Brave Search
Private search engine with its own index and AI answers
- #3 of 10 in best search engines
- Free plan, paid upgrades
- Free to use
- Web
Ranked 3 of 10 in best search engines
Runs on an independent index with AI answers and a Search API for developers. Its results can differ from Google's, and the AI answers are a central part of the experience.
Best for Independent results with AI answers
About Brave Search
Brave Search is a search engine run by Brave, with results from an independent index, a privacy focus and AI-powered answers. The homepage presents it as an alternative to Google on mobile, desktop and the web, and it describes its index as independent from the large search companies.
Search itself is free to use. The Brave Search API is a separate product for developers, priced per 1,000 requests, and it includes $5 in free credits each month. Brave Search suits people who want a non-Google index with AI answers; for deep academic research, dedicated tools such as Elicit fit the task better.
Key features
- Independent web index
- AI answers
- Privacy focus
- Search API
Strengths
- Independent index rather than a reseller
- Free to use for search
- AI answers appear in search results
Limits
- The developer API is billed per request
- Less suited to academic research than dedicated tools
Where Brave Search ranks
How Brave Search compares
| Product | Score | Price | Platforms | Privacy model | AI answers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
#1 Google Search | 91.0 | Free | WebiOSAndroid | Tied to a Google account | Yes |
#2 DuckDuckGo | 89.5 | Free | WebiOSAndroidmacOSWindows | Private by design | Yes |
| #3Brave Search | 88.0 | Free plan, paid upgrades | Web | No profiling | Yes |
#4 Kagi | 85.5 | Subscription | WebiOSAndroid | No ads, paid by users | Yes |
#5 MetaGer | 82.5 | Free and open source | Web | No ads, tracking or logging; key access | No |
The full comparison table for best search engines has all 10 products.
Questions about Brave Search
- Is Brave Search free?
- Brave Search can be used without paying: Free to use; the Search API is paid per request with $5 in free monthly credits. Check the vendor’s pricing page for current limits.
- Is Brave Search open source?
- No. Brave Search is proprietary software; its source code is not public.
- Which platforms does Brave Search support?
- Brave Search is available on: Web.
- What is Brave Search best for?
- Independent results with AI answers. In our ranking of search engines it is number 3 of 10 with a score of 88.0.
- What are the best alternatives to Brave Search?
- The highest-ranked alternatives on listme.name are Google Search, Perplexity, DuckDuckGo, ChatGPT.
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