What are the highest serps on the planet? It relies on what you’re searching for.
Slowly disappearing are the times when only one search engine dominates over the remaining. The Web is fragmenting, and folks might select a search engine over others due to particular use instances.
So, listed here are the highest serps, categorized by classes:
These are the preferred serps on the planet, as seen by their worldwide market share.
1. Google
With 89.79% of the worldwide market share, Google nonetheless stays the primary search engine within the world.
However no due to privacy concerns, antitrust issues, creating filter bubbles, and competitors from AI serps, Google has seen its market share decline. In January 2024, just one yr in the past, Google had a 91.47% market share. It’s nonetheless on the high, nevertheless it’s slowly falling off.
Nonetheless, Google isn’t resting on its laurels. Combating again with AI Overviews, and CEO Sundar Pichai commenting that Google search will grow to be extra of an AI assistant, we’ll need to see if Google can proceed to remain on the high for the following decade.
2. Bing
Chasing Google’s shadow, Bing takes #2 at 3.93% of the worldwide search engine market share.
Regardless of the big hole in market share, Bing has at all times been Google’s closest search engine rival. In addition to the person interface, there’s nothing actually completely different about Bing. It has picture and video search, maps, information, and related SERP options like featured snippets.
It additionally has ‘AI Overviews’:
The times when Bing was solely used to seek for “Google Chrome obtain” are slowly gone. Bing now hides its search results for those who search for Google. In the meantime, hanging whereas the iron is sizzling, Microsoft embraced AI quickly, including their very own LLM (Copilot) as a search tab and integrating new options like Deep Search:
3.93% could also be nothing within the search engine pie, nevertheless it’s a number that has been increasing. Additionally, Bing powers many of the various serps, so its market share quantity may very well be bigger than you anticipate.
3. Yandex
Coming in third place at 2.73% is the Russia-based search engine Yandex.
Its piece of the pie might look tiny, however for those who slim it down to only Russia, Yandex turns into #1 at 73.71%, beating Google. (Some lesson in right here about niching down.)
Like Google, it additionally has related merchandise, together with picture and video search, maps, translate, climate, and electronic mail. Nonetheless, it has one product that even Google doesn’t have: Yandex Taxi (ridesharing). It’s the greatest ridesharing firm in Russia, and I even used it after I visited Uzbekistan two years in the past. Very straightforward to make use of, identical to Uber and Seize in Singapore.
Two years in the past, Yandex’s supply code was leaked online, together with a few of their rating components. SEOs naturally went loopy, and several other search engine optimization thought leaders attempted to investigate and break down what they discovered.
Nonetheless, so far as I do know close to the leaks, nothing a lot has modified in how search engine optimization is completed.
4. Yahoo
In essentially the most shocking information since Manchester Metropolis misplaced 5 video games in a row, Yahoo nonetheless exists. Not solely does it exist, nevertheless it’s nonetheless fourth (1.27%) within the international search engine sport.
As soon as the #1 ‘search engine’ on the planet, it’s now a shell of itself. Its index is powered by Bing and it’s owned by Apollo World Administration, an asset administration firm.
Whereas I have no idea a single one who makes use of Yahoo the search engine, I do know many individuals who learn information articles on Yahoo and in addition check with its finance section.
At the moment, in response to Statista, Yahoo has the dubious honor of main the rating of essentially the most compromised knowledge information in chosen knowledge breaches worldwide. Not signal for a search engine.
5. Baidu
In fifth place, we’ve got Baidu, the Chinese language search engine at 0.71% market share.
Like Yandex, whereas it solely has a small portion of the worldwide market share, it’s #1 if you slim it all the way down to China. It’s basically the Google of China. (Extremely, Bing can be doing nicely.)
Whereas many individuals consider Baidu as a duplicate of Google, it isn’t. Baidu’s founder, Robin Li, created the RankDex site-scoring algorithm for web page rating (the premise of Baidu) in 1996. RankDex was referenced two years later by Larry Web page, when he filed the patent for PageRank.
Just like the Western serps, Baidu has additionally moved rapidly, working with DeepSeek R1 to supply AI-powered search and different options:
6. DuckDuckGo
At quantity six we’ve got DuckDuckGo, with 0.67% of the market share.
Named after the youngsters’s sport, DuckDuckGo is essentially the most well-known non-public search engine. Non-public as a result of DuckDuckGo doesn’t use any monitoring cookies or retailer your private knowledge, like your IP addresses.
Whereas DuckDuckGo doesn’t have its personal crawler and will get its search outcomes from over 400 sources, DuckDuckGo assures all of us that it doesn’t share our private info with them.
Essentially the most attention-grabbing characteristic that DuckDuckGo has, and different mainstream serps don’t, is its “Bangs” feature. Typing one among these “bangs” sends you on to a search outcome. For instance, !w and a key phrase like “search engine optimization” sends you on to the web page on search engine optimization on Wikipedia.
