Hi everyone,
I wanted to share my current status quo of gradually moving away from US-based services and products and replacing them with European alternatives where possible.
This is not about perfection or ideological purity — more about direction, values, and supporting EU-based ecosystems when reasonable alternatives exist.
What I’ve Already Switched
Email / Cloud / VPN
I’m fully aware that Proton is a European company based in Switzerland. My decision to move away from Proton was not about trust or geography, but about risk concentration.
I was using Proton Mail, Proton Drive, and Proton VPN at the same time and decided to follow the principle of:
“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”
So I deliberately split these services across different providers:
- Proton Mail → TutaMail (Germany)
- Proton Drive → Filen (Germany)
- Proton VPN → Mullvad VPN (Sweden) (when I actually need a VPN)
This is more about resilience and diversification than distrust.
Music Streaming
- Deezer → Qobuz (France)
- While Deezer is often seen as European, I decided to move away after learning more about its ownership and investor structure.
- A significant share is held by non-EU stakeholders partly linked to the US, which didn’t align with what I want to support long-term.
- Qobuz feels more in line with my values, and the switch was a nice improvement in sound quality.
Messaging
- WhatsApp → Threema + Signal
- WhatsApp is completely gone.
- Signal is still US-based, but currently required for activism/political work.
Language Models
- ChatGPT → Le Chat
Charging Devices
- Anker → recable (Germany)
Voice Chat
- Discord → TeamSpeak
OS
- Windows → Linux Mint (Oh boy, do I love Linux Mint <3 Fck Windows)
Office / Creative Software
- Microsoft Office → LibreOffice (rarely needed anyway)
- For most creative work, I use Affinity Publisher, Designer & Photo
Entertainment
- Cancelled several US streaming services (e.g., Disney+)
Navigation
- Apple Maps → TomTom
Payments
- PayPal → Wero
Clothing
- While Adidas is a German brand, a lot of their production happens outside the EU, which I want to move away from over time.
- Ideal goal: Support European production under reasonable conditions.
- Shoes: Switching from Adidas → TREAZY (EU production, plant-based materials)
- Socks: Planning to switch to TREAZY socks (made in Portugal)
- Underwear — Open Question
- Looking for high-quality men’s underwear (trunks) that:
- Is genuinely produced in Europe,
- Feels really comfortable,
- Actually lasts a long time (doesn’t stretch out or fall apart after a few months).
- Do you have recommendations? Something you’ve had for years and still feel comfortable in, made in Europe?
- Looking for high-quality men’s underwear (trunks) that:
Audio / Hardware
- Initially planned: Shure SM7B
- Decided on: Sennheiser MD 421 Mark II (Supporting a European audio manufacturer felt like the better fit for me.)
What I Still Use (Reluctantly / Pragmatically)
- Netflix (No real EU alternative with a comparable catalog — I only subscribe occasionally, 1 month every few months.)
- Gaming: Steam (ecosystem reasons)
- Password Manager: 1Password (Canada — not EU, but best fit for my needs so far)
Big Open Topic: Smartphone
- Currently using an iPhone 15 Pro
- Considering a Fairphone with LineageOS
- Waiting to see developments around Fairphone 6
- Would love to see some experiences here.
Where I’d Really Love Community Input
- Messaging: Thoughts on Element / Matrix / XMPP?
- Streaming: Any serious European Netflix alternatives you like?
- Underwear: European underwear brands/experiences that are truly high-quality & long-lasting?
- General: EU services/products you’d strongly recommend or avoid?
This is very much a work in progress, not a finished state. Happy to learn, adjust, and iterate — feedback welcome! 😊
Thanks!
Edit: Improved structure and readability.
Regarding underwear, you can take a look at SCHIESSER. The company was founded in Germany in 1875 and has always stood for quality. The company has been Israeli-owned since 2011. But the company location is still Germany.
See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schiesser or https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schiesser
I’m also in similar journey to switch although still early. I started using Element in small circle and it works great.
For phones, you might want to check Jolla, its EU/Finish Linux phone.
And for the rest, being a open-source dev myself, I can only suggest open-source digital products:
For design work, see https://penpot.app/ its awesome and mature product.
If you need to publish videos, check https://joinpeertube.org/
You can find much more EU-based and produced digital services here: https://european-alternatives.eu/
Good luck!I’m also in similar journey to switch although still early. I started using Element in small circle and it works great.
For phones, you might want to check Jolla, its EU/Finish Linux phone.
And for the rest, being a open-source dev myself, I can only suggest open-source digital products:
For design work, see https://penpot.app/ its awesome and mature product.
If you need to publish videos, check https://joinpeertube.org/
You can find much more EU-based and produced digital services here: https://european-alternatives.eu/
Good luck!
Thanks for the suggestions, I appreciate it.
Jolla has actually been on my radar for a few days now. I came across it in another thread recently and I do think it is a very interesting concept, especially Sailfish OS. That said, I am currently leaning more towards Fairphone, mainly because of the repairability and the long-term hardware support. That aspect matters a lot to me.
What I might do, though, is take a closer look at Sailfish OS and see whether it could realistically be combined with a Fairphone instead of LineageOS. That really comes down to compatibility and everyday usability, so I will need to evaluate that carefully before deciding.
