Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

DuckDuckGo vs Swerve

DuckDuckGo 4.8★ · Free to download 75
Winner DuckDuckGo
Swerve 4.7★ · Free + IAP 40

DuckDuckGo is the better choice for users prioritizing privacy and a traditional search experience, while Swerve is a niche AI chatbot app struggling with core functionality.

Full reviews: DuckDuckGo · Swerve

DuckDuckGo excels as a privacy-focused browser and search engine, though recent updates have introduced performance issues and unwanted AI features for some users. Swerve, an AI chatbot app, is plagued by bots giving instructions, breaking character, and various technical glitches.

Head to head

Privacy & Security edge: DuckDuckGoR4R8R25R29
DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo is highly praised for its privacy features, with users appreciating its ability to block tracking and keep searches secure R8R29. However, some recent reviews express concern that the track blocking has stopped working well R4 and one user even claims DuckDuckGo is Microsoft and tracks users R25.
Swerve Swerve is an AI chatbot app and privacy is not a primary feature or concern mentioned in its user reviews.
Search Engine & AI Features edge: DuckDuckGoR4R9R14R16
DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo's search engine is generally seen as clear and concise , with many users appreciating the option to avoid or turn off AI features R14. However, some users find the search results limited R4 and recent updates have forced AI use or made it difficult to disable R9R16. AI answers are also criticized for being bad or giving wrong information R4.
Swerve Swerve is an AI chatbot app, and its core functionality is interacting with AI characters. Users frequently report issues with bots giving instructions or coding prompts instead of character responses R61R62R66. Bots also frequently break character and some users find the memory to be bad R62.
Performance & Reliability tieR3R6R7R12
DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo users report significant performance issues, including slow loading times R3R19R39, crashing , and apps not adhering to settings R12. Some users also experienced all tabs being erased after an update R6. The app is also noted to drain battery and have issues with VPN connections R7.
Swerve Swerve users face reliability problems such as bots not responding , messages not delivering , the app not working , and blank messages . Some users also report cut-off responses and issues with logging in or loading chats .
User Interface & Experience edge: DuckDuckGoR2R9R10R15
DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo generally offers a straightforward experience R2, but recent updates have introduced unskippable tutorials R9, annoying pop-ups R10, and irritating animations . Users also report issues with navigation, such as disappearing bottom navigation , inaccessible search bars , and missing advanced settings R15. The Duck Player for YouTube has issues with closed captions and full-screen viewing R23.
Swerve Swerve users find the app good overall , with some praising its character variety and memory . However, the frequent issue of bots giving instructions R61R62R66 significantly detracts from the user experience. Some users also note a lack of character variety compared to other apps .
Price & Value edge: DuckDuckGoR23R38R64R65
DuckDuckGo DuckDuckGo is free to download and use, and users appreciate features like ad blocking on YouTube R23R38.
Swerve Swerve is free with in-app purchases (IAP). Users complain about frequent ads R64R65 and having to watch ads for gems to continue chatting R65. Some perceive it as a greedy app that wants users to pay to chat and find the pro plan expensive .
Pick DuckDuckGo if

you prioritize privacy and an ad-free browsing experience, and prefer a traditional search engine over AI-driven results R8R14.

Pick Swerve if

you are looking for an AI chatbot alternative to Character.ai and are willing to tolerate frequent ads and significant bugs with bot responses .

Evidence note: Swerve's reviews are heavily skewed towards negative recent experiences, primarily focusing on a single, major bug where AI bots output instructions rather than character responses. DuckDuckGo has a broader range of feedback, though recent updates have also introduced new frustrations.

