In 2025, depending on just Google for everything is no longer the smartest SEO move.
Search is changing fast. More people now care about privacy, want more accurate results, and are searching in different ways — from voice to AI to niche-specific engines. This shift means one thing: if you’re serious about SEO, you need to look beyond Google.
As an SEO expert, I’ve seen how using the right and best search engine at the right time can help drive more targeted traffic, reach new audiences, and even improve ranking signals by building presence across multiple platforms.
At the same time, concerns around data tracking, personalized bubbles, and search manipulation have pushed users to explore better, safer, and more focused search options.
That’s why I’ve created this list — a hand-picked guide to the 20 best Google alternatives in 2025. Whether you’re an SEO strategist, blogger, ecommerce brand, or just someone who wants more control over search, these options can help you:
- Improve visibility in different ecosystems
- Protect your data and your users
- Reach people searching in new ways (AI, voice, visual)
- Strengthen your overall SEO game
Let’s explore each one, what makes them special, and how you can use them to grow smarter — not just bigger — in search.
1. DuckDuckGo – Best for Privacy-Focused Searching
What is DuckDuckGo?
DuckDuckGo is a search engine made for people who don’t want to be tracked online. It doesn’t save your search history, doesn’t collect personal data, and shows the same results to everyone — no matter who you are.
Why People Trust DuckDuckGo
Privacy is everything here. Unlike Google, DuckDuckGo doesn’t follow you with ads or build a profile about you. It gives you clean, honest results without spying on you. That’s why millions now choose it as their daily search engine.
SEO Tips for DuckDuckGo
- DuckDuckGo uses results mostly from Bing, so make sure your website is also optimised for Bing.
- Focus on natural content that answers real questions.
- Keep your site fast, mobile-friendly, and clear — privacy users care about clean, respectful experiences.
Best For:
People who care about privacy and want to stay anonymous while browsing.
2. Ecosia – Best Search Engine for Environmental Impact
What is Ecosia?
Ecosia is a search engine that helps the planet. Every time someone searches, a part of the money made from ads goes toward planting trees. So far, they’ve planted over 180 million trees.
Why People Love Ecosia
Ecosia is powered by 100% renewable energy, and they share exactly how much money goes to tree-planting. It’s perfect for people who want their internet use to support real, positive change.
SEO Tips for Ecosia
- Ecosia also uses Bing results, so just like with DuckDuckGo, optimise for Bing.
- If your content supports eco-friendly living, sustainability, or green products, you have a better chance of connecting with Ecosia users.
- Be genuine. People using Ecosia are usually smart about spotting greenwashing.
Best For:
Eco-conscious users and brands that care about the environment.
3. Startpage – Best for Private and Anonymous Searching
What is Startpage?
Startpage gives you Google search results — but with zero tracking. It works like a privacy filter. You get the same high-quality results from Google, but your data stays completely private.
How Startpage Protects Your Privacy
Startpage doesn’t save your search history, IP address, or location. Even when you click on a result, it gives you an option to open it anonymously, so no website knows who you are. It’s like using Google with total privacy.
SEO Tips for Startpage
- Since Startpage uses Google’s results, your content should be fully optimised for Google SEO.
- Focus on high-quality, helpful content that matches search intent.
- Use proper on-page SEO like clean titles, meta descriptions, and relevant keywords.
Best For:
People who want Google-level results without being tracked.
4. Qwant – Best for Users Seeking a French Alternative
What is Qwant?
Qwant is a French search engine that focuses on privacy and neutral search results. It doesn’t track users and has a special focus on news, images, and music. It’s very popular in parts of Europe.
Why Qwant is a Good Google Alternative
Qwant mixes privacy with AI-powered results, especially for current events and trending topics. It also avoids filter bubbles, so users see unbiased search results. Since it’s based in Europe, many users trust it more than U.S.-based platforms.
SEO Best Practices for Qwant
- Qwant pulls data from Bing and its own crawler, so optimise for Bing and use schema markup where possible.
- Target European keywords and create content that matches local search intent.
- Translate your content or offer multilingual options if targeting users in France or nearby countries.
Best For:
Users in Europe, especially those looking for a non-U.S.-based, privacy-focused search engine.
5. Brave Search – Best for Privacy with Browser Integration
What is Brave Search?
Brave Search is part of the Brave browser, which is known for blocking ads and trackers. The search engine itself is independent and built from scratch — not relying on Google or Bing.
What Makes Brave Search Unique
It gives fully private search results, built using its own index. Brave also doesn’t track you or show personalised ads. The best part? It’s tightly integrated with the Brave browser, giving users a fast, ad-free, and clean search experience.
SEO Tips for Brave Search
- Focus on original content that answers real questions clearly.
- Since Brave has its own index, get backlinks from trusted websites to help your pages get noticed.
