this post was submitted on 30 Jul 2026
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Privacy

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Which search engine do you use for what? (lemmy.nz)
submitted 16 hours ago by FreddiesLantern@leminal.space to c/privacy@lemmy.ml
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Someone (average smartphone user) complained to me the other day that there isn't a clear solution to navigating the web because it's either ai slop or the results are poor.

And I kinda agree, nowadays you do have to put in some more effort to get what you're looking for.

And so I told them I'd compile a list of which search engines are best for what purpose.

So far I have:

Startpage: works, but does a poor job of finding product codes and whatnot.

Duckduckgo: gives more general results afaik

Ecosia: works great but relies on bing

I have tried things like qwant ect but haven't really settled on those.

Any other suggestions?

I'd tell em to use udm14 but it's still google so I'd rather keep that as a plan B.

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[–] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 6 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago) (2 children)

and you can downrank/ban websites.

Holy shit, I've been wanting that for years. I'll have to check them out.

Edit: Aaaand they have a built in AI despite calling themselves "human-focussed". That's a turnoff. If I'm paying for a search engine, I'd prefer to have a subscription option with the AI stripped out so I'm not subsidizing it for others.

Plus, I'm thinking about it I'm not exactly on board with needing an account with a search engine. That makes it super easy to track you. Meanwhile, using noai.duckduckgo anonymously via a VPN is way more private

[–] graynk@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago) (1 children)

I’m not exactly on board with needing an account with a search engine. That makes it super easy to track you.

https://help.kagi.com/kagi/privacy/privacy-pass.html

they have a built in AI despite calling themselves “human-focussed”

Because it's a tool that can serve humans. Not strictly search-related, but their AI-based translation tool is genuinely great and very useful to me.

https://help.kagi.com/kagi/why-kagi/ai-philosophy.html

You don't have to use built-in AI, it only triggers when you explicitly ask for it and you can completely disable it in the settings.

They also have anti-slop filters, BTW: https://help.kagi.com/kagi/features/slopstop.html

Finally, not sure what models the search summarizer and the translation tool use, but the assistant lets you use open weights model like Kimi, GLM, DeepSeek et al.

[–] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

You don't have to use built-in AI

I don't care. It's bundled in with even the basic plan, which means you're paying for it, even if you don't use it. And no, it's not magically better to use open models.

I don't get how this concept is so hard to understand.

[–] graynk@discuss.tchncs.de 0 points 1 hour ago (1 children)
  1. No need to be combative.
  2. It is better to use open models.
[–] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 0 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

1: I clearly established a boundary and you insisted on pushing it. Learn to take a fucking hint. 2: You know what's better? Not using AI at all.

[–] ApplyingAutomation@lemmy.world 0 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

In my experience, Kagi doesn't force AI down your throat. It only triggers an AI summary if you end your query with a "?", and it does seem to be summarization of the search results.

Also, as per Kagi's pricing page, there is a higher tier for people who want more AI features as you are suggesting.

All that being said, I use a Searxng instance 😅

[–] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 0 points 1 hour ago

I don't even want the fucking AI summaries. I don't get how that's so hard to understand.

The fact the AI is in even the basic plan means you're paying for it, regardless of whether you use it. I don't want AI, and I especially don't want to give money to one.