Google Search Operators
Overview
Use these operators to refine search queries, filter results, and find specific information quickly. Stop guessing and start searching with precision.
Important: Use the native WebSearch tool to perform searches. Do NOT use browser automation (Playwright, navigate, browser tools) for searching.
Research Patterns by Source
Use site: to target specific platforms. Combine with other operators for precision.
Developer Communities
Source Pattern Example
Hacker News site:news.ycombinator.com {topic}
site:news.ycombinator.com "vector database" after:2024
Stack Overflow site:stackoverflow.com {error OR topic}
site:stackoverflow.com "Cannot read property" react hooks
Reddit site:reddit.com {topic}
site:reddit.com "best practices" typescript monorepo
Dev.to site:dev.to {topic}
site:dev.to "building cli tools" rust
Code & Issues
Source Pattern Example
GitHub Issues site:github.com inurl:issues {topic}
site:github.com inurl:issues memory leak nextjs
GitHub Discussions site:github.com inurl:discussions {topic}
site:github.com inurl:discussions "best approach" prisma
GitHub README site:github.com inurl:blob {filename}
site:github.com inurl:blob package.json "workspaces"
Gist site:gist.github.com {topic}
site:gist.github.com dockerfile python
Documentation & Learning
Source Pattern Example
MDN site:developer.mozilla.org {api}
site:developer.mozilla.org IntersectionObserver
Official Docs site:{library}.dev OR site:{library}.io {topic}
site:react.dev useEffect cleanup
Wikipedia site:wikipedia.org {topic}
site:wikipedia.org "distributed systems" consensus
Academic & Research
Source Pattern Example
arXiv site:arxiv.org {topic} {year..year}
site:arxiv.org "transformer architecture" 2023..2025
Google Scholar site:scholar.google.com {topic}
site:scholar.google.com "retrieval augmented generation"
ACM site:dl.acm.org {topic}
site:dl.acm.org "program synthesis"
IEEE site:ieeexplore.ieee.org {topic}
site:ieeexplore.ieee.org "edge computing"
Product & Tool Research
Source Pattern Example
Product Hunt site:producthunt.com {category}
site:producthunt.com "developer tools" api
AlternativeTo site:alternativeto.net {tool}
site:alternativeto.net figma
G2/Capterra site:g2.com OR site:capterra.com {tool}
site:g2.com "project management" comparison
News & Analysis
Source Pattern Example
TechCrunch site:techcrunch.com {company OR topic}
site:techcrunch.com "series a" ai startup after:2024
The Verge site:theverge.com {topic}
site:theverge.com apple vision pro review
Ars Technica site:arstechnica.com {topic}
site:arstechnica.com security vulnerability
Common Research Scenarios
"What do people think about X?"
site:news.ycombinator.com OR site:reddit.com "{tool/library}" after:2024
"How do I fix this error?"
site:stackoverflow.com OR site:github.com inurl:issues "{exact error message}"
"What are alternatives to X?"
site:alternativeto.net OR site:reddit.com "{tool}" alternatives
"Latest research on X"
site:arxiv.org "{topic}" 2024..2025
"Official documentation for X"
site:{library}.dev OR site:{library}.io OR site:docs.{library}.com {feature}
"Real-world experience with X"
site:reddit.com OR site:news.ycombinator.com "{tool}" "in production" OR "experience"
source: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ydVaJJeL1EYbWtlfj9TPfBTE5IBADkQfZrQaBZxqXGs/edit?tab=t.0
Content Operators
Target specific parts of a webpage (title, URL, text, or anchor links).
Behavior of allin... vs in... prefixes
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allin... (e.g., allintitle: ): Applies to all subsequent terms in the query. Do not mix with other operators.
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in... (e.g., intitle: ): Applies only to the term immediately following it.
Operators
Operator Scope Syntax Example Description
intitle: / allintitle:
Page Title intitle:help flu shot
Finds "help" in the title and "flu", "shot" anywhere.
intext: / allintext:
Page Text allintext:camping tent stove
Finds "camping", "tent", and "stove" in the body text.
inurl: / allinurl:
URL allinurl:google faq
Finds "google" and "faq" in the URL path.
inanchor: / allinanchor:
Anchor Text allinanchor:best restaurant
Finds pages linked to with the text "best restaurant".
