Kagi: Finally, a Search Engine That Doesn’t Sell Your Soul (or Data)

A practical guide to Kagi’s user‑funded, ad‑free search: how it protects privacy, how to tune relevance with Lenses/Boosts/Blocklists, and how to set it up everywhere.

TL;DR

• Kagi is a user-funded, ad-free privacy search engine that avoids the incentive conflicts of ad-driven search.
• Per its policy, Kagi does not sell your data and minimizes logging; queries are handled with privacy in mind.
• You control relevance using Kagi Lenses, Boosts, and a personal blocklist instead of behavioral tracking.
• Compared with Google, DuckDuckGo, Startpage, and Brave Search, Kagi trades ads and profiling for paid plans and customization.
• Setup is straightforward on desktop and mobile using https://kagi.com/search?q=%s and optional sign-in for full features.
• Trade-offs: a subscription, account-based features, and potential rate limits over Tor/VPNs.

Why Kagi Breaks From the Ad-Driven Search Economy

The cost of ads and surveillance capitalism in search

Ad-funded engines monetize attention. The more you click and the longer you stay, the more valuable you are to advertisers. This can shape ranking, interface clutter, and “sticky” product decisions. In the broader web economy, ad tech often relies on cross-site identifiers, large-scale telemetry, and data brokers. The result: incentives optimized for targeted advertising, not necessarily for clean, relevant results or minimal data collection.

Why a user-funded model changes incentives

With a user-funded model, Kagi’s revenue comes from subscribers—not advertisers—aligning incentives toward result quality, control, and privacy. Removing ads reduces page noise and the economic pressure to build behavioral profiles. Features are designed for signal (e.g., Lenses and Boosts) instead of engagement hacks.

What “no selling your data” means in practice

Per Kagi’s privacy policy, the service does not sell your personal data and aims to minimize collection. Account details are used to run your subscription and sync your preferences, not to target ads. Search queries are processed to deliver results; Kagi describes retention and logging practices in its policy. The model is straightforward: you pay for faster, cleaner, and more controllable results—without ad targeting.

How Kagi Protects Your Data and Search Privacy

Account data, logs, and retention policies

Kagi accounts store the minimum necessary data for authentication, billing, and feature sync. The privacy policy outlines how account data is handled and what is retained. Search-related data is processed to return results and provide features such as Lenses, Boosts, and your blocklist. Retention windows and purposes are documented by Kagi; if a specific timeline isn’t published, treat it as “limited to operational needs” per the policy.

Anonymous queries, IP handling, and fingerprinting defenses

Kagi aims to avoid building behavioral profiles across the web. The service discusses how it handles IP addresses and reduces fingerprinting risk in its policy and help center. Typical measures include minimizing identifying data, using secure transport, and avoiding third-party tracking pixels. Privacy features work best when you also practice browser hygiene (see the checklist below).

How Kagi handles legal requests and transparency reports

Kagi states it will comply with valid legal requests consistent with its policies and applicable law. Where available, Kagi provides transparency documentation about requests and its approach. No mainstream service can promise absolute immunity from lawful process; Kagi’s stance is to collect less and be clear about what exists.

Pricing, Plans, and What You Get for Paying

Free trials, paid tiers, and fair-use limits

Kagi typically offers a limited free trial so you can evaluate performance and features before subscribing. Paid tiers include fair-use query allowances. Exact pricing and query limits can change; consult Kagi’s pricing page and terms for current details.

What features unlock with a subscription

• Ad-free search results and an uncluttered UI.
• Kagi Lenses to tailor results by intent (e.g., docs, academic, forums).
• Domain Boosts and personal blocklists to tune sources.
• Custom shortcuts and settings sync across devices.
• Credits for Kagi’s Universal Summarizer (per plan).

Refunds, family plans, and multi-device support

Plans, refunds, and family or group options vary—check Kagi’s terms and help center for current availability. Your account supports multiple devices; staying signed in enables sync and your personalization (without ad tracking).

