Cutting Google out of your life (Taken from /r/privacy)

[Nagato]

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Replacements for Google Products

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Web-based Products

• Google Search
   
  http://DuckDuckGo - A privacy focused search engine that does not save cookies and does not track you or your searches. Free
   
  
• http://StartPage - Another privacy focused search engine. This one is enhanced by Google, but all searches are anonymous and no sign in is required. Allows Image and Video search. Also features a single-click web proxy. Free
   
  
• http://Searx.me - Yet another really great privacy focused search engine. Nice looking UI with cool features. Free
   
  
• http://Qwant - Another privacy focused search engine. Solid search results, with a good UI. Free
   
  

[*]Gmail

• http://ProtonMail - One of the best privacy based mail services out there. Provides free accounts, with paid upgrades available (many users from http://r/privacy use ProtonMail). Loaded with great features and has Android and iOS apps. Also offers end-to-end encryption, and it does not track users. Does not work with Thunderbird out of the box, unfortunately. Free, paid subscriptions available
   
  
• http://Tutanota - Very similar to ProtonMail. More free storage than ProtonMail, but possibly less free features than ProtonMail. Premium pricing is very fair, starting at 1 EUR. Also offers apps for Android and iOS. Free, paid subscriptions available
   
  

[*]Google Finance

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Translate

• http://Dict.cc - Doesn't look quite as good as Translate or MS Translator, but supports many languages. In my testing, the whole site was stuck in German even though I selected English. Free
   
  
• http://Linguee - Doesn't support as many languages as the other options, but has enhanced translations through web searches. Nice looking interface. Free
   
  
• http://DeepL - Amazing UI, and solid translation results. Has a dictionary feature to view explanations on certain words. Not a ton of languages, but the most common are there. Free
   
  

[*]News

• removed Bing News as a resource due to privacy/tracking concerns
   
  
• Reddit news subreddits - Reddit actually has quite good sources for news, including subs http://r/news http://r/worldnews http://r/nottheonion and others for local based news.
   
  

[*]G Suite (in this guide, G Suite is the customizable Google package for businesses and corporations)

• http://Zoho One - While not a complete replacement, Zoho is the next best thing to G Suite. It supports much of the Zoho suite of services. If you want to improve this description I would gladly accept the help.Pricing unclear
   
  

[*]Blogger

• http://Medium - Medium may not have the same amount of features as Blogger or Wordpress, but it has a very clean interface. Users post directly to their account, which is linked to via a "unique username-based URL". Blogs are hosted through Medium's website. You don't have many customization options, but it's great for just posting text with a few images or the occasional video. Free
   
  
• http://Wix - Wix is technically a web-site builder, but it primarily acts as a blogging site. There are many customization options. Similar to Google Sites, your URL will have .wix in it, but for a free service it's a fair compromise. Everything is hosted through their servers. It is more beginner focused. SEO is also a plus with Wix. Free, premium starts at $18/month
   
  
• http://Joomla - Joomla is open source, which is great for privacy. It is much more complex than some other options however, as it uses HTML and CSS instead of drag and drop design. Despite this, they also have hundreds of pre-made templates available if you want to leave the design up to someone else. Hosting is done yourself, either through a VPS or home server. Free trial, price varies
   
  
• http://Ghost - Like Joomla, Ghost is open source. It has a very simple interface and less focused on complex designes. Feature include live previews, hundreds of templates, and HTML editing. However, it is not a completely free option with a 14 day trial. Free trial, premium plans starting at $19 up to $199
   
  
• http://Wordpress - Wordpress is used by millions of websites and thousands of organizations. Easy enough to get going and offers great looking templates across mobile and desktop. Free, paid upgrades available
   
  

[*]Google Calendar

• http://Fruux - Fruux is a great open source alternative that handles calendars, tasks, and contacts. You can also share calendars with others for integration with multiple people. It also utilizes Microsoft Exchange to add events right from Outlook. Signing up is simple and straightforward. It is also cross-platform, supporting Android, iOS, browsers, and even Windows Phone. There are also upgrade options for a price. After a closer look, it seems it is based in Germany which has controversial privacy laws. Take this into account before using. Free, with paid upgrades
   
