Most Internet users search via Google. However, there are also numerous other interesting search engines. We list some of them here:
Interesting search engines other than Google
1st Bing
- Description: Bing is Microsoft's search engine and the second largest search engine after Google. It offers similar features to Google, including image, video and map search. Bing is also known for its daily changing homepage, which shows beautiful images.
- Special features: Integration with Microsoft products, Bing Rewards program, visual search.
2. DuckDuckGo
- Description: DuckDuckGo is known for its strong focus on privacy. It does not track user activity and does not store any personal data, making it a popular choice for privacy-conscious users.
- Special features: No tracking of search queries, clean and ad-free user interface, one-click queries with "bangs".
3. yahoo search
- Description: Yahoo Search is one of the oldest search engines and offers a wide range of features such as news, email and financial services. It uses the search technology of Bing.
- Special features: Integration with other Yahoo services such as Yahoo Mail and Yahoo Finance, strong in the USA and Japan.
4. ecosia
- Description: Ecosia is an eco-friendly search engine that uses its profits to plant trees. It works with Bing's search results, but offers a sustainable alternative for environmentally conscious users.
- Special features: Every search query contributes to planting trees, transparent business models and financial reports.
5. baidu
- Description: Baidu is the leading search engine in China and offers a wide range of services, including maps, news and cloud services. It is mainly focused on the Chinese market.
- Special features: Strong integration with Chinese online services, leading in the Chinese language.
7. startpage
- Description: Startpage is a search engine that uses Google's search results, but protects the privacy of users by not storing IP addresses and not using tracking cookies.
- Special features: Google results without tracking, strong privacy policy.
8. qwant
- Description: Qwant is a French search engine that attaches great importance to the protection of privacy. It does not collect any personal data and is particularly popular in Europe.
- Special features: No tracking of users, specialized searches (e.g. Qwant Junior for children), focus on European values.
9th Swisscows
- Description: Swisscows is a privacy-oriented search engine from Switzerland that is particularly popular with families and schools. It filters out violent and pornographic content.
- Special features: Data protection-oriented, hosted in Switzerland, family-friendly thanks to automatic content filtering.
10th Sogou
- Description: Sogou is another Chinese search engine that is best known for its advanced voice search technology. It offers both web-based and mobile search solutions.
- Special features: Focus on Chinese language search, strong in mobile search and translation services.
11. tungsten alpha
- Description: Wolfram Alpha is an "answer engine" that specializes in mathematical calculations, data analysis and facts instead of displaying general web search results.
- Special features: Ideal for scientific and technical queries, provides direct answers and analysis instead of links.
12. ask.com
- Description: Ask.com, formerly known as Ask Jeeves, is a question-and-answer-based search engine that provides answers to questions by aggregating content.
- Special features: Focus on questions and answers, integration of community responses.
These search engines offer a variety of features and specializations that allow users to choose the option best suited to their specific needs. Whether it's privacy, local content or specialized services, these alternatives to Google can be valuable additions to your online arsenal.
Why does it make sense to optimize the website for search engines other than Google?
It makes sense to optimize a website for search engines other than Google for several reasons:
- Diversify traffic: Google may be the dominant search engine, but there are many other search engines that also have significant market share, such as Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo and Baidu (especially in China). If you only focus on Google, you are missing out on potential traffic from users who use these alternative search engines.
- Specific target groups: Different search engines are preferred by different user groups. For example, DuckDuckGo is known for its strong focus on data protection and is often used by users who value privacy. An optimization for this search engine could therefore better reach this target group in particular.
- Local search engines: In certain countries or regions, local search engines are more popular than Google. Baidu in China, Yandex in Russia and Naver in South Korea are examples of search engines that play a dominant role in their respective markets. For companies that operate internationally, it is therefore crucial to take these search engines into account.
- Algorithm differences: Search engines use different algorithms to evaluate and rank websites. What works well for Google may not be optimal for Bing or DuckDuckGo. By optimizing for different search engines, you can ensure that your website performs well in multiple search engines.
- Reduction of dependencies: Exclusive dependence on Google harbors risks. Changes in Google's algorithm could drastically affect traffic. By optimizing for multiple search engines, you reduce this dependency and mitigate the risk.
- Technological diversity: Some search engines prefer certain technical characteristics of websites, such as loading speed or the way content is structured. Broad-based optimization can help to make the website more robust and accessible overall.
Overall, optimization for different search engines increases reach, reduces the risk of traffic loss and makes it possible to effectively address different user groups.