Brave Search is the clearest documented option if you need an index built independently of Google, but you must check its optional Google-results fallback setting. Kagi is a privacy-oriented paid service with a mixed sourcing model: it combines its own indexes with anonymized requests to traditional search indexes, so it should not be treated as wholly independent from Google. The right choice depends on whether you require strict index independence, reduced personal tracking, different ranking controls, or simply a useful second opinion for your recurring searches.
What “doesn’t rely on Google’s results” actually means
Search independence has two separate dimensions. Index independence asks where the links and snippets come from: a crawler’s own index, a partner’s index, or a blend. Privacy asks what the search service records, shares, or uses to improve its product. A service can limit personal profiling while still obtaining some results from a large external index. Conversely, a service can operate its own crawler and still offer optional features that send an anonymized query to another provider.
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For a strict requirement that Google not supply or influence any result, verify both the service’s stated index model and its current fallback settings. A privacy label alone is not proof of index independence. Provider documentation is useful for understanding the design, but it is not an independent audit or a neutral relevance test.
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Best documented choice: Brave Search
Its stated index model
Brave says its results are served from an index it creates. On its index policy page, the company states: “The index we create is independent of other search engines.” Read that statement in context at Brave Search’s index, right to be forgotten, and objection page. Its product overview also describes Brave Search as using its own web index: What is Brave Search?
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That makes Brave the clearest candidate in this comparison for someone whose first test is “does this service maintain its own index?” It does not establish that every result is always independent under every setting, device, language, or region. The service’s optional integrations still matter.
Check the optional Google fallback before relying on it
Brave’s privacy notice describes a feature that can anonymously check Google and mix those results with Brave’s results. If your rule is “no Google-sourced results,” leaving that feature enabled defeats the rule even when Brave’s primary index is independent. Review the current controls and privacy explanation at Brave Search’s privacy notice. Interface names and locations can change, so use the settings available in your account or browser rather than relying on an old screenshot.
- Open Brave Search and its current search settings.
- Look for any option that permits anonymous checking of Google or mixing external results.
- Turn that option off when strict independence is required.
- Recheck the setting after major product updates, account changes, or clearing site data.
If the setting is unavailable in your region or account, treat the provider’s current documentation as the authority and avoid assuming that the primary-index description covers optional result sources.
What the Web Discovery Project changes
Brave also describes a Web Discovery Project that uses de-identified queries and browsing signals to help grow its index. Details are in the Help Center article dated April 29, 2025: What is the Web Discovery Project in Brave? The provider characterizes the process as privacy-preserving, but that wording is Brave’s description rather than the result of an independent audit cited here.
Before opting in, read the current project explanation and settings. This is a separate decision from whether results come from Google: contributing de-identified signals may help improve Brave’s crawler, while disabling participation may better fit a user who wants to minimize data contribution. Decide based on the project’s present terms, not on a general assumption that an independent index requires no user data.
Ranking controls and specialized views
Brave Help documents Goggles, community-created alternative ranking models that can alter how results are ordered or filtered. The feature is useful when you want to test a different ranking perspective rather than accept one default list. Availability and individual Goggles can change, so consult the current Brave Search Help Pages before building a workflow around a particular model.
Goggles change ranking behavior; they do not, by themselves, prove that every underlying page came from a particular crawler. Keep the index-source question separate from the ranking-control question.
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Kagi: useful privacy option, but a mixed-source index
Kagi’s own comparison documentation says the service uses a combination of its own indexes and anonymized requests to traditional search indexes. That makes Kagi a mixed-source service rather than a clearly independent alternative under a strict “no Google results” definition. Its explanation is available at Kagi vs. Brave Search.
“Anonymized” describes how Kagi says it handles the request; it does not tell you which traditional index answered a specific query. Unless Kagi identifies the source for the result you are viewing, you cannot infer that a result came only from Kagi’s own crawler. Do not describe Kagi as independent from Google or from all other providers without query-specific evidence.
Kagi can still be a sensible choice when your priority is a different search experience, account-level controls, or reducing direct personal exposure to large advertising platforms. Those benefits answer a privacy or product-design question, not the narrower provenance question. If your organization’s policy forbids Google-sourced links, obtain a current written sourcing clarification from Kagi and test the relevant settings before adopting it.
