# What are the Different Types of Search Engines?

- Link: https://www.boostability.com/seo-content/different-types-of-search-engines/
- Published: 2023-02-23T00:00:36-07:00
- Author: Kristine Pratt

_This article was first published on July 29th, 2021, and was last updated February
2023._

Google is the biggest search engine in the world for a reason. It makes a move, 
and most other engines follow suit. But we all remember the early days of the internet,
when AskJeeves, Alta Vista, Infoseek, and so many other now-defunct search engines
once helped us find what we were looking for online.

So what happened? Why did Google rise while so many fell? And does that mean that
Google is the only option when you want to search for something online?

There are still dozens of different types of search engines out there. There are
more popular search engines like Bing, Yandex, and others that focus on privacy 
that are emerging on the big stage. And what is good SEO for Google optimization,
is good for all search engines in existence. And which one you use is entirely up
to you!

This article will walk you through the other types of search engines currently in
existence, why you would use them, and some of their best features.

## Aside From Google, What are the Different Types of Search Engines?

### Crawler Based Search Engines: Google, Bing, and Yahoo

At least in the western world, there are three main types of search engines that
get over 95% of search traffic. These are **Google, Bing, and Yahoo**.

Google is a major search engine and gets a majority of that traffic. But many also
prefer Bing because it has more of a visual interface. Yahoo has waned in popularity
in recent years, but that doesn’t mean it’s obsolete. These are key search engines
that can help you find basically whatever you need online.

Google focuses mostly on simplicity with its interface not offering any extras besides
the search. Bing offers current news, trivia, and fun background photos. Yahoo provides
a lot of information right from the home page. And the search engine itself is actually
powered by the Bing algorithm.

We’ve written in-depth about the differences between [Google](https://www.boostability.com/topic/google/),
[Bing](https://www.boostability.com/topic/bing/), and [Yahoo ](https://www.boostability.com/topic/yahoo/)
previously. So if you want to learn more about those three and why you might want
to use them, read our guide. The rest of our article will go into other types of
search engines other than these three.

#### Yandex

[Yandex ](https://www.boostability.com/topic/yandex/)is one of the biggest search
engines in the world. But for users outside the United States. Yandex mostly serves
searchers in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Ukraine, and other areas of eastern
Europe. Google is still used in some of these countries, but Yandex is more popular,
and SEOs optimize for this algorithm rather than Google.

Yandex stands for “Yet another indexer”, and is actually the 5th largest search 
engine in the world. From its own website, Yandex “uses a search index, which is
basically a database of all the words and their locations known to the search engine.

A word’s location is a combination of its position on a web page and the web page’s
address on the internet… A search index registers every word the search engine has
ever come across. And unlike a phone book, which lists names and addresses, a search
engine has more than one “registered address” for each word.

Yandex has two crawler-based search engines, one that indexes all the web pages 
it comes across, and one called Orange that does express indexing to make sure the
most recent documents or web pages are available. Both crawlers have a so-called
waiting list of pages to index. And websites can add to that list by using the Yandex
Webmaster service.

![Yandex webmaster service](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/
sites/2/2021/07/Picture1.png)

The Yandex search engine has two main stages. The first step crawls the web and 
indexes them. The second then searches the index to answer a specific user query
found in the database.

#### Baidu

Similar to Yandex, Baidu is a top search engine in the world and is the most popular
in China. Well over 70% of China’s population uses Baidu as its primary search engine.
Baidu is very similar to Google in that it offers a lot of different search products
like paid search, mobile, translation, games, music, and much more.

Baidu is a Chinese company that operates under Chinese government laws, regulations,
and even censorship of certain content. But because it’s a company that is already
part of the culture, its search engine that focuses on the Chinese language and 
culture means it can better serve the Chinese market from massive cities like Shanghai
and Beijing to small rural towns.

This helps its dominance and why Google has struggled to gain a bigger footing in
China. Baidu also works outside of China, just like Google works inside China. But
it’s primarily created exclusively for users in China and will return results in
Chinese, no matter what language you enter.

Baidu has two primary segments, Baidu Core, which involves keyword-based marketing
and AI, and iQIYI which offers online advertising.

