Description
Qwant is a French search engine that says it keeps no search history and shows ads without profiling users, and that is building a European search index with Ecosia; Qwant Junior is a version for children aged 6 to 12.
Since 2023 Qwant has belonged to Synfonium, a holding company owned 75 % by Octave and Miroslaw Klaba, the founders of OVHcloud, and 25 % by the French public bank Caisse des Dépôts, which was already Qwant’s main shareholder. In June 2025 Qwant and Ecosia commercially launched Staan, the European index of their joint venture European Search Perspective, which also powers Qwant’s AI summaries.
Its about page promises no storage of search history and no resale of data; some optional features need data to be shared with partners. Ads are shown as text ads, premium ads and sponsored shortcuts, with “no profiling” according to its advertising page, which also claims more than 6 million users a month. Qwant Junior blocks unsuitable content and keeps no history of children’s searches. Qwant is free and recently added an AI chat and short “flash” answers.
Strengths
- It promises not to store search history or build ad profiles, and its ads are based on the query rather than on the user.
- It is French and European-owned, with a public bank among its owners, and builds its own European index with Ecosia.
- Qwant Junior gives children aged 6 to 12 a filtered search that keeps no history.
Weaknesses
- It is financed by ads, and its claims about data are its own; the privacy policy and legal notice pages refused automated access when checked.
- Optional features share some data with partners, so the privacy promise depends on which features are used.
- The English and French versions of its about page give different years for upcoming features, which suggests the site isn’t kept fully up to date.
Who it is for
People in France and Europe who want a search engine that doesn’t keep their history, and parents looking for a filtered search for primary-school children.