Search operators are words that can be added to searches to help narrow down the results. Don’t worry about memorizing every operator, because you can also use the Advanced Search page to create these searches.
| Operators | How to use it |
|
site: |
Get results from certain sites or domains. Examples: cybercrime:nbc.com and cybercrime site:.gov |
|
related: |
Find sites that are similar to a web address you already know. Example: related:pewinternet.org/ |
|
OR: |
Find pages that might use one of several words. Example: information OR internet |
|
info: |
Get information about a web address, including the cached version of the page, similar pages, and pages that link to the site. Example: info:google.com |
|
cache: |
See what a page looks like the last time Google visited the site. Example: cache:washington.edu |
Note: When you search using operators or punctuation marks, don't add any spaces between the operator and your search terms. A search for site:nytimes.com will work, but site: nytimes.com won't work.
Even though you can use the punctuation marks below when you search, including them doesn’t always improve the results. If we don't think the punctuation will give you better results, you'll see suggested results for that search without punctuation.
| Symbol | How To Use It |
|---|---|
| + | Search for Google+ pages or blood types Examples: +Chrome or AB+ |
| @ | Find social tags Example: @agoogler |
| $ | Find prices Example: nikon $400 |
| # | Find popular hashtags for trending topics Example: #throwbackthursday |
|
- |
When you use a dash before a word or site, it excludes sites with that info from your results. This is useful for words with multiple meanings, like Jaguar the car brand and jaguar the animal. Examples: jaguar speed -car or pandas -site:wikipedia.org |
|
" |
When you put a word or phrase in quotes, the results will only include pages with the same words in the same order as the ones inside the quotes. Only use this if you're looking for an exact word or phrase, otherwise you'll exclude many helpful results by mistake. Example: "imagine all the people" |
|
* |
Add an asterisk as a placeholder for any unknown or wildcard terms. . Example: "a * saved is a * earned" |
|
.. |
Separate numbers by two periods without spaces to see results that contain numbers in a range. Example: camera $50..$100 |
From Google, Search Operators
