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Google Alternatives

The increasing concerns about online privacy and data security have led many people to search for alternatives to Google, which is known for its data collection and advertising practices. By collecting vast amounts of user data, Google can target users with personalized ads and generate significant revenue, as evidenced by its over $159 billion in revenue in 2019 alone.

Fortunately, there are now many alternatives to Google and its products that prioritize privacy and security. This guide aims to provide an extensive list of these alternatives, catering to different user needs and preferences.

Some popular alternatives to Google Search include DuckDuckGo, StartPage, and Qwant, which do not track users or collect personal information. For email, ProtonMail and Tutanota offer end-to-end encryption and do not scan emails for ad targeting purposes like Google’s Gmail.

For web browsers, Firefox and Brave are popular alternatives that prioritize user privacy and block tracking cookies. Additionally, cloud storage services like Nextcloud and Sync.com offer secure and private alternatives to Google Drive.

In conclusion, while Google may be the most widely used search engine and provider of various online services, there are now many privacy-focused alternatives available for those who value their online privacy and security.

Note: None of these alternatives are in order, it depends on you’re specific needs.

Google Search Engine Alternatives

Privacy and Google search don’t go hand in hand. When you use Google search, they will record your IP address, your search terms, and usually a unique ID.

Google is notorious for collecting vast amounts of user data, including search queries, location data, and browsing history. This data is used to build detailed profiles of users, which can be sold to advertisers or used for other commercial purposes.

Furthermore, Google’s search results are often personalized based on the user’s search history, location, and other personal data, which can create a filter bubble and limit the diversity of information available to the user.

Here are some good alternatives to Google search.

DuckDuckGo – An internet search engine whose goal is to protect users’ privacy and avoiding personalized search results (tracking).
Qwant – Is a French search engine that doesn’t track users.
SearX – Is a free metasearch engine, intended to protect the privacy of its users.
Startpage – a search engine extension that allows users to browse while not being tracked.
SwissCows – Is a Swiss search engine that was launched in 2014. They don’t keep track of the searches done on their site.
Mojeek – Is a UK-based search engine, they are independent and have unbiased results which means no user tracking.
ecosia – Berlin-based search engine whose profits go into planting trees to fight against climate change! They are also privacy-friendly and ethical.
MetaGer – Is a search engine based on protecting users’ privacy, it’s also based in Germany.
Yandex Search – Is a search engine based in Russia and owned by a Russian corporation Yandex.
YaCy – Is a free search engine built on principles of P2P (peer-to-peer) networks.

Most of the search engines above are metasearch engines (except Mokeej and Yandex) meaning they source their search results from larger search engines like Google and Bing.

Google Chrome Alternatives

Chrome is an extremely popular web browser and billions of searches are done monthly.

As you can see Google has 92.07% of the Search Engine Market Share Worldwide as of February 2020!

Remember that Google Chrome is not only a search engine but a super successful data collection tool! More and more people are noticing this. There are many articles saying that Google Chrome has become spyware!

If you want to read more about this you can read this forum on Reddit and an article on Washington Post.

Here are some good alternatives to Chrome:

Tor Browser – Is a global and decentralized computer network. This allows you to hide from tracking and surveillance.
Firefox – Is a free and open-source web browser, it was developed by Mozilla Foundation and help from thousands of volunteers!
Brave – Is an open-source web browser whose goal is to protect the privacy of their users by blocking trackers or preferring pages in HTTPS.
Iridium Browser – Is based on the Chromium codebase. All modifications enhance privacy for the user.
Ungoogled Chromium – Is an open-source version of Chromium that has been modified to enhance users’ privacy.
Waterfox – Is an open-source web browser that is based on Mozilla Firefox. Its purpose is to be speedy and ethical.
Epic Browser – Is a “Privacy Browser” that is a secure chromium-based web browser.
GNUzilla – Its a GNU version of the Mozilla suite. Its main advantage is that it’s ethical and entirely free!

There are other alternatives to Google Chrome like Apple’s Safari and Microsoft’s Edge but many of these have serious privacy issues.

Gmail Alternatives

Your inbox is where the most important information is sent. You can find a lot of information on a person based on your inbox.

The unfortunate thing is that Google and its partners have access to all your information and they can collect data, they can display ads inside your inbox, and the contents of your inbox are shared with random third parties.

Here are some more secure Gmail alternatives:

ProtonMail – Is an encrypted email service created in 2013 by CERN and MIT scientists.
Tutanota – Is a German-based email provider that is open-sourced with end-to-end email software. Tutanota also offers a web messaging service.
Posteo – Is a German email provider whose IT foundation is based on open-source software. They also use green energy from Greenpeace Energy and is also ad-free! The service costs € 1 per month.
Runbox – Is a company that provides email and web hosting services. It was founded in March 2011 and its headquarters are located in Oslo.
Mailbox.org – Its an ad-free and secure email provider based in Germany, they offer a calendar, contacts lists and more.
StartMail – Is created by the people who created StartPage (a secure search engine).
Mailfence – Is an encrypted email service based in Belgium. It offers free accounts.
CounterMail – Is a secure email provider that is based in Sweden.

