Google search tips for everyday use

Google search tips for everyday use

Google is powerful, but many people don't take full advantage of what it can do. These quick tips will help you fine-tune your searches, save time, and find exactly what you're looking for.

Use colons for targeted results

Use site: to limit results or related: to discover alternatives. 

• laptops site:bestbuy.com gives results only from Best Buy
• site:youtube.com cat videos filters cat videos from YouTube

Use quotation marks for exact matches

When you're looking for something specific, use quotes to narrow the results.

• "best places to visit in Italy" targets full travel guide titles
• "how to bake banana bread" finds pages with that exact phrase

Use hyphens to exclude unwanted results

Use a hyphen to remove results that contain a specific word.

• apple -iphone avoids phone content, gives you fruit or company news
• jaguar -car results about the animal, not the vehicle

Number ranges to limit results to a specific range

Two dots between numbers give you results within that range.

• bluetooth speakers $30..$100 filters by price
• laptops 2020..2024 finds models released in those years
• kids books ages 5..9 targets children's books by age group

Shortcuts to get instant answers

Type commands directly into Google.

• sunrise Alaska tells you the time of sunrise
• 10kg to lbs unit conversion
• timer 5 minutes

File types to find specific document formats

Use filetype: to locate PDFs, PPTs, DOCs, etc.

• project tracking template filetype:xls looks for Excel files
• nutrition guide filetype:pdf filters for downloadable guides

Article by Karen Matthes, Extension Learning Technologies, klm@umn.edu