Mainstream serps are handy, straightforward to make use of, and the go-to for most individuals. However they’ve downsides, essentially the most distinguished of which is privateness.
Mainstream serps observe your knowledge and share it throughout their numerous providers. Some have additionally been identified to cooperate with authorities surveillance applications.
In the event you’re cautious of massive tech, wish to defend your digital privateness, however nonetheless wish to use search, you’ll have to make use of non-public serps.
DuckDuckGo is essentially the most well-known non-public search engine, however there are different alternate options too.
1. Courageous Search
Brave Search is developed by the identical individuals behind Courageous browser, a privacy-focused browser. Its founders embrace Brendan Eich, the creator of JavaScript and a co-founder of Mozilla Firefox, and Brian Bondy, a former senior platform engineer at Mozilla.
At first look, Courageous Search doesn’t look too dissimilar from Google. It has related options like picture and video search, information, and SERP options like “Discussions”, which showcases threads from Reddit:
It additionally has “AI Overviews”, however with a slight twist—you may ask additional questions:
In the event you’re ever unhappy with Courageous’s search outcomes, they supply the choice of turning to Google, Bing, or Mojeek:
You too can modify Courageous Search’s rankings utilizing their Goggles feature—a algorithm and filters:
In the event you dislike their pre-built Goggles, you may make your personal:
In contrast to different various serps, Courageous Search doesn’t depend on Google or Bing for its SERPs. It makes use of its personal index with assistance from the Web Discovery Project.
2. Startpage
Predominantly utilizing search outcomes from Google, Startpage used to actually be Google with out the monitoring. Nonetheless, in 2023, they announced that they had been additionally partnering with MapQuest, HERE Applied sciences, Priceline, Tomorrow.io, Search Expander, and Microsoft Bing.
Regardless of their wide selection of companions, they guarantee customers that they don’t use any monitoring cookies and anonymize all queries earlier than pulling SERPs from their companions. For extra reassurance, Startpage is predicated within the Netherlands, the place they adjust to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a European Union regulation that protects customers’ knowledge.
For even additional insurance coverage, their “Nameless View” characteristic allows you to go to web sites from their search outcomes anonymously.
In the event you just like the clear UX that Google affords however dislike the massive tech monitoring, Startpage is an apparent selection.
3. Yep
Made by Ahrefs (that’s us), Yep is a privacy-oriented search engine that solely collects private knowledge if you voluntarily present it to us, e.g., if you contact us for buyer help. In any other case, we retailer nothing completely: not your search historical past, your IP tackle, nor Consumer-Agent strings.
In contrast to most various serps which get their SERPs from Bing, our index is populated by our personal crawler. In reality, we’ve got essentially the most lively net crawler within the search engine optimization business and it’s additionally the second most lively crawler within the world.
Meaning we uncover new pages and refresh our index all of the time.
One other distinctive factor about Yep is that we’re creator-friendly. Our plan is a 90/10 income share mannequin, the place 90% of promoting income can be paid on to creators. It’s our counter to Google and different mainstream serps “stealing” content material from hardworking creators (to create their SERP options and AI Overviews) and never crediting nor rewarding them.
It’s nonetheless in beta, however strive it and tell us what you suppose!
4. Kagi
Most various serps are only a slight twist on Google, e.g. eradicating monitoring however nonetheless serving outcomes from them. Kagi, nonetheless, has determined to rethink your entire enterprise mannequin from the ground-up.
In spite of everything, why do serps want to trace you? It’s due to the usual search engine enterprise mannequin: search is free, so serps earn a living through adverts as an alternative. To serve higher adverts and assist advertisers attain prospects effectively, serps want knowledge.
However what if search isn’t free? What if search labored extra like SaaS, the place individuals pay a month-to-month subscription to entry it? That manner, Kagi might preserve search non-public with none want for monitoring.
Paying for search might sound preposterous to many individuals, nevertheless it works. As of February 25, 2025, Kagi has 40,648 paying members.
5. Mojeek
One of many earliest non-public serps, Mojeek was the primary search engine to have a no monitoring privateness coverage again in 2006. It additionally makes use of its personal search index, presently standing at over six billion pages.
There’s nothing fancy about Mojeek—only a easy interface with hyperlinks, picture search, information, and an AI abstract for the highest net outcomes.
It does have one distinctive characteristic: emotion-based search. In partnership with EMRAYS Applied sciences, you may enter a key phrase and search by emotion on Mojeek:
With AI taking up the world, extra persons are transferring away from mainstream serps like Google and transferring to AI ones, together with myself.
Regardless that many mainstream serps in the present day have AI parts, like Google’s AI Overviews or Bing’s Deep Analysis, however these are search engines that are predominantly AI-based.
