The Best DuckDuckGo AlternativesTop Web Search & Image Search Engines like DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo is described as 'Privacy-focused search engine offering Zero-click Info, instant answers, and more, built from open-source software for a user-friendly experience' and is a leading web search engine in the web browsers category. There are more than 100 alternatives to DuckDuckGo for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Android, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and iPhone apps. The best DuckDuckGo alternative is Startpage, which is free. Other great apps like DuckDuckGo are Searx, Qwant, Brave Search and Ecosia.

filter to find the best alternatives

DuckDuckGo alternatives are mainly Web Search Engines, but if you're looking for Image Search Engines or Privacy Tools you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Kindle Fire + Free. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to DuckDuckGo.
DuckDuckGo iconDuckDuckGo
  1518
  • ...

Privacy-focused search engine offering Zero-click Info, instant answers, and more, built from open-source software for a user-friendly experience.

More about DuckDuckGo
DuckDuckGo alternatives page was last updated Mar 4, 2025
Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard
  1. Startpage icon
     246 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Privacy-focused search engine that uses Google results minus trackers and ads, it stores no personal data, offers Anonymous View, and breaks filter bubbles for diverse results, built by Surfboard Holding B.V., Startpage is committed to privacy by controlling user data.

    100 Startpage alternatives

    License model

    • FreeProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • NL flagNetherlands
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Google Chrome
    • Safari
    • Tor
    • Mozilla Firefox

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  Built-In Proxy
    2.  No Tracking
    3.  Deletion after timeout
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  GDPR Compliant
    6.  No registration required
    7.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    8.  Block Trackers
    9.  Built-in VPN
    10.  Video search

    Startpage VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Startpage as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    Top Positive Comment
    beat_truck
    Apr 3, 2022
    3

    They don't censor your search results, which DDG now does.

    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    Jun 29, 2019
    26

    One of the main reasons for using DuckDuckGo is to escape Google gov propaganda. StartPage doesn't fix that problem.

    Most Recent Comment
    ribbonwoodclose
    Positive Aug 13, 2024
    0

    I like startpage as it focus is on privacy. https://www.digr.co also has focus on privacy and is ad-free .

    Show more comments
    3 of 6 comments
    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Startpage icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Startpage is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Startpage is the most popular Web-based, Android, iPhone & iPad alternative to DuckDuckGo.

    • Startpage is the most popular free alternative to DuckDuckGo.

    • Startpage is Free and ProprietaryDuckDuckGo is also Free and Proprietary
    • Startpage is Privacy focusedDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  2. Searx icon
     285 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Searx is a free internet metasearch engine which aggregates results from more than 70 search services. Users are neither tracked nor profiled. Additionally, searx can be used over Tor for online anonymity.

    99 Searx alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • Self-Hosted
    • Cloudron
    Discontinued

    Searx is no longer maintained. The GitHub repository has been archived on September 7, 2023. Users should probably take a look at SearXNG icon SearXNG.

    Properties

    1.  Customizable
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Meta-Search
    2.  Decentralized
    3.  Self-hosted search
    4.  No Tracking
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  No registration required
    8.  Video search
    9.  Reverse Image Search
    10.  REST API

    Searx VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Searx as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    Top Positive Comment
    Buster_Blue
    Sep 26, 2017
    3

    Both are search engines that focus on privacy. Searx is a metasearch engine, however.

    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    Oct 16, 2023
    0

    It requires too much work in order to see if it is even similar.

    Most Recent Comment
    Oscar Sanderson
    Positive Jul 22, 2021
    -1

    Is more privacy focused and you can configue it easierly

    Show more comments
    3 of 5 comments
    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Searx icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Searx is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Searx is the most popular Linux & Self-Hosted alternative to DuckDuckGo.

    • Searx is the most popular Open Source alternative to DuckDuckGo.

    • Searx is Free and Open SourceDuckDuckGo is Free and Proprietary
    • Searx is Customizable, Decentralized and Privacy focusedDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  3. Qwant icon
     167 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Qwant is a European web search engine, launched in July 2013 and operated from Paris. It uses Bing in order to provide people with web search results. It claims not to employ user tracking and doesn't personalize search results in order to avoid trapping users in a filter...

    104 Qwant alternatives

    License model

    • FreeProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Google Chrome
    • Mozilla Firefox

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  No Tracking
    2.  Dark Mode
    3.  Meta-Search
    4.  No registration required
    5.  GDPR Compliant
    6.  Bangs

    Qwant VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Qwant as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    Most Recent Comment
    Akino
    Positive Aug 9, 2017
    11

    Works same as Google but in better and with more privacy. It cans aggregate Web, News and social feeds

    Guest
    Positive Jun 29, 2019
    -2

    It is more private than DuckDuckGo because its in Europe, and is the LEAST gov propaganda out of any search engine you could ever possibly find!

    Guest
    Positive Sep 12, 2018
    -4

    I prefer the results over duckduckgo

    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Qwant icon
    • Most users think Qwant is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Qwant is Free and ProprietaryDuckDuckGo is also Free and Proprietary
    • Qwant is Privacy focused and LightweightDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  4. Brave Search icon
     118 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Brave Search is built on top of a completely independent index, and doesn’t track users, their searches, or their clicks.