- Make sure your site is secure (HTTPS), fast, and mobile-friendly — privacy-focused users expect high standards.
Best For:
People using the Brave browser and those who want full control over their data while browsing and searching.
6. Bing – Best for Solid Results from Microsoft
What is Bing?
Bing is Microsoft’s official search engine. It’s the second most popular after Google and comes built into Windows devices and Microsoft products like Edge, Office, and Cortana.
Why Bing is Still a Top Choice
Bing delivers reliable, fast, and rich search results. It also offers visual search, AI features, and better integration with tools like Microsoft Ads and LinkedIn. Many people use it without even realising — especially in corporate environments.
SEO Tips for Bing
- Use exact match keywords – Bing likes clear keyword use.
- Meta descriptions and titles are super important here.
- Build high-quality backlinks – Bing values authority.
- Use Bing Webmaster Tools to monitor and improve visibility.
Best For:
People who use Microsoft products and want reliable, accurate search results.
7. Yahoo! – Best for Trusted Search with Integrated Services
What is Yahoo!?
Yahoo! is one of the oldest search engines. While it now uses Bing’s technology for results, it’s still a trusted brand with popular services like Yahoo News, Mail, and Finance.
Why Yahoo! is Still Trusted
Yahoo! combines search with a full user experience — especially for those who want quick access to the latest news, stock updates, emails, and more — all in one place.
Optimizing for Yahoo!
- Since Yahoo! uses Bing’s engine, follow Bing SEO practices.
- Make sure your content is mobile-friendly and easy to scan.
- If you’re in news or finance, target Yahoo’s readers with timely and expert content.
Best For:
Users who love using Yahoo Mail, Yahoo News, or want search plus media updates in one place.
8. Baidu – Best for Targeting the Chinese Market
What is Baidu?
Baidu is China’s #1 search engine — it controls over 70% of the market there. It has its own tools, ads platform, and even AI-driven features like voice and image search.
Why Baidu is Crucial
If you want to reach users in China, Baidu is your go-to platform. It’s used for shopping, local search, forums, and more. It’s deeply connected with Chinese online behaviour, especially through its community feature called Baidu Tieba.
SEO for Baidu
- Your site must be hosted in China or load super fast there.
- Use Simplified Chinese and local keywords.
- Avoid heavy JavaScript – Baidu’s bot is simpler than Google’s.
- Submit your site to Baidu Webmaster Tools for indexing.
Best For:
Brands targeting Chinese users or doing market research in China.
9. Yep – Best Search Engine with a Revenue-Sharing Model
What is Yep?
Yep is a new search engine by Ahrefs, built with content creators in mind. It offers a 90/10 revenue share, giving 90% of ad revenue to creators whose content ranks.
How Yep Helps Content Creators
Unlike Google, Yep rewards creators directly. If your blog ranks, you get paid for the value you bring to users. It’s a huge step toward fair content monetisation.
SEO Tips for Yep
- Write high-quality, useful content – Yep values value.
- Focus on organic engagement, not just keyword stuffing.
- Build an authentic, content-rich website with a focus on expertise.
Best For:
Bloggers, educators, and creators who want to earn from their content directly through search.
10. Dogpile – Best for Searching Across Multiple Engines
What is Dogpile?
Dogpile is a metasearch engine, which means it pulls results from several sources like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and more — all at once.
Why Dogpile Works Well
With Dogpile, you don’t miss out on what other engines show. You get a broader view, helping users find what they need faster. It’s especially useful for research and digging deeper into topics.
SEO for Dogpile
- Optimise for multiple engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo).
- Keep your site clean, fast, and readable – consistency across platforms helps.
- Build strong domain authority so your site gets picked up in aggregated results.
Best For:
Users who want to search across multiple engines for more complete results.
11. Mojeek – Best for Emotion-Based Search
What is Mojeek?
Mojeek is a one-of-a-kind search engine that focuses on how people feel. Unlike others, it lets users filter results based on emotions like love, anger, joy, or sadness.
How Mojeek’s Emotion Search Works
Mojeek scans web content and sorts it by emotional tone. So if someone wants to find happy news or angry reviews, they can choose results based on emotional relevance.
SEO Tips for Mojeek
- Write content with a clear emotional tone.
- Use words and phrases that match feelings (e.g., joyful, sad, frustrated).
- Keep your tone consistent — this helps Mojeek tag it correctly.
Best For:
Brands and writers who want to connect emotionally with their audience.
12. Yandex – Best for Targeting the Russian Market
What is Yandex?
Yandex is the most popular search engine in Russia and widely used across Eastern Europe. It offers everything from maps to cloud storage — like Google, but local.
Why Yandex Matters
If your business is targeting Russian-speaking audiences, you must be visible on Yandex. It understands local trends, language, and user habits better than Google does in that region.
