Alternatives to GAFAM
A list of free software alternatives to Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft
Luckily, there are more and more free and open source software alternatives to GAFAM (Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, Microsoft) but it is not always easy to find them. This is why we prepared a list of these alternatives. On the left side of the table, you find GAFAM privacy-worrying options and on the right side, the suggested free software alternatives. If you want to know more about these GAFAM alternatives, click on the associated link. On our blog page you can find articles with further information about some of these alternatives. If you want to understand why it is important to quit GAFAM and regain control of your data, check this page.
We’ll try to keep this list updated. If you know more or better free software alternatives to GAFAM, please contact us.
Categories:
- Operating system and devices
- Web browsers
- Search engines
- Email services
- Email clients
- Instant messaging
- Social Networking and Microblogging
- Software distribution
- File hosting
- Maps and navigation
- Shared calendars
- Video conferences
- Send large files
- Collaborative writing
- Collaborative spreadsheets
- Collaborative presentations
- Online surveys
- Music
- Video sharing
- Accomodation
- Travel
- Blog hosting
- Newsletters
- Web analytics
- Source code repositories
Operating Systems and Devices
Desktop/laptop/server
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Windows |
 Mac iOS |
/
Mobile/tablet
| Dominant option |
|---|
| iPhone/iPad |
 Windows Phone |
 (Google) Android |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 LineageOS (“deGoogled” Android) |
 /e/OS (“deGoogled” Android) |
 GrapheneOS (“deGoogled” Android) |
 PinePhone (linux-based OS) |
 Purism Librem5 (linux-based OS) |
Web Browsers
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Chrome |
 Microsoft Edge |
 Safari |
 Opera |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Firefox |
 Tor Browser |
 Iridium |
Search Engines
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Search |
 Microsoft Bing |
 Yahoo Search |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 DuckDuckGo |
 Searx (list of Searx instances) |
 Disroot Searx (Searx instance) |
 MetaGer |
 Ecosia |
Email Services
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Gmail |
 Outlook |
 Yahoo mail |
 iCloud mail |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Tutanota |
 ProtonMail |
Email Clients
| Dominant option |
|---|
| Microsoft Outlook |
 Apple Mail |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Thunderbird + Enigmail |
 Roundcube |
 Rainloop |
 K-9 Mail (for Android mobiles) |
Instant Messaging
| Dominant option |
|---|
 WhatsApp |
 Facebook Messenger |
 SMS |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Signal |
 Element |
 Wire |
 Silence |
 Conversations |
Social Networking and Microblogging
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Facebook |
 Instagram |
 Twitter |
 LinkedIn |
Software Distribution
Mobile/tablet
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Play Store |
 App Store |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 F-Droid |
 Aurora Store (untracked mirror of Google Play Store) |
File Hosting
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Dropbox |
 Google Drive |
| iCloud Drive |
 OneDrive |
 Microsoft Teams |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 NextCloud (for self-hosting) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (partners) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (community) |
 Cozy |
 Seafile |
Maps and Navigation
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Maps |
 Apple Maps |
 Bing Maps |
 Via Michelin |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 OpenStreetMap |
 OsmAnd (navigator for mobile devices) |
Shared Calendars
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Calendar |
 iCalendar |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
| Tutanota calendar |
| Protonmail calendar |
| NextCloud (for self-hosting) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (partners) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (community) |
 DisrootCalendar (NextCloud instance) |
 FramAgenda (NextCloud instance) |
Video Conferences
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Skype |
 Google Hangout |
| Microsoft Teams |
 Zoom |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Jitsi meet (hosted) |
| Jitsi meet (for self-hosting) |
 BigBlueButton |
 Jami |
 Tox Chat |
Send Large Files
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Wetransfer |
 Dropsend |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Lufi (for self hosting) |
| Rezel (Lufi instance, up to 15GB) |
 Disroot uploader (Lufi instance, up to 2GB) |
 Ethibox uploader (Lufi instance, up to 2 GB) |
 DropInfini (Lufi instance, up to 1GB) |
 chApril (FirefoxSend instance, up to 1GB) |
Collaborative Writing
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Docs |
 Microsoft Office 365 |
 Zoho Office |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 FramaPad |
 Collabora Online (for self-hosting) |
| Collabora Online (hosting providers) |
 OnlyOffice |
 EtherPad (for self-hosting) |
Collaborative Spreadsheets
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Spreadsheets |
| Microsoft Office 365 |
| Zoho Office |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 FramaCalc |
| Collabora Online (for self-hosting) |
| Collabora Online (hosting providers) |
| OnlyOffice |
 EtherCalc (for self-hosting) |
Collaborative Presentations
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Slides |
| Microsoft Office 365 |
| Zoho Office |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
| Collabora Online (for self-hosting) |
| Collabora Online (hosting providers) |
| OnlyOffice |
Online Surveys
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Forms |
 Zoho Survey |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 FramaForms |
 LimeSurvey |
 Yakforms |
| NextCloud (for self-hosting) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (partners) |
| NextCloud hosting providers (community) |
Music
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Spotify |
 Google Play Music |
 Amazon Music |
 SoundCloud |
 Deezer |
Video Sharing
| Dominant option |
|---|
 YouTube |
 Vimeo |
 Dailymotion |
| Facebook videos |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 PeerTube |
 Engagemedia |
 Mediagoblin |
 Kaltura |
 CumulusClip |
Accommodation
| Dominant option |
|---|
 AirBnB |
 Booking |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 BeWelcome |
 Trustroots |
Travels
| Dominant option |
|---|
 LonelyPlanet |
 Guide du Routard |
| Voyage Michelin |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 WikiVoyage |
 CampToCamp |
Blog hosting
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Blogger |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 WordPress (hosted; wordpress.com) |
| WordPress (for self-hosting; wordpress.org) |
Newsletters
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Mailchimp |
 AWeber |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 PHPList (hosted; phplist.com) |
| PHPList (for self-hosting; phplist.org) |
Web Analytics
| Dominant option |
|---|
 Google Analytics |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Matomo |
 Open Web Analytics |
Source Code Repositories (distributed revision control)
| Dominant option |
|---|
 GitHub |
 SourceForge |
 Google Code |
| Privacy-friendly alternative |
|---|
 Gitlab |