Frequently asked

Does DuckDuckGo block ads effectively?
DuckDuckGo generally blocks ads, including YouTube ads, which users appreciate R23R38, but some users report that the ad blocker can be arbitrary and some sites still manage to pull up other apps R21.
What are the main issues with Swerve's AI bots?
Swerve's AI bots frequently break character and output instructions or coding prompts meant for the AI itself, rather than engaging in the conversation R61R62R66R73.
Is DuckDuckGo slow?
Many DuckDuckGo users report that the app has become very slow to load pages, especially after recent updates R3R19R39.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R4] DuckDuckGo 2/5 · US Not great: I originally started using this to stop the tracking. Search engine itself brings up limited results. I usually have to use a different search option to get more results for what am looking for. AI answers are very bad. It basically either sums up the first result from the search or just gives wrong information. The track blocking has also seemed to stop working well. I will do a s
  2. [R8] DuckDuckGo 5/5 · US Privacy: Keeps me secure and private with out being traced other then for safety concerns
  3. [R25] DuckDuckGo 1/5 · US DuckDuckgo IS MICROSOFT!!!!: Duckduckgo search results are already horrible, Because its Microsoft. It’s worse now, to get you to click Search Assist; THAT CANNOT BE TURNED OFF. Its always been bad, this is terrible. Stop believing this BS Duckduckgo is the worst at protecting your privacy. Microsoft Tracks you on DuckDuckGo. Stop trusting garbage
  4. [R29] DuckDuckGo 5/5 · US Web: Security
  5. [R9] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Unskippable tutorial needs to go: The unskippable tutorials and forced AI use should be removed with prejudice.
  6. [R14] DuckDuckGo 5/5 · US Love this because I’m not forced to use AI !!!: Found this browser and never looked back
  7. [R16] DuckDuckGo 1/5 · US You lied: Remove more ai I want it long gone.
  8. [R3] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Needs more work: I love duck duck and have referred it to many of my friends but when I started having problems I decided to try an update. Wish I never had! I have updated twice now. It is very slow to load if it does at all. Please fix duck duck I don’t want to use google😔
  9. [R6] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Wtf: Your last update erased all my tabs!!!! Priceless info I needed!!!
  10. [R7] DuckDuckGo 2/5 · US Duck Player with VPN Issue: Duck Player never work for YouTube through a VPN connection!
  11. [R12] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Disappointed in latest update: I just updated this app and it is not adhering to the settings I have in place for this app. I have searching set to not keep past results or search bookmarks, but that is exactly what it is doing. It is ignoring my settings. I wonder what other settings it is ignoring. Fix the app. Why have settings if you are going to ignore them?
  12. [R2] DuckDuckGo 5/5 · US Amazing Service and Communication: From start to finish they have been amazing! They make everything do easy from scheduling evaluations at your house to drop off. Highly recommend!
  13. [R10] DuckDuckGo 1/5 · US “Blocks pops” and replaces them with its own.: This app is incredibly difficult to use because it’s constantly displaying pop ups to tell you about how it’s blocking pop ups.
  14. [R15] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Advanced Options missing in Settings: I need to turn off hardware acceleration in the browser to be able to stream videos on my Mac. This current version is missing the Advanced settings ton do that. How do I turn off hardware acceleration now? I have to go back to chrome if I can’t turn that off.
  15. [R23] DuckDuckGo 4/5 · US Love it: You guys are awesome for adding no ads on YouTube! The only issue is when selecting “turn on duck player” and it goes to the small screen, I have CC selected, and when I make the view large, the CC isn’t showing, and the enlarged view isn’t large at all on my iPad.
  16. [R38] DuckDuckGo 5/5 · US Almost Perfect!: I know this isn’t a novel concept, but i’m so delighted that the youtube ads get filtered out. It’s almost baffling to me how nice the browser is without being scummy, cogsuckjng, or underhanded. I think my only request would be for videos to be able to play in PnP (picture in picture). I multitask a lot and if my videos were running on screen WHILE using the app, this app would
  17. [R64] Swerve 2/5 · US Adds: The app was really good at first but now I have to watch an add every time I send a message, it’s horrible, don’t get this app
  18. [R65] Swerve 4/5 · US Good: It’s a awesome game but lately every time I send one text it makes me wach a add for more gems and it’s gotten really annoying
  19. [R21] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US It has it’s limitations: Ad blocker is arbitrary; some sites have managed to pull up my app store app, or YouTube. Some sites have difficulty playing videos (both embedded and alternate viewer).
  20. [R61] Swerve 2/5 · US Bots are horrible!: The characters and writing is amazing until you get further into the story and the bot starts saying its own prompt or trying to correct my writing like I’m a bot it says stuff like “write between 80-150 comply.” Or when it says its own prompt “go with the scene include details and avoid gptisim start response now.” It’s weird and ruins the mood please fix this!!
  21. [R62] Swerve 4/5 · US Soooo: It’s sooo good, I really enjoying it, the memory is kinda good. But one point: pls stop giving random instructions in the middle of the chat, it’s really pissing me off 😭🙏🏻.
  22. [R66] Swerve 3/5 · US Enjoyable: The app is really fun, but any time you try to talk with a character, they give you prompts the AI is supposed to follow.
  23. [R73] Swerve 2/5 · US Mistakes: The Ai sometimes keeps demanding how by reply’s should be when they reply. Saying stuff like “paragraph must not be over 20 words long, no dashes, no parentheses etc.” I find this really annoying since it keeps happening 75% I swipe for a new reply. I don’t know if this is a bug or something but it needs to be fixed as it is incredibly annoying and frustrating.
  24. [R19] DuckDuckGo 2/5 · US Really really: Slow for me
  25. [R39] DuckDuckGo 3/5 · US Privacy is solid but speed sooo slow: I’m satisfied with the privacy and searches although search results vary from big search engines like google and bing yet I’m olay with is. Major issue is the speed. It takes way too long to process a page that takes like 1-2 sec in edge and chrome.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store