Introduction

Every search you make is being tracked.

Google records everything: your queries, click patterns, time spent, location. DuckDuckGo claims privacy, but its results still depend on third-party engines. When you need truly no-leak search, the only option is — host your own search engine.

SearXNG exists for exactly this purpose. It’s an open-source, self-hosted metasearch engine that aggregates results from 70+ major search engines, doesn’t record user data or store search history, supports one-click Docker deployment, and gets you running in 15 minutes.

What is SearXNG?

SearXNG is the community continuation of the original SearX project (now discontinued). Key features:

• 🔍 70+ search engine aggregation: Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Baidu, Wikipedia, GitHub, and more
• 🔒 Zero tracking: No IP logging, no search history, no user profiling
• 🌐 Multilingual support: Friendly Chinese interface, supports multi-language search
• 📱 Responsive design: Works on mobile, tablet, and desktop
• 🛡️ Anti-tracking protection: Automatically obfuscates request headers to avoid search engine blocks
• 🔧 Highly customizable: Plugin system, result sorting, engine preference configuration
• 🐳 One-click Docker deployment: Up and running in 5 minutes

1. Quick Docker Deployment

SearXNG’s official recommendation is Docker deployment — the simplest approach:

Basic Deployment

docker run -d \
  --name searxng \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -v /data/searxng:/etc/searxng \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  searxng/searxng:latest

After deployment, visit http://your-vps-ip:8080 in your browser.

Docker Compose (Production-Ready)

# docker-compose.yml
version: '3.8'

services:
  searxng:
    image: searxng/searxng:latest
    container_name: searxng
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    volumes:
      - ./searxng-settings:/etc/searxng
    environment:
      - SEARXNG_BASE_URL=http://localhost:8080/
      - TZ=Asia/Shanghai
    restart: unless-stopped
    mem_limit: 512m
    cpus: 1.0

mkdir -p ./searxng
docker compose up -d

2. Reverse Proxy + HTTPS

Exposing SearXNG to the public internet requires HTTPS. Caddy (auto TLS) or Nginx is recommended.

Caddy Configuration (Simplest)

search.yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy localhost:8080
}

One line does it all — Caddy auto-renews Let’s Encrypt certificates.

Nginx Configuration

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name search.yourdomain.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/yourdomain.com/privkey.pem;

    # Security headers
    add_header X-Content-Type-Options nosniff;
    add_header X-Frame-Options SAMEORIGIN;
    add_header Referrer-Policy no-referrer;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8080;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_buffering off;
        proxy_request_buffering off;
    }
}

3. Core Configuration

SearXNG’s config file lives at /etc/searxng/settings.yml, mounted via Docker volume.

1. Basic Settings

# settings.yml
general:
  instance_name: "My Private Search"
  contact_url: false
  debug: false

search:
  safe_search: 0        # 0=off, 1=moderate, 2=strict
  autocomplete: "google"
  default_lang: "auto"
  formats:
    - html
    - json

server:
  port: 8080
  bind_address: "0.0.0.0"
  secret_key: "your-random-secret-key-here"  # Replace with a random string
  limiter: false
  image_proxy: true   # Proxy images to protect privacy

2. Search Engine Preferences

engines:
  - name: google
    disabled: false
    weight: 3

  - name: bing
    disabled: false
    weight: 2

  - name: baidu
    disabled: false
    weight: 1

  - name: duckduckgo
    disabled: false
    weight: 2

  - name: wikipedia
    disabled: false
    weight: 1

  # Disable engines you don't need
  - name: amazon
    disabled: true

3. Enable JSON API (for integrations)

SearXNG provides a RESTful JSON API that can be consumed by other applications:

# Test search
curl -s "https://search.yourdomain.com/search?q=VPS+recommendation&format=json" | jq .

4. Configure Plugins

SearXNG supports a rich plugin system. Useful plugins:

plugins:
  - plugin_name: 'Hostnames plugin'
  - plugin_name: 'Tracker URL remover'    # Strip tracking params from result URLs
  - plugin_name: 'Tor check plugin'
  - plugin_name: 'Self Open Results'
  - plugin_name: 'Ahmia blacklist'        # Dark web blacklist filtering

The Tracker URL remover plugin is essential — it automatically strips UTM parameters and tracking IDs from result links, preventing target sites from tracking your referral.

4. Advanced Features

1. Search Categories

SearXNG supports multiple search categories with quick-access UI:

2. Sorting and Filtering

After each search you can:

• Sort by relevance or date
• Switch language and region (e.g., zh-CN, en-US)
• Enable Safe Search to filter inappropriate content
• Adjust results per page (default: 30)

3. Set as Browser Default Search Engine

Chrome/Edge: Install the “Search by SearXNG” extension, then set it as default in browser settings.

Firefox: Settings → Search → Search Engines → Add SearXNG custom engine:

URL: https://search.yourdomain.com/search?q=%s

4. RSS Feed for Search Results

SearXNG supports RSS output — subscribe to search results in your feed reader:

https://search.yourdomain.com/search?q=keyword&format=rss

5. SearXNG vs Other Search Solutions

Verdict: If you want absolute search privacy without relying on any third party, SearXNG is the only correct choice. A self-hosted instance means your search behavior belongs solely to you.

6. Security Hardening & Best Practices

1. Access Restriction

If only for home/team use, add authentication:

auth_basic "Private Search";
auth_basic_user_file /etc/nginx/.htpasswd;

2. Performance Optimization

• Set results_limit: 50 to cap max results per query
• Enable cache_limit: 1 day to cache search results and reduce redundant requests
• Reduce enabled engines for faster response times

3. Automated Container Updates

# Add to crontab, update weekly
0 3 * * 0 docker pull searxng/searxng:latest && docker restart searxng

4. Backup Configuration

tar czf searxng-config-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz ./searxng/

7. Alternative Tools

If SearXNG isn’t your style, these alternatives are worth exploring:

Whoogle is notably lighter (single binary file), ideal for very resource-constrained VPS instances.

Summary

SearXNG is one of the most worthwhile privacy tools to deploy on a VPS:

• Minimal deployment: One Docker command, running in 15 minutes
• Powerful search: Aggregates 70+ engines, results rival Google
• Total privacy: Zero tracking, zero logging, zero profiling
• Free & open-source: MIT license, fully autonomous

In an era where data is currency, owning your own search engine is the most basic act of digital self-defense.

Related: Cloudflare Tunnel: Zero-Config Intranet Access Guide | VPS Security Hardening: 2026 Production Configuration Manual