It costs resources to run a search engine. If the search engine you’re using is great and free, either someone else is paying for it, or it’s funded by debt, which means it will get enshitified over time to repay it. If someone else is paying for it and the service is sustainable, you’re good. If not, then it’s inevitably going to turn to shit. If you’re okay with chasing the latest service that’s not enshitified yet, then you’re fine, so long as new options keep showing up. If you’re not okay with that, or the options dry up, you might want to consider paying for one that will remain great over the long term. If there’s a lesson I’ve learned from the Reddit fiasco last year and the general enshitification trend, it’s that good services cost money and I should pay for the ones I appreciate and can afford. Lemmy is one such service. Kagi is another even if I prefer it were open source and community run.