5 Best Free Alternatives to SearXNG in 2026
By Noahlast updated pricing verified
Compared: free alternatives to SearXNG
| Alternative | Best for | Standout | Biggest weakness | Learning curve | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SearXNGreference | privacy-conscious users and self-hosters who want a metasearch engine that aggregates multiple search services without tracking, and full control over which engines are queried | Aggregates results from up to 269 external search engines into one privacy-respecting interface, with no tracking, no ads, and full self-hosting via Docker. | Result quality is entirely dependent on which upstream engines an instance is configured to query, so public instances can be inconsistent, slower than a direct search engine, or occasionally blocked by upstream providers for automated-looking traffic; self-hosting requires ongoing server maintenance that a hosted product like DuckDuckGo does not. | Low | Free |
| DuckDuckGo | privacy-conscious users who want tracker blocking and non-personalized search by default without paying, plus an optional bundle of VPN and identity protection for those who want it | Search results and ads are not built from a stored personal profile, and the browser blocks third-party trackers by default without requiring separate extensions or configuration. | Search result relevance and freshness can lag Google for niche, local, or highly current queries, since DuckDuckGo relies partly on licensed results from Bing and other sources rather than its own comprehensive index. | Low | Free tier · paid from $9.99/mo |
| Brave Search | developers building AI or LLM applications who want search results from an independent index, priced per request, instead of reselling Google or Bing data | Runs on an independently crawled search index rather than reselling another provider's results, exposed through a per-request API purpose-built for grounding LLM answers with citations. | Consumer Brave Search Premium (the ad-free tier) doesn't publish its price on Brave's own help documentation, and as a smaller independent index it has less comprehensive long-tail and local search coverage than Google. | Low | Free tier · paid from $4/mo |
| Mojeek | privacy-conscious individuals who want a search engine with its own independent index instead of a Google- or Bing-reranking layer | An independently crawled web index (over 9 billion pages) rather than results resold or reranked from Google or Bing, combined with no default tracking cookies. | Mojeek's independent index is far smaller than Google's or Bing's, so result relevance and coverage for niche or long-tail queries lags behind mainstream search engines, especially outside English-language content. | Low | Free |
| Google Meet | individuals and teams already using Gmail, Calendar, and Google Workspace who want video calls that launch directly from a calendar invite with no separate app install | Gemini-powered automatic note-taking, live meeting summaries, and real-time translation are built into paid tiers, generated directly inside the call rather than through a separate transcription add-on. | The free tier caps group calls at 60 minutes with no recording, and Google Workspace's plan-comparison page does not display exact per-user dollar prices without going through a purchase or sign-in flow, making cost comparison against Zoom or Microsoft Teams harder upfront. | Low | Free |
| Google Search | anyone doing general web search who wants the broadest, most current index along with integrated Maps, Shopping, and AI Overviews, without paying anything | The largest and most frequently updated web index of any search engine, combined with Maps, Shopping, Flights, and AI-generated Overviews built directly into the results page. | Results pages are increasingly dominated by ads and AI Overviews above organic links, and search history is linked to a signed-in Google account for ad personalization by default unless a user opts into Incognito mode or disables activity tracking. | Low | Free |
DuckDuckGo
Brave Search
Mojeek
Google Meet
Google Search1.DuckDuckGo — best SearXNG alternative for privacy-conscious users who want tracker blocking and non-personalized search by default without paying, plus an optional bundle of VPN and identity protection for those who want it
DuckDuckGo is the best SearXNG alternative for privacy-conscious users who want tracker blocking and non-personalized search by default without running or maintaining a server, unlike SearXNG, which is entirely self-hosted or dependent on inconsistent public instances. DuckDuckGo holds a 4.5/5 rating from 10 Capterra reviews, a track record SearXNG's own listing has none of at all. DuckDuckGo's core search engine and browser are free with no account required, matching SearXNG's own $0 price point, and both are available on web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android. DuckDuckGo's browser blocks third-party trackers by default, and its optional Privacy Pro subscription at $9.99/month bundles a VPN, data-broker removal, and identity theft restoration, a bundled paid tier SearXNG doesn't offer at any price since it has no company or paid product behind it at all. SearXNG remains the better choice for anyone who specifically wants to self-host their own metasearch aggregator or query up to 269 external engines from one interface: DuckDuckGo is a single, centrally hosted search product, not an aggregator of other engines, and its search relevance for niche or highly current queries can lag Google since it relies partly on licensed Bing results rather than its own independent aggregation.
