Brave vs DuckDuckGo Browser

Brave

• People who want ads and trackers blocked without installing extensions
• Chrome users who want to keep their Chrome Web Store extensions
• Those who want an AI assistant that works without an account
• Crypto users who want a self-custody wallet built into the browser

DuckDuckGo Browser

• People who want tracker and ad blocking with no setup
• Private search and anonymous AI chat in one app
• Those who want a VPN and identity services bundled with their browser

Brave

• The VPN is not part of the free browser: it is a subscription at $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year.
• Free access to Leo varies with traffic and usage. Higher rate limits and more models need Leo AI premium at $14.99 per month.
• VPN, Leo, Search and Talk premium are each sold as a separate subscription; the pricing page lists no bundle.
• Brave Origin, the version without Leo, News, Rewards, VPN or Wallet, is a $59.99 one-time purchase on every system except Linux.

DuckDuckGo Browser

• The VPN, advanced AI models, Personal Information Removal and Identity Theft Restoration need a subscription from $9.99 per month.
• The subscription is sold only in the US, Canada, the UK and listed EU countries, and its features are accessed through the DuckDuckGo browser.
• The desktop browser is available only for Windows and Mac; no Linux version is listed.
• DuckDuckGo says no service can block all hidden tracking, and it keeps a list of exceptions to avoid breaking websites.

Brave

Shields ad and tracker blocking

Shields block third-party ads, trackers, fingerprinting and cookie consent notices by default on every site, including video ads on YouTube. The settings can be customized or left alone.

Leo AI assistant

Leo summarizes webpages, PDFs and Google Docs, answers questions and drafts text with no account required. Chats are not retained or used for training, and Bring Your Own Model connects local or remote models.

Brave Search

The default search engine for most new Brave users serves results from Brave's own independent index of the web, offers AI answers and does not profile the people using it.

Private Windows with Tor

Tor integration in private windows proxies the IP address, and fingerprint randomization makes the browser look different to every site on each visit.

Sync, vertical tabs and extensions

Bookmarks, passwords and tabs sync encrypted across devices, tabs can be stacked vertically, and Chrome Web Store extensions work, including those that rely on MV2.

Rewards, Wallet and Talk

Brave Rewards pays BAT to people who opt in to privacy-preserving ads, Brave Wallet is a self-custody crypto wallet, and Brave Talk runs private video calls in the browser.

DuckDuckGo Browser

Tracker and ad blocking

Third-party trackers from companies such as Google and Facebook are blocked by default, along with most ads before they load, including ads on YouTube videos.

Cookie pop-up handling

The browser detects cookie consent pop-ups and, where possible, opts out automatically so the pop-up never appears.

One-button data clearing

A single button deletes all open tabs, history and browsing data, so nothing from a session is left behind on the device.

Private search and Duck.ai

DuckDuckGo Search is built in and does not track searches. Duck.ai offers anonymized chats with models such as ChatGPT and Claude that are not used for training, and it can be turned off.

Password manager and Email Protection

A built-in password manager stores logins, passwords and bookmarks can be imported from browsers such as Chrome, and Email Protection blocks hidden trackers in emails.

Subscription protections

Subscribers get a VPN that covers the whole device, advanced Duck.ai models, Personal Information Removal from data broker sites and Identity Theft Restoration, all reached through the browser.

Brave

• Free$0

  The full browser with Shields ad and tracker blocking, encrypted sync, the free tier of Leo, Brave Search and Brave Talk video calls.

• Search premium$3.00

  per month, or $29.99 per year

  Ad-free Brave Search results and a cleaner view on all results pages.

• Talk premium$7.00

  per month, or $69.99 per year

  Video calls with hundreds of people, call recordings, participant muting and passcodes. Includes a 7-day free trial.

• Brave VPN$9.99

  per month, or $99.99 per year

  Whole-device VPN for up to 10 devices across desktop, Android and iOS, with speeds up to 500 Mbps. Includes a 7-day free trial.

• Leo AI premium$14.99

  per month, or $149.99 per year

  More AI models, higher rate limits and early access to new Leo features. Includes a 7-day free trial.

• Brave Origin$59.99

  one-time purchase

  A minimalist version of the browser that can switch off or remove Leo, News, Rewards, VPN, Wallet and other features. Free on Linux.

DuckDuckGo Browser

• Free$0

  The full browser with private search, tracker and cookie pop-up blocking, Email Protection, a password manager and basic Duck.ai models.

• Plus$9.99

  per month, or $99.99 per year, plus tax if applicable

  Adds a full-device VPN on up to 5 devices at once, advanced AI models in Duck.ai, Personal Information Removal and Identity Theft Restoration.

• Pro$19.99

  per month, or $199.99 per year, plus tax if applicable

  Everything in Plus, with the most advanced Duck.ai models, higher reasoning effort and 2x the Plus usage limits.

Brave

• Annual discount

  About 17% off with yearly billing

  Each Brave premium subscription costs about 17% less when paid yearly: Brave VPN is $99.99 a year against $119.88 for twelve months at $9.99, and Leo AI premium is $149.99 against $179.88.

DuckDuckGo Browser

• Annual discount

  About 17% off with yearly billing

  Plus is $99.99 a year against $9.99 a month, and Pro is $199.99 a year against $19.99 a month, a saving of about 17% over twelve monthly payments.