#### Openverse

![openverse logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/openverse-min-300x198.png)

Openverse, previously known as CC Search which stands for Creative Commons, is a“
Tool that allows openly licensed and public domain works to be discovered and used
by everyone.” Essentially, it’s a visual search platform that allows you to search
for any public domain images, though they have plans to expand to things like audio
and video. More than 300 million images exist on Openverse.

One of the key differences is that all code for Openverse is open source, and they
welcome community contribution. This is a good platform for visual elements if you
need them and don’t want to pay for something like Adobe Creative Cloud or iStock,
but still want to search for various images.

#### AOL

AOL, formerly known as America Online, is both a search engine and an online media
company. Starting out as a software company back in 1985, they are considered one
of the early pioneers of the internet and eventually one of the biggest search engines
online. Currently they hold 0.06% of the world’s search engine market share.

On June 23rd, 2015, AOL was acquired by Verizon Communications for $4.4 billion.
They provide advertising services such as AOL Advertising, AOL mail, and AOL Platform.

The user experience of this website includes features such as the search bar, national
news articles, local news, and weather updates.

#### Excite

Excite is one of the oldest search engines still in existence. Though it’s not nearly
what it used to be. Excite first showed up in 1995 and piloted the “crawler” technology
to look at websites and return relevant search results.

Like Yahoo, Excite is considered a “portal” that does indeed offer search results,
but also a bunch of other services like email, news, weather, games, and more. Excite
was purchased by Ask in 2004 and still exists to offer services in the U.S., U.K.,
Germany, France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, and Austria.

In the U.S., search results come through a metasearch tool that combines PPC and
organic search tools like Google and Yahoo. In the UK and other parts of Europe,
Excite just takes the results from Ask.

### Privacy Based Search Engines

#### DuckDuckGo

The conversation around online privacy is growing. People want to make sure their
information is secure online. And big tech has sometimes been painted as the enemy
of privacy.

Enter [DuckDuckGo](https://www.boostability.com/topic/duckduckgo/). It’s a private
search engine that prides itself on helping you stay anonymous online. Most websites
will track cookies to better serve your ads or more personalized search results.
Whereas DuckDuckGo keeps your information private without those tracking cookies.

So many ask then, how does it make money? It still serves ads but is not personalized
in the way you might see on other websites. The ads show up depending on your search
results page, not your search history.

You can see the appeal of a search engine like this. Many like being able to “stay
off the grid” so to speak. This engine is also rapidly growing in popularity as 
people like to keep their information and search habits private. Does that mean 
you need to have an SEO strategy around DuckDuckGo? Read our guide here.

#### Swisscows

![swisscows logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/swisscows-min-300x106.png)

[Swisscows](https://swisscows.com/?culture=en) also brands itself as a more private
search experience, along with the philanthropic option to give back as you search.
It launched in 2014 in Switzerland but serves many languages. Swisscows doesn’t 
track or collect data. On their website, they even say they have their own servers
and don’t work on the cloud, and hold their data center in the “Swiss Alps – THIS
is the safest bunker in Europe!”

Swisscows also brands itself as a family-friendly search engine that does not list
any pornographic or violent content. And it forwards donations from the paid search
ads to needy children around the world to provide food, shelter, and educational
access in places that wouldn’t otherwise.

#### Startpage

![startpage.com logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/startpage-min-300x158.jpg)

[Startpage](https://www.startpage.com/) is a Dutch search engine that gives users
the option to search anonymously. Startpage prides itself on being smaller than 
Google or Bing and more private. They make a point of not tracking your activity
online.

It’s similar to DuckDuckGo and its privacy controls. They don’t collect or sell 
search history, they don’t allow 3rd party ad trackers or cookies, and you can search
anonymously to avoid online profiling and targeted ads.

Once you click on a website, those controls are gone. You can also add Startpage
to Chrome as a default search engine option. Even though Startpage is a Dutch company,
you can search in a variety of languages.

#### Search Encrypt

![search encrypt logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/search-encrypt-min-300x97.png)

Many people, especially in the European area, have a big focus on digital privacy.
That’s why there are a growing number of privacy-focused search engines. We’ve already
talked about a couple.