  

[*]Google Docs

• http://Microsoft Office - OAO by Microsoft. Microsoft Office is the number one offline document editing tool, and it covers everything. Documents, slideshows, spreadsheets, and more, it is the most powerful out there. It also has a web version, but in my experience it is hot garbage. Nothing seemed to work in Office Online. But I still stick by older, non-subscription versions of Office for offline work. Office 365 is the new subscription service that integrates with your Microsoft account, so take that into consideration before using. Privacy concerns: If you use the offline version of Office, you should be safe from Microsoft tracking (add a firewall rule if you are still unsure). If you use Office 365, you are DEFINITELY being tracked. Paid subscription
   
  
• http://Zoho Docs - Zoho is a free alternative with a very clean interface that looks similar to Gmail. You need a Zoho account to edit and create. It is feature rich, with many things similar to Office Online. It allows multiple devices/editors at the same time. Files are stored on their servers. The free account is fairly generous in it's features, but for major docs or projects, upgrades are reasonably priced. It also allows SSL encryption, and has many unique features you can't find in other offerings. Furthering it's security options, it has support for two-factor authentication even on the free accounts. On top of web, it has mobile apps. It has a ridiculous amount of features. (This is my go-to replacement for Docs). Free, paid upgrades, monthly or yearly billing
   
  
• http://OnlyOffice - OnlyOffice is similar to Zoho, but with less features and is primarily personal use only. It has a very clean interface that is similar to Microsoft Office. It is (seems to be) completely free, and files are stored on their servers, but you can download in many formats as well (PDF, TXT, DOCX, ODT, and more). Free
   
  
• http://Nuclino - Nuclino is great for small teams to collaborate on any size of project. It is not as feature rich as the other options listed, but has fair pricing and a clean interface. Free, paid upgrades, monthly or yearly billing
   
  
• http://LibreOffice - Fully free document editor supporting all Microsoft formats. Available on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. Packed with many useful features. Free
   
  

[*]Google Drive

• http://ownCloud or http://NextCloud - Both of these are completely open source, but they are also self-hosted. You can host through a VPS or a home server. They offer as much storage as your able to put in your server (my personal server has 15TB of storage, which is loads more than Google Drive can offer). They also offer SSL encryption, but only for the web interface; your files are not encrypted on the server (this isn't an issue for self hosted). These are really the best replacements you can get, if you don't mind the self-hosted part. They both have very clean, modern interfaces. Both are free, unless you require a large amount of users. Free, unless requiring an enterprise solution
   
  
• http://MEGA - Privacy issues, please read until the end. Mega is one of the best free cloud storage solutions. Based in New Zealand, it offers a generous amount of storage for free users, a modern interface, file-sharing, full file encryption, desktop syncing, mobile apps for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone, password protection, and more. The companies slogan on the homepage is "The privacy company", which really tells you what their goal is. Due to being based in New Zealand, however, speeds aren't as fast as other solutions, but it is the number one for privacy. Free accounts have 50 GB of storage, which is the most of any free service out there. Other features include End-to-End encryption, so the company itself can't view your files; encrypted backups; and it's open source. It does have paid upgrades if you need more storage, with up to 8 TB of extra space. Privacy issues: In 2015, the creator of MEGA sold all his shares to an unknown Chinese investor, effectively handing over control to a private Chinese group. Take this into consideration before using , and consider encrypting your files beforehand if you choose to use MEGA. Free, paid plans up to ~$30.00 per month
   
  
• http://Syncthing - Open source P2P file syncing. Files are synced directly from device to device, and never pass through a third-party server. Free
   
  
• As http://u/voidnimblymango suggests, it might be worth it to encrypt your files offline before uploading with software such as the open source http://Cryptomator project.
   