1. Perplexity
An AI-powered conversational search engine, Perplexity works like Google’s AI Overviews, however on steroids. Ask it any query and even simply enter a key phrase, and Perplexity will generate solutions with citations within the output.
You too can ask Perplexity to focus solely on sure kinds of sources, like net outcomes, tutorial papers, or Reddit discussions:
Perplexity is about to Auto mode naturally, however you additionally get 5 enhanced queries day by day. Enhanced queries means you get to select from Perplexity’s personal Professional Search (which appears at extra sources and even clarifies questions) to reasoning fashions from OpenAI and DeepSeek.
In addition they just lately launched Deep Research, the place Perplexity will carry out dozens of searches, reads lots of of sources, and causes by the fabric to autonomously ship a complete report. It’s a competitor to OpenAI’s new characteristic, additionally known as Deep Analysis.
To get extra queries, you may join their Pro version.
2. ChatGPT
I’m 99% certain you’re conversant in ChatGPT. Even for those who’re not utilizing it as a search engine, you’re in all probability utilizing it as a coding associate, assist you together with your homework, or automate your duties.
But it surely works as a search engine too. If ChatGPT determines a solution would profit from present info, it mechanically searches the net. Nonetheless, you can too click on the net search icon to get ChatGPT to look the net, which makes it operate as a search engine.
ChatGPT additionally just lately launched Deep Research, an agent that may discover, analyze, and synthesize lots of of on-line sources utilizing its reasoning fashions to create a complete report. The characteristic has been getting good critiques on-line:
After DeepSeek (see beneath) shook the AI world with its pace and accuracy (at a decrease coaching price), OpenAI rapidly launched its cost-efficient reasoning mannequin, o3-mini-high to the general public.
3. DeepSeek
Primarily China’s reply to ChatGPT, DeepSeek is a Hangzhou-based chatbot based in July 2023 by Liang Wenfeng, a hedge fund co-founder.
First launched on 10 January 2025, it shocked your entire AI world by offering responses corresponding to OpenAI’s o1. Not solely was DeepSeek not operated by a full-time AI firm (e.g., OpenAI), it was apparently additionally skilled at a a lot, a lot decrease price (US$6 million) in comparison with OpenAI’s GPT-4 ($100 million). It requires a tenth of the computing energy of a comparable LLM.
DeepSeek’s launch contributed to the most important drop in U.S. inventory market historical past, even wiping away $600 billion in market worth for Nvidia. Loopy. We’re actually in an AI arms race now.
Anyway, like ChatGPT, toggling the net search icon turns DeepSeek right into a search engine.
Search engines like google are infamous polluters—an estimate means that Google is accountable for ~40% of the internet’s carbon footprint.
Each search contributes to local weather change. In the event you’re involved, then take into account these serps.
1. Ecosia
Powered by Bing, the Berlin-based search engine Ecosia pledges to donate 80% of profits to tree-planting initiatives. That is roughly one tree for each 45 searches.
As of February 1, 2024, Ecosia claims to have planted greater than 200 million timber.
For additional reassurance to its trigger, Ecosia additionally built their own solar plants in order that their servers can run on clear energy. Fairly cool.
To focus on environmentally pleasant corporations, in addition they level them out within the search outcomes with a inexperienced leaf:
In addition they level out ‘polluting’ corporations with a fossil gas icon:
In 2024, Ecosia announced that it’ll associate with Paris-based non-public search engine Qwant to develop their very own European search index.
2. Ekoru
Add the Ekoru Chrome extension to your browser and it turns each new tab you open into an Ekoru search. Or extra precisely, a Yahoo search as Ekoru basically redirects to Yahoo (which is powered by Bing by the manner).
Complicated, I do know. Welcome to the world of other serps.
The one motive you’ll do that’s since you care about Ekoru’s trigger: they’re pledging to donate 60% of their income to ocean conservation. While you click on on an advert, the cash goes to Huge Blue Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit devoted to cleansing waterways, coastal areas, and oceans, and Operation Posidonia, an initiative led by the College of New South Wales to replant ocean seagrass.
Ekoru can be powered by hydroelectricity to make sure they don’t generate any CO2 emissions.
Closing ideas
This record is comprised of serps that decision themselves serps. However you don’t need to label your self as a search engine to operate as one.
In reality, for the youthful era, social media has changed their idea of ‘serps’.
For instance, a 2024 research by Adobe suggested that 1 in 10 Gen Zers depend on TikTok greater than Google as a search engine. And other people might flip on to YouTube to search for movies, somewhat than use an ‘middleman’ search engine.
Anecdotally, I’ve additionally heard from my Chinese language pals that Baidu is more and more now not the go-to search engine. Younger individuals in the present day use Douyin (the Chinese language model of TikTok) or Xiaohongshu.
These numbers will not be mirrored in search engine market share numbers as a result of they’re not technically serps. However so long as you utilize them like one, they are serps.
