What is Trezor Bridge?
Trezor Bridge is a lightweight, background application designed to facilitate communication between your Trezor hardware wallet and your internet browser. In the early days of cryptocurrency hardware wallets, browser plugins were commonly used to establish this connection. However, as browser security standards evolved and plugins became deprecated, a more robust and secure solution was needed.
Enter Trezor Bridge. It acts as a local communication server, running quietly in the background of your operating system. When you visit a compatible web interface—such as Trezor Suite for Web or third-party wallets like MetaMask—the website sends requests to the local Trezor Bridge service (usually running on http://127.0.0.1:21325). The Bridge then translates these requests into USB commands that your Trezor device understands.
This architecture ensures that your private keys never leave the device. The Bridge only passes signed transactions and public keys back to the browser, maintaining the "cold storage" security model that makes hardware wallets so effective against online threats.
Technical Architecture
Trezor Bridge runs as a daemon process named `trezord`. It listens on a local port solely for connections from the local machine, preventing remote access. It supports the WebUSB standard where available but provides a critical fallback and often more stable connection method for many users.
Why You Need Trezor Bridge
Enhancing security and compatibility for your crypto journey.
Enhanced Security
By moving the communication logic out of the browser context, Trezor Bridge reduces the attack surface. It verifies the origin of requests and ensures that only authorized interactions occur with your device.
Superior Performance
Direct USB communication via a native application is often faster and more reliable than browser-based WebUSB implementations, especially when handling large transaction histories or complex signing operations.
Broad Compatibility
Not all browsers support WebUSB perfectly. Trezor Bridge ensures your device works across Firefox, Chrome, Brave, and other major browsers without relying on specific browser features that might change or break.
Key Features
Background Operation
Once installed, Trezor Bridge runs silently in the background. There is no interface to manage; it simply works when needed, automatically starting with your system or when triggered by a wallet request.
Cross-Platform Support
Whether you are a Windows power user, a macOS creative, or a Linux developer, Trezor Bridge offers native support. It is distributed as an .exe, .dmg, or .rpm/.deb package to fit your OS ecosystem perfectly.
Automatic Updates
Security is a moving target. Trezor Bridge is designed to be easily updatable, ensuring you always have the latest security patches and protocol improvements to keep your funds safe against emerging threats.
How to Install Trezor Bridge
Follow these simple steps to get connected in minutes.
Download
Visit the official Trezor website (trezor.io/start) or the Trezor Suite download page. Select your operating system from the dropdown menu to download the correct installer.
Install
Run the downloaded file. On Windows, confirm the UAC prompt. On macOS, drag the icon to Applications. On Linux, use your package manager or run the file directly.
Connect
Once installed, clear your browser cache or restart your browser. Connect your Trezor device via USB. The Trezor Wallet website should now detect your device immediately.
Note: Always verify you are downloading from the official domain trezor.io to avoid phishing scams.
System Compatibility
Windows
Windows 10 and newer (64-bit)
macOS
macOS 10.15 and newer
Linux
Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian (x64)
Android
Via WebUSB (No Bridge needed)