  

[*]Google Domains (this guide will primarily focus on providers of .com, .net, and .org domains)

• http://NameCheap - Namecheap offers a very wide variety of domain extensions, and also supports website hosting at $3 per month. They also support WordPress hosting. Domains start at $11/year. Pricing starts at $11/year
   
  
• http://Name.com - Similar to NameCheap, it offers a very wide variety of domain extensions. They also have hosting and a website builder. Pricing starts at $13/year
   
  

[*]Google Hangouts (any service provided by Facebook will not be recommended)

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Google Keep

• http://Joplin - Open source. Joplin is a note taking program that works on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS, as well as terminals/command processors.
   
  
• http://Evernote - Privacy concerns, read until the end for info. Evernote is a clean, modern note taking app. It is packed full with features, and supports offline notes on most platforms. When online, you can use it on Mac, Windows, Android, iOS, Blackberry, Windows 10 S, Windows Phone, Apple Watch, Android Wear, Kindle Fire, and Pebble. Probably the most extensive support for anything in this guide. Evernote is free, but has a premium plan starting at a whopping $89.99/year. Privacy concerns: In the past, Evernote had fairly controversial privacy policies that they have since backed out on. It is unclear whether they held true to this, use at your own discretion. Free, premium at $89.99/year.
   
  

[*]Play Music

• http://Spotify - NOT privacy based. On-par with Play Music, massive library and great curated lists, with extensive genre lists. Account required to listen and save songs. Free, with paid premium features, subscription based. Ads.
   
  
• http://Last.fm - This is a popular community based website for personalized internet radio. It doesn't have on-demand single song selections. Free, with paid upgrade
   
  
• http://Soundcloud - Soundcloud may not have the same selection as Spotify and Play Music, but it is a great place to discover new artists. You can listen on-demand through the website or an app. Freemium
   
  
• http://iTunes - OAO by Apple, Inc.. iTunes was the first major music streaming service, and nearly every song you can think of is on it. It is also where you download songs and movies/TV shows to iPhones, iPods, and iPads. It requires payment per each media, but an iTunes account is free. Files are downloaded as MP3 to your hard drive on the desktop version. Privacy concerns: Free account, pay-per-song/movie/TV show
   
  
• http://Apple Music - OAO by Apple, Inc.. New to the music streaming scene, Apple Music takes advantage of the already massive iTunes library for subscription based music streaming. However, it requires an Apple device to use. Paid, subscription-based
   
  

[*]Play Movies and TV

• http://Netflix - Privacy concerns!. Massive library of movies and TV, with classics, new stuff, and originals. Privacy concerns: Netflix tacks all its users movements on the platform. Use caution! Paid, subscription based
   
  
• http://Hulu - Similar to Netflix, with similar offerings. Netflix originals cannot be found here, but Hulu has originals of its own. Paid, subscription-based
   
  
• http://Amazon Prime Video - Privacy concerns! Similar to Netflix and Hulu, and has originals of its own. Privacy concerns: Amazon, similar to Netflix, also tracks everything their users do when using the platform. Use caution! Paid, subscription-based
   
  

[*]Play Games

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Google+

• nothing here yet
   
  
• Tumblr, which was previously listed here, was removed due to its parent company being Yahoo! Inc.
   
  

[*]Google Sites

• http://Weebly - Weebly is an easy to use drag-n-drop website builder. It has many free templates, and allows users to efficiently create an online store. It offers paid plans up to $30/month. (I have personally used it and find it very simple to set up and use). Free, paid subscription starting at $5/month
   
  
• http://Squarespace - Squarespace offers a full website builder, and is great for small businesses. User reviews are primarily positive, and it has enterprise options if required. No credit card is required for the free trial. Similar to Weebly, it has an easy web store builder. (Attention Reddit users: Keanu Reeves uses it for his personal business!) Free trial, plans starting at $12/month
   
  

[*]Google Fonts

• http://Font Squirrel - Font Squirrel is very similar to Google Fonts, and it offeres a fast, free API for using fonts in your web sites. It also has other tools, such as a font identifier (I have personally used this and found it very useful). It is filled with great fonts, and is completely free for commercial use. Free
   