Brave and Kagi compared on the questions that matter
| Question | Brave Search | Kagi |
|---|---|---|
| What does the provider document about its index? | Brave says its index is independent of other search engines and that results are served from the index it creates. | Kagi documents a combination of its own indexes and anonymized requests to traditional search indexes. |
| Can Google be involved? | Brave’s privacy notice describes an optional setting that anonymously checks Google and mixes results. Disable it for a strict no-Google workflow. | The mixed-source description means external traditional indexes can be involved; the cited documentation does not establish that Kagi is wholly independent of Google. |
| What user-data contribution is described? | The Web Discovery Project uses de-identified queries and browsing signals to help grow Brave’s index, subject to its current settings and notice. | The cited comparison describes anonymized requests to traditional indexes; it does not provide a complete, query-by-query provenance record. |
| What ranking control is documented? | Goggles are community-created alternative ranking models documented in Brave Help. | The cited Kagi comparison is used here for sourcing, not as evidence of a specific Kagi ranking-control feature. |
| How strong is the evidence? | These are Brave’s own product and policy statements, not an independent audit or head-to-head relevance study. | This is Kagi’s own documentation; it does not constitute an independent quality or provenance audit. |
Choose by your actual requirement
You need a strict no-Google policy
Start with Brave Search, read its current privacy notice, and disable any Google-checking or result-mixing option. Record the setting as part of your organization’s configuration. If a future update changes the control or its wording, reassess rather than assuming the old state persists. Kagi’s documented mixed-source model does not satisfy a blanket prohibition without additional evidence.
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Both services require a closer look than a single “private” label. Review what each provider says it collects, how anonymization is defined, and whether optional programs are enabled. In Brave’s case, make a separate decision about the Web Discovery Project. In Kagi’s case, understand that anonymized requests can still be sent to traditional indexes even though the request is not presented as a directly identifiable one.
You want alternative ranking perspectives
Brave’s documented Goggles feature is the clearest fit for experimenting with community-created ranking models. Use it as a ranking experiment, not as a guarantee of better relevance. Keep a default configuration available so you can compare results without permanently changing your search behavior.
You care most about answer quality
No neutral head-to-head test is established here, and search relevance depends on the query, language, location, freshness requirements, and task. A service that is excellent for technical documentation may be weaker for local businesses or news in another region. Compare the services on your own recurring searches instead of accepting a universal winner claim.
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Costs, accounts, and procurement checks
Cost is a separate selection criterion from index provenance. Kagi is described as a paid service, while Brave Search’s current product terms, limits, and any account requirements can change. Do not assume that a free tier, subscription price, trial period, usage cap, or team plan remains unchanged. Check each provider’s live pricing and terms page for the currency, billing interval, renewal rules, cancellation process, and limits that apply to your location.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchFor personal use, note whether searches work without an account and whether settings such as external-result mixing persist across devices. For a team, document who controls the setting, whether administrators can enforce it, and how you will verify configuration after a browser or service update. Keep a copy of the relevant privacy notice and index description with your procurement record, including the date you checked it.
If you publish a recommendation that includes a signup link, verify any affiliate relationship, commission, cookie period, eligibility rule, and disclosure requirement directly with the provider. No commercial relationship should be implied merely because a service is mentioned. The useful editorial anchor is the service name and its sourcing model, not an unverified discount or price claim.
A practical test for index independence and usefulness
Use the same small test set for every service. Ten to twenty recurring searches are enough to reveal meaningful differences if they cover the work you actually do.
- Define the boundary. Write down whether “no Google” means no Google crawler, no Google ranking influence, no Google fallback, or no external index at all. These are different requirements.
- Cover your real tasks. Include technical questions, obscure names, current events, shopping research if relevant, local queries, and searches in each language and region you use.
- Run the same queries close together. Search without changing terms so that time-sensitive pages do not create a false comparison. Note the date, language, region, and safe-search settings.
- Inspect settings first. Confirm that optional external-result or fallback features are disabled when independence is the test. Save a screenshot or written configuration record for repeatability.
- Compare the first page and the next action. Record whether the result answers the question, how many results are original sources, whether duplicates dominate, and how quickly you can reach a credible page. Do not reduce quality to one ranking position.
