Mar '24: It’s time to choose Ecosia!

In March this year, Google and Apple are rolling out a choice screen on their devices and browsers — a prompt to finally let people choose what they would like their default search engine or default browser to be, without needing to go into their settings to change it later. This is a huge opportunity for Ecosia, and for the planet: we could grow the Ecosia community and plant millions more trees. 

Background on the choice screen

For some time now, big tech players have preloaded their search engines on smartphones as a default rather than offering users a choice. Together with other alternative search engines like DuckDuckGo and Qwant, we campaigned to enable users to make an autonomous choice of which provider they wish to search with.

We succeeded when this practice was deemed an antitrust issue by the EU Commission, and thanks to the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), choice screens for browsers and search engines will now be introduced across Europe. This is a win for fair competition and a step forward for the freedom of European citizens to choose the search engine and browser that best aligns with their personal values, not simply settle for platforms which have been pre-set by companies. 

Why pick Ecosia?

We see the Choice Screen as a massive opportunity for our existing users to say yes again and for new users to join the movement of being climate-active every day, solely by searching the web.

We want to encourage everyone to make their choice in line with their values.

What Ecosia stands for:

• Ecosia puts people & planet first: We're a purpose-driven tech company and use 100% of our profits for climate action. You can see exactly what we spend in our financial reports, which we publish monthly.
• We're a world-leading tree-planting organization that plants and protects the right trees in the right places, over 200M so far!
• We're truly green: Our green search features help you spot sustainable results and the biggest polluters, we produce enough solar energy to power all our searches twice over, and we invest in initiatives that are tackling the climate and biodiversity crises.

With the urgency of the climate crisis, there has never been a more critical moment for people to take climate action. You can choose business as usual, or you can choose Ecosia. Let’s challenge the status quo and not settle for the default option!

FAQs

Will I see a choice screen?

In accordance with the Digital Markets Act, gatekeepers will have to provide users with a choice screen by 7 March 2024. We unfortunately do not have an exact timeline for when the choice screens will be rolled out to users but based on announcements from Google and Apple, most users on Chrome and Safari will be presented with the choice screen in early March. 

What does this choice screen look like?

Can I change my search engine afterwards?

Yes, you can always manually change your default search engine in your browser settings after the initial selection.