this post was submitted on 27 Jul 2026
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DeGoogle Yourself
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There is very little benefit to rooting these days. It is safer and easier yo just use a custom ROM.
Granted I don't run modern Android but being on a custom ROM vs OEM stock has nothing to do with whether or not one should root. Being on a custom ROM doesn't mean you have more control over your device. Where possible I have always been rooted (since Jellybean). Only on rare occasions (device cannot be unlocked) am I not on a custom ROM. I need / want full control over my devices.
I am, however, one of those persons who does not tell someone they should root nor am I one to tell someone they don't need root. That's up to the individual and their needs. The old adage that if one has to ask whether or not one should root then the answer is probably no.
It does mean you have more control over your device in most circumstances, especially given the imminent closing of side loading from stock Android. There is certainly more privacy on most popular ROMs which is control over my personal information, and more security from not being rooted does also imply more control. Everyone's threat model is different, but personally I am more worried about viruses or the rise of fascism leading to brown shirts confiscating my phone and accessing private information than I am concerned about maybe not being able to automate something in Tasker that would be fun to mess with. Again, as you say, it is a personal choice, but it has just been a LONG time since I've even bumped into anything that can only be done rooted. And last time I did, I think it was something that would have made it a single use device for that purpose, in which case rooting is a lot less dangerous. Android has come a long way with having sand boxing both work and having workarounds for functionality. Linux is learning a lot from it, but immutable distros are not quite in the same level yet. In fact some of the stuff I used to do on a rooted phone you can just do with built in Android 16 terminal or Termux.
Is there EVEN MORE control when rooted? Sure. But the use cases for that keep diminishing, and in some cases not desirable in my opinion. Trackers and invasive permissions in apps are bad enough as it is, I don't want a system where I can give kernel level access to a random multiplayer game that I install with one click like on Windows.
For most people wanting to get off stock Android on the degoogle sub, the things they are trying to accomplish will be done better with a custom ROM, as well as prevent them from potential exposure that they may not even be aware is a tradeoff.