However, one more popular site is [Search Encrypt](https://www.searchencrypt.com/).
Like the others, they don’t track your search history and don’t create profiles 
around users. Search Encrypt’s MO is to encourage safe browsing practices online.

Search Encrypt is a Google Chrome or Firefox extension so you can learn better privacy
habits online. It will tell you when your search is redirected. And it makes Search
Encrypt your primary browser, though you can turn it off and search with Google 
or Bing.

#### Gibiru

![gibiru logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/gibiru-min-300x84.png)

Yet another privacy-focused search engine is [Gibiru](https://gibiru.com/). It calls
itself a private and uncensored search engine. When you search, you get both “all
results” and “uncensored” options. Meaning that you get completely algorithm-based
search results and nothing that could get filtered based on possibly dangerous or
incorrect information.

Gibiru also provides HTTPS 256-bit encryption to ensure total secrecy. Gibiru doesn’t
track IP addresses, place cookies, or sell data to advertisers to retarget ads.

Gibiru also provides a mobile app called Wormhole that allows anonymous mobile web
search engine surfing. It’s like its own search browser that’s just an app.

#### OneSearch

![onesearch logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/onesearch-min-300x72.png)

[OneSearch](https://www.onesearch.com/) is a Verizon search engine that launched
to be a DuckDuckGo competitor. Verizon is trying to capitalize on that emphasis 
and focus on keeping user data private. The search engine itself is powered by Bing
search results, with paid ads coming from Microsoft Advertising (formerly BingAds).

But the difference in browsing with OneSearch is that it doesn’t deploy tracking
cookies for retargeting. It encrypts search keywords and builds results based on
those keywords. Then the encryption key expires after one hour, stopping third parties
from tracking a user over a period of time. OneSearch will appear on Google’s search
choice screen for Android device users in the EU starting this year, which may help
it grow in popularity.

### Crowd-Sourced Based Search Engines

#### Wiki.com

![wiki.com logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/
2023/02/wiki-min-150x150.png)

This is a wiki search engine created by independent developers as a way to search
all Wikia wikis, Wikimedia, and other Wiki websites. But it’s powered by a Google
Custom Search. It’s a good way to search online encyclopedias to learn more about
a certain topic. But recognize that it’s crowdsourced information and might not 
always be fully correct.

#### Boardreader

![boardreader logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/boardreader-min-300x108.png)

[Boardreader](https://boardreader.com/) is a search engine based around “connecting
communities through search”. Boardreader is a great resource if you’re interested
in finding, viewing, and analyzing information from different discussion boards 
about a specific subject. It pulls from different social media sources, Google Groups,
Epinions, and more.

### Social Impact Search Engines

#### Ecosia

![ecosia logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/ecosia-min-300x200.png)

[Ecosia](https://www.ecosia.org/) is the search engine that gives back to the environment.
This is a fairly new player in the search field. It’s been around for a while but
is really growing in features and popularity in recent years.

What sets Ecosia apart is that you get to “plant trees as you search!” In other 
words, a good fraction of the profit made from the search engine goes back to planting
trees all over the world. So the search ads on Ecosia bring in money, which then
goes back to a great cause.

Ecosia is growing in popularity in its short time on the internet. It has 15 million
active users with approximately 130 million trees donated and planted. Ecosia is
even one of Google Chrome’s default search engine options! So if you’re looking 
for a more eco-friendly way to search, check out Ecosia.

#### giveWater

![giveWater logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/giveWater-min-300x55.png)

Just like Ecosia, [giveWater](https://www.givewater.com/) is a social change search
engine that looks to help provide clean water and effective sanitation. When you
use giveWater as a search engine, paid search ads generate income for giveWater.

GiveWater distributes a portion of its profits from those ads to their charitable
partners. From there, those partners use the donated funds to provide clean water
and sanitation.

#### Ekoru

![ekoru logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/ekoru-min-300x87.jpg)

[Ekoru](https://ekoru.org/) is a search engine focusing on the threat of climate
change. They donate 60% of their monthly revenue to one of several partner charities
ranging from reforestation to climate action. With this, they aim at selecting a
different charitable cause every month.

