Google Search Operators
Working
| Search operator | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
“ ” | Search for results that mention a word or phrase. | “steve jobs” |
OR | Search for results related to X or Y. | jobs OR gates |
| | Same as OR: | jobs | gates |
AND | Search for results related to X and Y. | jobs AND gates |
- | Search for results that don’t mention a word or phrase. | jobs -apple |
* | Wildcard matching any word or phrase. | steve * apple |
( ) | Group multiple searches. | (ipad OR iphone) apple |
define: | Search for the definition of a word or phrase. | define:entrepreneur |
cache: | Find the most recent cache of a webpage. | cache:apple.com |
filetype: | Search for particular types of files (e.g., PDF). | apple filetype:pdf |
ext: | Same as filetype: | apple ext:pdf |
site: | Search for results from a particular website. | site:apple.com |
related: | Search for sites related to a given domain. | related:apple.com |
intitle: | Search for pages with a particular word in the title tag. | intitle:apple |
allintitle: | Search for pages with multiple words in the title tag. | allintitle:apple iphone |
inurl: | Search for pages with a particular word in the URL. | inurl:apple |
allinurl: | Search for pages with multiple words in the URL. | allinurl:apple iphone |
intext: | Search for pages with a particular word in their content. | intext:apple iphone |
allintext: | Search for pages with multiple words in their content. | allintext:apple iphone |
weather: | Search for the weather in a location. | weather:san francisco |
stocks: | Search for stock information for a ticker. | stocks:aapl |
map: | Force Google to show map results. | map:silicon valley |
movie: | Search for information about a movie. | movie:steve jobs |
in | Convert one unit to another. | $329 in GBP |
source: | Search for results from a particular source in Google News. | apple source:the_verge |
before: | Search for results from before a particular date. | apple before:2007-06-29 |
after: | Search for results from after a particular date. | apple after:2007-06-29 |
Sidenote. You can also use the _ operator, which acts as a wildcard in Google Autocomplete.
Unreliable
| Search operator | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
#..# | Search within a range of numbers. | iphone case $50..$60 |
inanchor: | Search for pages with backlinks containing specific anchor text. | inanchor:apple |
allinanchor: | Search for pages with backlinks containing multiple words in their anchor text. | allinanchor:apple iphone |
AROUND(X) | Search for pages with two words or phrases within X words of one another. | apple AROUND(4) iphone |
loc: | Find results from a given area. | loc:”san francisco” apple |
location: | Find news from a certain location in Google News. | location:”san francisco” apple |
daterange: | Search for results from a particular date range. | daterange:11278-13278 |
Examples with combinations of operators
Exact Phrase + Content Search + Filetype
“deep learning” allintext:neural networks filetype:pdf before:2020-01-01
Exact Phrase + Related Sites Search
“artificial intelligence” related:openai.com after:2022-01-01