These 12 apps and services can help you ditch Google completely (GOOGL, GOOG)

Sundar Pichai Google

Got beef with Google?

After news of the Google+ fiasco, we know at least some of you do. But it's hard to leave Google — for most, Google powers much of our daily, digital lives. Its tremendous array of useful apps and services makes it really easy to stay with Google forever.

Luckily, a list recently appeared on ProductHunt — called "No More Google" — that provides "privacy-friendly alternatives to Google products." It's solid advice on how to break free from Google's grip without being any less productive and knowledgeable.

Here are the top alternatives for some of the most popular Google products, inspired by the "No More Google" list.

For web browsing, move from Google Chrome to Mozilla Firefox.

Built by the tech non-profit — Mozilla — Firefox is “internet for people, not profit.” Firefox blocks online ad trackers, and Mozilla claims that it uses 30% less memory than Chrome. There’s also an easy way to move over your bookmarks, autofilled addresses, passwords, and preferences from Chrome to Firefox, if you’re looking to make the switch.

When it comes to search, check out DuckDuckGo.

DuckDuckGo bills itself as the “the search engine that doesn’t track you.” Where Google uses data it collects to create highly-targeted search results, DuckDuckGo collects no data on its users, allowing for an ad-free experience. The downside is that without that data, DuckDuckGo can't personalize its search results for you. The upside is that it means there's no kind of filter bubble; everybody searching for news or information gets the exact same results.

Break away from Gmail and give FastMail a go.

FastMail has hosted email for more than 15 years. Fans like FastMail for its speed and design, across phones and the web. Also, a switch to FastMail means Google's AI won't be reading through your past emails to finish your next sentence for you.

FastMail offers 30 days of mail hosting for free, but then costs between $3 and $9 per month.

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