I am sure most of the people out there use Google for queries, but that’s not the only search engine we have.
There are a lot of them that offers a wide range of interesting features, most of which are unique. The ones I’ve listed in this article put a serious emphasis on privacy and overall security, so if that’s your main area of concern, you need to read this till the end.
Let’s jump right into it.
DuckDuckGo
DuckDuckGo was launched in 2008 with the aim of real privacy. This search engine goes some extra miles to protect your privacy, like:
- Blocks trackers
- Encrypts connections
- Doesn’t collect or share personal data
- Doesn’t collect search history
- Doesn’t retarget for ads
You can add DuckDuckGo to Google Chrome.
Swisscows
Packed with a variety of interesting features, Swisscows is probably that search engine which you didn’t know you needed. It lets you:
- Search for anything
- Choose to display only region-specific results
- Translate text from one language to another
- Instantly look up meaning of words and sentences with Digest
The most important of all? It doesn’t collect or track your data. Your privacy is highly respected and for good reasons. Besides, you can also be sure that the search results would never display any inappropriate content. Everything is family-friendly.
Ecosia
A search engine with a good cause, Ecosia plants trees in the most scarce areas around the world whenever you search through their service. For every 45 searches you do, they plant one tree for the environment.
And that’s not everything to the story. This search engine protects your privacy, uses natural energy to run their system and finally, shows where their income from your searches goes. They’re completely transparent.
You can search queries from their website or add the extension to your Google Chrome browser.
Qwant
A privacy-oriented search engine with no tracking, Qwant is another brilliant option to the list. You can directly search from their website or install it to your system for easy access. In the homepage itself, you’ll see the latest hot trends, keeping you up-to-date.
If you enjoy using it, you can go on to make it your default search engine.
StartPage
Secure and private, StartPage lets you search stuff seamlessly without touching any of your personal information. It’s one of the most preferred search engines in the market and has been praised by the likes of The New York Times and The Daily Bot.
Using StartPage means:
- No data being collected or used
- Ability to view anonymously
- Getting deeper results for every search, without cookies
You can make this your default search engine if you fancy.
Baidu
Founded in 2000, Baidu is the most used search engine in China. It receives over a billion search queries every month, which clearly shows its popularity. You can search for websites, audios, images, news, and a lot more.
It is popularly known as the “Google” of China because it has almost all of the functionalities of Google. Very similarly, you can type in a query on the homepage and instantly get tons of results.
Ask
A unique search engine, Ask is kind of a question/answer platform where every query is likely to have an answer already posted by other users. Mind you, it also has the traditional search option, so you get the best of both worlds.
On the homepage, you can also discover a variety of interesting reads on different categories, which is quite cool.
Lukol
Lukol allows you to search for stuff while being completely anonymous. As I said in the beginning, these search engines put a great deal of time when it comes to protecting your privacy, and this is one fine example of that.
Lukol is powered by Google custom search, which means you get all the functionalities of Google but enjoy the benefit of being anonymous to protect your privacy.
Yandex
Officially the fifth most popular search engine in the world, Yandex is widely used in Russia and holds a 60% market share there. It is a lot identical to Google and provides a variety of search options like:
- Websites
- Images
- Videos
- News
- Maps
Also, you can also look through maps, translate content, or use their fast browser. The interface is a lot cleaner than other search engines, helping you enjoy a pleasant search experience.
Conclusion
Now that you know the different search engines we have, it’s time to capitalize on that and start using it. Many of these search engines possibly provide a much better user experience and privacy as compared to Google.
