Qwant

Qwant is a French web search engine whose home page describes it as a search engine that values you as a user, not as a product. The vendor states three things up front: it does not sell personal data, it does not retain search data, and it is a French service hosted in Europe. Beyond plain web search, the product family includes Qwant Junior for children, a maps service that the vendor says finds addresses without tracking you, and Better Web, a section about digital topics.

On top of search sit optional AI features, a short Flash answer and an AI chat, which the vendor ties to partner data sharing that you can decline. The company earns money from advertising, and its advertising page says it has more than 6 million monthly users and its entire workforce in France. Those numbers are vendor figures and were not checked here.

• Search without history retention. The vendor says it keeps no search history and does not store or resell personal data by default. Features that need extra data sharing are optional, and the account sign-up explains what is shared and lets you refuse.
• Flash answer. A short answer generated from the results sits above the listings for everyday questions. The French about page presents it as free, usable without limit and without an account, while an older English page still describes an account requirement.
• AI chat. A conversational mode lets you continue a search by talking to an AI. The vendor describes it as a way to go deeper after the Flash answer, and says more features were planned for 2026.
• Qwant Junior. A separate search site for children, described by the vendor as a search engine that knows nothing about your children. It is a different address from the main engine, aimed at parents who want a child-focused page.
• Maps. A map service is listed on the home page as finding the right addresses and guiding you without tracking. It sits beside the search page as a separate product, with its own address.
• Apps and extensions. The about page links an Android app, an iOS app, a Safari extension, and extensions for Firefox, Chrome and Edge, so Qwant can be set as the default engine on common browsers.

• A privacy-minded individual. Someone who wants to stop leaving a search trail installs the browser extension, sets Qwant as default and uses it for everyday lookups, reading the sign-up notice only if they decide to try the optional AI features.
• A parent of a young child. A parent sets the browser homepage on the family tablet to Qwant Junior, so a child's school research runs through a search page built for children rather than the general engine.
• A marketer targeting French-speaking users. A brand advertiser studies the advertising page, which offers ads placed before the other results and a sponsored shortcut in the search bar, and contacts the sales team for formats and offers.

No account is needed for ordinary search: open the home page and type a query. To make Qwant your default, the vendor links extensions for Firefox, Chrome and Edge, a Safari extension for Apple devices, and mobile apps for iOS and Android. An account, created through the vendor's sign-up page, is where optional features and their data sharing are explained, and the vendor says you can refuse that sharing.

The search page has settings and cookie management reachable from the footer. There is nothing to import and no learning curve beyond the usual search box. Help articles exist on a separate help site, which returned an access block to automated requests during this review, so their content was not read.

Qwant is a French simplified joint-stock company that runs its own Qwantify crawler and fills gaps through partner interfaces, including Microsoft Bing, according to its French ranking notice. Ads are labelled and said not to influence ranking. AI answers and page summaries need an account, and personalised ads are offered at account creation, so the cleanest setup skips the account.

In our search engines ranking Qwant stands at #5 of 16: Startpage sits directly above it and Ecosia directly below. Established names take the places after the first three, in ranked order, and we give no numeric score.

By headquarters, 6 of the 16 are established in Europe, as Qwant is in France.

Charging model: Free, funded by labelled ads; an account is needed for AI features.

Qwant is free for searchers. The vendor's funding comes from advertising: its advertising page offers placement of ads before other results and a sponsored shortcut in the search bar, and invites advertisers to write for formats and offers. No advertiser price list is published on the pages read. No paid plan for end users is shown. The AI features are also described as free on the French about page, though an account may be needed depending on the page you read. Billing period, currency and volume terms for advertising are not stated on the vendor's pages.

Checked against qwant.com for Best Search Engines in 2026, review date 7 November 2026.

Qwant's own text is the strongest part of its case: the ranking notice says no commercial agreement affects relevance and that ads carry the word Annonce or Partenariat.

Setup needs no account, but the AI answers and Summary are unlocked only by one, and consent to personalised advertising is requested there.

The notice also says its coverage does not claim to be exhaustive.

Exit is easy, as the default engine can be switched in the browser.

The vendor states that Qwant is a French search engine hosted in Europe, that it does not retain search data and that it does not sell personal data. Optional advanced features need data sharing with partners, explained at account creation and refusable.

The full privacy policy and ranking notice returned an access block to automated requests, so details of retention, certifications and data export were not read. Certifications are not stated on the pages that could be read.

Integrations the vendor names (8):

• Firefox extension
• Chrome extension
• Microsoft Edge extension
• Safari extension for iOS
• Android app
• iOS app
• Qwant Junior
• Qwant Maps

Closest by traits, not by rank: 3 products from the same list that overlap most with Qwant.

• Startpage (#4 of 16): Not for: buyers who must know whose index ranks their results. Dutch-run private search with anonymous page viewing and sponsored links.
• Ecosia (#6 of 16): A good match for: Organisations and users who want ad-funded search with published financial reports.
• MetaGer (#13 of 16): A good match for: Users who want an open source, association-run engine with ad-free paid access. (Germany)

Read from the vendor’s own pages on 5 November 2026.

• qwant.com: privacy statements, product family, Junior and Maps descriptions
• about.qwant.com: French about page: Flash answer, AI chat, no account claim, data sharing for optional features
• about.qwant.com/en: English about page: AI Summary feature, extensions and app links
• about.qwant.com/en/qwant-advertising: advertising formats, 6 million monthly users claim, workforce in France
• qwantjunior.com: Junior positioning

We test for four things rather than for features: setup time, price in practice, exit and audience. That puts Qwant at #5 of 16. Method and commercial relationships are in our editorial process.