4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
SEO Guide (https://ahrefs.com/seo)
GENERAL SEO (HT TPS://AHREFS.COM/BLOG/CATEGORY/GENERAL-SEO/)
Google Search Operators: The
Complete List (44 Advanced
Operators)
Joshua Hardwick (https://ahrefs.com/blog/author/joshua-hardwick/)
Updated: April 25, 2023
English
Google advanced search operators are special commands and
characters that filter search results. They do this by making your
searches more precise and focused.
For example, the site: operator restricts results to those from a particular site:
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
In this post, you’ll learn all of Google’s search operators and how to master them for SEO.
Contents
Search operators
Use cases
Google search operators: the
complete list
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Below is a brief description of what every Google search operator does.
I’ve grouped them into three categories:
Working – Works as intended.
Unreliable – Not officially deprecated by Google, but results are hit-and-miss.
Not working – Officially deprecated by Google.
Here’s the full list:
Working
Search
operator
“ ”
What it does
Example
Search for
“steve jobs” (https://www.google.com/search?
results that
q=%22steve+jobs%22)
mention a word
or phrase.
OR
Search for
jobs OR gates (https://www.google.com/search?
results related
&q=jobs+OR+gates)
to X or Y.
|
Same as OR:
jobs | gates (https://www.google.com/search?
q=jobs%7Cgates)
AND
Search for
jobs AND gates (https://www.google.com/search?
results related
&q=jobs+AND+gates)
to X and Y.
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search
operator
-
What it does
Example
Search for
jobs -apple (https://www.google.com/search?q=jobs+-
results that
apple)
don’t mention a
word or phrase.
*
Wildcard
steve * apple (https://www.google.com/search?
matching any
q=%22steve+*+apple%22)
word or phrase.
( )
Group multiple
(ipad OR iphone) apple
searches.
(https://www.google.com/search?
q=%28ipad+OR+iphone%29+apple)
define:
Search for the
define:entrepreneur (https://www.google.com/search?
definition of a
q=define%3Aentrepreneur)
word or phrase.
cache:
Find the most
cache:apple.com
recent cache of (https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?
filetype:
a webpage.
q=cache%3Aapple.com)
Search for
apple filetype:pdf (https://www.google.com/search?
particular types q=apple+filetype%3Apdf)
of files (e.g.,
PDF).
ext:
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
Same as
apple ext:pdf (https://www.google.com/search?
filetype:
q=apple+ext%3Apdf)
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4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search
operator
site:
What it does
Example
Search for
site:apple.com (https://www.google.com/search?
results from a
q=site%3Aapple.com)
particular
website.
related:
Search for sites related:apple.com (https://www.google.com/search?
related to a
q=related%3Aapple.com)
given domain.
intitle:
Search for
intitle:apple (https://www.google.com/search?
pages with a
q=intitle%3Aapple)
particular word
in the title tag.
allintitle:
Search for
allintitle:apple iphone
pages with
(https://www.google.com/search?
multiple words
q=allintitle%3Aapple+iphone)
in the title tag.
inurl:
Search for
inurl:apple (https://www.google.com/search?
pages with a
q=inurl%3Aapple)
particular word
in the URL.
allinurl:
Search for
allinurl:apple iphone (https://www.google.com/search?
pages with
q=allinurl%3Aapple+iphone)
multiple words
in the URL.
