Data broker removal services compared

By Delist Editorial Team · Updated August 28, 2026 · Corrections

What to look for in a removal service

Before comparing services, it helps to know which questions matter. The market has grown quickly, and marketing language can obscure real differences in coverage and methodology. The framework we use:

Broker coverage

How many sites does the service monitor and submit to? The total alone does not tell the story. A service that "covers 500 sites" but pads with social platforms, review sites, and corporate directories is inflating the count. What matters is coverage of actual people-search brokers: the ones aggregating and selling your data. Ask specifically about Spokeo, Whitepages, BeenVerified, and Radaris.

Removal verification

Does the service confirm your data was actually removed after submitting a request? Many submit and mark "done" without checking whether the broker complied. A real removal service re-scans each broker after submission to verify the profile is gone. Harder than it sounds, since brokers take 24 hours to 6 weeks to process, but essential for knowing the service worked.

Re-monitoring and re-removal

Data brokers regularly relist profiles. A person who was removed from Spokeo in January may reappear by April, because brokers continuously ingest new data from public records and commercial databases. Any worthwhile removal service must monitor for re-listings and submit fresh opt-outs when profiles reappear. Ask how often the service re-scans and what happens when data comes back.

New broker discovery

The data broker industry is not static. New sites appear regularly, and existing sites change their URL structures and opt-out processes. Does the service actively discover and add new brokers to its coverage list? A service running the same static list it launched with three years ago is missing sites that may have your data today.

Price-to-coverage ratio

Pricing ranges from under $8/month to over $20/month. More expensive does not always mean better coverage. Calculate the effective cost per broker covered to understand what you are actually paying for. A service that charges $15/month and covers 40 brokers costs roughly $0.38 per broker per month. A service that charges $8/month and covers 180 brokers costs $0.04 per broker per month. The math matters.

Transparency about methodology

Does the service explain how it works? Can you see which brokers it scans, which ones found your data, and what the removal status is for each? Opacity is a red flag. If a service shows you a dashboard that says "85% removed" without listing which sites were checked, which had your data, and which removals were confirmed, you have no way to evaluate whether the service is actually doing anything.

The honest comparison

Below is a side-by-side comparison of major data privacy removal services, checked August 27, 2026. Provider-published site counts are not directly comparable: companies count sites, affiliates, custom URLs, and coverage tiers differently. Use the linked sources to verify the current roster and price before buying.

A few notes. Headline site counts measure different things, so this table labels conflicting scopes instead of ranking them as if they were equivalent. Incogni's Deloitte assurance covers stated processes and roster size, not a head-to-head removal rate. OneRep's current coverage claims use different scopes, and its founder's prior people-search businesses remain a material trust consideration. Privacy Bee publishes broad tier-specific source counts, while Kanary no longer publishes one simple total on its pricing page.

Delist.ai is our service, so we will be direct about the conflict: Delist makes money when readers choose its paid coverage. The free exposure scan costs nothing; the base paid plan is $9.99 a month or $99 a year and covers one person. Paid coverage includes eligible removals and monthly full scans. We do not publish a site count until the measured roster and counting method are approved, and some sources still require the user to complete identity checks, CAPTCHAs, or other manual steps.

What most services don't tell you

The removal service market has a transparency problem. Most services present a polished dashboard that shows requests submitted and profiles removed, but the details behind those numbers are often murky. Here is what tends to get left out.

Submitting a request is not the same as removing data

Most services submit a request and report it "complete." Submitting a form is not the same as verifying the data is gone. Brokers can ignore requests, partially comply (removing your name but leaving the phone number), or take weeks. A service that doesn't re-scan after submission has no way to know whether the removal worked. Ask any service: do you verify removal, and how?

Static broker lists age quickly

Many services launched with 50 or 100 brokers and have not meaningfully updated the list since. The industry changes constantly: new sites appear, old ones rebrand, URLs change, opt-out processes get overhauled. A list of "100 sites" from 2022 still being marketed as 100 sites in 2026 is missing brokers that have accumulated your data since.

Re-monitoring intervals vary wildly

"Ongoing monitoring" can mean different things depending on the service: a scheduled re-scan, continuous signals, or a check you must request manually. Compare the published cadence and what happens when a listing returns. There is no universal re-listing window, so cadence is a product feature rather than a guarantee of how long every removal lasts.

The cost per broker varies by an order of magnitude

Divide the monthly price by broker count and the cost per broker ranges from a few cents to over a dollar. $16/month for 60 brokers is roughly $0.27 each, about 7x more per broker than $8/month for 200. Cheaper isn't automatically better (methodology and verification matter), but it's worth knowing what you're paying for.

How Delist.ai works

The best way to earn trust in this market is to be specific about what we do and what we do not do. Here is our methodology.

What we do

• Scan the web using a combination of direct profile URL checks, search engine queries, and automated page analysis. We do not inflate our count with social media or review sites.
• Analyze each page with AI to determine whether the listing actually belongs to you, not just someone with a similar name. We score confidence as High, Medium, or Low based on matching phone numbers, email addresses, locations, employers, and other profile data.
• Verify removals by re-scanning after removal requests are submitted. A removal is not marked complete until we confirm the profile is no longer visible on the broker's site.
• Re-monitor on an ongoing basis to catch re-listings. When a broker relists your profile, we flag it and re-submit the opt-out.
• Actively discover new brokers through automated analysis of search results. Our scanning engine identifies new sites as they appear and adds them to our coverage list.

What we do not yet do

• Some brokers require manual intervention. Sites that use CAPTCHA challenges or phone-based identity verification on their opt-out forms cannot be fully automated today. We are transparent about which brokers fall into this category and provide clear instructions for manual submission when needed.
• Email confirmation flows are partially manual. Several brokers send a confirmation email after opt-out submission. We are building automated email handling but it is not yet live.
• We do not cover non-US brokers. Our current coverage is focused on US-based people-search sites. International coverage is planned.

What is coming

• Automated CAPTCHA solving to expand opt-out coverage to the remaining sites
• Automated email confirmation handling for brokers that require it
• Expanded broker list as we continue discovering and adding new sites
• Additional-member pricing for covering more than one person

When manual opt-out is actually better

We sell a removal service, but we will be honest: not everyone needs one. In some cases, doing it yourself is perfectly reasonable.

You only have a few listings

If a scan shows your data on 2-3 sites, the manual opt-out process takes about 15-30 minutes per site. You fill out a form, verify your identity (usually by email), and wait a few days to a few weeks for the removal to process. For a small number of sites, this is a manageable task and there is no reason to pay a monthly fee for it.

You want to learn the process

Going through the opt-out process manually at least once teaches you how data brokers work, what information they have, and what the removal process actually involves. This knowledge is valuable regardless of whether you eventually use a service. We have a step-by-step guide if you want to try it.

When a service makes more sense

A service becomes more useful as the number and complexity of confirmed listings grows. Manual removal means learning separate workflows, completing verification, checking whether requests worked, and watching for re-listings. Compare that saved effort with the service's price, evidence, scope, and privacy practices; there is no universal break-even point.

There is also a middle ground: run a free scan to understand your exposure, manually opt out of the 3-5 sites that bother you most, and use a service to handle the long tail. This is a perfectly valid approach and one we support.

Frequently asked questions