~/tools/data-removal

Personal Data Removers

last updated 2026-08-02 · 3 recommendations · what changed

Data broker sites aggregate and resell your name, address, phone number, relatives, and property records to anyone who pays. Removal services automate the opt-out requests across hundreds of these brokers so you're not filing them by hand one at a time.

before you pick Manage expectations: these services reduce exposure, they don't guarantee permanent removal. Brokers re-scrape public records periodically, so a name removed today can resurface in a few months. That's also why this is a recurring subscription category rather than a one-time purchase: the underlying work is recurring, not the billing model being greedy.

what actually matters

breadth of broker coverage

The internet has hundreds of data brokers, and new ones appear constantly. More coverage means fewer gaps for old data to hide in.

automation vs. manual opt-outs

Some brokers accept automated requests; others require a human to fill out a form or mail a letter. A service that does both covers more ground.

recurring re-removal & monitoring

Removal isn't permanent. The service needs to keep checking and re-filing as brokers re-list you, not just run once at signup.

recommendations

EasyOptOuts

the recommended pick

paid

EasyOptOuts is this page's default recommendation, mostly on price: you get ongoing monitoring instead of a one-and-done sweep for a flat $19.99 a year, well under what the other two entries here cost. No flashy upsells, just the opt-out work done on a recurring basis. Coverage is narrower than Incogni's or DeleteMe's (around 100+ brokers against their broader lists), which is the real trade-off for the price.

good

Cheapest entry on this page by a wide margin: $19.99/year flat, no monthly option
Ongoing re-removal, not a single sweep
Simpler, less aggressively marketed than the big-name competitors

mind the

Narrowest broker coverage of the three (~100+ sites vs. Incogni's 420+)
Smaller company, less brand recognition than Incogni or DeleteMe
No free tier; it's subscription-only like the rest of this category
Re-removal happens on a cycle, not instantly: exposure can briefly reappear

$19.99/yr flat easyoptouts.com →

Incogni

the broad-coverage pick

paid

Incogni has one of the broadest broker lists in the category, a straightforward subscription, and a track record of actually following through on removal requests. Surfshark built it in-house, and Surfshark merged with Nord Security in 2022 under the holding company Cyberspace B.V., so Incogni now sits under the wider Nord umbrella alongside NordVPN: not a red flag on its own, but worth knowing if you'd rather not have your privacy tools concentrated under one roof.

good

Very broad broker coverage
Established track record and clear reporting on what's been removed
Family plans available for covering household members

mind the

A Surfshark product, now under the wider Nord group: same group runs a VPN you may also be evaluating
No free tier
Some brokers are handled faster than others; full coverage takes time

from ~$8/mo incogni.com →

DeleteMe

the established pick

paid

DeleteMe is the longest-running name in this category, and it adds a human-reviewed reports element on top of the automated sweeps: actual people check the broker listings instead of leaving it all to scripts. That human layer shows up in the price, which runs higher than the more automation-first competitors above.

good

Long track record and brand recognition
Human review adds a layer automated-only services skip
Detailed periodic reports on what was found and removed

mind the

Pricier than Incogni or EasyOptOuts for a comparable scope
No free tier
Human-in-the-loop steps can mean slower turnaround on some requests

from ~$10/mo joindeleteme.com →

at a glance

service	broker coverage	monitoring	human review	from
EasyOptOuts	broad	ongoing	automated	~$8/mo
Incogni	very broad	ongoing	automated	~$8/mo
DeleteMe	broad	ongoing	yes	~$10/mo

prices are ballpark rates, check the provider before you commit.

worth knowing

Google Data Removal is free and narrower in scope. Google's own "Results about you" tool lets you request removal of personal info (your address, phone number, and similar) from Google Search results specifically. It's not a broker-removal service and won't touch the underlying broker listing, only Google's index of it, but it's free and worth doing regardless of which paid service above you pick.

No removal service prevents new data from appearing. This whole category is an ongoing process, not a one-time fix; new brokers launch, old ones re-scrape public records, and a clean report today doesn't mean a clean report in six months. Budget for it as a subscription, not a purchase.