Relevance You Can Control: Lenses, Boosts, and Blocklists

Tuning results with Lenses for specific intents

Lenses are preconfigured filters that reshape the results toward an intent. Examples:

• Developer: prioritize docs, repos, and issue trackers.
• Academic: surface scholarly sources and preprints.
• Forums/Discussions: emphasize community Q&A and threads.
• News: emphasize recent reporting and official statements.

You can use built-in Lenses or make your own—defining allowed/blocked domains, freshness, and content type filters.

Boosting trusted domains and blocking noise

Boosts let you elevate specific, trusted domains so they appear higher when relevant (e.g., boost your preferred documentation site). The Kagi blocklist removes noisy or low-quality domains from your results. With a few boosts and a short blocklist, many users report cleaner results than generic search—without tracking your activity across the web.

Personalization without tracking across the web

All personalization resides inside your Kagi account. It does not depend on cross-site identifiers, embedded trackers, or ad cookies. Your choices affect how Kagi returns results to you; they are not used to target ads elsewhere.

Under the Hood: Index Sources, Performance, and Transparency

Crawling vs. meta-search: how Kagi assembles results

Kagi describes a hybrid approach in its documentation—leveraging multiple sources and Kagi’s own systems to assemble results. This focuses on quality, freshness, and resilience rather than a single upstream dependency. Exact partners and weighting can evolve; Kagi’s docs and changelogs explain the approach at a high level.

Speed, rate limits, and geographic performance

Kagi is engineered to be responsive globally, but rate limits may apply to protect the service. Performance can vary by region, network conditions, and privacy tools (e.g., Tor, aggressive VPN hopping). If you encounter captchas or throttling, slow down your request rate and avoid automated querying.

Public documentation, changelogs, and roadmap

Kagi maintains public documentation, feature pages, and policy statements. Where available, changelogs and roadmap updates outline what’s shipped and what’s planned. Consult the resources linked below for authoritative details.

Kagi vs. Google, DuckDuckGo, Startpage, and Brave Search

Here’s a high-level, policy-oriented comparison. It focuses on incentives, privacy posture, and unique features rather than unverifiable metrics.

When might you choose metasearch or self-hosted SearxNG instead? If you require a free option, host-your-own control, or a research sandbox that you fully administer, SearxNG and other meta-search tools can be attractive. The trade-off is convenience, tuning effort, and potential rate-limit friction with upstream sources.

Setup Walkthrough: Making Kagi Your Daily Driver

For most browsers, you can add a custom search engine with this pattern: https://kagi.com/search?q=%s. Sign in to your Kagi account and enable “stay signed in” for full features (Lenses, Boosts, blocklist, and sync).

Setting Kagi as default in major browsers

• Chrome/Chromium (desktop):
  1. Settings → Search engine → Manage search engines and site search.
  2. “Add” a search engine: Name “Kagi”, Shortcut “k”, URL “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  3. Open the menu next to Kagi → Set as default.
• Firefox (desktop):
  1. Settings → Search → Default Search Engine.
  2. Scroll to “Search Shortcuts” → “Add” → Enter “Kagi” and URL “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  3. Select Kagi as the default engine.
• Safari (macOS):
  1. Safari → Settings → Search.
  2. Safari only lists built-in engines. For Kagi, install Kagi’s official extension (if available) or use a Safari extension that lets you set custom search engines. Review permissions carefully.
  3. Alternatively, create a custom bookmark with “k ” keyword to send queries to Kagi.
• Microsoft Edge (desktop):
  1. Settings → Privacy, search, and services → Address bar and search → Manage search engines.
  2. Add: “Kagi” / “k” / “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  3. Set Kagi as default.
• Brave (desktop):
  1. Settings → Search → Manage search engines.
  2. Add Kagi with URL “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  3. Set Kagi as default.