  
• http://Open Font Library - As the name suggests, it is an open source font library. It has a ton of Serif and Sans-serif fonts and can be embedded directly into your site CSS. Free
   
  
• http://Dafont - Dafont is a great site for findings fonts to use in documents or Photoshop projects (it does not have embedding). Some users have said that they got viruses from Dafont, although I never had that issue. Not all fonts are for commercial use. Free
   
  

[*]YouTube (site/service)

• http://Hooktube - Allows viewing of YouTube videos through a lightweight page right in your browser. Free
   
  
• http://Vimeo - Vimeo could be said to be a film-makers YouTube. You are more likely to find short films than home videos or tutorials. (A personal note: Vimeo has gone downhill in recent years, severly limiting free users with resolution and file space). Free, paid upgrades available
   
  

[*]YouTube (mobile app, Android)

• http://NewPipe - Free, open-source, ad-free alternative to the YouTube mobile app for Android. Packed with features, such as background playing, pop-up player, downloading, subscriptions, and more. No sign-in required. Free
   
  

[*]Google Classroom

• http://Moodle - Moodle is a great alternative to Google Classroom, but it is primarily for corporations and not individual users. Many universities worldwide use it. It is also open source, but requires you to install it yourself. Free, unless requiring hosting services or commercial support
   
  
• http://Canvas - Free, open source alternative to Classroom. Similar to Moodle in functionality, and used by many universities. Free
   
  

[*]Google Maps/Transit

• http://OpenStreetMaps - Free, open-source map solution. Provides a map of the world in many formats. Not as fast as Google Maps, but it has a very clean, intuitive interface. It also has a "Cycle Map", geared towards cyclists as it shows bike paths and terrain info. Free
   
  
• http://HERE WeGo - Great, speedy maps replacement. Lightning fast navigation search. Free
   
  

[*]Google Trends

• nothing here yet
   
  

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Operating Systems

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• Android
   
  http://LineageOS - A free replacement to Android that still supports APK's and Android applications, minus Google. Uses F-Droid as play store alternative. Not all devices are compatible. Free
   
  
• http://CopperheadOS- Another privacy based variant of Android that works with Android apps. Not all devices are compatible. Open source. Free
   
  
• We would not recommend iOS as an alternative, see the note near the top.
   
  

[*]Chrome OS (Items listed here can also be used to replace Windows, which is owned by Microsoft)

• http://QubesOS - Privacy focused free OS. Open source, and recommended by Edward Snowden. Free
   
  
• http://Tails - A privacy based Linux operating system. All web traffic sent through Tor. Uses encrypted filesystem. Free
   
  
• http://Ubuntu Linux - Free, open-source operating system that can run on Chromebooks with some tweaking. Has many sub-variants, such as Ubuntu MATE, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Xubuntu, and more. Free
   
  
• Similar to the reasons of not recommending iOS for Android, we do not recommended Windows as a replacement due to Microsoft's blatant misuse of user information, as well as the high price of a legitimate copy of Windows.
   
  

[*]Wear OS

• http://AsteroidOS - An open source replacement to Wear OS for a selection of Wear OS based devices. Sleek, unique UI with many nice built-in apps. Free
   
  

[*]Android Auto

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Android TV

• nothing here yet
   
  

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Desktop Applications

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• Google Chrome
   
  http://Firefox - developed by Mozilla, a company dedicated to privacy. Feature rich, with massive extension store, and minor support for Chrome Extensions. Many privacy related settings available. Sign-in optional, but not required (sync features between devices). Many sub-versions as well, such as Iceweasel. Android, iOS, Mac, Linux, Windows. Free
   
  
• http://Brave - Privacy focused browser. Blocks ads and tracking. Android, iOS, Max, Linux, Windows. Free
   
  
• http://Tor - Firefox based browser that operates on the Tor network. Android, iOS, Mac, Linux, Windows. Free
   
  
• http://Opera - Another Chrome alternative with limited support for Chrome extensions. Many personalization options. Comes with ad blocker and built-in VPN. (Personal note: Opera's VPN is free, which usually isn't recommended, and is a little sketchy on who sees what while connected to it. Use caution with it.) Free
   
  

[*]Google Earth Pro

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Android Studio

• http://IntelliJ IDEA - Java focused IDE that is the core of Android Studio (AS is essentially a reskin of IDEA). Free, with paid premium features
   
  
• Text editors such as Notepad++, Gedit, Geany, Vim, Emacs, and Sublime Text all work great as code editors. They may not have the complex functionality of full IDE's, but are great for viewing source files with syntax highlighting, and some even support compiling built-in.
   
