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You.com alternatives: 4 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Oct 25, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rank

Common reasons people leave You.com: no longer aimed at everyday consumer searching, and costs scale with call volume. We ranked 4 alternatives by how directly each one replaces You.com, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. Exa currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1Exa logoExaFree plan + paidNoWeb3 of 366.5
2Brave Search logoBrave SearchFree plan + paidNoWeb, iOS, Android4 of 462.6
3Perplexity logoPerplexityFree plan + paidNoWeb, Windows, macOS +23 of 359.6
4Mojeek logoMojeekFreeNoWeb4 of 457.2
  1. Exa logo

    1. ExaTop pick

    Best for: Teams building AI agents that need semantic web search and page contents

    Free plan + paidWeb

    66.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from You.com

    A search engine built for AI, with its own neural index and free monthly credit.

    Pros

    • Meaning-based search suited to AI and research queries
    • Free monthly credit with no card required
    • MCP server and integrations with AI tools

    Cons

    • Not a consumer search engine
    • Usage costs add up for high-volume agents
    • Semantic results can miss exact-keyword matches
    Visit Exa Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Exa a good You.com alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    Free plan
    $10 credit per month
    Checked Oct 25, 2026exa.ai(opens source in a new tab)
    Card required
    No
    Checked Oct 25, 2026exa.ai(opens source in a new tab)
    MCP server
    Included
    Checked Oct 25, 2026exa.ai(opens source in a new tab)
  2. Perplexity logo

    3. Perplexity

    Best for: Researching questions where you want a sourced summary instead of a list of links

    Free plan + paidWeb, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

    59.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from You.com

    If you want a finished consumer answer engine rather than APIs.

    Pros

    • Answers cite their sources inline
    • Real-time web search with follow-up questions
    • Choice of leading AI models on paid plans

    Cons

    • Summaries can misread or over-generalise sources
    • Weak for navigational, shopping and local searches
    • Best features sit behind a subscription
    Visit Perplexity Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.377
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Perplexity a good You.com alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    How it works
    Real-time web search, summarised with citations
    Checked Oct 25, 2026perplexity.ai(opens source in a new tab)
    Enterprise security
    SOC 2 Type II
    Checked Oct 25, 2026perplexity.ai(opens source in a new tab)
    Enterprise customers
    50,000+ organizations
    Checked Oct 25, 2026perplexity.ai(opens source in a new tab)
  3. Mojeek logo

    4. Mojeek

    Best for: People who want genuinely independent results and a different view of the web

    FreeWeb

    57.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from You.com

    Independent web search API with simple per-request pricing.

    Pros

    • Own crawler and index, not a Bing or Google reseller
    • No tracking and no personalised results
    • Web Search API available for developers

    Cons

    • Smaller index means thinner results on niche topics
    • Few rich features such as maps or shopping
    • Weak on very recent news
    Visit Mojeek Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.369
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Mojeek a good You.com alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Index size
    Over 9 billion pages
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mojeek.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Tracking
    None
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mojeek.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Hosting
    UK green data centre
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mojeek.com(opens source in a new tab)
    API price
    From £2 per 1,000 requests
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mojeek.com(opens source in a new tab)

The best You.com alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

Exa logo

Best You.com alternative for most people

Exa

A search engine built for AI, with its own neural index and free monthly credit.

Mojeek logo

Best You.com alternative for a free option

Mojeek

Independent web search API with simple per-request pricing.

Brave Search logo

Best You.com alternative for a free plan you can upgrade

Brave Search

Brave's Search API answers from its own independent index with monthly free credit.

Perplexity logo

Best You.com alternative for Mac

Perplexity

If you want a finished consumer answer engine rather than APIs.

Perplexity logo

Best You.com alternative for Windows

Perplexity

If you want a finished consumer answer engine rather than APIs.

Brave Search logo

Best You.com alternative for iPhone and Android

Brave Search

Brave's Search API answers from its own independent index with monthly free credit.

Exa logo

Best You.com alternative for working in the browser

Exa

A search engine built for AI, with its own neural index and free monthly credit.

You.com alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to You.com?

Exa ranks first right now. A search engine built for AI, with its own neural index and free monthly credit. Brave Search and Perplexity follow it in our ranking.

Is there a free alternative to You.com?

Yes. Exa (free plan + paid), Brave Search (free plan + paid), Perplexity (free plan + paid) and Mojeek (free) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to You.com?

None of the 4 alternatives in this list is open source.

Why do people switch from You.com?

The complaints we hear most: no longer aimed at everyday consumer searching; costs scale with call volume; research API calls are slower than plain search.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces You.com, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.