How To Use the Site Search Operator | Google Search Central  |  Documentation  |  Google for Developers (2024)

Stay organized with collections Save and categorize content based on your preferences.

A site: query is a search operator that allows you to request search results from the particular domain, URL, or URL prefix specified in the operator. For example:

site: examples
site:example.com Show results only from the example.com domain (www.example.com and recipes.example.com).
site:https://www.example.com/ramen tsukemen Shows results for pages that contain URLs that start with https://www.example.com/ramen and are relevant to the term tsukemen.

The site: search operator is available on all Google Search properties.

Uses for site owners

A site: query can help in a few ways with debugging a site. A few examples:

site: examples
site:example.com

Returns a list of indexed and serving URLs.

site:https://example.com/recipes/tsukemen.html May help you understand whether a specific URL is indexed and served.
site:example.com viagra casino Helps with identifying and monitoring spam problems on your site.
site:https://example.com/ lemon Shows which URLs on the site can show up for the term "lemon".
site:https://example.com/recipes/tsukemen.html lemon Shows whether the specific URL is indexed for the term "lemon".

Limitations

The site: operator was designed primarily for search users and so it has some restrictions that site owners might find limiting. Specifically:

  • The site: operator doesn't necessarily return all the URLs that are indexed under the prefix specified in the query. Keep this in mind if you want to use the site: operator for tasks like identifying how many URLs are indexed and serving under a prefix.
  • A site: operator without a query (for example site:example.com) doesn't rank the results. It will generally show the shortest URL for the prefix at the top, but otherwise the results are relatively random.

Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Last updated 2024-03-18 UTC.

How To Use the Site Search Operator | Google Search Central  |  Documentation  |  Google for Developers (2024)

FAQs

How To Use the Site Search Operator | Google Search Central  |  Documentation  |  Google for Developers? ›

Rather than performing the standard search for the keyword and rummaging through organic results, you can use the site search operator. Use the following syntax: "site:[website URL] [keyword]." This will show you all the pages on a specific website that contain the keyword you are searching for.

How do I implement Google site search? ›

Here's how to do it:
  1. Click in the Google search bar or your address bar if you use Google Chrome.
  2. Type “site:” followed by the name of the website you're searching. ...
  3. Follow the website name with a single space and then type the search phrase.
  4. Hit Enter or Return to begin the search.
Jul 3, 2023

How do I use and operator in Google search? ›

Use a unique phrase from your text, put it in quotes (exact-match) after an "intext:" operator, and exclude your own site with "-site:"... Similarly, you can use "intitle:" with a long, exact-match phrase to find duplicate copies of your content.

How to do site search? ›

In a Google search, type site: followed by the domain and extension, like site:lifewire.com. Then, include your search, and press Enter. To search by domain extension, type site: followed by the extension, like site:. gov followed by your search, and press Enter.

How do you use search operator? ›

How to use Google Search operators
  1. Think of a topic you want to research.
  2. Decide if you want to narrow your search by excluding certain results or looking for information from one particular website.
  3. Find a search operator to perform your specific search. ...
  4. Press enter.
Jun 24, 2022

How does search operator works? ›

A search operator (sometimes referred to as a search parameter) is a character or string of characters used in a search engine query to narrow the focus of the search. In mathematics and computer science, operators are characters or sequences of characters that represent an action or cause an action to be performed.

When would you use a site search? ›

The content on media sites is ever-expanding and changing. It's easy for readers and video watchers to lose their way in such a content-rich environment. Site search can help them find it, directing them to new and relevant topics of interest and prolonging the time they stay on the site.

How do I implement Google advanced search? ›

Do an Advanced Search
  1. On your computer, go to Advanced Search: google.com/advanced_search.
  2. Under “Find pages with,” choose the query field/s to: ...
  3. Enter the words that you want to include or remove from your results. ...
  4. Under "Then narrow your results by," choose the filters you want to use. ...
  5. Click Advanced Search.

How do I set up Google search API? ›

Enable an API
  1. Go to the API Console.
  2. From the projects list, select a project or create a new one.
  3. If the APIs & services page isn't already open, open the console left side menu and select APIs & services, and then select Library.
  4. Click the API you want to enable. ...
  5. Click ENABLE.

What is a Google search operator? ›

Google advanced search operators are special commands and characters that filter search results. They do this by making your searches more precise and focused.

What is the Google search operator related? ›

Related: is an operator that helps you find sites related to a specified URL. Using it is an illuminating look into how Google categorizes your website and your competitors. For example, if we take a look at the results for airbnb.com, it returns the usual suspects, but also some peripheral competitors for attention.

How do I use Boolean operators in Google search? ›

Search engines like Google use these Boolean operators as follows:
  1. AND: A space between two terms is interpreted as “AND”.
  2. OR: Both the word “OR” and the pipe symbol ( | ) act as the OR operator. ...
  3. NOT: Putting a minus sign before a word (with no space) excludes the word from the search.
Oct 26, 2021

What is site search example? ›

To search a site with Google, go to google.com and type “site:” followed by the URL you want to search. For example, if we wanted to search within the Monday.com site, we would type "site:monday.com" into Google's search bar and hit the search button.

What is site search in Google Analytics? ›

Analytics. It's that little search box in the header of your website. Visitors use it to search for things. It's often called “Site Search,” and it helps people find what they're looking for fast. It's a way to help your visitors.

Is there a search function in Google sites? ›

Search your published Site

Use the Open search bar icon (looks like a magnifying glass) located at the top right of the site.

How can you use the site operator in a search query? ›

Rather than performing the standard search for the keyword and rummaging through organic results, you can use the site search operator. Use the following syntax: "site:[website URL] [keyword]." This will show you all the pages on a specific website that contain the keyword you are searching for.

Does Google sites have a search function? ›

Search your published Site

Use the Open search bar icon (looks like a magnifying glass) located at the top right of the site.

What does the search operator to do in Google Drive? ›

operator specifies the condition for the query term. values are the specific values you want to use to filter your search results.

What is a search operator in Gmail? ›

You can use words or symbols called search operators to filter your Gmail search results. You can also combine operators to filter your results even more.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Sen. Emmett Berge

Last Updated:

Views: 6307

Rating: 5 / 5 (80 voted)

Reviews: 95% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Sen. Emmett Berge

Birthday: 1993-06-17

Address: 787 Elvis Divide, Port Brice, OH 24507-6802

Phone: +9779049645255

Job: Senior Healthcare Specialist

Hobby: Cycling, Model building, Kitesurfing, Origami, Lapidary, Dance, Basketball

Introduction: My name is Sen. Emmett Berge, I am a funny, vast, charming, courageous, enthusiastic, jolly, famous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.