SEO for Yandex
- Use Cyrillic text and correct Russian grammar.
- Host your website in Russia or nearby regions.
- Build local backlinks from Russian-language websites.
- Sign up for Yandex.Webmaster Tools for site analysis.
Best For:
Businesses that want to grow in Russia or Eastern European countries.
13. WolframAlpha – Best for Computational Knowledge
What is WolframAlpha?
WolframAlpha isn’t your typical search engine. It’s designed to answer factual questions and solve complex problems using computational logic.
Why WolframAlpha Stands Out
It’s the best choice for users looking for math answers, science facts, calculations, or technical data. Instead of showing links, it shows direct answers and formulas.
How to Optimize for WolframAlpha
- Use structured, fact-based content (like data tables, formulas, or statistics).
- Use clear labels and units of measure.
- Focus on accurate, verified info from credible sources.
Best For:
Students, researchers, and professionals needing data-driven answers.
14. Ask.com – Best for Q&A Search
What is Ask.com?
Ask.com is a long-standing search engine that focuses on questions and answers. It’s built to help people find direct answers, especially for common queries.
Why Ask.com is Great for Questions
People love typing full questions into search bars. Ask.com works well for “how to,” “what is,” and “why” type searches. It’s also popular for older audiences who use natural language.
SEO Tips for Ask.com
- Use question-based headings in your content.
- Focus on long-tail keywords like “how to fix a broken lamp”.
- Include clear, short answers early in your content (great for featured snippets too).
Best For:
Users looking for quick, simple answers to everyday questions.
15. Seznam – Best for Czech-Speaking Users
What is Seznam?
Seznam is the most-used search engine in the Czech Republic. It offers localized search, email, maps, and news, all in Czech language.
Why Seznam is Popular
Czech users trust Seznam because it gives accurate results in their native language. It’s built for Czech culture, language, and local preferences — and people love that.
SEO for Seznam
- Create content in Czech and use local keywords.
- Host your site locally or ensure fast loading in the Czech Republic.
- Use local link building and register on Czech directories.
Best For:
Brands targeting the Czech audience or entering the Central European market.
16. Swisscows – Best for Safe, Family-Friendly Searching
What is Swisscows?
Swisscows is a search engine that cares about privacy and is safe for families. It doesn’t track what you search.
Why Swisscows is Good for Privacy
Swisscows keeps your searches private. It’s great if you want a safe place for your family to search without worrying about being watched.
SEO Tips for Swisscows
- Create safe and positive content for families.
- Avoid anything too personal or inappropriate.
Best For:
Families or anyone who cares about privacy.
17. MetaCrawler – Best for Getting Results from Multiple Engines
What is MetaCrawler?
MetaCrawler brings together search results from Google, Yahoo!, Bing, and others. It shows you many results at once.
Why MetaCrawler is Useful
You get results from different search engines all in one place. It gives you more options to find what you need.
SEO Tips for MetaCrawler
- Make your content easy to understand and relevant to everyone.
- Use clear titles and meta descriptions.
Best For:
Anyone who wants to see results from many search engines.
18. Gigablast – Best for Open-Source Search
What is Gigablast?
Gigablast is a transparent, open-source search engine. Its code is available for anyone to see or change.
Why Gigablast is Different
Gigablast cares about privacy and transparency. It’s a great choice for those who want to understand how search results are made.
SEO Tips for Gigablast
- Keep your content simple and natural.
- Focus on relevant information rather than tricks to get higher rankings.
Best For:
Developers or anyone who likes open-source technology.
19. Searx – Best for Privacy and Multiple Search Engines
What is Searx?
Searx is a search engine that brings together results from many sources while keeping your data private.
Why Searx is Special
Searx values your privacy. It doesn’t track you and shows results from many different engines.
SEO Tips for Searx
- Keep your content simple and quick to load.
- Optimize for multiple search engines since Searx shows results from many.
Best For:
Anyone who cares about privacy and wants results from different search engines.
20. Search Encrypt – Best for Secure Searches
What is Search Encrypt?
Search Encrypt is a search engine that encrypts your searches to keep them private.
Why Search Encrypt is Good for Security
Your searches are encrypted so no one can see them. It’s perfect if you care about security.
SEO Tips for Search Encrypt
- Keep your content privacy-friendly and safe.
- Make sure your website doesn’t track users.
Best For:
Anyone who wants secure searches and values privacy.
Conclusion
It’s important to use different search engines to improve your SEO and protect user privacy. Each search engine offers something unique, whether it’s better privacy, eco-friendly features, or results from multiple sources. By diversifying, you can make your website more visible and improve your search ranking.
Want to learn more about advanced SEO? Check out other resources and guides to help you optimize your website for different search engines. The more you learn, the better you can boost your rankings and stay ahead!
