Throughout the years, we have been relying on big companies like Google, Microsoft, Meta and others to give us access to their products to use our computers and phones, communicate on the online web, and store our files. However, as things have gotten worse with the years and the rise of gen-AI only making things worse, people are starting to question if they can even move to new services. However, the journey can be hard and there are so many options that non-tech savvy people are going lose patience and give up.
That is why I made this long and comprehensive list of mostly open-source alternatives to different things from computer OS, social media, to even TV. Many things are easy to move to, others are for more tech-savvy people, and this list doesn't even have all of the available options in any category! However, this is a great first step into trying new things and to slowly move away from big tech. You don't need to do it all at once, go step by step, decide if there are some services you can't stop using and which ones could use a switch and have fun!
Emulates remote frameworks (e.g. jQuery, Bootstrap, AngularJS) and delivers them as local resource. Prevents unnecessary 3rd party requests to Google, StackPath, MaxCDN and more.
Modern browsers such as Mozilla Firefox can tell websites where you're located in order to provide location-aware functionality. Your geographic location is obtained through various means (eg. using wifi data) and is often highly accurate, which can be a violation of your...
The NoScript Firefox extension provides extra protection for Firefox, Seamonkey and other mozilla-based browsers: this free, open source add-on allows JavaScript, Java, Flash and other plugins to be executed only by trusted web sites of your choice (e.g. your online bank).
WhatCampaign is a browser plug-in that replaces utm_* parameters in URLs with a string of random characters.
"Terms of Service; Didn't Read" (short: ToS;DR) is a project started in June 2012 to help fix the "biggest lie on the web": almost no one really reads the terms of service we agree to all the time.
"Terms of Service; Didn't Read" (short: ToS;DR) is a project started in June 2012 to help fix the "biggest lie on the web": almost no one really reads the terms of service we agree to all the time.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Exodus helps you to know which trackers and permissions are embedded in apps installed on your device.
Tells you which trackers and permissions are embedded in apps installed on your device.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Automatically handles GDPR consent dialogs in browsers, lets you set privacy preferences once, supports major browsers, and defaults to stricter privacy options.
This extension will automatically remove tracking elements from URLs to help protect your privacy when browse through the Internet.
Web Archives is a browser extension that enables you to find archived and cached versions of web pages. Searches can be initiated from the context menu and the browser toolbar.
A web extension that redirects YouTube, Twitter, Instagram... requests to alternative privacy friendly frontends and backends.
Enables private, separate browsing sessions with isolated cookies and storage, allowing multiple account sign-ins, unique container settings, and privacy benefits.
This extension helps you control more of your web activity from Facebook by isolating your identity into a separate container.
Bypass Paywalls Clean is a browser extension that allows you to read articles from (supported) sites that implement a paywall. You can also add domains as custom site and try to bypass the paywall. Weekly updates are released for fixes and new sites.
Access over 85.4 million scientific articles for free, bypassing publisher paywalls with Sci-Hub's non-profit shadow library, ensuring knowledge accessibility.
Access over 85.4 million scientific articles for free, bypassing publisher paywalls with Sci-Hub's non-profit shadow library, ensuring knowledge accessibility.
*Not open-sourced.
Re-enable the possibility to use the context menu, copy, paste, and text selection on sites that prevent them.
WhatFont is a bookmarklet and Chrome extension that makes it easy to find out the fonts used in a webpage.
WhatFont is a bookmarklet and Chrome extension that makes it easy to find out the fonts used in a webpage.
*Not open-sourced.
This eye-care extension enables night mode creating dark themes for websites on the fly. Dark Reader inverts bright colors making them high contrast and easy to read at night.
These extensions will make exploring social media so much better. From removing trackers in links to skipping ads, this section will give you back control.
Ruffle is a Flash Player emulator written in Rust. Ruffle runs natively on all modern operating systems as a standalone application, and on all modern browsers through the use of WebAssembly. Leveraging the safety of the modern browser sandbox and the memory safety guarantees of...
A Flash Player emulator written in Rust.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
BlockTube gives you the control over what content you see on YouTube. Now you can easily get rid of those annoying videos or channels that keeps popping up by YouTube's algorithm.
Allows you to block channels from appearing on YT for you.
Follow this list to block Gen AI music channels: https://surasshu.com/blocklist-for-ai-music-on-youtube/
SponsorBlock is an open-source crowdsourced browser extension to skip sponsor segments in YouTube videos. Users submit when a sponsor happens from the extension, and the extension automatically skips sponsors it knows about.
DeArrow is an open source browser extension for crowdsourcing better titles and thumbnails on YouTube. The goal is to make titles accurate and reduce sensationalism. No more arrows, ridiculous faces, and no more clickbait.
