Note: PrivacyScrubber offers a Chrome extension for redacting PII inside AI chat sites (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and others), a client-side web workspace for text and files, a Node.js/WASM developer SDK and an Enterprise on-premises option, with Free, PRO and TEAMS tiers. On 14 July 2026 it launched a separate, open-source MCP server (MIT licence; installable via npx @privacyscrubber/mcp-server or Smithery.ai) whose installer covers Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Windsurf, VS Code, Cline and Zed. Its site lists no standalone desktop application.
Feature comparison
Competitor information checked against each vendor's own public pages on 25 October 2026 — sources. Products change; check the vendor's current documentation before relying on it.
| Feature | anonym.plus | PrivacyScrubber |
|---|---|---|
| Product surfaces | Desktop app (Windows/macOS/Linux) + Chrome extension + Local API + MCP server — one vendor, one license, every surface | Chrome extension (free tier with limits, unlimited on PRO) + a client-side web workspace + a separately launched MCP server for coding tools + a Node.js/WASM SDK — no standalone desktop application listed on its site |
| File anonymization (PDF/DOCX/XLSX/images) | Yes — native desktop handling of PDF, DOCX, XLSX, and images, including OCR, with results written back to a file | Runs in the browser or via its Node.js/WASM SDK: the free tier offers single-file processing on the General profile, up to 15,000 characters per scrub; PRO ($15/month or $110 lifetime) adds bulk processing of 50+ files (.pdf, .docx, .xlsx, .csv) with offline OCR |
| AI chat-site redaction (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc.) | Yes, via the anonym.plus Chrome extension — same on-device detection engine as the desktop app | Yes — a core PrivacyScrubber product; its site cites 9 LLMs, including ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini |
| MCP server for AI-coding IDEs | Yes, on the Enterprise plan — local, offline MCP server exposing PII detection/anonymization tools to agents over loopback/stdio by default, with bearer-token auth | Yes — launched 14 July 2026, open source (MIT), installable via npx -y @privacyscrubber/mcp-server or Smithery.ai; its installer covers Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Windsurf, VS Code, Cline and Zed |
| Local API for developers | Yes — a local HTTP API for scripting anonymization into other tools, no cloud round-trip | Sells a Node.js/WASM SDK for embedding its engine in Node/JS apps (from $299/month or $2,990/year); the MCP server is a further integration route |
| Entity types | 340+ built-in | Organized as 30 industry profiles rather than a flat entity count; the free tier uses the General profile, plus a 5,000-character trial of the specialized profiles |
| Languages | 48 languages for the UI, 20+ NLP detection models, all offline-capable | Not publicly specified on its marketing pages |
| Reversible mode | Yes — local Encrypt mode with AES-256 and an offline key vault; only your device can reverse it | Yes — placeholders (e.g. [NAME_1], [EMAIL_1]) mapped in a session map held in memory, restored via its Reveal button or the MCP server's reveal_text tool |
| Pricing model | One-time perpetual license, no subscription | Free tier, PRO at $15/month or $110 one-time (per its pricing page), and TEAMS at $99/month flat for unlimited users; Enterprise is custom-quoted |
| Account / login required | Account and internet only once, to activate the license — processing needs neither | Free tier and MCP server can run without an account; PRO/TEAMS tiers require a paid license |
| Vendor jurisdiction | Germany / EU-based vendor | Its MCP server launch announcement is datelined Austin, TX; its site names BrandMeWeb and gives no company address |
PrivacyScrubber strengths
- A dedicated MCP server (launched 14 July 2026) for redacting PII inside AI-coding tools such as Cursor, Claude Code and VS Code, shipped as open source (MIT) — a low-friction way for developers to try it
- Low-friction in-browser UX for the common case: a toolbar click scrubs a prompt before it reaches ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or another chat site, with no install beyond a Chrome extension
- Chat redaction across several web AI tools — its site cites 9 LLMs, including ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini
- Reversible tokenization is built into both the extension and the MCP server, so a developer or user can restore original values after getting an AI response
- A genuine free tier exists for basic text/single-file protection, lowering the barrier for individual users to start
- A Node.js/WASM SDK for developers who want to embed its engine in their own apps
PrivacyScrubber limitations
- No standalone desktop application listed on its site — file processing runs in the browser workspace or through the SDK
- Bulk file processing (50+ files, with offline OCR) is a PRO feature ($15/month or $110 lifetime); the free tier processes single files up to 15,000 characters per scrub
- The MCP server and the browser extension are two separate products with two separate installation paths (npm/Smithery vs. Chrome Web Store) rather than one unified app covering both surfaces
