Your name, phone number, home address, and email are probably listed on dozens of data broker sites right now. Anyone can look you up in seconds. That is why online data removal services exist. You sign up, and the service sends opt-out requests to brokers on your behalf.
Cloaked, DeleteMe, and Incogni are three of the most popular options. All three remove your data from broker databases, but each one works differently and includes different extras. Picking the best data removal service depends on whether you just want removals or you want a full privacy toolkit.
Here is a straightforward data removal comparison to help you decide.
Why Data Removal Matters Right Now
The data broker industry is not a small or theoretical problem. In January 2024, the FTC banned data broker X-Mode Social from selling sensitive location data after finding the company ingested over 10 billion location data points daily and sold that data to hundreds of clients without consumer consent (Source: FTC Press Release, January 2024).
In December 2024, the FTC took action against two more brokers, Gravy Analytics and Mobilewalla, for selling raw location data that could track individuals to medical facilities and places of worship (Source: FTC via EPIC, December 2024). When your personal information sits on broker sites, you have little control over who buys it or what they do with it.
How Each Service Works
All three services share the same basic job: find your personal data on broker and people-search sites, then send removal requests to get it taken down. The differences are in how they do it, how many brokers they cover, and what else they include.
Cloaked
Cloaked takes a wider approach. Instead of only removing data after it spreads, Cloaked also helps you stop sharing your real information in the first place.
You get email and phone number aliases that you can generate with a single click. Each alias has its own inbox and works like a regular number or email. When you use one alias per account, nothing links together. If one alias gets compromised in a breach, you disable it and create a new one. The attacker hits a dead end.
Cloaked has already masked over 10 million accounts for users. On the phone side, the Cloaked eSIM gives you a carrier-grade number locked to your device. Unlike standard VoIP numbers, the eSIM alias works with banks and services that reject VoIP lines. Call Guard has screened over 32 million calls, blocking spam and scam calls before they reach you. Neither DeleteMe nor Incogni offers any phone number protection.
On top of aliases, Cloaked removes your data from 130+ broker sites, with 1+ billion records removed to date. The service also includes dark web and SSN monitoring, a VPN, and $1M in identity theft insurance. Cloaked is SOC 2 compliant and end-to-end encrypted. Check the Cloaked website for current pricing and plan details. Currently available in the U.S. and Canada.
Cloaked covers fewer brokers than Incogni or DeleteMe's top-tier plans. But the value of Cloaked vs DeleteMe or Incogni is that you get prevention, removal, monitoring, aliases, call screening, and insurance bundled into one service. DeleteMe and Incogni only clean up after your data has already spread.
DeleteMe
DeleteMe has been operating since around 2010, making it one of the oldest names in this space. Abine, Inc. runs the service. One thing that sets DeleteMe apart is that human privacy experts handle the removal process, not just automated scripts. You get a detailed privacy report within about 7 days, and then quarterly reports going forward.
On the Standard plan, DeleteMe actively monitors and removes from roughly 85 to 100 data broker sites. The company advertises 750+ total sites, but the higher numbers include custom removal requests. Pricing starts at $10.75 per month billed annually ($129 per year).
What DeleteMe does not include:
- No dark web monitoring
- No identity theft insurance
- No email or phone aliases
- No monthly billing option
If you have read any DeleteMe review recently, most agree that the service is thorough but narrowly focused on removals. For anyone comparing Incogni vs DeleteMe, the biggest gap is broker coverage on the base plan.
Incogni
Incogni is built by Surfshark, the VPN company. The service is fully automated. Once you sign up, Incogni starts sending removal requests to 420+ data brokers shortly after signup. A Deloitte audit has verified that coverage number.
Incogni monitors continuously and resends requests when brokers re-collect your data. You get weekly progress reports through a clean dashboard. Pricing starts at around $6.49 to $7.99 per month on annual plans, depending on current promotions. An Unlimited plan at roughly $14.99 per month adds custom removals from 3,000+ domains.
What Incogni does not include:
- No identity theft insurance
- No email or phone aliases
- No dark web monitoring on the Standard plan
- No free trial (30-day money-back guarantee available)
Incogni is a strong pick if you want to opt out of data broker databases automatically at the lowest price.
Which Service Fits Your Situation
Choosing the best services to remove your name from people search sites depends on what problem you are trying to solve.
You want the most broker coverage for the lowest price
Incogni covers 420+ brokers at one of the lowest annual prices in the category. Few services at this price point offer comparable coverage. If all you need is automated removals and you are comfortable without extras, Incogni is hard to beat on value.
You want human-reviewed removals
DeleteMe is the only one of the three that uses human privacy experts to manage removals. The process is slower, and reports come quarterly instead of weekly. But if you have a complicated data footprint with multiple past addresses or name changes, that human touch may help.
You want removal plus full privacy protection
Cloaked is the only service here that bundles data removal with unlimited aliases, an eSIM with a carrier-grade phone number, dark web monitoring, Call Guard for scam call screening, and $1M in identity theft insurance. DeleteMe and Incogni remove data that is already out there, but they cannot prevent your real info from reaching new brokers. Cloaked's alias system stops the cycle at the source by keeping your real email and phone number off broker databases entirely.
How to Choose
Ask yourself three questions:
- Do you just need removals? Go with Incogni for coverage and price, or DeleteMe for human oversight.
- Do you want monitoring, insurance, and call protection? Cloaked bundles all of these with removal.
- Do you want to stop sharing real data going forward? Only Cloaked offers aliases for email and phone, including an eSIM that works with banks and services that reject VoIP lines.
For many people, the best approach may be to stop the problem at the source. Removing data from brokers helps, but brokers re-collect your information over time. Using aliases to keep your real data off those sites in the first place is a longer-term fix.
Conclusion
All three services are legitimate tools for opting out of data broker databases automatically. DeleteMe is the veteran with a human-assisted process. Incogni offers the widest automated coverage at the lowest annual cost. Cloaked combines data removal with a full privacy toolkit, including unlimited aliases, an eSIM, Call Guard, dark web monitoring, and $1M insurance, that prevents future exposure instead of just cleaning up past exposure.
If you want a single service that handles removal, monitoring, aliases, and insurance together, run a free safety scan with Cloaked to see how exposed your data already is.
You can also get in touch to learn more about how aliases and data removal work together.
FAQs
Is Cloaked better than DeleteMe for data removal?
Cloaked covers fewer brokers (130+ vs. roughly 85-100 on DeleteMe Standard), but includes unlimited aliases, an eSIM with a carrier-grade number, dark web monitoring, Call Guard, and $1M identity theft insurance. DeleteMe focuses exclusively on removals with human oversight and does not offer any phone or email protection.
Which is cheaper, Incogni or DeleteMe?
Incogni is generally cheaper on annual plans. DeleteMe starts at $129 per year. DeleteMe requires annual billing, while Incogni offers both monthly and annual options.
Does Incogni include identity theft insurance?
No. Incogni focuses on data broker removals only. Identity theft insurance, dark web monitoring, and aliases are not part of any Incogni plan.
Can I use more than one data removal service at the same time?
Yes. Some people use a removal-focused service like Incogni alongside a privacy suite like Cloaked. The services do not conflict with each other.
How long does data removal take to work?
Most services begin sending removal requests within the first few days of signup. Full removal from all covered brokers can take several weeks, since each broker has its own processing timeline.
Do data brokers re-collect your information after removal?
Yes, many brokers will re-list your data over time. All three services handle this by running recurring scans and resending removal requests on an ongoing basis.