Compared to SearXNG: 4.5/5 rating from 10 Capterra reviews vs SearXNG's none on file, no server to self-host or maintain vs SearXNG's Docker self-hosting or inconsistent public instances, optional $9.99/month Privacy Pro bundle (VPN, data-broker removal) vs SearXNG's no paid tier of any kind
Wins:4.5/5 rating from 10 Capterra reviews, evidence SearXNG has none of on file · No server to self-host or maintain, and no dependency on inconsistent public instances, unlike SearXNG's self-hosted-or-public-instance model · Optional Privacy Pro subscription bundles a VPN, data-broker removal, and identity theft restoration, services SearXNG doesn't offer at any price
Loses:Not a metasearch aggregator; doesn't query up to 269 external search engines the way SearXNG does · Search relevance for niche or highly current queries can lag Google since results rely partly on licensed Bing data rather than an independently aggregated index
Pros
- Core search engine and browser are free with no account or personal data required.
- Tracker blocking is on by default in the browser, not an opt-in extension.
- Privacy Pro bundles VPN, data broker removal, and identity restoration into one subscription instead of three.
- Non-personalized search avoids the filter-bubble effect of profile-based ranking.
Cons
- Search relevance for local, niche, or fast-moving queries can lag Google.
- Privacy Pro's VPN has fewer server locations than dedicated VPN providers.
- Duck.ai and other newer features are less mature than the core search product.
- Ad revenue model means search results still include contextual ads, even without tracking.
Pricing: Free tier · paid from $9.99/mo — $0 for core search and browser, matching SearXNG's fully free plan; optional Privacy Pro add-on is $9.99/month or $99.99/year, a paid tier SearXNG has none of
2.Brave Search — best SearXNG alternative for developers building AI or LLM applications who want search results from an independent index, priced per request, instead of reselling Google or Bing data
Brave Search is the best SearXNG alternative for developers building AI or LLM applications who want search results from an independently crawled index, priced per request, rather than SearXNG's approach of aggregating other engines' results without indexing the web itself. Both are free for basic use at $0, and both value independence from Google and Bing, but Brave Search runs its own crawled index while SearXNG depends entirely on whichever upstream engines an instance is configured to query. Brave Search's API charges $5 per 1,000 requests for the Search plan (50 queries/second) or $4 per 1,000 requests for the Answers plan, a monetization path SearXNG has none of since it has no company or commercial product behind it at all. Both run as web-only products with no official mobile app. SearXNG remains the better choice for anyone who wants a genuinely free, self-hostable aggregator with no commercial entity involved: SearXNG is AGPL-3.0-licensed and fully self-hostable via Docker with no paid tier at any level, while Brave Search's consumer product still doesn't disclose Brave Search Premium's ad-free-tier price, and its smaller independent index has less comprehensive long-tail and local coverage than Google, a gap SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation approach sidesteps by pulling from many sources at once.
Compared to SearXNG: runs its own independently crawled index rather than aggregating other engines' results vs SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation model, per-request API pricing ($4-5 per 1,000 requests) vs SearXNG's no commercial product at any price, Brave Search Premium's ad-free price undisclosed vs SearXNG's fully free, no-paid-tier model
Wins:Runs on its own independently crawled index rather than aggregating results from other engines the way SearXNG does · Per-request API ($5/1,000 for Search, $4/1,000 for Answers) built for grounding LLM answers with citations, a commercial product SearXNG has no equivalent of
Loses:Smaller independent index with less comprehensive long-tail and local coverage than Google, a gap SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation approach sidesteps · Brave Search Premium's ad-free consumer tier price isn't disclosed, unlike SearXNG, which has no paid tier at any level to disclose
Pros
- Built on an independent search index rather than reselling Google or Bing results.
- API pricing is per-request ($5/1,000 for Search, $4/1,000 for Answers) rather than a flat seat-based subscription.
- Free consumer search requires no account and works in any browser.
- Answers API returns citation-grounded summaries designed for direct use in LLM-facing products.
Cons
- Smaller independent index means less comprehensive long-tail and local search coverage than Google.
