Ecosia (ecosia.org) is an inspiring and totally unique player in the search engine market. Based in Berlin, Germany, Ecosia is an environmentally-focused 'search engine that plants trees.' By transforming the mundane, everyday act of searching the web into a direct action for global climate restoration, Ecosia has cultivated a fiercely loyal user base of environmentally conscious millennials and Gen Z internet users.
Ecosia was founded in December 2009 by Christian Kroll. After completing his university studies, Kroll traveled extensively through South America and Asia, where he witnessed the devastating real-world impacts of rampant deforestation. Determined to find a scalable technological solution, he launched Ecosia. In 2014, Ecosia officially became Germany's first certified B Corporation. To permanently protect the company's mission, Kroll legally bound his shares in 2018, ensuring Ecosia can never be sold for personal profit and no dividends can ever be extracted from the company.
Ecosia leverages existing search infrastructure while wrapping it in a highly transparent, eco-friendly mission:
Valued at an estimated $50 Million as a non-profit-driven tech entity, Ecosia generates its money through standard search engine advertising. On average, it takes roughly 45 searches to generate enough ad revenue to plant one tree. By 2026, the Ecosia community has successfully funded the planting of over 200 million trees across biodiversity hotspots in Brazil, Indonesia, Madagascar, and Senegal.
Ecosia attracts around 75 Million monthly visits. Its eco-conscious branding resonates most heavily in Europe, with Germany generating 35% of the traffic, followed by massive support in France (22%). The United States and the United Kingdom also harbor dedicated communities of Ecosia users.