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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4/27/23, 3:39 PM
Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search
operator
intext:
What it does
Example
Search for
intext:apple iphone (https://www.google.com/search?
pages with a
q=intext%3Aapple)
particular word
in their content.
allintext:
Search for
allintext:apple iphone
pages with
(https://www.google.com/search?
multiple words
q=allintext%3Aapple+iphone)
in their content.
weather:
stocks:
Search for the
weather:san francisco
weather in a
(https://www.google.com/search?
location.
q=weather%3Asan+francisco)
Search for stock stocks:aapl (https://www.google.com/search?
information for
q=stocks%3Aaapl)
a ticker.
map:
Force Google to map:silicon valley (https://www.google.com/search?
show map
q=map%3Asilicon+valley)
results.
movie:
Search for
movie:steve jobs (https://www.google.com/search?
information
q=movie%3Asteve+jobs)
about a movie.
in
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
Convert one
$329 in GBP (https://www.google.com/search?
unit to another.
q=$329+in+GBP)
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Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search
operator
source:
What it does
Example
Search for
apple source:the_verge
results from a
(https://www.google.com/search?
particular
q=apple+source%3Athe_verge&tbm=nws)
source in
Google News.
before:
Search for
apple before:2007-06-29
results from
(https://www.google.com/search?
before a
q=apple+before%3A2007-06-29)
particular date.
after:
Search for
apple after:2007-06-29
results from
(https://www.google.com/search?
after a
q=apple+after%3A2007-06-29)
particular date.
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
iphone case $50..$60
of numbers.
(https://www.google.com/search?
q=iphone+case+%2450..%2460)
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search
operator
inanchor:
allinanchor:
What it does
Example
Search for pages with
inanchor:apple
backlinks containing
(https://www.google.com/search?
specific anchor text.
q=inanchor%3Aapple)
Search for pages with
allinanchor:apple iphone
backlinks containing
(https://www.google.com/search?
multiple words in their q=allinanchor%3Aapple+iphone)
anchor text.
AROUND(X)
Search for pages with
apple AROUND(4) iphone
two words or phrases
(https://www.google.com/search?
within X words of one
q=apple+AROUND(4))
another.
loc:
Find results from a
loc:”san francisco” apple
given area.
location:
daterange:
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
Find news from a
location:”san francisco” apple
certain location in
(https://www.google.com/search?
Google News.
q=loc:%22san+francisco%22+apple)
Search for results
daterange:11278-13278
from a particular
(https://www.google.com/search?
date range.
q=steve+jobs+daterange%3A11278-13278)
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Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Not working (officially dropped by Google)
Search operator
What it does
Exam
~
Include synonyms in the search. Dropped in 2013
~app
(https://searchengineland.com/google-drops-another-searchoperator-tilde-for-synonyms-164403).
"+"
Search for results mentioning an exact word or phrase.
jobs
Dropped in 2011. (https://searchengineland.com/googlesunsets-search-operator-98189)
inpostauthor:
Search for posts by a specific author in the discontinued
inpos
(https://searchengineland.com/google-blog-search-now-
jobs”
within-google-news-search-202202) Google Blog Search.
allinpostauthor: Same as inpostauthor: , but removes the need for quotes.
allinp
jobs
inposttitle:
link:
Search for posts with certain words in the title in Google’s
inpos
discontinued Blog Search.
iphon
Search for pages linking to a particular domain or URL. Dropped link:a
in 2017 (https://searchengineland.com/google-officially-killedoff-link-command-267454).
info:
Search for information about a specific page or website.
info:a
Dropped in 2017 (https://searchengineland.com/googlechanges-info-command-search-operator-dropping-usefullinks-286422).
id:
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
Same as info:
id:ap
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Google Search Operators: The Complete List (44 Advanced Operators)
Search operator
What it does
Exam
phonebook:
Search for someone’s phone number. Dropped in 2010
phon
(https://searchengineland.com/google-drops-phonebooksearch-operator-56173).
#
Search for hashtags on Google+. Dropped in 2019 when
#app
Google+ shut down
(https://support.google.com/googlecurrents/answer/9195133).
11 ways to use Google search
operators
Let’s tackle a few ways to put these operators into action.
My aim here is to show that you can achieve almost anything with Google advanced
operators if you know how to use and combine them. So don’t be afraid to play around
and deviate from the examples below. You may just discover something new.
Prefer video?
Check out nine actionable Google search operator tips in Sam Oh’s video
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWLD9139Ipc).
https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
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