Google is considered to be the best search engine out there, that is the reason most people say – “Google it“. You use it but how do you do it? Do you just type in what you want to search for (the search term or keyword)? If yes, you have not utilized Google to its fullest potential…
Here, we mention some of the best Google search tips that will make you re-think “How to search on Google” to get the most out of it. With the help of a few tricks and tips, you will be able to find things faster and more efficiently!
20 Ways To Search On Google
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Pinpoint The Correct Google URL
We know https://www.google.com is the URL for Google. But, we do not always end up on that address. Foreign-based users can be redirected to google.fr (France) or google.co.in (India).
The primary google.com URL is intended for users in the United States of America (or acts as the only URL for everyone across the globe). It is fairly an important thing to know when you search on Google. If you are researching for something that is directly connected to the online resources of the UK but you live outside the UK, you should try google.co.uk
The search results will show more targeted websites. It is the simplest way by which you can improve your search on Google.
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Do Not Ignore Google Suggest Search Terms
I’ve encountered a lot of people (including me at some point in time) just to tend to ignore the suggested search term unless it matches the exact term we want to look for.
If you know what you are searching for, the suggestions might not help much. But, if you are researching a topic, you will be able to find out more related stuff quickly. Suppose you are looking for an app to review and in the suggestions, you get a search term which points to search results giving you the meaning of that word (app’s name). It may help you with the review, where you can mention why the developers did choose the name.
You could imagine a lot of different instances where suggested search terms might help you. So, do not ignore them!
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Use Double Quotes To Narrow Down The Search Results For The Exact Term
If you want to search on Google – Gmail advantages, you do it without using the double quotation sign. However, you will observe that you get search results which say – “How good Is Gmail” and similar. So, when you type in a search term without double quotes, it shows you all the relevant results.
But, if you use double quotes to emphasize a particular term, you will observe search results which include the words – “Gmail” & “Advantages” only. It helps when you want search results to contain the same terms that you are looking for.
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Get Search Results From A Specific Site
If you want to look at the indexed pages of a single website, simply type in – site:ubergizmo.com – and you will observe the results listing only the web pages of Ubergizmo.
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Search For A Single Topic From One Website
It is almost the same as the previous one. You just have to add the text term as – Samsung site:ubergizmo.com and you can observe every web page from Ubergizmo.com which mentioned “Samsung” keyword.
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Exclude Terms From Your Search Results
When you search for a particular term, and you get mixed results, you might be disappointed or would be forced to try another search term.
To get the perfect results for your desired search term, you can direct Google to exclude some keywords from the search results as per your choice.
For instance, if I am looking for “Samsung S8 Review” on Google and I do not want search results to list the web pages that just describe the specifications of the device, I can type in – “Samsung S8 Review -specs -specifications“.
Overall, the format would be – “Search Term -keywordtobeexcluded“
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Play Pac-Man Directly On Google
Did you know that you can play quite a few games directly via Google search?
You just need to type in “Pacman” (without double quotes) to get started. -
Know The Meaning Of A Word Without many hassles
Tired of browsing sites even after looking for the meaning on Google search? Just type in “define: word” to get the job done (ignore the double quotes).
Here’s how it looks like:
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Search Images Only
If you are searching for something and want to get the images from the search results first. Just type in – “images: search term.”Else, simply go to images.google.com to get started.
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Flip A Coin
Want to bet on something with your friend? A toss? Don’t have a coin? No problem! Google has got your back.
You just need to type in – “Flip a coin” (without the double quotes) to flip a coin and get a random result. -
Look For Related Sites
Searching for alternative websites is a tough task. But, with a simple trick, you can tell Google to list a lot of similar sites. It is a treasure box for someone who was looking for alternative sites from ages!
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News For Specific Location
If you rely on Google News to know about the latest happenings according to your preference, you have an option to narrow down the news results bound to a particular location. While you are in the Google News section, just type in the topic and add – “location:CountryName” as you can observe in the image below.
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Perform Basic Arithmetic Operations
If you need to add something quick or multiply a few figures, just type in the expression on Google to get the result via Google’s online calculator.
You may also get the result directly when you type in the expression in the address bar on Google Chrome.
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Stock Ticker For Stock Chart
If you know the short term (or ticker) used to represent a company in the stock exchange market, you can just type that in the search box and get the stock chart for the business directly.
So, no need of installing an app to track the stock chart, you can do that right on Google! -
Open Calculator Via Search Results
Do you want to get to an online calculator via Google search? You don’t have to! Google provides a calculator to perform most of the necessary calculations when you search for “Calculator” in the search box without the double quotes.
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Start Timer / Stopwatch
If you do not have a watch or a smartphone with you, Google can help you start a timer or let you utilize a stopwatch.
Just type in “start timer” or “start stopwatch” without the double quotes to get started.
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Weather Lookup
You do not need a weather app, or you need to tune into a weather forecast TV program to check the weather information.
While searching on Google, just type in “Weather in location.” For instance, when you type “Weather in San Francisco” you will get this:
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Covert Time Zones, Currencies & Units
May be you can track different time zones with the help of your smartphone, but you would need an app to convert currencies and units. Why not utilize Google for the same?
Only search for – “convert 1 USD to 1 INR” or “convert 1kg to pound” or “convert 10:00 AM GMT to IST” and similar terms to utilize Google as the go-to tool for easy conversions. If you did not know this before, you should rethink – “How to search on Google?” – where you observe that you can perform a lot of tasks on Google itself.
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Know The Sunset & Sunrise Time
If knowing about the sunset and sunrise time is important to you, Google it!
You do not need to bother your friends or elders to find that out. Just type in something like – “sunrise & sunset San Franciso” and things would be a lot easier.
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Know Your IP Address
If for some reason, you need to check or verify your IP address, just type in – “IP address” on Google to get the result. If you are connected to a VPN network, you will get a different IP address when you search for it on Google. So you need to make sure you are not connected to a VPN network when you want to know the real IP address (you may encounter it in IPv4 or IPv6 format) of your connection.
Wrapping Up
The tips and tricks mentioned above will help you utilize Google in a better way. If you keep utilizing these tips and explore some more, it will eventually change the way you search on Google. Do you use any of the above methods to search on Google? If yes, which one do you use often? Let us know in the comments down below.
Filed in . Read more about Google, Google Search and Search Engines.