- Brave Search Premium's ad-free tier price isn't disclosed on Brave's public help documentation.
- Answers API is capacity-limited to 2 queries/second versus 50 queries/second on the base Search plan.
- No official mobile app; it's accessed as a website rather than a dedicated search app.
Pricing: Free tier · paid from $4/mo — $0 for consumer search, matching SearXNG's fully free plan; API pricing starts at $4-5 per 1,000 requests, a paid tier SearXNG has none of (verified undefined NaN, NaN)
3.Mojeek — best SearXNG alternative for privacy-conscious individuals who want a search engine with its own independent index instead of a Google- or Bing-reranking layer
Mojeek is the best SearXNG alternative for privacy-conscious users who want a search engine built on its own independently crawled index rather than SearXNG's model of aggregating results from up to 269 other engines. Founded in 2004 and operating for over two decades, Mojeek has grown its independent index past 9 billion pages, distinguishing it from most alternative search engines, including SearXNG, that rerank or aggregate results sourced from Google or Bing rather than crawling the web themselves. Both are free with no account required and no tracking of users, and both are $0 at every tier. Mojeek sells a Web Search API and Site Search API plus Mojeek Ads to businesses, a commercial revenue stream funding its free consumer product that SearXNG, run entirely by volunteer donations with no company behind it, doesn't have. SearXNG remains the better choice for anyone who wants results pulled from many engines simultaneously rather than one independent crawl: Mojeek's index, while independent, is far smaller than Google's or Bing's, so result relevance and coverage for niche or non-English queries lags mainstream engines, a gap SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation approach is built specifically to close, and SearXNG additionally supports 58 languages and Tor access that Mojeek's listing doesn't describe.
Compared to SearXNG: independently crawled index of 9 billion+ pages built over two decades vs SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation of other providers' results, Web Search API and Site Search API revenue vs SearXNG's fully donation-funded model, smaller index coverage for niche queries vs SearXNG's multi-engine aggregation approach
Wins:Independently crawled index of over 9 billion pages built since 2004, rather than aggregating results from other engines the way SearXNG does · Web Search API and Site Search API plus Mojeek Ads generate revenue that funds the free consumer product, a commercial base SearXNG's donation-only model doesn't have
Loses:Independent index is far smaller than Google's or Bing's, so relevance and coverage for niche or non-English queries lags, a gap SearXNG's 269-engine aggregation approach is built to close · No mention of Tor access or the 58-language support that SearXNG's listing documents
Pros
- Independently crawled index, not a reranked copy of Google or Bing results.
- No default tracking cookies and no advertising profile built from search history.
- Free web, image, news, and Substack blog search with no account required.
- Web Search API and Site Search API available for developers who want to embed independent search.
Cons
- Index coverage and result relevance trail Google and Bing, especially for niche, local, or non-English queries.
- No dedicated native mobile app; access is via mobile browser or third-party browser integration.
- Fewer specialized search verticals (shopping, maps, flights) than mainstream search engines.
- Business model relies on ads and API sales, which are less mature revenue streams than Google's or Microsoft's ad networks.
Pricing: Free — $0 for all search, matching SearXNG's fully free plan; no paid consumer tier on either side (verified undefined NaN, NaN)
4.Google Meet — best SearXNG alternative for individuals and teams already using Gmail, Calendar, and Google Workspace who want video calls that launch directly from a calendar invite with no separate app install
Google Meet appears in this comparison because it is listed among SearXNG's current alternatives, but it does not compete with SearXNG on search at all: Google Meet is Google's video conferencing app, used for calls and meetings, while SearXNG is a self-hosted metasearch engine that aggregates results from up to 269 search services. Google Meet's free tier supports up to 100 participants and 60-minute group calls with no recording, and its Gemini-powered features generate live captions, real-time translation, and automatic meeting notes on paid Google Workspace tiers, none of which addresses SearXNG's core purpose of privacy-respecting web search. Both products are free at the entry tier, and both run on the web, but that is where the meaningful overlap ends. For anyone actually looking for a way to search the web privately, without tracking or profiling, SearXNG remains the relevant choice in this comparison, not Google Meet: SearXNG aggregates results from up to 269 external search engines with no ads and no account requirement, a function Google Meet's listing does not perform in any capacity, and readers who landed here looking for a video-conferencing decision should compare Google Meet against dedicated meeting tools rather than against a search engine.
