How to host SearXNG (private metasearch engine) anonymously (2026)

TL;DR

SearXNG is a privacy-respecting metasearch engine — your queries hit it instead of Google/Bing/DDG, and it federates the searches without tracking you. Sizing: minimal (~200 MB RAM). Best for: a first self-hosted project on the cheapest available VPS.

• Best providers: AlexHost ($4/mo), HostHatch ($2/mo annual prepay), BuyVM ($2/mo).
• Install: Docker; 5 minutes to running.

Why self-host search

Private search alternatives (DuckDuckGo, Brave Search, Kagi, Startpage) are all third-party services. They’re better than Google but they still see your queries. Self-hosting SearXNG means:

• Your queries stay on your server.
• Aggregates results from many engines — better signal than any single source.
• No tracking, no profiling, no ads.
• Custom engine selection: include / exclude any of 100+ supported sources.

Step-by-step

1. Provision

Cheapest available VPS works. AlexHost Moldova ($4/mo), HostHatch Iceland ($2/mo annual), or BuyVM Slice 1024 ($2/mo) all suffice.

2. Install via Docker Compose

services:
  searxng:
    image: searxng/searxng:latest
    restart: always
    ports:
      - 127.0.0.1:8080:8080
    volumes:
      - ./searxng:/etc/searxng
    environment:
      - SEARXNG_BASE_URL=https://search.yourdomain.com/

  caddy:
    image: caddy:latest
    restart: always
    ports:
      - 80:80
      - 443:443
    volumes:
      - ./Caddyfile:/etc/caddy/Caddyfile
      - ./caddy_data:/data

Caddyfile:

search.yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy localhost:8080
}

3. Configure

Edit searxng/settings.yml:

server:
  secret_key: "GENERATE-A-RANDOM-STRING"
  bind_address: "0.0.0.0"
  port: 8080

search:
  safe_search: 0
  autocomplete: ""

ui:
  static_use_hash: true

Restart: docker compose restart.

4. Use as your default search

• Browser: Settings → Search engines → Add → URL https://search.yourdomain.com/?q=%s. Set as default.
• Firefox: also supports OpenSearch — SearXNG advertises it; you can install via the address bar’s “Add” button.
• Mobile: Firefox Mobile / Brave Mobile both support custom search engines.

Hardening

• Disable engines you don’t trust: in settings.yml, set disabled: true on any engine.
• Bot prevention: enable the limiter to prevent your instance from being used as a free Google proxy by others.
• Redis cache: optional; speeds up suggestions and result caching.
• Onion service: serve via Tor onion alongside clearnet for max privacy.

Cost

For comparison, Kagi (commercial private search) is $10/month for 300 searches. Self-hosted SearXNG is unlimited.

Related

• Buying an anonymous VPS with Monero
• BuyVM full review