Software recommendations for privacy conscious people
Moving away from BigTech is not an easy task. However, in these days, there are plenty polished alternatives out there. Over the years I tried out many different services and software. I will present what worked best for me here.
An encompassing resource I am recommending is PrivacyGuides . However, their recommendations are at times rather purist. Everyone should use whatever works best for them. Privacy is not a black-and-white game. Every bit of big-tech helps to minimize your digital footprint and puts you into a position to decide what people find about you online.
Utilities
| Name | Description | Cost | Selfhostable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bitwarden | Password manager | free | ✅ |
| SimpleLogin | Email aliases | free for students | ✅ |
| Mailbox.org | Email hosting | 1 € / m | ❌ |
| Element | Instant messenging | free | ✅ |
| OpenStreetMap | Global map | free | ❌ |
| Baïkal | Lightweight calendar synchronisation | free | ✅ |
| Filebrowser | Lightweight file organisation in the browser | free | ✅ |
| xBrowserSync | Bookmark sync | free | ✅ |
PC Software
| Name | Description | Cost | Selfhostable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ungoogled Chromium | Browser | free | - |
| KDE Software Suite | Desktop environment | free | - |
| i3wm | Desktop environment | free | - |
| VSCodium | No telemetry VSCode | free | - |
| Xournal++ | PDF annotation and creation | free | - |
| Istilldontcareaboutcookies | No more nasty cookie banners | free | - |
Android Apps
| Name | Description | Cost | Selfhostable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora Store | Anonymized access to the PlayStore | free | - |
| Aurora Droid | Front-end for F-Droid | free | - |
| Infinity | Reddit client | free | - |
| Aegis | 2FA Manager | free | - |
| FindMyDevice | Remote phone control | free | ✅ |
| AdAway | Adblocking with hosts file | free | - |
| OsmAnd+ | Global map | free | ❌ |
| StreetComplete | Improve OpenStreetMap | free | - |
| NewPipe | Youtube client | free | - |
| Finamp | Music client for Jellyfin | free | - |
| K-9 Mail | Mail client with PGP | free | - |
| Ice Box | Freeze Magisk to make certain banking apps cough DKB run | free | - |
| Element | Instant messenging | free | ✅ |