A guide to getting better Google results

Regardless of what kind of problem you’re having, chances are you’re not the only one. The internet has a wealth of helpful sites to assist you, but finding the right page that has the right answer can be tricky. If you aren’t finding the answers you’re looking for using Google, it may not be that the problem is truly unique – you may simply have to refine your search terms more effectively.

Google doesn’t advertise it, but the popular search engine supports a number of symbols and words to help you narrow what you’re looking for. They’re called Operators, and using them can dramatically improve the likelihood that you’ll find the answer you’re looking for. Here are some tips to improve your Google-Fu by using operators, and a few common sense tips for getting better search results.

Don’t ask questions

Think of how the answer you’re looking for will be phrased, and search for that instead: so, ‘hard drive clicking fix’ instead of ‘why is my hard drive clicking?’.

Narrow the search to a specific site

Preface your search by using ‘site:’ and then enter the domain name to limit the search. For example, search ‘imac warranty site:apple.com’ just searches Apple.

Search for related words or exact phrases

Use a tilde (~) in front of the search word and Google will attempt to find related words. Search for exact phrases by including them in "double quotes".

Exclude words

Do you want to exclude a particular word from your search phrase? Simply put a hyphen (-) in front of it. You can exclude multiple terms and phrases in quotes.

Fill in the blank, and search for either word

If you’re not sure of the word you’re looking for, use the asterisk (*). And if you need to choose between two words, use the ‘OR’ operator.