    100 Brave Search alternatives

    License model

    • FreemiumProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Tor
    • Brave

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Instant Answers
    2.  Independent Searching
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Bangs
    6.  Independent search index
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  No registration required
    9.  No Logs
    10.  AI-Powered
    11.  Search by country and distance
    12.  Full-Text Search

    Brave Search VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Brave Search as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    chirag127
    Positive Sep 11, 2022
    -1

    I like brave search engine as an alternative to DuckDuckGo because it's a web crawler too. While DuckDuckGo just give Bing results privately brave don't get search results from Bing

    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Brave Search icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Brave Search is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Brave Search is Freemium and ProprietaryDuckDuckGo is Free and Proprietary
    • Brave Search is Privacy focused and LightweightDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  5. Ecosia icon
     137 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Ecosia is a green search engine that donates at least 80% of its profits from search ad revenue and online shopping to a reforestation program, currently in Burkina Faso. In November 2015 Ecosia celebrated 3 million planted trees and $5 Million donated for the environment.

    107 Ecosia alternatives

    License model

    • FreeProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • Windows Phone
    • iPad
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Mozilla Firefox

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Sustainably hosted
    2.  Support environment variables
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Browser extension
    7.  No filter bubble
    8.  Full-Text Search
    9.  Sustainability
    10.  Secure Chat
    11.  Integrated Search
    12.  Meta-Search

    Ecosia VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Ecosia as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    Most Recent Comment
    youlk1234
    Negative Aug 6, 2024
    0

    My problem: WHERE DO THEY GET THE MONEY TO PLANT THE TREES??? Probabily selling data , customized advertisement etc. So they are ecologic without being private, which doesn't make it usable for some cases (most too)

    XarBuXar
    Positive Feb 22, 2019
    4

    Do the same things, get more trees!

    RemovedUser
    Positive Jul 29, 2019
    1

    It does the same thing, it just plants trees

    Show more comments
    3 of 4 comments
    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Ecosia icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Ecosia is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Ecosia is Free and ProprietaryDuckDuckGo is also Free and Proprietary
    • Ecosia is Privacy focusedDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  6. SearXNG icon
     99 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    SearXNG is a free internet metasearch engine which aggregates results from various search services and databases. Users are neither tracked nor profiled.

    103 SearXNG alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Country of Origin

    • International

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Online
    • Arch Linux
    • Fedora
    • Ubuntu
    • Debian
    • Docker
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
    • Self-Hosted

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  Meta-Search
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Self-hosted search
    6.  Decentralized
    7.  No registration required
    8.  No Logs

    SearXNG VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about SearXNG as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    youlk1234
    Aug 6, 2024
    0

    Cool, but you need your own server to set it up, which costs money...

    DuckDuckGo Icon
    SearXNG icon
    • Almost everyone thinks SearXNG is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • SearXNG is Free and Open SourceDuckDuckGo is Free and Proprietary
    • SearXNG is Decentralized, Privacy focused and LightweightDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  7. Mojeek icon
     47 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Mojeek, the alternative search engine that puts the people who use it first.

    96 Mojeek alternatives

    License model

    • FreeProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • GB flagUnited Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Independent search index
    2.  Sustainably hosted
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  No Coding Required
    8.  No Logs

    Mojeek VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about Mojeek as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    Top Positive Comment
    panoptes
    Feb 6, 2025
    3

    It's like DuckDuckGo (private and all that) but it has its own index. The complete package.

    Most Recent Comment
    anathemise
    Positive Feb 19, 2025
    0

    DuckDuckGo is rebadged Bing whereas MoMoJeek is its own thing

    Minnie Chang
    Positive Feb 18, 2025
    1

    Mojeek is DuckDuckGo but with its own results

    Show more comments
    3 of 5 comments
    DuckDuckGo Icon
    Mojeek icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Mojeek is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • Mojeek is Free and ProprietaryDuckDuckGo is also Free and Proprietary
    • Mojeek is Privacy focused and LightweightDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
  8. YaCy icon
     140 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    YaCy is a free search engine that anyone can use to build a search portal for their intranet or to help search the public internet. When contributing to the world-wide peer network, the scale of YaCy is limited only by the number of users in the world and can index billions of...

    91 YaCy alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Self-Hosted

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Decentralized
    2.  Peer-To-Peer
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  No registration required
    6.  No Logs
    7.  Dark Mode

    YaCy VS DuckDuckGo

     
    Comments about YaCy as an Alternative to DuckDuckGo
    HonestJohn
    Positive Apr 1, 2019
    7

    I use almost excusively DuckDuckGo nowadays but YaCy is my ideal. Fully open source, fully decentralized search engine. Unfurtunatelly is still is kind of beta-alpha product, however if you desire true alternative to the "do(n't) be evil" serach engine, you should keep an eye on it.

    Guest
    Negative Oct 16, 2023
    0

    I don't want to install something...

    DuckDuckGo Icon
    YaCy icon
    • Almost everyone thinks YaCy is a great DuckDuckGo alternative.

    • YaCy is the most popular Windows & Mac alternative to DuckDuckGo.

    • YaCy is Free and Open SourceDuckDuckGo is Free and Proprietary
    • YaCy is Decentralized, Privacy focused and LightweightDuckDuckGo is not according to our users
8 of 110 DuckDuckGo alternatives