DuckDuckGo vs. Google: The Search Engine Choice That Says Everything About You

Interface: DuckDuckGo Is More Customizable

Both search sites have frill-free designs with little else aside from a search box. Google frequently updates its logo to honor holidays and other special occasions. Both let you opt for a dark or light mode, but DuckDuckGo offers a lot more in the way of customizing colors, fonts, and the layout of results. Neither lets you set a background image like Bing.

Left to right: Google and DuckDuckGo search pages (Credit: Google/DuckDuckGo/PCMag)

Google’s search box is a little busier, with microphone and camera buttons for voice entry and Google Lens image search, respectively. It also features an AI Mode button, which activates Gemini, and the venerable “I’m feeling lucky” button, which directs you directly to the first site it finds. DuckDuckGo doesn’t offer a voice search option, but it does put its AI tool above the search box (Duck.ai). Notably, you can turn off all of DuckDuckGo’s AI features if you don’t want…