Optery vs DeleteMe (2026): We Tested Both Side-by-Side — Here's What We Found
Quick Verdict
Optery is the better pick for most people. DeleteMe is a solid, long-established data broker removal service. But in direct side-by-side testing, Optery delivered its first exposure report in about an hour. DeleteMe took two days. Optery showed our tester screenshots of exactly what was listed on each site. DeleteMe showed a count and asked us to trust it.
That gap in speed and transparency is the heart of this comparison — and it’s why our team came away recommending Optery for the majority of users.
The reality: Data broker removal is a critical first step toward protecting your privacy. But both of these services only remove your information from publicly visible broker sites. Neither one protects you from what comes after — a stolen SSN on the dark web, credit fraud, or an identity thief using information from a data breach you never heard of. For that, you need something built to handle the full picture.
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What Each Service Actually Does
Optery: The Transparent Data Broker Removal Specialist
Optery focuses on one thing only: getting your personal information off data broker websites. But the way it does that job is what sets it apart from every other service in this category.
What are data brokers? They’re companies that scrape public records — property filings, court documents, voter registrations, phone directories — and package that information into detailed profiles they sell to anyone willing to pay. They’re the reason your inbox is full of spam, your phone rings with robocalls, and your home address is a Google search away for anyone who wants it.
Optery’s approach — and why it matters:
Before Optery removes a single listing, it shows you a screenshot of exactly what that listing says. Your name. Your address. Your phone number. Your relatives. Exactly as it appeared on the broker site. That transparency isn’t just a nice feature — it’s the only way to know whether the removal actually applies to you, especially if you have a common name.
Optery’s coverage by plan:
- Free plan — Full exposure report with screenshots of every listing found, direct opt-out links, no credit card required
- Basic paid plan — Automated removal from 80 sites
- Ultimate plan — Automated removal from 570 sites with human oversight and custom removal requests
What Optery doesn’t do: It doesn’t monitor your credit, scan the dark web, offer identity theft insurance, or provide fraud resolution. It removes your visible data from broker sites. That’s the scope.
DeleteMe: The Original Data Broker Removal Service
DeleteMe has been doing one thing for over a decade: removing your personal information from data broker sites. It’s built a strong reputation doing it, and that track record is real.
What DeleteMe does well:
- Claims access to 700+ data broker sites — the broadest raw coverage available
- Assigns personal representatives who submit removal requests and follow up
- Handles custom removals for harder-to-reach sites
- Quarterly monitoring to catch re-publications
- Includes email and phone masking features
- Offers over-the-phone customer support for users who prefer speaking to someone directly
Where DeleteMe falls short:
DeleteMe requires upfront payment before you see anything. You subscribe, enter your information, sign a limited power of attorney, and wait. In our testing, that wait was two days before the first report arrived — and when it did, there were no screenshots showing what was actually found. You get a site count and a data point count. For most people, that’s enough. For anyone with a common name, or anyone who wants to verify the right person’s data is being removed, it leaves a meaningful gap.
DeleteMe also counts many of its 700+ sites toward total coverage even when those sites require manual removal requests rather than automated ones. The automated footprint is narrower than the advertised number suggests.
Why Optery Has Earned Its Recommendation
Our team came out of testing with a clear preference for Optery — not because DeleteMe doesn’t work, but because Optery does the same job with more visibility, more speed, and more flexibility.
What Optery Does Exceptionally Well
1. Speed — results in an hour, not days. 45 minutes after signup, Optery began its first scan. About an hour after that, the full exposure report was ready. DeleteMe took two days to deliver its initial report — and it can take up to seven. If you want to understand your exposure today, not this week, that difference is real.
2. Screenshot proof of every finding. This is Optery’s defining feature. When Optery finds your information found on data broker sites, it captures a screenshot showing exactly what was listed. Not just “we found you on this site” — but here is your name, here is your address, here is what the page actually said. That level of verification doesn’t exist anywhere else in this category.
3. Free before you pay. Optery’s free tier generates a complete exposure report — with screenshots — before you spend a dime. You can see exactly where your information is vulnerable and how serious each listing is before deciding whether to pay for automated removal. DeleteMe requires payment upfront with no preview.
4. Flexible billing. Optery has five plan tiers including a free option, monthly billing with no long-term commitment, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. DeleteMe is annual-only with a 7-day window. If you want to try before you commit, Optery is the only option that allows that.
5. Chat and email support with fast response times. Our email inquiry to Optery was answered in approximately 30 minutes. For most questions, the answer is already in their help documentation. Simple, fast, and effective.
The One Area Where DeleteMe Wins
DeleteMe offers phone support. If you prefer talking through a complex issue rather than typing it, or if you’re dealing with something that benefits from a direct conversation, that option has real value. Optery is chat and email only. Our DeleteMe email inquiry took about four hours — still reasonable — but the phone line is there when you need it.
Real-World Testing: Optery vs DeleteMe (with Video)
We ran both services simultaneously — our tester signed up for Optery, team member Ian signed up for DeleteMe at the same time, using real personal data on both. Here’s what happened.
The Scan Results
Optery: Found our tester’s information on 119 different data broker sites in approximately one hour, with a screenshot of every listing.
DeleteMe: Found Ian’s information on 27 sites containing 251 pieces of personally identifiable information after two days.
The raw numbers diverge significantly. Part of that reflects methodology — Optery’s screenshot-based approach surfaces and counts individual listings in more detail. Part of it reflects genuine coverage differences. Either way, Optery gave us a richer, faster, more verifiable picture of what was actually out there.
