Is DuckDuckGo Owned by Google? The Truth Behind the Duck.com Confusion

If you've heard the rumor that Google owns DuckDuckGo, you're not alone — and you're wrong. DuckDuckGo is fully independent. The confusion dates back to a domain name dispute that took nearly a decade to resolve.

DuckDuckGo Is Independently Owned

DuckDuckGo is a privately held company headquartered in Paoli, Pennsylvania, with about 335 employees . It has never been owned by Google or any other company . The search engine was founded in 2008 by Gabriel Weinberg and has remained independent since its founding.

In fact, DuckDuckGo and Google are direct competitors. During Google's search antitrust trial in 2023, DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg testified that Google's exclusive default search contracts harmed DuckDuckGo's ability to compete . A 2024 court filing in the US Department of Justice case against Google revealed that DuckDuckGo has been profitable since 2014 .

DuckDuckGo also runs its own search index and supplements results from Bing — not Google . It offers its own AI product, Duck.ai, which is free and doesn't require an account .

The Duck.com Domain Story

The persistent myth that Google owns DuckDuckGo almost entirely stems from one thing: the Duck.com domain name.

Google became the owner of Duck.com in 2010 when it acquired On2 Technologies, a company that was formerly known as The Duck Corporation . For years, typing "duck.com" into a browser would redirect to Google's homepage . This was frustrating for DuckDuckGo's users and leadership alike — it looked like Google was deliberately redirecting traffic away from its rival .

In reality, Google had no apparent intent to mislead users; it simply owned the domain as part of the On2 acquisition . In July 2018, Google added a link to DuckDuckGo on the Duck.com landing page . Then, in December 2018, Google transferred full ownership of Duck.com to DuckDuckGo . CEO Gabriel Weinberg confirmed the transfer, saying: "We're pleased Google has chosen to transfer ownership of Duck.com to DuckDuckGo" .

Since the transfer, Duck.com has redirected to DuckDuckGo's own homepage . The terms of the transfer were not disclosed .

DuckDuckGo Is Growing — As a Google Alternative

DuckDuckGo's independence is also apparent in its competitive trajectory. In 2026, DuckDuckGo installs rose 30% as users seek privacy-friendly alternatives to Google's increasingly AI-integrated search experience .

Bottom Line

DuckDuckGo is not owned by Google. It is an independent company that has actively competed against Google for years. The Duck.com domain confusion is a historical artifact, not evidence of ownership. If you want a private, independent search engine, DuckDuckGo remains exactly what it claims to be: a Google competitor, not a subsidiary.