Compared to SearXNG: a video conferencing app for calls and meetings vs SearXNG's metasearch aggregation of up to 269 engines, free tier capped at 100 participants and 60-minute calls vs SearXNG's unrestricted, no-account search access, Gemini-powered meeting notes and translation vs nothing relevant to SearXNG's privacy-search purpose
Loses:Does not perform web search or result aggregation in any capacity, the entire function SearXNG provides · Free tier is capped at 100 participants and 60 minutes per group call, a limitation irrelevant to evaluating a search tool but the only concrete numbers this listing documents · No native Windows or macOS desktop app, running only through the browser or mobile apps
Pros
- Meetings launch directly from a Google Calendar invite with no separate app download required on desktop.
- Gemini features generate live captions, real-time translation, and automatic meeting notes on paid tiers.
- Free tier supports up to 100 participants, generous enough for most small-team or casual calls.
- Tight integration with Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides for in-meeting collaboration.
Cons
- Free tier caps group calls at 60 minutes and includes no recording option.
- No native Windows or macOS desktop app; runs only through the browser or mobile apps.
- Exact per-user pricing for Workspace Business Starter, Standard, and Plus is not shown on the plan-comparison page without starting a purchase flow.
- Meeting recording and Studio Sound require at least the Business Standard tier, not available on Business Starter.
Pricing: Free — $0 free tier (100 participants, 60-minute calls) vs SearXNG's fully free, unrestricted search; not a comparable product category
5.Google Search — best SearXNG alternative for anyone doing general web search who wants the broadest, most current index along with integrated Maps, Shopping, and AI Overviews, without paying anything
Google Search is included here as the search engine SearXNG's own listing positions itself against, not because Google Search matches SearXNG's privacy-first design: Google Search holds over 90% of global search market share and indexes the largest, most frequently updated share of the public web of any provider, a scale no single engine SearXNG aggregates can individually match. Both are free at $0 with no consumer paid tier, and Google Search integrates Maps, Shopping, Flights, and AI-generated Overviews directly into results, features not described in SearXNG's own listing. Where the two diverge is the core value proposition: Google Search's own listing states that search history is linked to a signed-in Google account by default and used for both result personalization and ad targeting, the exact tracking model SearXNG was built to avoid entirely by aggregating other engines' results without storing a user profile. SearXNG remains the clearly better choice for anyone prioritizing privacy: it has no ads, no tracking, and no signed-in account requirement of any kind, while Google Search's own listing concedes that results pages carry more ad and AI-Overview real estate above organic links than a decade ago, with no privacy-first mode available without manually enabling Incognito or disabling Web & App Activity.
Compared to SearXNG: over 90% global search market share and the largest, most current web index vs SearXNG's aggregation of up to 269 smaller engines, Maps/Shopping/Flights/AI Overviews built into results vs nothing comparable in SearXNG's listing, search history tied to a signed-in account for ad targeting by default vs SearXNG's no-tracking, no-account model
Wins:Over 90% global search market share and the largest, most frequently updated web index of any provider · Maps, Shopping, Flights, and AI-generated Overviews integrated directly into results, features not described in SearXNG's listing
Loses:Search history is linked to a signed-in Google account by default and used for ad targeting, the exact tracking model SearXNG was built to avoid · No privacy-first mode without manually enabling Incognito or disabling Web & App Activity, unlike SearXNG's no-tracking-by-default design · Results pages carry more ad and AI-Overview real estate above organic links than a decade ago, per its own listing
Pros
- Largest and most current web index of any mainstream search engine.
- Deep integration with Maps, Shopping, Flights, and the Knowledge Graph directly in results.
- Free with no paid tier required for full functionality.
- Default search provider across Chrome, Android, and most browsers, so no setup is needed.
Cons
- Results pages carry more ad and AI-Overview real estate above organic links than a decade ago.
- Search history is tied to a signed-in Google account and used for ad targeting by default.
- AI Overviews have been documented producing inaccurate or misleading summaries on some queries.
- No privacy-first mode without manually enabling Incognito or disabling Web & App Activity.
Pricing: Free — $0, free for all users, matching SearXNG's fully free plan; both have no consumer paid tier