How to Search a Specific Website on Google

Many websites have weak built-in search boxes, or none at all. Google can do a better job: with one simple operator, you can tell Google to show results from just one website. It’s useful for finding an old article on a news site, a product on a store’s website, a policy on a government site, or a help page on a company’s support site.

The Quick Answer: Use the site: Operator

In the Google search box, type site: followed by the website’s domain, a space, and your search terms. For example:

site:nasa.gov mars rover

Google returns only pages from nasa.gov that match “mars rover.”

Step-by-Step

Step 1: Go to Google

Open google.com in any browser, or use the Google app or the address bar in Chrome.

Step 2: Type site: and the domain

Type site: and the domain with no space after the colon, such as site:wikipedia.org. You don’t need “https://” or “www.”

Step 3: Add your search words

Add a space, then the words you want to find, such as site:wikipedia.org solar eclipse.

Step 4: Press Enter

Results now come only from that website. If nothing appears, try fewer or different words.

Useful Variations

• Search a section of a site: Add a path, such as site:example.com/blog keyword.
• Search a subdomain: Use site:support.example.com keyword to search only the support site.
• Search a whole domain type: Use site:.gov or site:.edu to limit results to government or education sites.
• Exclude a site: Put a minus sign in front, such as laptop reviews -site:example.com.
• Search an exact phrase: Combine with quotes, such as site:example.com "return policy".
• Find a file type: Combine with filetype, such as site:example.gov filetype:pdf annual report.

Use Google’s Advanced Search Instead

If you’d rather fill in a form than remember operators, use Google’s Advanced Search page. On a Google results page, open Settings (or the Tools/settings menu) and choose Advanced search, or go to google.com/advanced_search. Enter your words, then type the domain in the site or domain box and click Advanced Search.

Set Up a Site Search Shortcut in Chrome

If you search the same website often, Chrome can create a shortcut:

1. Open Chrome Settings > Search engine > Manage search engines and site search.
2. Next to Site search, click Add.
3. Enter a name, a shortcut (for example, wiki), and the site’s search URL, using %s where the search term goes.
4. Click Add. Now type the shortcut in the address bar, press Tab or Space, and type your search.

Many websites appear in this list automatically after you use their own search box.

Real-World Examples

• Find a recipe you saw before: Search the recipe site’s domain with the dish name and one ingredient you remember.
• Check a company’s policies: Search the company’s domain with words like “warranty,” “refund,” or “privacy.”
• Research official information: Limit results to government sites with site:.gov plus your topic, such as tax forms or travel rules.
• Find forum discussions: Search a community site’s domain with an error message or product model number in quotes.

Searching Within a Single Page

If you’re already on the right page and just need to find a word on it, you don’t need Google at all. Press Ctrl + F (Command + F on a Mac) in your browser and type the word. On a phone, use the browser menu’s Find in page option.

Tips for Better Results

• Start with a few specific words, then add more if results are too broad.
• Use the Tools button on the results page to filter by date, which helps find recent posts on busy sites.
• Remember that Google only shows pages it has indexed, so very new pages or pages behind a login may not appear.
• To remove unwanted words, add a minus sign before them. See how to exclude words from Google search.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does site: work on mobile?

Yes. It works the same in the Google app and mobile browsers.

Can I search two sites at once?

Yes. Use OR between them, such as site:example.com OR site:example.org keyword.

Why doesn’t site: show every page?

The results are a sample of what Google has indexed. Some pages may be excluded or not yet crawled.

Summary

To search a specific website on Google, type site: followed by the domain and your keywords, like site:example.com keyword. Narrow results with paths, quotes, or filetype, exclude sites with -site:, or use Google’s Advanced Search page and Chrome’s site search shortcuts for repeat searches.