  

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Mobile Applications

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[align=center](many of the web service replacements have Mobile apps of their own, simply search for them on your app store of choice)

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• Play Store
   
  http://F-Droid - F-Droid is an alternative store that supports free open source apps. A lot of great Play Store apps also appear on F-Droid. Free
   
  
• http://Yalp Store - Available on F-Droid! Similar to F-Droid, but is essentially the Play Store minus Google. It is simply a more private way to access the Play Store. Free
   
  
• http://APKMirror - A great place to find clean APK files of free apps normally found through Google Play Store. APK files are uploaded by users, so not every app is available here, but you can still find quite a few. Free
   
  

[*]Maps

• http://Magic Earth - Magic Earth is probably the best replacement for Maps out there. It supports navigation, Traffic, OpenStreetMap, 3D maps, satellite imagery, offline maps/transit, and more. It is also completely free. In my experience, it is also lightning fast, on par or sometimes better than Maps. You can find it on iOS and Android. Navigation supports car, pedestrian, or bike modes. If you use iOS, it also includes extra 3D Touch functions, and support for Apple Watch. (note from author: I have used MAPS.ME and OsmAnd, which were previously listed here, but in my experience neither of them worked nearly at all. If they work for you, then that is great, but I could not get them to work sufficiently on multiple devices, including iPhone 6S, Samsung S6 and an LG G5. Due to this, I have switched to Magic Earth and have encountered no problems at all.) Free
   
  
• For those of you using Waze, keep in mind that it is OAO by Google.
   
  

[*]Google News

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]Google Pay

• nothing here yet
   
  

[*]YouTube for Android

• http://NewPipe - Free, open-source, ad-free alternative to the YouTube mobile app for Android. Packed with features, such as background playing, pop-up player, downloading, subscriptions, and more. No sign-in required. Free
   
  

[*]Google Authenticator

• http://Authy - Pretty much all the features of Google Authenticator (it's a 2FA app, there's only so much to put in it), just without Google branding. Not open source, but a great alternative. Supports both iOS and Android, as well as desktop clients for Mac OS X and Windows (it also provides a Chrome extension, but in the context of this guide we don't recommend the extension). Free (for personal use)
   
  
• http://FreeOTP - Similar to Authy, it provides many features similar to Google Authenticator. This one is different in the fact that it is open source. The UI may not be as pretty as the others, but it is a solid alternative. Apps for both iOS and Android. Free
   
  
• http://LastPass Authenticator - A 2FA authenticator similar to the others mentioned here. Owned by LastPass, a company well-known for their secure password manager. Free
   
  
• http://AndOTP - Available on F-Droid! Free, open source, decent UI and import/export for switching devices. Free
   
  

[*]Android Messages

• http://Textra SMS - Privacy concerns! Textra is a messaging app packed with features, and you can use nearly any emoji scheme you like. It has many customization options. You really can't go wrong with this one (This is the app I use for SMS/MMS I am switching soon for privacy concerns). No ads is a great touch as well, even on the free version http://u/najodleglejszy has reminded me that the free version does have ads. Privacy concerns: http://u/najodleglejszy showed me http://this link which shows Textra accessing your location. Free, with paid version with more features
   
  
• http://Silence - Available on F-Droid! A privacy based SMS/MMS app that is also open source. Easy to set up and offers full end-to-end encryption. Free
   
