If you’re like most people on the Internet, you use Google to search the web and Google Chrome to browse the web. That means, by default, Google can keep track of every single search you make and website you visit. On those websites, other companies may also track you.

DuckDuckGo is an independent Google alternative that also lets you search and browse the web, but we don’t track your searches or browsing history, and our browsers and extensions help you block other companies from trying to track you as well, all by default. Our free browser comes with seamless protection built-in, including tracker blocking, increased encryption, email protection, and more, making it the most comprehensive protection you can get with one download. Plus, DuckDuckGo subscribers get four additional features: a fast and simple VPN, access to advanced AI models in Duck.ai, a Personal Information Removal service, and an Identity Theft Restoration service. That’s how DuckDuckGo helps protect you in a nutshell. Learn more

DuckDuckGo never tracks you. And when you leave our search engine and use our browsers or extensions to visit other sites, we aim to protect your privacy as much as possible. No service can eliminate all hidden tracking or all profiling online because trackers are always trying to evade specific protections. To be effective, our protections continually evolve to mitigate this while avoiding website breakage. That’s also why we offer multiple types of web tracking protections.

Other browsers offer some of these by default, like cookie and fingerprinting protections, but we also provide many other protections that most browsers do not offer by default, like 3rd-Party Tracker Loading Protection, Global Privacy Control, Link Tracking Protection, CNAME Cloaking Protection, Google AMP Protection, and more, which all help cover different tracking angles. Our list of trackers is open source, along with the list of exceptions we make to preserve usability. Learn more

Use DuckDuckGo to help protect yourself online. Ever get ads so creepy it feels like your phone is listening to you? Or see ads for something you searched for once following you around everywhere? If you’re wondering who to blame, it’s probably Google. For decades, they’ve been tracking your searches, embedding trackers in their Chrome browser, and hiding even more trackers on the most-popular websites. This type of mass collection of your personal information can make you vulnerable to hackers, scammers, and other privacy-invasive companies.

DuckDuckGo lets you search and browse like you’re used to, but (unlike Google) we never track you and our browser helps block trackers from companies that run online tracking networks like Google, TikTok, and Meta (Facebook). Oh, and our browser is free — we make money from privacy-respecting search ads, not by exploiting your data.

Use DuckDuckGo to get a better online experience. Have you noticed Google search results getting worse? You’re not alone. For many Google searches, most of the results on the first page are either ads or Google pushing their own services. It can be even worse on mobile.

On DuckDuckGo, we keep ads to a minimum and our search ads are private, only based on the search results page you’re viewing, and not on you as a person. The tracker blocking that’s built in to our browser also blocks a large number of tracker-dependent ads from loading by default. Coupled with other browser features like automatically blocking cookie pop-ups, our default web tracking protections give you a cleaner online experience overall with DuckDuckGo.

Use DuckDuckGo to send a message to Big Tech companies like Google who are taking away user choice online and profiting by stealing your personal information. Google is the epitome of Big Tech, with their tentacles in everything, compiling detailed profiles about everyone, and making billions of dollars auctioning off access to your attention, and for what? Creepy ads that follow you around? By comparison, DuckDuckGo is a small, independent company, based in Paoli, Pennsylvania, with a vision to offer a choice to be more protected online without sacrifice to anyone who wants it.

Use DuckDuckGo because it’s fast and secure, because it’s a free Google alternative that lets you search and browse the way you want, and because it puts you back in control of your personal data.

No, we are not and have never been owned by Google or any other entity. We have been an independent company since our founding in 2008. You may notice content originally from Google, such as YouTube videos, in our search results. Even though Google has a monopoly on access to this content, we are able to get it anonymously via indirect sources. This ensures we still offer quality search results without needing to rely on Google directly for any of it. We also offer an extension for Google Chrome and a Google Android app, but these are not in partnership with Google — and actually aim to protect you from Google’s online trackers. Learn more