What to know
- DuckDuckGo’s existing $9.99/month (or $99/year) subscription now includes access to the newest AI models via Duck.ai.
- Free Duck.ai users still get access to earlier models like Claude 3.5 Haiku and GPT-4o mini.
- Subscribers gain access to GPT-4o, GPT-5, Claude Sonnet 4, and Llama Maverick—privacy-protected and deeper in context.
- The bundle also continues to include VPN, personal information removal, and identity theft restoration.
A subtle but meaningful upgrade just arrived to DuckDuckGo. The Privacy Pro (or "Subscription") plan for DuckDuckGo now serves up some of the most advanced AI models available—all while maintaining the brand’s signature privacy standards. Here's everything you need to know about it.
What’s new with AI models in Duck.ai subscription
Free-tier Duck.ai users still have access to models like:
- Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Haiku
- Meta’s Llama 4 Scout
- Mistral AI’s Mistral Small 3 24B
- OpenAI’s GPT-4o mini
Subscribing at $9.99/month (or $99/year) unlocks significantly more powerful models:
- OpenAI’s GPT-4o and GPT-5
- Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 4
- Meta’s Llama Maverick
These models shine with improved handling of detailed instructions, stronger long-conversation context retention, and richer, more nuanced responses. What’s notable is that there’s no extra AI-access fee—just one combined cost.
Privacy and bundling benefits
The subscription remains priced at $9.99/month or $99/year, unchanged with the update. Here’s what gets included:
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| VPN | Secures up to five devices, hiding IP/location across your activity |
| Personal information removal | Helps scrub your details from people-search directories (U.S. only) |
| Identity theft restoration | Assistance through DuckDuckGo’s “Iris” service if identity theft occurs |
| AI model access | Now includes top-tier models without additional fees |
The plan continues to support standard free-tier Duck.ai usage—no changes there. And if AI isn’t wanted, it’s fully optional and can be hidden in settings.
Regional availability and limits
The subscription is available in the U.S., Canada, the EU, and the UK. However, some perks—like personal information removal—are currently limited to U.S.-based users. DuckDuckGo hasn’t yet outlined usage limits for the AI models or whether there’s a cap on prompts or sessions.
What makes this move meaningful
- Privacy-driven multi-model access: Instead of subscribing separately to ChatGPT or Claude, users get multiple leading AIs through a single, privacy-focused interface.
- Value-packed: For about half the price of a direct ChatGPT or Claude subscription, you get broader AI access bundled with VPN and identity tools.
- Room to grow: DuckDuckGo plans to introduce higher-tier subscriptions offering even more advanced models down the road.
Don’t expect features like memory, voice interaction, or image generation yet—those still aren't available within Duck.ai. DuckDuckGo continues to evolve its AI integration, and optional features remain user-controlled. DuckAssist in search and local chat storage via Recent Chats show the company’s broader privacy-centered AI roadmap.
This latest change marks a critical moment for users who value both powerful AI and strict privacy. DuckDuckGo now bridges that gap elegantly. By delivering top-tier models like GPT-5 and Claude Sonnet 4 within a trusted, all-in-one subscription, the service becomes compelling for creators, researchers, and curious minds seeking privacy-respecting intelligence. Expect more expanding tiers—and deeper AI offerings—on the horizon as DuckDuckGo builds its privacy-tech ecosystem.
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