Long ago, I was a Google fanboy. I used many of their services (including Google+ and Google Wave, remember those?), was an earlier adopter of Android phones and even got the first pilot Chromebook. I interviewed for a job with them and gushed in my cover letter about how big of a fan I was. Now, I’ve come almost 180 degrees—let’s say 160 or so. I switched to iPhone years ago and have more recently begun a process to de-Google my life, starting with not using Chrome as my default browser or Google as my default search. I used this helpful article as a starting point for the rest of my journey. I signed up for Proton Mail (referral link, get first month of Plus free) and have started what will probably be a lengthy process to migrate away from gmail. I won’t completely drop Google as some things, like YouTube, are nearly impossible to replace. But I will use it much less.

Seems I’m not alone in my journey from promoter to detractor. From Ars Technica:

Google’s rapid rise from “scrappy search engine with doodles” to “dystopic mega-corporation” has been remarkable in many ways, especially when you consider just how much goodwill the company squandered so quickly. Along the way, though, Google has achieved one unexpected result: In a divided America, it offers just about everyone something to hate.

I embarked on my path with intention after the 2024 election. Since then I have hardened my resolve to de-Google when they announced that they were rolling back their DEI program and scraping their diverse hiring goals and that they would rename the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America in Google maps. These are craven acts of capitulation and complying in advance with the hateful Trump agenda.

Of course, as you can see, Google is not alone in genuflecting to our aspiring dictator-in-chief. Apple Maps has also renamed the Gulf of Mexico and this week announced they would resume advertising on X, only a few weeks after its owner gave not one but two Nazi salutes.

And thus we hit the crux of the matter. When it comes to mobile phones (the software, at least), we have a duopoly. Google and Apple control the market (Android and iOS have a combined 99%+ market share globally) and while alternatives do exist, they are not practical for the vast majority of customers. A similar duopoly exists in computers, just swapping Google for Microsoft, though the situation with alternatives is a bit better there.

For people who prefer to vote with their wallet, there is no good answer here. I don’t see an alternative to iOS or Android that is appealing to the masses coming any time soon. In my assessment, Apple is the lesser of two evils in the phone world. There are a few reasons for this:

• Apple is better with privacy. With Google, your data and eyeballs are the product. They make money by collecting your data and selling you ads.
• Apple has not, as of yet, abandoned their DEI initiatives and it is led by one of very few openly LGBTQ CEOs among major companies.
• While not perfect, Apple is better at user experience.

But the differences are not that stark, and Apple charges a premium, so I can’t fault anyone who chooses Google. I am also not just moving from Google to Apple in my de-Googlefication. I didn’t switch to Apple’s email service or (desktop) browser, for example. I’ll share more about my efforts in follow-up posts to help others who might want to reduce the Google in their lives.