- Check provenance claims. If a provider says it uses its own index, link that claim to its current policy page. If it describes a blend, mark the test as mixed-source rather than inferring a single origin.
- Repeat after changes. Re-run the set when a provider changes its privacy notice, fallback controls, language coverage, or ranking features. Search systems evolve continuously.
This process measures fit for your work; it does not create a universal quality ranking. Keep the notes with your privacy or procurement documentation if the decision affects a team.
Language, region, and availability caveats
Search coverage is not uniform worldwide. Brave’s product information lists supported languages, but the list and the quality of results can change. A language being supported does not guarantee the same index depth, freshness, spelling handling, or local-business coverage as another language. Check the current product page and run representative queries in every region that matters to you.
Location can also affect ranking, legal removals, and available features. Compare services with the same region and language settings, and record those settings with your test results. If a result appears only in one service, that difference may reflect regional coverage rather than a general advantage.
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Common mistakes when replacing Google
Confusing a private interface with an independent index
A service can hide your identity from a traditional index while forwarding an anonymized request to it. That may be valuable for privacy, but it does not meet a strict independent-index requirement. Ask “who supplied this result?” separately from “who can identify my query?”
Assuming the default setting never changes
Fallbacks, experiments, and account-level options can change. Revisit the privacy notice and settings after updates, especially when a service offers a feature that supplements its own index with another provider’s results.
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Treating provider language as an audit
Statements such as “independent” or “privacy-preserving” are important disclosures, but they are claims made by the provider. The documentation cited here does not establish an independent audit of crawler coverage, result provenance, or relevance. For high-stakes use, combine provider statements with your own repeatable tests and any formal assurance your organization requires.
Declaring a winner from a handful of searches
Search quality varies by task and locale. A short test can identify obvious gaps, but it cannot prove that one service is best for every reader. Keep your conclusion scoped to the queries, languages, regions, and dates you tested.
Bottom line
For readers who specifically want to avoid Google’s results, Brave Search is the strongest documented starting point because Brave says its index is independent. Disable its optional Google-checking and mixing feature, and review the Web Discovery Project settings according to your data-sharing preference. Kagi is better described as a mixed-source service: it combines its own indexes with anonymized requests to traditional indexes, so privacy and independence should not be conflated. Whichever service you choose, verify the current settings and compare your own recurring searches in the languages and regions you use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Brave Search completely independent of Google?
Brave says, “The index we create is independent of other search engines.” However, its privacy notice describes an optional feature that anonymously checks Google and mixes results. Turn that feature off and verify the current setting if you need a strict no-Google workflow.
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Kagi documents a combination of its own indexes and anonymized requests to traditional search indexes. That is a mixed-source model; the documentation does not establish that Kagi is wholly independent of Google for every query.
Is privacy the same as index independence?
No. Privacy concerns who can identify or track a query, while index independence concerns who supplied or influenced the result. An anonymized request can still obtain a link from an external index.
What is Brave’s Web Discovery Project?
Brave says the project uses de-identified queries and browsing signals to help grow its index. Review the current explanation and controls before opting in, and remember that data-contribution choices are separate from the question of whether results come from Google.
What are Brave Goggles?
Goggles are community-created alternative ranking models documented in Brave Help. They can reorder or filter results, but they do not prove that the underlying pages came from a particular crawler or guarantee better relevance.
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Build a set of 10–20 recurring searches covering your languages, regions, and tasks. Run them close together with matching settings, confirm fallback options, record provenance claims, and repeat the test after major policy or feature changes.
Will search quality be the same in every country or language?
No. Coverage, freshness, spelling handling, local results, legal removals, and available features can vary by language and region. Test the locations and languages you actually use rather than relying on a universal ranking.
What should organizations document before adopting a service?
Record the provider’s current index description, privacy notice, fallback configuration, language and regional requirements, pricing and plan terms, and who is responsible for checking those items after updates.
The Bottom Line
Brave Search is the clearest documented starting point for avoiding Google’s results, provided you disable its optional Google-checking and mixing feature. Kagi uses a mixed model of its own indexes and anonymized requests to traditional indexes, so privacy does not prove full independence. Verify settings, terms, language coverage, and your own recurring-search results before committing.
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