How to deGoogle your Android phone

What “deGoogled” actually means

Stock Android runs Google Play Services — a privileged background app that powers notifications, location and app updates, and feeds data back to Google. A deGoogled ROM either removes it entirely, or swaps it for MicroG, an open-source reimplementation that provides the same APIs to apps with far less data collection.

The main deGoogled ROMs

• GrapheneOS — the hardened, security-first option. No Google by default; you can optionally add sandboxed Play services. Pixel devices only.
• /e/OS — a full deGoogled experience with MicroG built in and its own app store and cloud. Aimed at being usable for non-technical people.
• LineageOS for microG — LineageOS with MicroG baked in, for the wide range of devices Lineage supports.

Most general-purpose ROMs also ship “vanilla” (no Google) builds you can pair with MicroG yourself.

Replace the Google apps too

Dropping Google's services is half the job — you'll still want replacements for the Google apps themselves: Gallery, Contacts, Dialer, Calendar, Files. Fossify is a suite of open-source, ad-free, privacy-respecting Android apps that cover exactly those basics — a well-maintained continuation of the old Simple Mobile Tools.

You'll also want somewhere to install them from without the Play Store. F-Droid is an app store that lists only free and open-source software — the natural Play Store replacement, and where Fossify and most other deGoogled apps live. Accrescent is a newer, security-focused alternative — smaller but growing, from the GrapheneOS community.

For the proprietary apps you can't avoid — a bank, a transit pass — Aurora Store is an anonymous front-end to the Play Store that installs them without a Google account signed in.

What you give up

Most apps work fine, but expect rough edges: a few apps that hard-depend on Google may misbehave, push notifications can be less reliable without full Play services, and some banking or DRM apps check for Google certification and refuse to run. MicroG smooths most of this over, but not all of it.

Check your phone is supported

Which ROMs you can run depends entirely on your device. Search your phone to see if GrapheneOS, /e/OS, LineageOS or another privacy ROM supports it. GrapheneOS in particular is Pixel-only, so check before counting on it.