How to Completely Remove (Uninstall) DuckDuckGo from Your PC & Mobile

For some users, DuckDuckGo is the best privacy-focused web search engine that is a true alternative to Google, and still, it is powered by Bing (a search engine by Microsoft). While for many other Windows, iOS, Android, and other operating system users on PCs and Mobiles, DuckDuckGo is just malware or you can say a virus that they want to get rid of by removing duckduckgo completely.

In this article, we are looking to help you and those who want to uninstall duckduckgo from mobile and computer browsers completely without breaking the operating systems. We will start with Windows and major internet browsers.

Before actually going deeper, in the first run, you should check and make sure that your default web search engine is not DuckDuckGo in your preferred web browser, and here's how to do it.

How to Remove DuckDuckGo as Your Default Search Engine

1. Open your preferred web browser (no matter on PC or Mobile)
2. Go to its Settings option (different for different browsers)
3. Find the Search Engine option and check which search engine is your default one
4. If its DuckDuckGo, click on it and add Google or your any of your favorite search engine there
5. Click on the Save option (mostly not needed)

Woohoo, this is the completely free and quick method to get rid of DuckDuckGo search engine from your PC and Smartphone.

However, if it's not working for you, you should check the options below:

How to Uninstall DuckDuckGo from Windows

If you own a laptop or a personal computer with Windows 10, 8, 7, or other Windows Operating systems installed such as XP and Vista, you can easily turn off DuckDuckGo in one run, and here's how (this guide is for Windows 10):

1. Click on the Start menu "Windows flag icon at the bottom left corner)
2. Go to the Settings menu by clicking on the Gear icon
3. Click on Apps options and find DuckDuckGo app, click on it and Uninstall it

From there in the apps (program and features) option, you can also find some recently added software and apps, you can remove them too to make sure that not those apps are triggering DuckDuckGo.com to open up on your web browsers.

This will help you easily get rid of duckduckgo search engine and enjoy the default Google or Bing search options on your Windows PC.

How to Remove Duckduckgo from Web Browsers in Windows

When you are using Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome browser on your Windows computer, and duckduckgo pops up automatically, you are probably using an extension that is causing this to happen or you have installed a dedicated app. If you have completed the first step and still duckduckgo is bothering you, you should follow the below steps:

Get Rid of DuckDuckGo from Mozilla Firefox

Option 1. Removing the add-ons.

To delete unwanted extensions from Mozilla Firefox, do the following:

1. Open Mozilla Firefox and click on the menu icon at the top right corner of the menu bar
2. Select Add-ons from options under the Extensions
3. Find duckduckgo from the list of extensions and remove it

You should remove/disable other unwanted extensions also to make sure not those extensions are causing duckduckgo to appear in your browser.

Option 2. Resetting Mozilla Firefox

If it is not working, you can rest reset Mozilla Firefox by following the steps below:

1. Click on the menu icon > click on the question mark
2. Choose the Troubleshooting Information option
3. Click on the Reset Firefox button.

Sometimes you have to repeat this or click the rest firefox button more than once to completely remove DuckDuckGo malware. So do it.

After this, you will never see DuckDuckGo in your Mozilla Firefox browser.

How to Remove DuckDuckGo from Microsoft Edge

If you are seeing DuckDuckGo as your default search engine in Microsoft Edge, you should check and clear browser cookies. If it's still there, you should remove any unwanted Edge extensions by following the simple steps below:

1. Click three horizontal dots at the top-right to open the Menu and click on Extensions
2. Select DuckDuckGo extension > click on the Gear icon
3. Now click on Uninstall at the bottom of the extension

You should uninstall other unwanted extensions also and make sure they are not making this happen.

How to Delete DuckDuckGo from Safari

It is the same as you do with Firefox or Edge browser, just follow the simple steps below to completely uninstall duckduckgo from Safari (iOS web browser):

1. Open Safari browser > click on Safari in the menu (from top left)
2. Proceed to select Preferences > Select Extensions and look for DuckDuckGo
3. Once found, click the Uninstall button and remove it

If things are working fine, you are good to go with it or you can simply reset your Safari browser and also try to remove recently installed extensions. Also, to find more exciting tutorials about technologies, check Thoughtsoncloud.

How to Remove DuckDuckGo from Chrome

When it comes to Google Chrome, removing DuckDuckGo is super easy, you can first go and check the three-dotted menu icon (at the top right corner) and click on the Settings option, now click on Extensions and remove any DuckDuckGo related extension. After this, you should follow the simple steps written right below:

1. Click on the Three-dotted menu from the upper right corner in Chrome
2. Click on the Settings option > click on Search engine
3. From the dropdown menu, select Google or Bing as your default search engine

That's all, now you will see your selected search engine as the default search engine on Chrome successfully removing duckduckgo from chrome.

How to Uninstall DuckDuckGo from Mac OS

If you own a Mac, you are using Mac OS on it and it's pretty different than Windows OS. Here's how to get rid of DuckDuckGo from Mac OS:

1. Open the menu bar, click on the Go button/option
2. From Applications, find DuckDuckGo
3. Once found, click and drag it to the Trash (or do right-click and click on Move to Trash)

If it's working fine now, it's great and if you are still having issues, you should delete all the relevant files by entering into Application Support > LaunchAgents > LaunchDaemons folders and then delete all duckduckgo-related files. This will help you to completely remove duckduckgo from your Mac.

How to Remove DuckDuckGo from Android

If the DuckDuckGo search engine is bothering you on your Android smartphone too, you can get rid of it just by uninstalling the DuckDuckGo app, and here's how:

1. Go to PlayStore and Search DuckDuckGo
2. There you will see DuckDuckGo as installed or with an option to Open the app
3. You will see an Uninstall button also, just click on it and uninstall it

That's it, you will now be able to set your own favorite default web browser in your favorite Android web browser like Opera Mini, Edge, Firefox, UC Browser, or whatever you use.

How to Remove DuckDuckGo from iOS

If you want to uninstall DuckDuckGo from your iPhone or any other iOS-running device Mac, MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. You can follow the same rule as you did for the Android:

1. Unlock your iPhone and search for the DuckDuckGo app
2. Tap and Hold on it, and click on the Cross icon
3. It will be uninstalled completely from your iOS device

Now you can go to Safari or your favorite iOS web browser and set your favorite web search engine as your default browser search engine. It will work like a champ.

So, this was all about how you can get rid of DuckDuckGo and use your favorite web search engine as you like but wait, there's still a hard-hitting question left for a quick answer and that is:

Can I be tracked if I use DuckDuckGo?

This is what I have been being asked for more than once on my personal email account and here's an accurate answer for you all:

No, as DuckDuckGo itself doesn't track you, but still it as a big YES!

Unlike many other search engines like Google and Bing, DuckDuckGo doesn't collect or share your personal information.

However,

• Websites you visit can still track you: Even if you use DuckDuckGo or any other privacy-focused search engine to find sites, the websites you visit after clicking on the results and going away from the search engines, these sites might still be able to track your activities using cookies or other methods.
• Your ISP can see your browsing history: Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) can usually see the websites you visit using Firewalls and other tactics and it includes those you may be visiting using the DuckDuckGo search engine.

So, always be cautious and don't entirely rely on DuckDuckGo, and it was actually why I wrote this article to help you get rid of this extra service that's not actually as helpful as they say.

We will keep this DuckDuckGo removing and uninstalling guide updated, so stay with us.