Google Calendar Alternatives

Google Calendar is amazing it helps users manage their time, set goals, and remember things.

There are many upsides to Google’s Calendar app but there are some major privacy issues and many people are looking for alternatives.

Here are multiple Google Calendar alternatives:

Simple Calendar – It’s an ad-free app without any unnecessary permissions.
Fruux – Offers a free account, supports many operating systems, and is open-source.
TimeTree – It offers a free account and supports Android, iOS, and browser.
ProtonCalendar – Created by the same people who made ProtonMail!
Flask-Calendar – Basic, self-hosted Calendar, has a few features as well

There are a few services that offer both email and calendar services in one:

Google Drive Alternatives

Google Drive is a popular option because it’s free and extremely convenient, but Google doesn’t care about users’ privacy that much. It collects your data and uses it for their own purposes.

Here are some good Drive Alternatives:

Dropbox – Is a file hosting service owned by the American company Dropbox.
Sync.com – Is based in Canada. They offer secure and encrypted cloud storage for both businesses and individuals.
Mega – Is a secure cloud storage service that offers free 50 GB of storage.
Nextcloud – This is a free and open-source file sharing platform that is based in Germany.
Syncthing – Peer-to-peer, an open-sourced cloud storage platform.
Tresoritd Hungary that is serious about en – Is a storage service based in Switzerland enhanced security and data encryption.
ownCloud – This is an open-source file sharing platform based in Germany.
Infomaniak – Switzerland-based privacy-friendly service that offers drive, calendar, and more services.

Some of my recommendations above (Dropbox, Mega) aren’t the best for privacy but are much more privacy-friendly than Google Drive.

Google Docs Alternatives

Google Docs offers users to create documents easily online. But Google makes its money through data collection and Google’s bots have been caught crawling through users’ documents.

Here are some good alternatives to Google Drive:

Zoho Office – This is a good Google alternative for docs since it has a good interface and works well.
EtherPad – Is an online free text editor that allows users to work collaboratively and in real-time.
CryptPad – Is a great privacy-focused alternative to Google Docs.
Apache OpenOffice – Is a good office suite platform that is also available offline.
OnlyOffice – Is a multifunctional online office suite.
Nuclino – Is a cloud-based collaboration software that allows teams to work on projects together and share information in real-time.
LibreOffice – Is a good free and open-sourced office suite that is also available offline.

YouTube Alternatives

Watching videos on YouTube may seem harmless but Google is usually collecting your data while your watching.

Here are some YouTube alternatives:

Note: Invidio.us is a really good YouTube proxy that allows you to watch YouTube videos without needing to log in. If you want to make it work you need to replace youtube.com with invidio.us in the URL.

Google Photos Alternatives

Google offers unlimited storage for photo’s but Google isn’t doing it to be nice. They will use your photos to scan your pictures and track things you do. I don’t think Google or any company needs to know that much about you.

Here are a few good Google Photo’s alternatives:

Piwigo – Is an open-source photo gallery software.
Zyl – Is a great mobile app that cares about privacy.
Cryptee – Is a great option if you’re serious about your privacy. They offer many services as well as not just photos.
Cluster – A free app that’s allows you to create photo albums and share them with people you choose.
PhotoStructure – relatively new self-hosted privacy-friendly photo manager

Google Analytics Alternatives

If you’re running a website there are good reasons to use alternatives to Google Analytics. One, you’re respecting your visitor’s privacy and there are more friendly alternatives.

Websites who run Google Adsense campaigns are the ones who usually use Google Analytics because it would be much more difficult to track your results without it.

Here are a few Analytics alternatives:

Plausible – A simple and privacy-friendly alternative to Google Analytics. It’s also lightweight, open-source, and has no cookies.
Matomo – It was formerly Piwik, and is an open-sourced platform that understands the privacy of the users. It also allows website admins to import historic Google Analytics data to Matomo.
Fathom Analytics – Is an open-sourced website analytics platform that is efficient and fast. (GitHub)
Clicky – Is a good alternative to Google Analytics because it keeps the user’s privacy by making their IP anonymous. It’s also efficient and user-friendly. It is also certified by Privacy Shield!
AT Internet – Is a French company that was created in 1996. It’s good for performance measurement or sites, and applications.
FoxMetrics – Is a platform that allows you to understand and analyze your customer’s actions from your desktop and mobile device.