Logic & Filtering
Refine matches using logic, exclusion, and proximity.
Exact Match ("" )
Forces an exact phrase match. Prevents synonym expansion (e.g., "ca" won't match "California").
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Syntax: "search query"
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Example: "Alexander Bell" (Excludes "Alexander G. Bell")
Wildcard (* )
Placeholder for any unknown term (up to 5 words) or URL token. Works best within quotes.
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Syntax: term * term
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Example: "Google * products" or site:www.*creative.com (matches prefixes like av-creative )
Exclusion (- )
Excludes pages containing a specific term or matching a specific operator. Place immediately before the term/operator.
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Syntax: term -exclusion
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Example: jaguar -cars -football or salsa -tomatoes
Boolean OR (OR )
Matches either term. Must be uppercase.
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Syntax: term1 OR term2
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Example: mesothelioma OR "lung disease"
Combinations
Combine operators for complex filtering.
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Syntax: term OR term -exclusion site:domain
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Example: salsa recipe -tomatoes -filetype:pdf (Salsa recipes without tomatoes, excluding PDFs)
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Example: article security -site:wikipedia.org (Security articles excluding Wikipedia)
Proximity (AROUND )
Finds terms within a specified number of words of each other. Order is not preserved.
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Syntax: term1 AROUND n term2
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Example: search AROUND 3 engine
Number Range (.. )
Finds numbers in a range (prices, years, measurements).
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Syntax: number..number
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Example: DVD player $50..$100 or 1950..1960
Metadata & Source Operators
Filter by domain, file type, date, or definition.
Site (site: )
Restricts results to a specific domain or TLD.
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Syntax: site:domain.com
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Example: tax site:.hk (Hong Kong TLD)
File Type (filetype: )
Restricts results to pages ending in a specific suffix.
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Syntax: filetype:suffix query
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Example: filetype:pdf "search engine guidelines"
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Note: filetype:csv is deindexed (use Google Dataset Search). filetype:mp3 works via inurl:mp3 .
Date (before: / after: )
Finds results published before or after a date (YYYY-MM-DD). Defaults to Jan 1 if only year provided.
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Syntax: after:2020-01-01
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Example: avengers after:2020
Definition (define )
Shows the dictionary definition of a word or phrase.
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Syntax: define term
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Example: define peruse or define Hobson's choice
Special Characters
Google supports specific special characters in search:
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Symbols: $ , % , # , ∞ (e.g., $50 , 24% , #cute ).
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Time/Verses: : (e.g., 10:27 ).
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Math: + at the end (e.g., C++ , 40+ ), ½ (synonymized to 0.5).
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Emoji: Fully searchable (e.g., 🍺 pub , I ❤ NY ).
Powerful Search Idioms
Combine operators for precise extraction.
- Find Subdomains
Exclude the www subdomain to find other hosts.
- Query: site:nyc.gov -site:www.nyc.gov
- Strict Pattern Matching
Use wildcards inside quotes to enforce word order with variable gaps.
- Query: "whenever * says * whenever"
- Wildcard Subdomains & Tokens
Find specific subdomain patterns. * matches any token or prefix string (except TLD).
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Query: site:.law..edu
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Query: site:www.*creative.com (Matches av-creative.com )
Nuances & Limitations
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Parentheses: Ignored by Google. Do not use for grouping logic (e.g., (A OR B) C is treated as A OR B C ). Run separate searches instead.
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Word Order: Matters. to be or not to be yields different results than be to not or be to .
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Fraction Synonyms: Characters like ½ are synonymized (e.g., size 7½ matches 7.5 ). Use quotes for exact match: "size 7½" .
Advanced Search UI
Some features are only available via the Advanced Search page and have no operator equivalents:
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Usage Rights: Filter by Creative Commons license.
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Reading Level: Filter by Basic, Intermediate, or Advanced.
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Language: Filter by specific language (e.g., Spanish, Chinese).
Deprecated Operators (Do Not Use)
These operators no longer function or are unreliable:
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related: (Deprecated June 2023)
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link: (Removed 2016)
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info: (Removed 2017)
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as a prefix (Use quotes for exact match)
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~ (Synonym operator - now automatic)
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daterange: (Use before: /after: )