  
• http://Signal - Signal is one of the most respected privacy-focused messaging apps out there, and even Edward Snowden recommends using it. It is open source, uses end-to-end encryption, and can be used on desktop as well as Android and iOS. It also features voice calls, and sending voice recordings, video, documents, and pictures. Due to it being open source, it has the benefit of being ad-free. Signal can even be used to send SMS, but be aware that SMS cannot be encrypted if the recipient does not have Signal. Free
   
  
• http://Pulse SMS - Pulse SMS is a free SMS app with no ads. There is a free version which enables you to send messages from your PC or tablet as well. Free, paid upgrade available
   
  
• http://QKSMS - Available on F-Droid! A free, open source SMS/MMS client with a clean, modern UI (comes with a night mode). Completely ad-free, and lot's of theming options. Loads more features as well. Free
   
  

[*]Files Go

• http://Amaze File Manager - Available on F-Droid! Amaze File Manager is one of my favourite file managers out there. It's open source, and always in active development. It is COMPLETELY ad-free, has a great UI, and has lot's of great features. Free
   
  

[*]Gboard

• http://SwiftKey - OAO by Microsoft. SwiftKey is a really good keyboard, with lot's of cool unique features. If you can get past the fact that it is owned by Microsoft, it is one of the best keyboards for both iOS and Android. It uses AI to adapt to your writing style, and in my experience it works really well. Most keyboards will contsantly "correct" words it does not recognize, but SwiftKey automatically add words it to your personal dictionary if you use it in context and the AI recognizes it used in context. (Most AI features require signing in to a Google Account). Privacy concerns: Due to SwiftKey being owned by Microsoft, I would advise caution when using it. The reason I am recommending it is because it is truly a great keyboard app with great features. Use at your own discretion! Free
   
  
• http://AnySoftKeyboard - Open source keyboard for Android. Smooth, clean UI with great features. If you don't want SwiftKey because of Microsoft, this is the one you should get. Free
   
  
• http://Hacker's Keyboard (GitHub) or http://Hacker's Keyboard (Play Store) - This is an open source keyboard with lot's of really great features. Very useful for writing code on the go or SSH access. Free
   
  

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Hardware

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• Google driverless car
   
  http://Tesla Model S/X/3 - Eco-friendly fully electric vehicle. Packed with great features, and remote software updates. Charging stations worldwide. (FYI, this entry is part joke and part serious. Take it how you will, I'm not saying you should buy a new car.) Very expensive
   
  

[*]Nexus or Pixel phone

• There are hundreds of other mobile phones available, I'll let you find one that you like on your own, but check out http://this list for devices with unlockable bootloaders that enable you to install a custom ROM. price varies
   
  

[*]Chromebook

• Similar to mobile phones, there are thousands of available devices. Windows, OS X, or your favourite flavour of Linux. See the note near the top for more info on Apple devices. However, Windows based laptops aren't recommended either, as they tend to send much of your data to Microsoft. Really though, you can purchase any device with the hardware you like and just install a privacy focused OS such as TAILS (see below for a guide). price varies
   
  

[*]Chromecast

• Roku - Similar features to Chromecast. price varies
   
  

[*]Google Home

• nothing here yet
   
  
• Due to the freshness of smart home assistants, it is near impossible to find a worthwhile alternative that is worth the money and supports user privacy.
   
  

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Firefox Extensions

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• http://uBlock Origin - The best ad blocker out there. Make sure you go into the settings and enable EVERY adlist for the best browsing experience (even enable to "Experimental" filter, it fixes sites that may be broken by other filters).
   
  
• http://Privacy Badger - Blocks ads and invisible trackers. Solid extension with great ratings.
   
  
• http://Decentraleyes - Protects against centralized content, such as the Google Javascript library. It stores all necessary files locally so no sites are broken.
   
  
• http://HTTPS Everywhere - On sites that support both HTTP and HTTPS, this automatically redirects you to HTTPS for maximum security. Works even when you type just HTTP into the address bar.
   
  
• http://Cookie AutoDelete - Automatically deletes cookies that aren't in use when you close a tab. Supports whitelisting.
   
  

 

[Mr. Cream]

RE: Cutting Google out of your life (Taken from /r/privacy)

Very informative post, thank you.