Google Translate Alternatives

Google has many privacy issues and Google Translate is no exception. Google may gather information on what you’re translating and use it for their own purposes.

Google is known for its data collection practices, and this extends to Google Translate as well. Users’ translations are stored on Google’s servers, which can be accessed by the company and potentially used for ad targeting or other purposes. Alternative translation services that prioritize privacy and security offer a safer and more private way to translate text.

Here are some Google Translate alternatives:

DeepL – Is an online translation service that was launched on August 28 and available for Windows. (Good for translating large blocks of text)
Swisscows Translate – Is the data-safe Google alternative for translating languages.
Microsoft Translator (Not the most privacy-conscious) – An online translator created by Microsoft
Baidu Translate – Good for voice translation and pretty accurate.
Linguee – Allows you to translate one word at a time not like Google translate where they will translate full paragraphs and sentences.

Google Maps Alternatives

Google Maps isn’t the best option when it comes to your privacy. Although Google Maps is really convenient and easy to use it does track your location and stores your data. So what are the best privacy-conscious alternatives?

Here are some Google Maps alternatives:

Here WeGo (iOS, Android and Windows) – Allows users to download offline maps for 200 different countries, and you can also use it online if you need directions. It offers directions, traffic, and places!
OpenStreetMap (iOS, Android and Windows) – Is similar to Wikipedia since it is edited by users and volunteers. It’s not as fancy as Google maps but it won’t show you targetted ads.
Maps.me (iOS and Android) – An open-source offline (and online) map app that receives its data from OpenStreetMap. It offers many features like public transport, traffic data, and cycling routes.
MapQuest (iOS, Android and Windows) – Easy to use the app and great for discovering new areas nearby you.
Bing Maps (iOS, Android and Windows) – Although it isn’t the best privacy-conscious alternative it’s still an alternative. It has many features and easy to use.

Google reCAPTCHA Alternatives

Google reCAPTCHA is a popular tool used to prevent spam and bots from accessing sites.

Here are some reCAPTCHA alternatives:

hCaptcha – A privacy-friendly alternatives to reCAPTCHA, it also runs on over 15% of the web.

Google Chrome OS Alternative

Want to use anything but a Chromebook?

Here are some alternatives:

Linux – This is probably the best alternative since it’s free, open-sourced and offers many features.
Tails – Another good alternative that is based on Linux and routes all your traffic through the Tor network. It’s also free!
Apple – One of the biggest operating systems, but not that good for privacy.
Windows – Another big operating system but is super bad for privacy.

Google Hangouts Alternatives

Here are multiple Google hangout alternatives:

Telegram – Simple to use, fast, and secure while being synced on all your devices. Telegram was based in Russia and is now based in Dubai.
Wire – Is available on major devices and good communication and collaboration app made by Wire Swiss.
Discord – Available for a lot of platforms (Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web). It allows you to stay connected with your friends by video call and you can also share screens.
Signal – Offers encrypted group chats and is focused on users’ privacy. It’s supported on the following platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS.

WhatsApp is another popular option but unfortunately, it is owned by Facebook meaning it doesn’t respect your privacy that much.

Google Domains Alternatives

Google Domains is a domain registration service.

Here are multiple Google Domain alternatives:

Namecheap – I personally use Namecheap for this website and it’s been amazing, they offer good customer support and all domains come with free WhoisGuard!
GoDaddy – An internet domain registrar that also offers web hosting and more.
Njalla – A privacy-aware domain registration service. They also offer website hosting.
Hover – Offers good customer support and free WHOIS privacy.

How's your online privacy?

If you’re looking for alternatives to Google products you already know that they’re taking your data and selling it to third-parties.

There are other services still spying on you such as your internet service provider (ISP).

If you want to have privacy online you need the following services:

1. Virtual Private Network (VPN)

VPNs are great since they encrypt your IP and make you anonymous from third parties who want to get your information. (read more on what is a VPN) Getting a VPN is very simple, you just need to install the VPN application on the device you want to use it on then just choose the location you want to connect to then click connect!

VPN will defend you from your ISP (Internet Service Provider) and other third-parties from getting their hands on your information. If you’re curious we have a list of the best VPN services, where we review and analyze the best VPN service in the market.

2. Privacy browser

We have listed some good Chrome alternative at the top of the page. Did you know that your browser can track your searches and sell this data to third parties? Just make sure you choose a browser carefully.

3. Adblocker

A large majority of ads are also tools used for tracking you and your data. Having an ad blocker is important for your privacy and it will make your online experience cleaner (ads can make websites take longer to load).

I personally use uBlock Origin which works very well in my opinion.

I also wanted to give a significant amount of credit to Sven Taylor from RestorePrivacy.com since he was the first one to write about Google Alternatives.