- The developer SDK is priced on its own (from $299/month or $2,990/year)
- Entity coverage is organized as 30 industry profiles rather than a single entity-type count, which makes a like-for-like comparison harder
Why choose anonym.plus
- One vendor, one license, every surface: a full desktop app for files (PDF/DOCX/XLSX/images), a Chrome extension for AI chat sites, a Local API for developers, and an MCP server for AI-coding IDEs — PrivacyScrubber lists no standalone desktop application
- 340+ built-in PII entity types and a full UI in 48 languages, versus PrivacyScrubber's 30 industry profiles
- Reversible Encrypt mode backed by local AES-256 and an offline key vault; PrivacyScrubber keeps its placeholder map in session memory
- One-time perpetual license covering every surface; PrivacyScrubber PRO is $15/month or $110 one-time, TEAMS $99/month
- Germany/EU-based vendor, relevant for EU organizations weighing vendor jurisdiction alongside on-device processing
- 100% on-device processing across every surface, verifiable by disconnecting the network and running the app anyway
How the two approaches actually differ
Both products process data locally rather than shipping it to a cloud API — that part is not in dispute. The real difference is surface coverage and packaging: PrivacyScrubber protects the moment you paste text into an AI chat window, the moment an AI-coding IDE sends a prompt to a model (since 14 July 2026), and files you load into its browser workspace. anonym.plus protects the same moments from a desktop application that works on files directly: a contract in a DOCX, a spreadsheet of customer records, a scanned ID card, a folder of PDFs that need redacting before they go to a client, a partner, or a court.
PrivacyScrubber's flow
- You type or paste a prompt into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or another supported chat site; the browser extension detects PII in your browser's memory and replaces it with a token before the prompt is submitted
- Separately, a developer can install the MCP server locally so that an AI-coding tool (Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Windsurf, VS Code, Cline or Zed) scrubs PII from prompts sent to a model, then swaps the placeholders back with
reveal_text - For files, you upload a document to the browser-based scrubber (free tier: single files; PRO tier: bulk processing of 50+ .pdf, .docx, .xlsx and .csv files with offline OCR), and processing happens client-side in the browser tab
- Chat redaction, IDE integration and developer embedding come as separate products — the Chrome extension, the MCP server via npm/Smithery, and the SDK — alongside the web workspace
anonym.plus's flow
- You open a file directly in the desktop app — PDF, DOCX, XLSX, or an image — and the same on-device NLP pipeline (built on Presidio + spaCy) that powers every other surface detects and redacts PII across 340+ entity types
- The same detection engine runs in the Chrome extension for AI chat sites, in the Local API for developers scripting anonymization into their own tools, and in the MCP server for AI-coding IDEs
- Any reversible redaction uses AES-256 keys from a local vault stored on the device — keys are generated, stored, and used locally, never transmitted to a server
- One license activates all four surfaces; there is no separate purchase, subscription, or install path to reach file anonymization versus chat redaction versus IDE integration
When PrivacyScrubber makes sense vs when anonym.plus wins
Neither product is "better" in the abstract — they overlap on AI chat-prompt protection and diverge sharply everywhere else.
PrivacyScrubber is the right tool when
- The only workflow that needs protecting is pasting text into AI chat sites, and a lightweight Chrome extension with a free tier is enough
- A developer wants to try an open-source MCP server quickly via
npxwithout installing anything beyond their existing IDE - A developer wants to embed redaction in their own Node.js or browser app through an SDK
anonym.plus is the right tool when
- PII lives in files, not just prompts — contracts, spreadsheets, scanned IDs, HR records — and you want a desktop app that redacts them directly
- You want one license covering AI chat redaction, file anonymization, a Local API, and an MCP server, instead of stitching together a browser extension and a separate MCP install
- A one-time license covering every surface is preferable to a monthly plan — PrivacyScrubber TEAMS is $99/month; PRO is $15/month or $110 one-time
- Vendor jurisdiction matters and you want an EU/German-based vendor
The key difference is not "cloud vs. local" — both are local. The key difference is surface coverage and packaging: PrivacyScrubber is built around the browser-based AI chat moment, with a web workspace, an MCP server for coding tools and an SDK; anonym.plus is a single desktop application that extends the same on-device engine across files, chat, the Local API, and the MCP server, under one perpetual license.
Sources
Competitor information was checked against these public pages on . Vendors change products, prices and names; check the current page before relying on a statement.