They are also more of a privacy search engine by standing for civil rights by not
storing any user or search-related data on their servers. They also use renewable
energy sources for its data centers.

## What is the Difference Between a Web Browser and Search Engines?

A search engine is a way for individuals to search for content and have a list of
website results appear for them. It’s a way for them to find web pages from other
websites.

A web browser on the other hand is a piece of software or program that gets and 
displays web pages. Examples of search engines include Google, Bing, and Yahoo. 
Examples of web browsers include Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Google Chrome.

## What are the Commonly Used Web Browsers?

After all those different kinds of search engines, you may be asking yourself about
the difference between a search engine and a web browser. A search engine is what
you use to search online.

But a web browser is merely the tool that allows you to perform the search. These
occasionally get confused because browsers like Chrome or Firefox have a search 
bar that takes you to your Google, Bing, or other search results. But those search
bars are powered by the search engine extension.

Consider the web browser as the vehicle. Search engines are the driver behind the
wheel taking you to your desired destination based on what you search. But you still
need a vehicle to get you there.

Common web browsers include Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, and
more. We’ll get into some of the main features of popular web browsers below:

### Google Chrome

![chrome logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/Google-Chrome-min-150x150.png)

[Google’s Chrome browser](https://www.google.com/chrome/) is one of the most popular
browsers out there today, and frankly to ever exist. It has thousands, if not millions
of plugins, extensions, and customizable features that allow you to make your browsing
and search experience all your own. It’s a cross-platform web browser meaning you
can use multiple search engines and tools within the browser.

If you log into your Google account while using Chrome, Google can track your movements
across the web. It can lead to a more customized search experience, but at the same
time cuts down on some privacy.

Google Chrome uses cookies to personalize ads, help you with near-me searches, and
more. Though you can adjust privacy controls. Chrome allows you to customize your
view and set which search engine you want to use to browse.

Chrome is extremely robust and has seemingly unlimited resources. It’s popular for
a reason. It’s the default browser for many computer platforms and offers a free
download if your computer doesn’t already come with it pre-installed.

### Safari

![safari logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/Safari-min-150x150.png)

[Safari](https://www.apple.com/safari/) is Apple’s default web browser that comes
on all iPhones, iPads, Macs, and any Apple device. Apple brands Safari as the world’s
fastest browser. Though of course, that depends on your internet connection speed.

Safari can be really useful if you’re an Apple user with multiple devices. It can
save passwords, preferences, bookmarks, history, and more across all your devices
when you’re nearby. [Safari has about 54%](https://gs.statcounter.com/browser-market-share/mobile/united-states-of-america)
of the search engine market share for mobile browsing in the U.S.

Apple also likes to tout its privacy abilities. Safari will track some online movements,
but maybe not as much as other platforms. It has privacy protections built in, including“
Intelligent Tracking Prevention that identifies trackers and helps prevent them 
from profiling or following you across the web.” And it has a built-in privacy report
so you can see what websites are tracking or profiling you based on your browsing
habits.

They use Javascript to power their browsing capabilities. Safari also provides many
customization options where you can create your own browsing experience based on
your own preferences. You can set Google, Bing, or various search engines as your
default search engine.

### Brave

![Brave search logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/Brave-search-min-300x180.png)

[Brave](https://brave.com/) is the latest web browser making waves in the tech community.
Like many privacy search engines, such as DuckDuckGo and Startpage, Brave is branding
itself as a safe and private browser that gets to where you want to go online quickly.

Brave is free to download, lets you use a variety of search engines, and remembers
site authentication information if you ask it to, but eliminates ads and ad trackers.
Brave downloads less content from a website, which allows it to load quickly and
eliminates ad trackers. The company also promises that it does not store any user
data.

Brave is just like most browsers. It’s easy to navigate and understand. But what
sets it apart is its commitment to privacy over anything else.

### Firefox

![firefox logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/
2023/02/firefox-min-150x150.png)

Firefox is one of the most popular web browsers out there. It’s also known as Mozilla
Firefox, backed by a not-for-profit organization that doesn’t sell information to
advertisers. It’s a free and open-source browser. It also is available to use as
a mobile app for iOS and Android devices.

