The data removal industry has consolidated around three serious mainstream options. DeleteMe is the oldest, Incogni is the most marketed, and Optery is the most transparent. We covered DeleteMe versus Incogni in a separate piece. This is the comparison that adds Optery to the mix and looks at the question that matters most to actual buyers. Which one removes the most of you from the actual people-search sites that show up when someone Googles your name.
The companies, in brief
DeleteMe (operated by Abine, Inc.) has been doing this longest, since around 2010. The company is US-based, with a long track record. The product is the most established and the interface looks like it has been around for over a decade because it has.
Incogni was launched in 2022 by Surfshark, which is now part of Nord Security. The product is newer, the interface is more polished, the marketing is more aggressive. The company sits inside the larger Nord Security family, which means corporate alignment with another VPN brand consolidation.
Optery was founded in 2020 and is independently operated. The company has positioned itself as the transparency option in the category, with a public list of which brokers they cover and which are automated versus manual. The interface is cleaner than DeleteMe’s, simpler than Incogni’s marketing-heavy presentation.
All three operate primarily in the US data broker ecosystem. None has substantial coverage of European or Asian brokers, which limits their effectiveness for users whose data exposure is primarily outside the US.
Pricing comparison
| Plan | DeleteMe | Incogni | Optery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | None | None | Yes (manual instructions) |
| Entry | $129 per year | $77.88 per year (annual) | $39 per year |
| Mid | $179 (couples) | $13.99 per month | $99 per year |
| Top | $329 (family) | $231 per year (family) | $249 per year |
Optery has the most generous entry-level pricing and is the only one with a free tier (which provides scan results without removals; you do the removals manually).
For an individual buyer, Optery’s $39 plan is the cheapest entry to the category. Incogni’s $78 annual plan covers more brokers but at twice the price. DeleteMe’s $129 is the highest of the three, justified by their longer track record and human-touch service.
Coverage by the numbers (approximate)
| Service | Brokers covered (claimed) | Brokers covered (people-search sites) | Manual versus automated |
|---|---|---|---|
| DeleteMe | ~30 to 50 actively | ~25 of the 28 we tracked | Mostly human-handled |
| Incogni | ~180 brokers | ~22 of the 28 | Mostly automated |
| Optery | ~330+ in upper tiers | ~25 of the 28 (Premium tier) | Mix; lower tiers automated, higher tiers human-touch |
The headline numbers are misleading. Incogni claims the most brokers but many of them are marketing-data and lead-gen brokers that do not show up in consumer Google searches. Optery’s coverage at the Premium ($99) tier is comparable to DeleteMe’s. At the Ultimate ($249) tier, Optery includes more comprehensive coverage with human-touch removals.
For the user-facing question of “remove me from the sites that come up when someone Googles my name,” all three are roughly comparable. Optery’s pricing transparency makes it easier to know what you are getting at each tier.
What Optery does that the others do not
The free tier is genuinely useful. You sign up, Optery scans for your information, you see exactly which sites you appear on. Then you have the choice to manually opt out (using their step-by-step instructions) or pay them to do it for you. This transparency is rare in the category.
The coverage list is published. Optery shows you which brokers are covered in each tier, marking each as automated or manual. DeleteMe and Incogni have less specificity about exactly what coverage each tier provides.
The pricing is more granular. Optery has Core ($39), Extended ($99), and Ultimate ($249) tiers, each with documented coverage differences. DeleteMe and Incogni have flatter pricing with less differentiation.
The reports include screenshots showing the actual broker pages where your information was removed. DeleteMe and Incogni provide written reports; Optery’s visual evidence is more concretely satisfying.
What DeleteMe does that the others do not
The longest track record in the category. Some buyers value this on its own; data removal is a recurring service relationship and being around for 15 years signals that the company will probably still be around in five more years.
Human-touch handling of complex cases. Some brokers require notarized requests, photo ID, or other manual workflows. DeleteMe staff handle these manually for customers; the equivalent at Incogni or Optery’s lower tiers is more limited.
Robust quarterly reports. The DeleteMe quarterly report is detailed enough to be genuinely informative. The Incogni real-time dashboard is flashier but less analytically useful. Optery’s reports are good but vary by tier.
Integration with privacy-aware services. DeleteMe partners with various employee-benefit and identity-protection programs, which is irrelevant for individual buyers but means the product is mature.
What Incogni does that the others do not
Coverage of the broader data broker ecosystem, including marketing and lead-gen brokers. If your concern is “stop my data being used to target ads at me,” Incogni’s wider coverage matters even though the user-visible benefit is less concrete.
Slick interface and visualizations. The Incogni dashboard is the prettiest in the category. Some users genuinely value this; others find it hides the substance.
Family pricing that is more competitive. Incogni’s $231 per year for four family members works out to less per person than DeleteMe’s family plans.
Bundled with Surfshark and other Nord Security products. If you are already a Nord Security customer, the bundle pricing can make Incogni effectively cheaper.
Which one to actually buy
Buy Optery Core ($39 per year) if:
You are price-sensitive and want a basic service that covers the major people-search sites.
You value the transparency about exactly what is covered.
You are comfortable with mostly-automated removals and not paying for human-touch handling of edge cases.
Buy Optery Premium ($99 per year) if:
You want comparable coverage to DeleteMe at lower price.
You value the per-tier transparency.
Buy DeleteMe Individual ($129 per year) if:
You value the longest track record and most established service.
You want quarterly reports that are detailed enough to genuinely understand what was done.
You are willing to pay slightly more for human-touch handling of edge cases.
Buy Incogni Individual ($78 per year) if:
You want broader coverage including marketing brokers.
You are already in the Nord Security ecosystem and the bundle is convenient.
You value the slicker interface and do not need detailed reports.
For most readers of this site, Optery Premium ($99 per year) is the best value. Comparable coverage to DeleteMe, lower price, transparent about what you are getting.
If you are extremely cost-conscious, Optery Core ($39) provides 60 to 70 percent of the value at one third of the price.
What none of them solve
The fundamental problem with the data broker industry is structural. As long as public records (court filings, property records, voter registration) are aggregable, and as long as data sales between brokers are legal and profitable, the cycle of removal and re-syndication continues. Buying any of these services maintains a baseline of opt-out, but none eliminate the underlying problem.
For users whose threat model includes targeted research by motivated individuals (stalkers, hostile family members, hostile ex-employees), the data broker removal services are necessary but not sufficient. You also need address confidentiality programs (where available in your state), aliasing services (Privacy.com for credit card aliases, SimpleLogin for email aliases), and ongoing operational security practices.
For users whose concern is more diffuse (general privacy hygiene, reducing the surface area of personal information online), any of the three services is helpful.
A final consideration
All three services are in a growing market that has attracted significant private equity and venture capital interest. Mergers, acquisitions, and price changes are likely over the next few years. The service you buy today might be operated by a different company in three years, or have different pricing.
This is not a reason to avoid any of them; it is a reason to pay annually rather than locking into multi-year prepayments, and to be willing to switch if a service degrades after acquisition or restructuring.
Related: DeleteMe versus Incogni after 90 days, Inside the data removal industry