Mobile apps, extensions, and shortcut queries

• iOS Safari:
  1. Safari does not support arbitrary custom engines by default. Use a trusted content blocker/shortcut extension that adds Kagi, or create a Share Sheet shortcut that sends selected text to “https://kagi.com/search?q=QUERY”.
  2. Sign in to Kagi in Safari and enable “stay signed in.”
• Android Chrome:
  1. Visit kagi.com; Chrome may auto-detect site search. If not, Settings → Search engine → Manage search engines → Add “Kagi” with “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  2. Set Kagi as default.
• Android Brave/Edge:
  1. Settings → Search engine → Manage/add search engines → Add “Kagi” with “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”.
  2. Set Kagi as default.
• Android Firefox:
  1. Settings → Search → Add search engine → “Add a new search engine”.
  2. Name “Kagi”; URL “https://kagi.com/search?q=%s”. Set as default.

Tip: Use a one-letter keyword (e.g., “k”) so “k query” routes to Kagi from the address bar. Review any third-party extension or shortcut permissions before installing.

Importing blocklists and creating custom Lenses

• Blocklists: In your Kagi account settings, paste domains to hide—one per line—or import a list.
• Boosts: Add trusted domains with a modest boost level; keep the list short for clarity.
• Lenses: Start from a built-in template (e.g., Developer) and customize allowed or excluded sources; save and set as your default.

Using Kagi with Tor, VPNs, and Hardened Browsers

Accessing Kagi over Tor: reliability and caveats

Kagi is reachable on the clearnet via Tor Browser; no official .onion endpoint is documented. Expect occasional rate limits or challenges, especially from popular exits. Avoid automated queries and keep manual use human-paced to maintain reliability.

Best practices with VPNs and DNS over HTTPS

• Choose a stable exit region; frequent IP hopping can trigger challenges.
• Prefer reputable VPNs with transparent policies and strong DNS controls.
• Enable DNS over HTTPS (DoH) or DNS over TLS on your OS/browser to reduce passive DNS leakage.

Hardening profiles: cookies, containers, and isolates

• Use separate browser profiles or containers for search vs. social logins.
• Allow first-party cookies for Kagi to keep Lenses/Boosts/Blocklists synced; block or clear third-party cookies elsewhere.
• Consider site isolation and strict content blocking, but avoid breaking core functionality needed for sign-in.
• Keep extensions minimal; remove those you don’t trust or need.

Privacy Best-Practices Checklist

• Use strong, unique passwords and enable 2FA where available.
• Stay signed in to Kagi only in profiles you control; sign out on shared devices.
• Limit extensions; review permissions and update regularly.
• Use containers or separate profiles for high-risk activities.
• Enable DoH/DoT and verify your resolver’s privacy policy.
• Keep your OS, browser, and apps patched.
• Don’t paste sensitive data into search fields or screenshots.
• Respect robots.txt; avoid scraping and excessive automation.
• Use VPNs and Tor legally; understand local regulations.
• Back up your Kagi settings periodically (where supported).

Limitations, Trade-Offs, and Who Kagi Is For

What Kagi does not index or support yet

Kagi focuses on the public web; it does not claim to index hidden services or closed networks, and it does not provide specialized database access beyond what’s publicly available. Availability of regional or niche content depends on source coverage.

Risks of account-based private search

To deliver personalization features, Kagi uses an account. That means cookies and authentication are involved. While Kagi’s policy emphasizes minimal data and no selling, your login state is inherently a piece of data. If you prefer zero accounts, a self-hosted alternative may fit better.

Choosing Kagi vs. building your own stack

Pick Kagi if you want ad-free results, tuneable relevance, and a maintained privacy policy. Consider SearxNG or other self-hosted meta-search if you need full operational control, custom routing, or a lab environment—accepting the overhead of hosting and potential rate limits against upstream data sources.

