A large portion of the Google products are great and free, however these free services do cost something i.e. Privacy. So if you are concerned about Privacy, it’s a good idea to switch to their best alternatives.
So let’s get started.
Note : The list order is based on my own choice after trying these services.
Google Search Engine
A. DuckDuckGo : a search engine based in USA that doesn’t track you. DuckDuckGo’s code is free software hosted at GitHub.
B. Sear X : an open-source search engine, not storing information about its users, no logs, no ads and no tracking.
C. Start-Page : a European company behind start-page.
D. Qwants : no user tracking.
Gmail Service
A. Tutanota : very secure and private; free accounts up to 1 GB.
B. Protonmail : end-to-end encrypted service; free accounts up to 500 MB.
Google Chrome
A. Firefox : open-source browser that will give you more privacy and security.
B. Tor : secured version of Firefox that runs on the Tor network.
C. Waterfox : fork of Firefox that is configured for more privacy by default.
Google Drive
A. Mega : free encrypted server storage service.
B. Sync : offers a secure, encrypted cloud storage solution. They do E2E encryption so the data is encrypted before it leaves your computer. They also take Bitcoin so you can register and pay anonymously.
C. Nextcloud : an open source, self-hosted file sharing platform.
Google Docs / Sheets / Slides
A. CryptPad : a privacy-focused with strong encryption, and it’s free.
B. Etherpad : online editor that’s also open source.
C. LibreOffice : You can use LibreOffice which is free and open source.
YouTube
A. Dtube : a decentralized video network operating on the blockchain.
B. Invidio.us : a great Youtube proxy that allows you to watch any Youtube video without logging in.
C. Vimeo : free video viewing services as a competitor to YouTube.
Google Translate
A. DeepL : a solid Google Translate alternative that seems to give great results.
B. Tatoeba : it’s collaborative, open and free.
Google Map
A. OpenStreetMap : a complete PC alternative to Google Maps, install it from F-Droid.
B. OsmAnd : a free and open-source mobile maps app.
Google Play Store
A. F-Droid : an installable catalog of FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) applications for the Android platform.
B. Aptoide : an independent marketplace for Android apps.
Android
A. LineageOS : a free and open-source operating system for phones and tablets based on Android.
B. Ubuntu Touch : a mobile version of the Ubuntu operating system.
C. SailFishOS : another open source, Linux-based mobile OS.
Google Hangouts
A. Wire : a great secure messenger, video and chat app.
B. Signal : a good secure messenger platform.
C. Telegram : a secure messenger app, based in Russia.
Google Keep
A. Standard Notes : A free, open-source, and completely encrypted notes app.
B. Turtl : The secure, collaborative notebook .
Other alternatives
A. Google Forms : JotForm.
B. Google Podcast : AntennaPod.
C. Google Calendar : Lightning Calendar.
D. Google Drive link sharing feature : You can use Firefox Send to send the file or if it is larger than 1GB or 2.5GB, then you can use OnionShare.
Yaaaaa, I know that many google products are still not covered but in future, I will be adding more products but first i need to experience them. So, this story will be kept updated.
If you have any question or want to say something about my post, do not hesitate to reach me on Twitter. Thank you for reading :)
Same post on Medium : https://medium.com/@i_am_rp/my-favorite-google-product-alternatives-95f4bf26712e