The Screenshot Difference
Ian’s DeleteMe report told us 251 data points were found across 27 sites. What it didn’t tell us was which specific information was on which site, what the actual page looked like, or whether the profile was definitively Ian versus someone who shares his name.
That last point matters more than people expect. If you have a common name, there’s a real chance DeleteMe’s removal count includes profiles that don’t belong to you. There’s no way to verify it without screenshots. With Optery, you can confirm every single removal is the right person.
Customer Support Test
Both services were contacted with the same question at the same time.
- Optery responded in approximately 30 minutes via chat/email.
- DeleteMe responded in approximately 4 hours via email. Phone support was available but not tested in this round.
Which One Should You Actually Choose?
Both services remove your data from broker sites. Both are legitimate. Both have real users who are happy with them. The question is which one fits your situation.
Choose Optery If:
- You want to see your exposure before spending anything
- Screenshots and verified proof of removal matter to you
- You want faster initial results — an hour vs. two days
- You prefer monthly billing with no long-term commitment
- You have a common name and need to confirm the right data is being removed
- Flexible pricing tiers are important
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Read our full Optery review.
Choose DeleteMe If:
- Phone customer support is important to you
- You want the widest raw site coverage number (700+) and are comfortable with some manual steps
- You’re ready to commit to an annual plan upfront
- You specifically want email and phone masking features included
- You prefer one of the longest-established services in the category
Read our full DeleteMe review.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Optery or DeleteMe better?
Based on direct side-by-side testing, Optery is the better choice for most people. It delivered results in about an hour versus DeleteMe’s two days, found 119 sites compared to 27 in our test, provides screenshot proof of every listing, offers a free exposure report before any payment, and has more flexible billing. DeleteMe’s advantage is phone customer support and a longer track record — meaningful for some users, but not enough to overcome Optery’s transparency and speed advantages.
Does Optery really offer a free plan?
Yes. Optery’s free plan runs a full scan of data broker sites and generates a detailed exposure report with screenshots showing exactly how your information appears on each site. No credit card is required. You can use the report to submit manual opt-out requests yourself, or upgrade to a paid plan to have Optery handle the removals automatically.
How fast does DeleteMe work compared to Optery?
In our testing, Optery delivered its first exposure report in approximately one hour after signup. DeleteMe took two days before Ian received his initial report — though it can take up to seven days. For most people the difference in days doesn’t change outcomes, but if you want to understand your exposure quickly, Optery is significantly faster out of the gate.
How many sites does Optery cover vs DeleteMe?
Optery’s paid plans cover 80 sites on the basic plan up to 570 sites on the Ultimate plan. DeleteMe claims access to over 700 sites, though a number of those require manual removal requests rather than automated ones. For raw automated coverage, DeleteMe has the broader reach; for transparent verified removal with screenshot proof, Optery is the stronger option.
Does DeleteMe require a power of attorney?
Yes. DeleteMe requires you to sign a limited power of attorney during signup, authorizing them to submit opt-out requests on your behalf. Optery offers the same document as optional. We recommend signing it with Optery too — it expands access to additional sites and speeds up removals considerably — but having the choice is a genuine difference between the two services.
Can I use the free Optery plan to remove my information myself?
Yes, though it takes time and patience. Optery’s free plan gives you a full exposure report with screenshots and direct links to each site’s opt-out form. You submit each removal request yourself. Many broker sites deliberately make this process difficult with multi-step CAPTCHAs and verification requirements designed to discourage opt-outs. Most people start on the free plan, attempt a few manual removals, and then upgrade to a paid plan.
Does DeleteMe or Optery offer phone support?
DeleteMe offers phone support, which is one of its genuine advantages. Our email inquiry took about four hours to receive a response, but having the option to call for complex situations is useful. Optery currently offers chat and email support only, with response times of approximately 30 minutes in our testing.
Do Optery or DeleteMe protect against identity theft?
No. Both are data broker removal specialists — they remove your publicly visible personal information from people-search and data broker sites. Neither monitors your credit, scans the dark web for leaked credentials, offers identity theft insurance, or provides fraud resolution support. For full identity theft protection alongside data broker removal, Aura covers all of those in one plan starting at approximately $12/month.
What Neither Service Covers — And Why It Matters
Both Optery and DeleteMe remove your information from publicly visible data broker sites. That’s meaningful, genuinely important protection. But it’s one piece of a larger picture.
Neither service monitors your credit. Neither scans the dark web for leaked credentials. Neither offers identity theft insurance or provides a team to help if your identity is actively compromised.
The National Public Data breach that exposed Social Security numbers for hundreds of millions of Americans didn’t come from a people-search site. It came from a database breach — the kind of threat that data broker removal doesn’t address at all.
If your concern extends to that broader threat landscape — credit fraud, SSN theft, financial account takeover — you need something built for those threats specifically. Aura covers data broker removal from 200+ sites alongside real-time three-bureau credit monitoring, dark web scanning, up to $1 million in identity theft insurance per adult, and 24/7 fraud resolution with a real person on the phone. For most people starting from scratch on privacy and identity protection, Aura is the more complete starting point.
Final Recommendation
Optery wins this comparison. It was faster, more transparent, found more listings, and costs nothing to evaluate before you commit. The free plan alone is worth running regardless of which service you ultimately choose — it tells you exactly where your information is vulnerable without asking for anything in return.
DeleteMe is still a legitimate service with a real track record. If phone support or email masking features are priorities for you, it earns a serious look. But for most people — especially those who want to see exactly what’s being removed and verify it’s the right person — Optery is the better tool.
And for anyone who wants to go beyond broker removal into comprehensive identity theft protection: start with Aura. Add Optery on top if you want the deepest removal coverage available.
Read our Full Aura Data Broker Removal Review →
