Brave Search
Independent search index with private results and an optional AI answer layer.
why this verdict
Keep paying — Google has not replaced it
Google's version overlaps, but does not finish the search job, so this one still earns its $3/mo.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- AI Overviews and AI Mode answering queries before any result list is read. Google, May 28, 2025 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers not the job editorial call
- Parts of it. The job still needs the tool to get finished.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 2 of 3 listed replacements have a usable free tier: DuckDuckGo and Perplexity.
- What the call is worth $36/yr
- $3/mo at the entry paid tier — $36 a year per seat.
- Threatened by
- Since
- May 28, 2025
- List price
- $3/mo
- Per year
- $36
The backstory
Brave Search runs its own crawler and index rather than reselling someone else's results, and pairs it with a summariser and the Leo assistant. Generated answers are pulling traffic away from every result page, Brave included. It survives because the index itself is the asset: it is one of the few non-Google, non-Bing indexes, it powers a paid search API used by AI products, and privacy buyers will not move to an ad-funded answer engine.
Escape hatches
Paid ad-free search with heavy result customisation
kagi.com open_in_newPrivate search with a free assistant layer
duckduckgo.com open_in_newAnswer engine if you want synthesis over links
perplexity.ai open_in_new2 of 3 replacements have a usable free tier.