Does DuckDuckGo store IP addresses or timestamps and for how long?

1. Why DuckDuckGo says it doesn’t log IPs — and how they describe the process

DuckDuckGo’s public materials explain that when a search request arrives the system may perform a GEO::IP lookup to infer an approximate location for localized results, but the company says it immediately discards the IP and any inferred location rather than writing them to logs or tying them to queries. Their privacy policy language and help pages repeatedly emphasize no stored IP-address–to–search-linking on disk, and they frame this as a core design choice to prevent building search histories ^{[1] [2] [3]}. These documents span multiple years and reiterate the same operational point: ephemeral use for routing/localization and a commitment not to retain identifiers in a way that would allow reconstruction of individual search histories ^{[3] [4]}.

2. What the VPN/subscription documents add — server behavior and retention assurances

DuckDuckGo’s paid subscription and VPN policies provide an adjacent set of promises that reinforce the no-logs claim for traffic that traverses their VPN endpoints: the company states it does not store session logs, IP addresses, DNS requests, or timestamps that could be used to tie activity to an individual subscriber. The subscription privacy policy further explains that diagnostic or aggregate usage data kept by VPN servers is not linked to identities, and that personal data tied to the subscription itself is handled separately and deleted promptly after cancellation, with short backup retention windows described ^{[5] [4]}. These contractual documents are dated 2025 in the supplied analyses and echo the operational claims in the public privacy pages.

3. Independent summaries, help pages and older explanations — consistent messaging with caveats

Third-party summaries and DuckDuckGo help articles consistently report the same message: no storage of IPs or timestamps in server logs and immediate discard after localization use, with the company offering tools to refine local results without revealing precise coordinates (e.g., randomized nearby location or manual selection) ^{[1] [2]}. Older posts, including a 2017 explanation, articulate the same core practice but also flag an important caveat: DuckDuckGo’s privacy protection does not make users invisible on the wider internet — destination sites, ISPs, or embedded third-party trackers may still observe IP addresses unless the user employs additional technologies ^{[1] [6]}.

4. Where questions remain — verification, technical detail, and third-party visibility

Public-facing statements and policy documents are consistent, but they do not offer independent, technical audits or raw logging data to prove the absence of all IP/timestamp storage across every internal system and edge case; the assurances are strongest as contractual and policy commitments rather than forensic evidence ^{[3] [4]}. Moreover, the distinction between DuckDuckGo’s handling of search queries and how the broader internet handles IPs is crucial: even with DuckDuckGo discarding IPs immediately, visited websites and network operators retain the ability to log a user’s IP and timestamps unless the user routes traffic through end-to-end privacy tools ^[6].

5. The practical takeaway for users who need stronger guarantees

If the user's goal is to avoid DuckDuckGo retaining IPs or timestamps tied to searches, the company’s published policies and subscription terms provide a clear, consistent claim that they do not store those identifiers and retain only ephemeral, non-identifying data ^{[2] [4]}. If the user needs to hide their IP from destination sites, ISPs, and third parties as well, DuckDuckGo’s statements and VPN offering assert no-logs operation for VPN traffic, but users demanding higher assurance should review the 2025 subscription privacy text and consider independent audits or additional privacy layers like proven audited VPNs or Tor for stronger, externally verified guarantees ^{[5] [4]}.