Penpot looks great. I had a quick look and really liked what I saw. I have saved it for later and will very likely use it for future web projects, so thanks for pointing that out.
european-alternatives.eu is also known to me. I have checked it a couple of times already, but I think I need to spend more time going through it more systematically, especially for areas I have not actively switched yet.
Thanks again for the input!
Qobuz is amazing!. I’ve been using it for several months and it’s delightful… also high quality streams and that’s importat for my shitty old ears.
Nice list…
Indeed, I’m happy with Qobuz so far!
Only downside is the lack of custom playlist covers :(
Sadly I just found out that Qobuz is using Amazon Web Services (AWS). So using Qobuz means giving money to Amazon… What a shame!
Unfortunately that’s (currently) most of the internet. Hopefully that changes over time.
Calida makes good underwear and really nice sleepwear. They are from Switzerland and claim to produce in Eastern Europe.
Great post which gives a lot of inspiration!
Since you mentioned the fairphone 6, I thought I’d give you my two cents on that topic: Switched over to a Fairphone 6 about half a year ago (pretty soon after the release). Wanted to get the Murena - e/OS version but since the stock Android was cheaper and quicker for delivery I went with that. At home, I flashed e/OS myself on the phone after checking everything worked initially (especially phone services). And what can I say - about a half year later I’m still super happy with it. About 60% of the apps I use are from F-Droid, the other few over AppLounge (Playstore-Mirror) with an anonymous Google-account (very easy to use, works automatically and is preinstalled on e/OS). I should say, my goal switching from a ‘normal’ Android phone was to degoogle at the same time, which worked well with the fp6. No issues with calls, screen, battery, camera, Apps etc, only thing I needed was a Type-C to Aux adapter (since my last phone still had a 3.5 mm jack). You need to get used to the volume rocker placement - was taking screenshots in the beginning all the time :D But other than that, I have no regrets. Even dropped it a few times without a case and its sturdy! I can definetely recommend it :) (My parents’ next smartphone will be a FP, already influenced them haha)
I recommend some formatting for your comments. Few will read them, otherwise.
Valid point. I initially just typed it out on my (fair) phone in a quick minute, but added some spaces now.
For gaming : GOG (PL)
My Pixel phone OS : iodé os (FR)
Amazon : Cdiscount (FR)
Google drive : Ksuite by infomaniak
Quickshare : LocalShare / KDEconnect
Google Map : CoMaps / RooleMap (FR)
Clothing: I recommend looking on avocadostore. Erlich Textil is very high quality.
Recable that OP mentioned look great fun
…braided charging cables coloured and named after birds.
Do you use Affinity on Linux Mint?
No, haven’t tried that yet. Still running on my Windows boot.
recable only supports USB 2.0. Of course it doesn’t matter for charging, but for data transfer it does.
Well that wasn’t a criteria for me yet… but thanks for pointing that out. Gotta keep that in mind for recommendations in the future.
Looks good to me! Seems that the biggest steps have been made!
Matrix is great. Love it’s decentralized nature. Love their e2e encryption capabilities. Although it can be tricky for novice users to grasp the importance of a recovery key backup - in addition to their regular credentials. Also love that many FOSS communities use it too. Makes it easy to join the discussion & get support. I take it over any proprietary protocol & centralized infrastructure any day.
Take a look at GrapheneOS. You can get a second hand Google Pixel and you’ll still not support Alphabet. Hope that GrapheneOS will find a solid hardware alternative in the future. Not sure how far along their talks with their prospective OEM partner are. In terms of security & privacy there just is no alternative. Hopeful about a mainstream Linux based phone in the future. But at the moment it’s the best alternative IMO.
What’s your impression of the recable cables? Are they (as close as a cable can be) “buy it for life”?
Clothing produced in Germany: https://www.manomama.de/
I haven’t ordered myself yet, but know people that have and am overwhelmingly happy with their purchases. Will try next time I need clothing (I think I’m good for a few years).
They also make the Urbandoo, a face mask for urban places. I like it a lot and it has protected me from Covid for the first ~5.75 years of the pandemic. I also like it as an easy way to avoid nasty smells or people smoking in urban areas.
Another great choice for avoiding risk concentration is using a decentralised way to communicate.
This is where XMPP is great.
Here’s a flyer from the Digital Independence Day (that was recently proclaimed by the Chaos Computer Club and a lot of other organisations in Germany) that shows two simple ways you can start using it:
English: https://shop.digitalcourage.de/files/xmpp-folder-engl-druck.pdf
German: https://shop.digitalcourage.de/files/xmpp-folder-Druck.pdf
French: https://shop.digitalcourage.de/files/xmpp-folder-F-druck.pdfIf any server goes down, I will not have much of an issue, as long as it is not mine. It is is a server my contacts use, I will only lose contact to a couple people, until those have access again.
It’s a very resilient network and that’s why I enjoy using it.
Also, the clients run even on old phones, as they do not need a lot of resources, which helps when people have little money and also saves the environment.
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Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Omg how have I missed this? So I take it this is similar to the Lemmy network?
It’s been around since 1999, it’s much older. But it’s evolved to using current cryptography (in fact what Signal uses, the adaptation is called OMEMO), works well for phones and is even what Apple and Google use for push in the background. If you use Conversations, it can be a UnifiedPush provider for other apps, making your battery last longer (just turn on in settings).
For example, my XMPP ID is: xmpp:[email protected] :)
(Feel free to say hello if you give it a try!)
