Browser comparison
DuckDuckGo vs Sill: two shapes of private browsing
This is the friendliest matchup on the list: both browsers are free, account-less, WebKit-based on the Mac, and privacy-first by conviction. DuckDuckGo protects a minimal browser everywhere you go; Sill builds a full living-in-it browser that never phones home. The choice is about shape, not values.
Full disclosure: this studio builds Sill. This is written as the comparison worth reading anyway — DuckDuckGo's genuine strengths included, its details drawn from its own public documentation.
The DuckDuckGo browser extends the search engine's promise into an app: tracker blocking on by default, automatic cookie pop-up handling, Duck Player for YouTube without personalized ads, a Fire Button that burns tabs and data in one tap, and end-to-end-encrypted sync without an account. It runs on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android, from an organization that's spent two decades on this one issue.
Sill agrees with essentially all of that philosophy and asks a different question: what would a browser you organize your whole day in look like, if it were built to the same standard? Its answer adds hibernating workspaces, glanceable favorites, Panel view and developer tools — while making zero network calls of its own.
The quick answer
Choose DuckDuckGo if…
- You want the same private browser on your phone and every desktop
- You want encrypted cross-device sync (no account needed)
- The Fire Button model — burn everything, often — matches how you browse
- You want Duck Player, email protection and the wider DuckDuckGo ecosystem
- You prefer a minimal browser from an established privacy organization
Choose Sill if…
- You live in the browser all day and want rooms, not a single window: hibernating workspaces, Panel view
- You want heads-up favorites — unread mail counts and meeting nudges, read locally
- You want built-in developer tools (API client, MCP explorer, Web Inspector)
- You want the strictest possible network posture: zero calls of the browser’s own
- You want persistent, organized sessions rather than the burn-it-down model
DuckDuckGo vs Sill: core features
| Feature | Sill | DuckDuckGo |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | WebKit (native macOS) | WebKit on macOS |
| Platforms | macOS 14+ (Apple Silicon & Intel) | macOS, Windows, iOS, Android |
| Price | Free (early access) | Free |
| Account required | No | No |
| Open source | Source on GitHub | Client apps largely open source |
| Workspaces | Yes — hibernating workspaces | No |
| Memory model | Whole workspaces hibernate and release their memory; favorites stay loaded | Fire Button wipes sessions; standard WebKit tab handling |
| Ad & tracker blocking | Built in — ad networks blocked natively; videos never autoplay | Yes — tracker blocking, cookie pop-up handling, Duck Player |
| AI features | None — routine detection is deterministic, local, and off by default | Duck.ai — optional, anonymized chats with third-party models |
| Browser's own network calls | Zero of its own — no telemetry, no analytics, no account | Designed to be minimal and anonymous, per its documentation |
| Developer tools | API client, MCP explorer, Web Inspector, JSON tree viewer | Minimal — not a developer-focused browser |
| Sync & mobile | None — single Mac, fully local | End-to-end-encrypted Sync & Backup (no account); mobile apps |
| Extensions | No extension store (blocking & dev tools are built in) | None on macOS |
Accurate to the best of our knowledge as of 13 July 2026; DuckDuckGo's details come from its public documentation.
Where DuckDuckGo shines
- Privacy with reach. The same protections on your iPhone, Android, Windows and Mac, with encrypted sync tying them together — no other browser in this comparison pairs this privacy posture with this platform coverage.
- Protection features Sill doesn’t have. Duck Player strips personalized YouTube ads, email protection hides your address, and cookie pop-ups get answered for you. These are shipped, polished, and on by default.
- The burn-it-down option. The Fire Button is a genuinely great pattern: end a session and erase it, everywhere, in one tap.
See it for yourself: visit DuckDuckGo’s official site ↗ (opens in a new tab).
Where Sill shines
- A browser to live in, not just pass through. DuckDuckGo is deliberately minimal; Sill is deliberately structured — workspaces that hibernate (and wake with scroll position intact), Panel view for side-by-side pages, favorites that behave like the Dock.
- Glanceability, done locally. Unread mail on the Gmail icon and a card before your next meeting, read from your own signed-in pages on your own Mac — private browsing that’s also useful browsing.
- Zero calls, full stop. DuckDuckGo’s services are engineered to be anonymous; Sill’s posture is that there are no services — no traffic of its own at all, which makes verification trivial.
- Tools for builders. An API client with environments and OpenAPI import, an MCP explorer, Web Inspector on every page. DuckDuckGo doesn’t aim at developers; Sill quietly does.
The privacy picture
Both browsers pass the tests that matter: no account required, tracker blocking built in, no selling of attention. The remaining differences are architectural. DuckDuckGo operates services (search, sync, Duck.ai) engineered to be anonymous — trust backed by documentation and reputation. Sill removes the question: zero network calls of its own, no services to trust, and its opt-in routine detection is deterministic, local, metadata-only, and never observes banking, health or government sites. If your threat model is "verify, don't trust," Sill is the easier browser to watch; if it's "protect me everywhere I go," DuckDuckGo covers devices Sill never will.
Verdict
Frequently asked questions
Are DuckDuckGo and Sill both actually private?
Yes, credibly, in different shapes. DuckDuckGo blocks trackers everywhere and engineers its services to be anonymous. Sill goes a step further on network posture — zero calls of its own, no services at all — but only exists on macOS.
Does either browser have AI?
DuckDuckGo offers Duck.ai, an optional feature for anonymized chats with third-party models. Sill has none at all — its routine detection is a deterministic local engine, not a model, and is off by default.
Does DuckDuckGo have workspaces or tab groups?
No — it keeps a deliberately simple tab model, with the Fire Button for wholesale cleanup. Workspaces with hibernation are the core of how Sill organizes browsing.
Which should I use on my phone?
DuckDuckGo — Sill has no mobile app. Plenty of people pair DuckDuckGo on the phone with Sill on the Mac; the philosophies are compatible.
Try it yourself:Sill is free early access for macOS 14+ — no account, nothing leaves your Mac.
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