Google search operators help us use the search feature precisely and accurately. There is an operator to find files, another operator to find a specific result having a keyword in the URL or in the title. These operators make search operations easy. Let’s see all the available operators and know how these work.
| Operator | Definition and Syntax | Example |
|---|---|---|
| filetype | This operator helps to search specific files. You can find pdf, ppt, excel sheets, and word files using this operator. Syntax: Keyword filetype:file-format Note: filetype is a single word and there is no space in between. | Let’s suppose you want to find world trade data in pdf files. You need to search the following query: world trade data filetype:pdf You will see only the pdf-specific results on the search engine result page. |
| inurl and allinurl | This operator is used when you want a search result having a specific keyword in the URL of the results. Syntax: allinurl:Keyword Note: allinurl is a single word and there is no space in between. There is no space even after the colon(:) in syntax. | Let’s suppose you want to find the results that have “world trade” keyword in the URLs. You need to search the following query: inurl:world trade allinurl:world trade All the results with this search query will have the keyword “world trade” in the URLs. |
| intitle and allintitle | This operator is used when you want a search result having a specific keyword in the title of the results. Syntax: allintitle:Keyword Note: allintitle is a single word and there is no space in between. There is no space even after the colon(:) in syntax. | Let’s suppose you want to find the results that have “world trade” keyword in the title. You need to search the following query: allintitle:world trade intitle:world trade All the results with this search query will have the keyword “world trade” in the title. |
| site: | This operator is used to identify the number of indexed pages of any website. You can use it to identify if a page is even indexed or not. Syntax: site:example.com site:example.com/new-page.html | You want to see the number of indexed pages of your competitor. You need to simply search their website using the site operator. site:competitorwebsite.com You posted a content few days ago. Now you want to check if that page has been indexed or not. Use the same syntax. site:example.com/new-post.html |
| cache: | This search operator shows you the cached version of your webpage. Syntax: cache:example.com | Let’s suppose you add some good piece of content in the existing page. Even after few days you see no changes in the position of the page. You should check the cached version of the page. There is a probability of the search engine having the older page cached in the search results. |
| – (minus sign) | This operator is used to exclude any term. | Let’s suppose you want to know how fast a jaguar can run. You search jaguar speed but google shows you the result of Jaguar car speed. To make it more specific you need to add -car. The actual search query will be Jaguar Speed -Car. Now the google will not show you the results of cars. |
| (“___”), “Search Query” | Putting your query under “….” shows you the results with exact matching query. | Put a word or phrase inside quotes. For example, "tallest building". |
| .. | Search within a range of numbers | Put .. between two numbers. For example, camera $50..$100. |
| OR | To combine searches | Put “OR” between each search query. For example, marathon OR race. |
| related: | This operators shows you related websites. Syntax: related:yourwebsite.com | related: operator doesn’t work always. It works perfectly with renowned and brand websites but not with the ordinary one. |
| # | To search HashTag, this operator is used. Syntax: #SearchQuery | You get the results from social media sites. |
| * | This operator work as a wildcard. This operator is suffixed or prefixed with the search query. | Let’s suppose I want to know where the US president lives in. I will search the following query, The US President lives in * |
| define: | We use this search operate to know the meaning of a word. Syntax: define:word | Let’s suppose I want to know the meaning of persistence. I will search define:persistence |
If you find any operator missing in the list, please let us know in comment section.