On Google if I search “Mens Boots” I immediately see lots of results from shops in Amsterdam and near me selling boots.
When I use DuckDuckGo the results are useless unless I add “Amsterdam” and then it only shows me Amsterdam results, instead of Google which would also show me shops from Germany etc. That has quick delivery times etc.
What are my options? (Non-American would be great)
IMHO there is no perfect solution for this, but I switched to Searxng (which can be selfhosted) and Im happy with the results. Please note that Searxng is a Meta Search engine, that basically means its using multiple other search engines with less tracking afaik…
Yea there is no perfect solution, but we shouldn’t be looking for perfection. Every step in the right direction counts
I’ve been using Kagi for a near a year now and it’s pretty good. Reminds me of old Google
Kagi is a fantastic search engine, gets all the critical shit right.
It’s fairly pricey though. I don’t mind some adds, and I can also use a add blocker.
In Spain I have to put .es at the end for local results.
However, I use Amazon to source the product I want then find the resellers website and buy directly from them.
My last purchase like that was an 80kg capacity bike trailer that was delivered from Germany and cost the exact same, and the company didn’t have to give Bezos any cut.
Qwant has been decent for me. Try it out and see how it goes
Thanks, this seems to be the best I’ve been able to find so far
Startpage works well. You also need a VPN and to use private mode in a browser with a low fingerprint.
I am not sure why qwant seems to get mentioned so frequently. My experience is that the search results are mediocre at best and they shove ads in your face on every page.
I highly recommend Kagi, I’ve been with them since basically the beginning and they have been fantastic. I do pay for their service, but the value proposition is absolutely there.
Nothing beats Google so you can use European based Startpage just like how DuckDuckGo is based on Microsoft Bing.
Hmmn. If I wanted search results for stuff in Amsterdam, I’d expect to add “in Amst . . .”
Moving quickly on, there’s bound to be some European SearXNG. https://searx.space/ seems like a list.
I think that still uses google though among others. It’s FOSS so you could self host it and set it up how you like I think too if you’re into that type of thing.
I don’t regularly use searXNG though I use DDG - so I cannot vouch for the quality of the results.
Have you tried Quant?
Qwant*
When I do your “men’s boots” test, it looks like I get better results using Qwant, which is European.
I just use ddg and for when i want to search something important, i just use Google(in incognito).
I thought it was agreed Incognito mode does nothing useful. You are still tracked.
Incognito just doesn’t add the history to your browser, the tracking is the same, correct.