A lot of people have called Firefox slow, meaning it won’t get you to your desired
website as quickly as Chrome. In 2017, Firefox heard these complaints and rebuilt
the browser engine. Today it’s comparable to other browser speeds.

And similar to Brave, it uses ad-blocking technology to actually help a page load
even faster. Firefox is very popular for those who still want easy functionality
with more privacy than you would get on Chrome.

### Opera

![opera logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/
02/opera-search-min-300x171.png)

[Opera](https://www.opera.com/) is another good web browser available on just about
any device. It’s been around for a while, with its first version released in 1995.
Opera uses less processing capacity than other browsers with the same built-in ad-
blocking technology that allows pages to load more quickly.

It has a free VPN that reduces online tracking. And it has cool technology that 
allows you to chat and browse at the same time with “built-in messengers on the 
edge of your browser” so you don’t have to keep switching between tabs and apps.

### Internet Explorer

![internet explorer logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/
sites/2/2023/02/internet-explorer-min-150x150.png)

Internet Explorer (IE) has been around for a long time. And it gets a lot of flack
for being slow and out of date. This is actually one of my favorite internet browser
jokes even though it might be a bit inaccurate now.

![Browser meme joke](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2021/07/Picture2.png)

Internet Explorer is no longer Microsoft’s default browser. That’s now Microsoft
Edge (which I’ll talk about next). Microsoft first put IE into Windows 1995. By 
2002, IE was the most used browser in the world.

It’s gone through a lot of different versions and will still get you online. Microsoft
no longer fully supports it but instead defaults to Microsoft Edge.

### Microsoft Edge

![microsoft edge logo](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/uploads/sites/
2/2023/02/microsoft-edge-min-150x150.png)

[Microsoft Edge](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge) is the new default web browser
installed on every new Windows computer. It replaces Internet Explorer. It has more
features and runs more quickly than its predecessor, though it’s still trying to
shake off the stigma. But it has enough features that it’s a legitimate competitor
now.

Similar to Safari, when you sign in with a Microsoft account you can sync your bookmarks,
history, passwords, and more across multiple devices. And you can add thousands/
millions of extensions to it from the Microsoft Store, very similar to Google Chrome.

## How Can I Tell Which Search Engine I’m Using?

While every web browser is a little different, they all have similar features. You
can set or find out your default search engine on every single web browser by accessing
your browser’s settings.

For Chrome and Firefox, you have the option to go to Settings for your browser by
going to the right-hand side and clicking on either three dots or three lines. When
you go into settings, you can scroll down to “Default Search Engine”.

To easily find this without scrolling, just hit Control-F on a Windows computer,
or Command-F on a Mac device and then type in “Search Engine”. It will help you 
locate it on the page.

![Google Chrome Search Engine Setting](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/
uploads/sites/2/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-28-at-4.56.07-PM.png)

Google Chrome Search Engine Setting

![Firefox search engine setting](https://www.boostability.com/content/wp-content/
uploads/sites/2/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-28-at-4.56.27-PM.png)

Firefox Search Engine Setting

Every browser will have something similar. To find out your default search engine
or to change it, you need to access the browser settings and then go from there.

## How Do I Optimize My Website for Different Types of Search Engines?

We’ve gone through a lot of information in this article. And since we’re an SEO 
company, which helps your website be optimized for different types of search engines,
it’s hard to know what is right or what to do with so many different kinds of search
engines.

However, Google is the world standard. Google makes moves in the search community
and most other platforms follow. So Google is emphasizing a good user experience
and accurate content. So do all the other search engines.

At Boostability, we optimize websites with Google’s algorithm in mind. Because what
is good for Google optimization will often be reflected across all search engine
platforms. Google sets the standard, and other platforms follow.

And what is good for SEO on one platform, is good for them all. Optimizing your 
site will never hurt, no matter where your customers search!

Ready to get started with SEO to show up across all these platforms? We can help
you! Boostability offers [white label SEO services](https://www.boostability.com/white-label-seo-partner/white-label-seo-services/)
around the world and we are ready to help you and your customers! Contact us today
to get started.