DuckDuckGo sustainability score: 49/100
Leading practice starts at 60. The highest score on SINK is 71.
Limited independent evidence: only two independent sources cover this company. The score may change as more evidence appears.
DuckDuckGo is a privacy-focused search engine founded in 2008, headquartered in Paoli, Pennsylvania. The company syndicates search results from third-party infrastructure (primarily Bing/Microsoft), operates fully distributed with no owned offices, and serves millions of users seeking search without tracking.
More about DuckDuckGo
It competes with Google and other mainstream search engines on privacy rather than advertising reach.
Founded 2008Head office Paoli, United StatesStaff ~200-335Revenue ~$100M (estimate; aggregator, unverified)Website ↗
DuckDuckGo's environmental footprint is negligible by design—fully distributed, no owned infrastructure, minimal operational emissions under 1,000 tCO₂e annually. The company's 2021 carbon-negative claim rests entirely on offsets, not operational reduction. Post-2022 disclosure has stopped: no updated emissions data, no formal Scope 3 reporting, no governance structure, and no third-party verification.
DuckDuckGo scores 49/100 (Making progress) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Scores are free. Nobody can pay to change a score, speed it up or hide it. Last verified July 2026.
That places DuckDuckGo joint 179th of 1,023 companies scored, and 19th of 69 in SaaS / Digital Services.
Limited evidence. This score rests on 3 sources, 33% of them published by the company itself. Every source cited here passed the same quality checks as any other score: all live, none from data aggregators. There is simply less of it.
What is DuckDuckGo doing well, and where does it fall short?
Strongest on Controversies & Red Flags and Water Impact (8/10, 5/10). Weakest on Emissions Trajectory and Carbon Footprint: Operations (2/10, 3/10).
Where DuckDuckGo lost points
For each question that lost points, the evidence our public rubric looks for that we didn't find.
What would raise this score
- Whether its emissions are fallingShow its emissions are falling, even from energy bills or mileage.
- Emissions from its own operationsPublish emissions figures for its own operations, even an estimate from energy bills.
- Emissions from its supply chainAssess where its supply-chain emissions come from.
Every question that lost points
- Emissions from its own operations3/10No emissions figures for its own operations, not even an estimate from energy bills.
- Emissions from its supply chain3/10No assessment of where its supply-chain emissions come from.
- Whether its emissions are falling2/10No evidence its emissions are falling, not even from energy bills or mileage.
- How clean its energy is4/10Less than half its energy shown to be renewable, or no transition plan.
- Its effect on nature4/10Its effect on nature isn't measured or independently verified.
- How it uses materials and handles waste4/10No measurable waste or recycling targets reported publicly.
- Its effect on water5/10No measured water footprint with reduction targets.
- Its climate targets4/10Its targets aren't science-based or committed to the Science Based Targets initiative.
- How openly it reports3/10No published sustainability data, or no one named as responsible for it.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Anyone can send us new evidence, free. How to send it.
How is DuckDuckGo's SINK score calculated?
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × ScaleHas DuckDuckGo's score changed?
DuckDuckGo's score has been reviewed 2 times and currently stands where it started, at 49.
- 49 → 497 November 2026
Correction, 7 November 2026: removed an unsourced emissions figure. Score unchanged.
- Scored 497 November 2026
Limited-evidence banner: 2 independent parties once company-published sources are not counted (owner ruling 2026-11-07). Score unchanged.
What evidence is DuckDuckGo's score based on?
3 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
33% of them were published by DuckDuckGo itself; the rest come from independent sources.
This company's public sustainability disclosure is limited. This score is based on the 3 verified sources cited below, rather than padded to a standard count.
Limited data coverage. This assessment is based on 3 sources, 33% of which are self-reported by the company. Scores may change as independent evidence becomes available.
“our estimate for our 2019 emissions — including Scope 1, 2, 3, and Full Upstream/Downstream Activities — totaled 1,075T of CO2e”
“DuckDuckGo's 2019 carbon estimate reached 1,075T (that's tonnes, aka metrics tons) of CO2e”
“It's too bad that the only sustainability strategy DuckDuckGo discusses in this announcement is carbon offsets”
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How does DuckDuckGo compare with other saas / digital services companies?
Where DuckDuckGo sits among saas / digital services peers.
Among the 69 major saas / digital services brands we've scored, DuckDuckGo sits 19th of 69.
Who scores higher in SaaS / Digital Services?
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above DuckDuckGo.
LinkedIn operates within Microsoft's consolidated sustainability reporting, masking entity-specific performance.
See the breakdown →Snap reports comprehensive Scope 1 and 2 emissions data verified via GHG Protocol, but absolute Scope 3 emissions have ballooned 92% since 2019 while relying on intensity-based targets to mask the growth.
See the breakdown →Salesforce claims net-zero ambitions while quietly downgrading absolute Scope 3 targets to intensity metrics—a weakening move that undermines credibility.
See the breakdown →Which companies moved this week, and why.
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