space brings structure, clarity, and smart automation without forcing you to switch browsers.

AI-Forward Users

If you want to control your browser with natural language, automate tasks, and let Side Copilot handle the heavy lifting, this is your perfect tool.

Researchers & Knowledge Workers

Students, academics, journalists, content creators, and anyone who collects and analyzes information online. Summarize, extract, search, and research pages instantly.

People Who Want Arc/Edge-Style Features — But in Chrome

Enjoy a vertical tabs manager, powerful side panel, and full AI assistant experience without giving up the browser you already love.

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Medium and Side Space

Medium Reviews

19 Best WordPress Alternatives in 2025
Medium focuses on thoughtful content and community engagement. It offers a user-friendly interface, a large readership base, and various features for writers and readers.
Source: www.pixpa.com
25+ Medium Alternative Platforms for Publishing Articles
Medium is an online platform that was created in 2012 by Evan Williams. It is a place for people to share their thoughts and ideas on various topics. Medium has about 100 million monthly visitors, which makes it one of the most popular platforms for publishing articles.
Source: forgefusion.io
10 Best Medium Alternatives for Reading and Publishing
From thе simplicity of Ghost to thе vеrsatility of Substack, thеrе’s a homе for еvеryonе seeking great Medium alternatives. Thеsе altеrnativеs offеr a world of possibilitiеs for rеadеrs and authors alikе. Whеthеr you’rе in sеarch of a uniquе platform to sharе your thoughts or want to read frеsh contеnt, thеsе platforms havе somеthing spеcial to offеr. All in all, we...
9 Best Medium Alternatives for Making Money With Your Writing in 2023
Substack and Medium differ primarily in their monetization methods. Medium pays creators based on reader engagement, while Substack enables writers to monetize directly through paid subscriptions to their newsletters. This business model allows Substack users to build a direct relationship with their readers via their email inboxes, whereas Medium interactions primarily...
How to Choose the Best Blogging Platform in 2021 (Compared)
Medium works much like a social networking site where you can create an account and start publishing your articles. After you sign up, you’ll have a profile address like this: https://medium.com/@yourname. But you cannot use your own domain.

Side Space Reviews

We have no reviews of Side Space yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Medium seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 3127 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Medium mentions (3127)

  • Building a CMS with AI Agents: You Don't Write the Code, You Audit the Decisions
    I wrote a longer, feature-by-feature walkthrough of the stack on Medium if you want the deep dive on how it all wires together. Https://medium.com/@aak540114/give-your-ai-agents-a-kanban-board-not-the-keys-to-production-81ffd19370f1. - Source: dev.to / 1 day ago
  • Ask HN: Who is using MCP in production?
    FWIW, it appears that using the gh cli is much more token efficient than MCP so that's a plus. https://medium.com/@ravi.madabhushi/mcp-is-up-to-32-more-expensive-than-cli-heres-why-we-still-use-it-d18765735647. - Source: Hacker News / 2 days ago
  • GPT-6 Astra
    That's the ratio the widely published numbers give [1][2]. One does not have to believe the numbers, of course, but those who do believe them are then justified to conclude that there's no moat. Which numbers you believe is of course going to affect whether you think there's a moat or not. [1] https://galileo.ai/blog/llm-model-training-cost [2]... - Source: Hacker News / 2 days ago
  • Altair Basic Interpreter Source Code (1975) [pdf]
    Kent Beck called this “test && commit || revert” in 2018, and credits Oddmund Strømme for first coming up with the idea: . - Source: Hacker News / 3 days ago
  • Ask HN: Who wants to be hired? (September 2026)
    Https://medium.com/@ashishrathour1102 Looking for backend, infrastructure, platform, distributed-systems, storage-engine, or systems-programming roles. Especially interested in small/high-ownership teams working on runtimes, execution infrastructure, databases, developer infrastructure or reliability. - Source: Hacker News / 4 days ago
View more

Side Space mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Side Space yet. Tracking of Side Space recommendations started around Feb 2024.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Medium and Side Space, you can also consider the following products

Ghost - Ghost is a fully open source, adaptable platform for building and running a modern online publication. We power blogs, magazines and journalists from Zappos to Sky News.

OneTab - Whenever you find yourself with too many tabs, click the OneTab icon to convert all of your tabs into a list. When you need to access the tabs again, you can either restore them individually or all at once.

DEV.to - Where software engineers connect, build their resumes, and grow.

Workona - A better way to work in the browser.

WordPress - WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.

tabExtend - Easily save tabs and quickly create notes in your browser