Web Without AI

Search Engines That Don't Use AI

DuckDuckGo No-AI, Startpage, and SearXNG work without generative AI.

DuckDuckGo No-AI — No AI answers on any of our 7 web queries, and AI images are hidden by default. Tested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshots

Startpage — Results come from Google and Bing, with no AI answers on any of our 7 web queries. Tested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshots

SearXNG — No AI answers on any of our 7 web queries on the baresearch.org instance. Tested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshots

Want to keep using Google? Turn off AI Overviews →

Looking for search without generative AI? We test which search engines show AI answers, which let you turn them off, and which avoid them entirely.

Page updated

Engines last tested

Quick answer

As of October 2026, the search engines we tested that show no generative AI by default are DuckDuckGo No-AI, Startpage, and SearXNG. Google has no off switch; its Web filter is a workaround.

Compare search engines without AI

Showing 4 of 4 engines

Search engines compared by default AI answers, whether AI can be turned off, result source, and test date.
EngineAI by defaultCan turn offResult sourceLast tested
DuckDuckGo No-AITested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshotsNoNot applicableMixed
View details

DuckDuckGo No-AI: No AI answers on any of our 7 web queries. AI images are hidden by default. Tested Oct 6, 2026 in the US on Chrome desktop, signed out.

Generative answers by default
No
Can disable AI
Not applicable
Setting persists
Not applicable
AI images
Hidden by default
Result source
Mixed — DuckDuckGo blends several sources, mainly Bing, with its own crawler.
Login required
No
Price
Free
Privacy
No search history tied to you.
Mobile (Android / iOS)
Android: — / iOS: —
Test date
Evidence links
Google (Web filter)Tested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshotsNoWorkaround onlyGoogle
View details

Google (Web filter): The Web filter (udm=14) showed no AI Overview on any of our 7 web queries. Google offers no off switch. Tested Oct 6, 2026 in the US on Chrome desktop, signed out.

Generative answers by default
No
Can disable AI
Workaround only
Setting persists
No
AI images
No filter
Result source
Google
Login required
No
Price
Free
Privacy
Standard Google tracking applies.
Mobile (Android / iOS)
Android: — / iOS: —
Test date
Evidence links
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "why is the sky blue": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "how to remove a stripped screw": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "symptoms of low iron": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "best budget noise cancelling headphones": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "who was Ada Lovelace": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "inflation news": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "baking soda vs baking powder": Web filter, no AI Overview; AI Mode tab in the menu only.
  • Screenshot (2026-10-06) — "golden retriever puppy (image search)": image search (udm=2); no AI filter exists.
  • Official document (2026-10-06) — Official help: AI Overviews are a core feature and cannot be turned off; the Web filter shows only text links without AI Overviews.
StartpageTested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshotsNoNot applicableMixed
View details

Startpage: No AI answers on any of our 7 web queries. Results come from Google and Bing. Tested Oct 6, 2026 in the US on Chrome desktop, signed out.

Generative answers by default
No
Can disable AI
Not applicable
Setting persists
Not applicable
AI images
No filter
Result source
Mixed — Startpage passes your query to Google and Bing without your identity.
Login required
No
Price
Free (paid ad-free plan available)
Privacy
Proxies results without passing your IP.
Mobile (Android / iOS)
Android: — / iOS: —
Test date
Evidence links
SearXNG (instance: baresearch.org)Tested Oct 6, 2026 · 7/7 web queries · 8 screenshotsNoNot applicableVaries
View details

SearXNG: No AI answers on any of our 7 web queries on the baresearch.org instance. Tested Oct 6, 2026 in the US on Chrome desktop, signed out.

Generative answers by default
No
Can disable AI
Not applicable
Setting persists
Not applicable
AI images
No filter
Result source
Varies — Metasearch: each instance picks which engines to query.
Login required
No
Price
Free
Privacy
Depends on who runs the instance.
Mobile (Android / iOS)
Android: — / iOS: —
Test date
Evidence links

Not yet tested: Mojeek, Kagi, Brave Search, Ecosia.

  • Mojeek: Not tested yet
  • Kagi: Not tested yet
  • Brave Search: Not tested yet
  • Ecosia: Not tested yet

Each engine, tested

Common questions

What search engine doesn't use AI?

In our finished tests, DuckDuckGo No-AI, Startpage, and SearXNG showed no generative AI by default.

Is there a search engine without AI that uses Google results?

Startpage uses Google results (alongside Bing) and showed no AI answers in our finished tests. To stay on Google itself, see How to search Google without AI.

Can you turn off AI in DuckDuckGo?

Yes. Use noai.duckduckgo.com, which turns off Search Assist and Duck.ai and hides AI images by default. In our test it showed no AI answers on any of our 7 web queries.

Are search engines without AI free?

DuckDuckGo No-AI, Startpage, and SearXNG are free in our finished tests. Startpage also sells an ad-free plan.

What does "without AI" mean?

We count generative AI a person can see: AI answers, summaries, chat, and AI images. We do not count machine learning that only ranks results.

The rules, the fixed queries, and the changelog are in how we test.

Want Google without AI?

Google has no off switch for AI Overviews. How to search Google without AI

Recent changes

  • — Locked the eight-query test set and ran the first US desktop round (Chrome 154, signed out).

Full changelog