Glossary of Kagi Features

• Lenses: Intent-focused filters that reshape ranking and sources. Use cases: a “Developer” Lens for docs and repos, a “Forums” Lens for discussions.
• Boosts: Domain-level ranking nudges for trusted sites. Use cases: boost a tech doc site you rely on; boost your preferred news outlet.
• Blocklist: A personal list of domains to hide from results. Use cases: remove content farms or affiliate-heavy sites from your SERPs.
• Universal Summarizer: A feature that summarizes pages or documents using your plan’s credits to speed research without invasive tracking.
• Shortcuts: Custom keywords that route queries to sites or Lenses quickly (e.g., “k docs rust ownership”).

FAQ

How is Kagi different from DuckDuckGo, Startpage, and Brave Search?

Kagi is user-funded and ad-free, prioritizing relevance controls (Lenses/Boosts/Blocklists). DuckDuckGo and Startpage are ad-supported with privacy protections; Brave offers ads by default and a paid ad-free option. Kagi’s incentives are aligned with subscribers rather than advertisers.

Does Kagi log my searches or store my IP address?

Kagi’s policy emphasizes minimal collection and no sale of personal data. The policy explains how search queries and IP addresses are handled and for how long. Consult the official privacy policy for current details.

What are Lenses and Boosts, and how do they improve relevance?

Lenses reshape results toward an intent (e.g., docs, academic). Boosts elevate trusted domains you choose. Together with blocklists, they give you precision without cross-site tracking.

Is Kagi usable over Tor and VPNs, and are there rate-limit issues?

Yes, but you may encounter challenges or throttling from shared exits or rapid IP changes. Keep usage human-paced, use a stable exit region, and avoid automated queries.

What does a paid Kagi plan include, and is there a free tier?

Plans typically include ad-free search, Lenses/Boosts/Blocklists, settings sync, and Summarizer credits. A limited trial usually exists. See Kagi’s pricing page for current tiers and allowances.

How does Kagi source its index and handle freshness of results?

Kagi uses a hybrid approach that combines multiple sources with Kagi’s own systems. This helps maintain quality and freshness without relying solely on a single index.

Can I import/export blocklists and sync settings across devices?

Yes. Kagi supports personal blocklists and boosts, and settings sync when you’re signed in. Import/export options are available in account settings.

Who should choose Kagi over hosting SearxNG or using metasearch?

Choose Kagi if you want maintenance-free, ad-free search with powerful relevance controls and a documented privacy posture. Choose SearxNG or metasearch when you need full control, custom routing, or a lab environment—and you’re comfortable managing rate limits and uptime.

Sources and Further Reading

• Kagi Privacy Policy: https://kagi.com/privacy
• Kagi Help Center (features, Lenses/Boosts/Blocklists): https://help.kagi.com
• Kagi Terms and Pricing: https://kagi.com/terms • https://kagi.com/pricing
• DuckDuckGo Privacy: https://duckduckgo.com/privacy
• Startpage Privacy Policy: https://www.startpage.com/en/privacy-policy/
• Brave Search Privacy: https://brave.com/search/privacy/
• Google Privacy: https://policies.google.com/privacy
• Tor Project Support (using Tor Browser): https://support.torproject.org/
• Chrome: Change default search engine: https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95426
• Firefox: Default search settings: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/change-your-default-search-settings-firefox
• Safari (macOS): Set search options: https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/change-search-settings-ibrw1056/mac
• Safari (iOS/iPadOS): Search settings: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201365
• Microsoft Edge: Change default search engine: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/change-your-default-search-engine-in-microsoft-edge-06d43f5f-16ec-a6c2-9fd1-88dc21e49d08
• DNS over HTTPS (RFC 8484): https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8484
• Robots.txt overview: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/robots/intro

• Key takeaways:
• Kagi’s user-funded model aligns incentives with privacy and relevance, not ads.
• Lenses, Boosts, and blocklists give you precise control without cross-site tracking.
• Setup is easy across major browsers using https://kagi.com/search?q=%s and a signed-in session.
• Tor/VPNs work but may face rate limits; use stable, human-paced access.
• Privacy is not anonymity; pair Kagi with good browser hygiene.
• Consider SearxNG if you need self-hosted control and can manage trade-offs.