This extension is designed to fix YouTube search and de-clutter your search page to make it less distracting.
Hide YouTube related videos, comments, video suggestions wall, homepage recommendations, trending tab, and other distractions.
Hide YouTube related videos, comments, video suggestions wall, homepage recommendations, trending tab, and other distractions.
*Not open-sourced.
Add pronouns to Twitch chat.
*Not open-sourced.
TTV LOL PRO removes most livestream ads from Twitch. This is free, don't expect it to be perfect.
Instantly find and follow the same users from your X(Twitter) follower on Bluesky.
This third-party website gives you better insight into the Steam platform and everything in its database.
This third-party website gives you better insight into the Steam platform and everything in its database.
*Not open-sourced.
On an internet dominated by ads and corporate-run websites, Indie Wiki Buddy is a browser extension that helps you easily find and support independent wikis.
It is time to escape Twitter, Facebook, and all of the other platforms. Look at these alternative options, which are all queer-friendly spaces.
Instant messaging with text, voice, video calling, screen sharing, privacy controls, customizable permissions, moderation, bots, and open-source design.
Replaces Discord
Available on Android phones and tablets.
An open social network that gives creators independence from platforms, developers the freedom to build, and users a choice in their experience.
Replaces Twitter.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Federated and open-source social network with no ads, 500-character limit, custom emojis, and content warnings, emphasizing privacy and personal interaction.
Replaces Twitter; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Lightweight Android client for decentralized social networking, featuring material design, support for photo, video, emoji, lists, drafts, notifications, multiple themes and timelines.
An Android Mastodon client that is more robust than the original Mastodon app.
Only on Android phones and tablets.
Replaces Twitter and most users are speaking Japanese; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Sharkey is a Misskey fork following upstream changes when possible, with added features. Like any other ActivityPub software Sharkey can interface with the thousands of servers that form the fediverse, an interconnected social network, working in tandem with software such as...
Sharkey is a Misskey fork following upstream changes when possible, with added features; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Pleroma is a free, federated social networking server built on open protocols. It is compatible with GNU Social, Mastodon, and many other ActivityPub and OStatus implementations.
Pleroma is a free, federated social networking server built on open protocols; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
This is a fork of Pleroma, which is a microblogging server software that can federate (= exchange messages with) other servers that support ActivityPub. What that means is that you can host a server for yourself or your friends and stay in control of your online identity, but...
This is a faster-spaced fork of Pleroma, it has a varied and potentially experimental feature set tailored specifically to the corner of the fediverse inhabited by the project creator and contributors. ; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Fedilab is a multifunctional Android client to access the distributed Fediverse, consisting of microblogging, photo sharing and video hosting.
Fedilab is a multifunctional Android client to access the distributed Fediverse, consisting of microblogging, photo sharing and video hosting.
Only on Android phones and tablets.
Federated image sharing platform prioritizing privacy, safety, and user control, ad-free operation, no algorithms, open-source, and supports self-hosting.
Replaces Instagram; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Replaces Instagram; catered to artists.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
*Not open-sourced.
Friendica is a distributed social network application. Which allow users to connect with others via their own Friendica server, but may also fully integrate contacts from other platforms including Twitter, diaspora*, Pump.io and StatusNet into their 'newsfeed'.
Replaces FaceBook; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Hubzilla is a powerful platform for creating interconnected based websites featuring a decentralised identity, communications, and permissions framework built using common webserver technology. Hubzilla is very suitable for communities (of any size).
Replaces FaceBook; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
From a friends and familiy birthday party to a march for climate change, today, our gatherings are trapped in the tech giants' platforms. How to get organized, how to click on “I join” without providing intimate data on Facebook or locking yourself in MeetUp?
Event planning and RSVP like in FaceBook; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Replaces FaceBook; part of the Fediverse but NOT ActivityPub.
Lemmy is similar to sites like Reddit, Lobste.rs, or Hacker News: you subscribe to forums you're interested in, post links and discussions, then vote, and comment on them. Behind the scenes, it is very different; anyone can easily run a server, and all these servers are...
Replaces Reddit; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
PieFed is a link aggregator, a forum, a hub of social interaction and information, built for the fediverse. the focus is on individual control, safety, and decentralised power.
Replaces Reddit; part of the Fediverse and ActivityPub.
Available on Android phones and tablets.
Thank you so much for going through this list! I know this list is huge and all-encompising. As I said, this doesn't have all available options, so you could explore out there. What is important is to slowly learn to rely less on big tech companies and work on finding and supporting projects that respect our privacy. If you have any other recommendations, please let me know. Have a great day!
No comments so far, maybe you want to be first?
