# Private search engines

Search engines compared on search logging, personalized ads, accounts, trackers and jurisdiction, with public evidence.

A private search engine does not keep a history of your searches or build an advertising profile. Each engine below states that searches are not logged, with evidence linked on its page.

1. [DuckDuckGo](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/duckduckgo/) (our pick): C (73/100). Search engine that does not save search history or tie searches to IP addresses. Ads are based on the search terms instead of a profile.
2. [4get](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/4get/): B (88/100). Open-source metasearch engine and proxy that fetches results from other search engines and strips tracking, usable at 4get.ca or other public instances or self-hosted.
3. [SearXNG](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/searxng/): B (88/100). Free, open-source metasearch engine that combines results from many search services without storing information about its users. It can be self-hosted or used through public instances.
4. [YaCy](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/yacy/): B (88/100). Free search engine software that users run themselves, either as a personal or intranet search portal with its own crawler, or as a peer in a decentralized network that shares a web index.
5. [PriEco](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/prieco/): B (75/100). Open-source web search engine written in Rust that combines its own index with results from other sources and supports result customization through Goggles.
6. [MetaGer](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/metager/): C (73/100). Open-source metasearch engine run by the German non-profit SUMA-EV that combines results from several search providers, paid for with a prepaid anonymous key, and includes an anonymizing proxy for opening results.
7. [Marginalia Search](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/marginalia-search/): C (70/100). Independent open-source search engine from Sweden with its own crawler and index, focused on finding small, non-commercial and text-heavy websites.
8. [Mwmbl](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/mwmbl/): C (70/100). Non-profit, open-source search engine with its own community-crawled index, where signed-in users can help curate search results.
9. [Uruky](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/uruky/): D (57/100). Paid, ad-free search engine from Portugal that combines results from European and UK search providers such as Mojeek, and lets each user customize sources and domains.
10. [Brave Search](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/brave-search/): D (55/100). Search engine from Brave Software built on its own independent web index, designed not to store searches with identifiers or build user profiles.
11. [Mojeek](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/mojeek/): D (55/100). British search engine that uses its own crawler and index and states that it does not track users.
12. [Kagi](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/kagi/): D (50/100). Paid, ad-free search engine from Kagi Inc. that combines its own index with results from other providers and lets users rank, block or boost websites.
13. [Swisscows](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/swisscows/): D (50/100). Search engine from the Swiss company Swisscows AG that filters out adult content, does not use tracking cookies or build user profiles, and offers an ad-free paid tier.
14. [Startpage](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/startpage/): D (45/100). Dutch search engine returning primarily Google results, proxied to strip IP and identifiers. Includes an "Anonymous View" proxy for previewing results privately.
15. [Presearch](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/presearch/): D (43/100). Search engine from the Canadian company Presearch that serves queries through a network of community-run nodes and rewards searchers and node operators with its PRE crypto token.
16. [Ecosia](https://privacyratings.com/search-engines/ecosia/): D (41/100). Search engine from the Berlin company Ecosia that shows results and ads from Microsoft Bing or Google and uses its profits for tree planting and climate projects.

## Do private search engines have ads?

Many show ads based only on the search, not on a profile. That is rated as partial for ads. Some are paid and show no ads.

Source: https://privacyratings.com/private-search-engine/