Alternatives to
Google Search
The default web index for billions of queries, funded by advertising.
Why people switch
Search is infrastructure. When results are shaped by ad auctions and behavioural profiles, the index stops being neutral. Switching search is often the fastest win - change the default once and every query follows.
Switching in practice
No account or data export required. Set your new default in the browser and on your phone; the habit change matters more than the install.
Vetted alternatives
DuckDuckGo
Straightforward switchGeneral web search without storing personal search histories.
DuckDuckGo aggregates results while avoiding logged profiles. Many switchers report that importing settings and syncing laptop and phone was straightforward - and that turning off AI-generated “overviews” restores a calmer results page.
How it is funded: Keyword-based ads (syndicated via Microsoft Advertising), affiliate revenue, and Privacy Pro subscriptions - not behavioural profiles.
Results are Bing-backed. Settings allow disabling AI features in search results.
Ecosia Search
Straightforward switchWeb search at ecosia.org whose surplus funds tree planting, not ad profiles.
Ecosia publishes financial reports on planting projects. Ecosia anonymises its own logs within days and does not build cross-platform ad profiles, but queries are forwarded to Microsoft Bing and/or Google to deliver results. Set ecosia.org as your default search in any browser, or use the Ecosia Extension or Ecosia Browser - three independent ways to search with Ecosia.
How it is funded: Steward-owned social enterprise; search ads fund tree planting. Results syndicated from Bing and Google.
Independent from Ecosia Browser and the Ecosia Extension.
Ecosia Extension
Straightforward switchBrowser extension that sets Ecosia as your default search and new tab.
Keep your current browser and switch search through Ecosia's extension. Available for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari - independent from the Ecosia Browser app and from using ecosia.org directly.
How it is funded: Steward-owned social enterprise; same search-ad model as Ecosia Search.
Independent from Ecosia Search (ecosia.org) and Ecosia Browser (ecosia.org/browser). Queries reach Bing and/or Google as search partners.
Startpage
Straightforward switchGoogle-quality results without Google storing your identity.
Startpage proxies Google results so Google sees aggregated traffic, not your individual query history tied to an account. Owned by Surfboard Holding BV, majority-owned by System1 - the same ad-marketing company that owns MapQuest.
How it is funded: Free service funded by non-personalized contextual ads - not subscriptions. (StartMail, by the same founders, is a separate paid email product.)
Useful when you need Google's index freshness with less direct profiling. Worth reading Startpage's post-acquisition privacy commitments if ownership matters to you.