How to Use Multiple Search Engines (and Why You Should)

Most of us use one search engine for everything, out of habit. But every engine crawls the web on its own and ranks results by its own rules. When the first page of results is thin, repetitive or full of ads, the fastest fix is often not a cleverer query; it’s a second engine.

When to switch engines

• Thin or repetitive results: the same few sites keep coming back.
• Images: different engines index different image sources.
• Recent news: freshness varies between engines.
• Niche or technical topics: forums and documentation may rank differently.
• Fact-checking: if two engines agree on the top sources, that’s a good sign.

Set up search shortcuts in your browser

Search shortcuts (also called keywords) let you type a short word in the address bar to search a particular engine or site.

Chrome

1. Go to Settings → Search engine → Manage search engines and site search.
2. Next to Site search, click Add.
3. Enter a name, a shortcut such as w and a URL with %s where the query goes, for example https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?search=%s.
4. Type w, press Tab or Space, then your search.

Firefox

1. Go to Settings → Search.
2. Under Search Shortcuts, double-click the Keyword column next to an engine and type a short keyword.
3. Type @ in the address bar to see your shortcuts, or type a keyword followed by your search.

Edge

1. Go to Settings → Privacy, search, and services → Address bar and search → Manage search engines.
2. Add an engine with a keyword and a URL containing %s.

Shortcuts worth setting up

Search several engines from one box

Shortcuts are fast once memorized, but switching still means retyping or editing the query. A multi-engine search bar solves that: type once, then pick the engine.

The search bar on CentPage lets you search Google, Bing, Yahoo and other engines from one place, and switch between Web, Images, Videos and News modes to go straight to the result type you need. Because it sits on every new tab, it’s the first thing you see when you go to search. Install it for Chrome or Firefox, or read the full CentPage tour. To make it the first page you see when the browser starts, see how to set your homepage.

Search operators that work almost everywhere

Support varies slightly between engines, but these four are widely understood. For more tools that work straight from the browser, see useful browser tools you can use without installing apps.

When the page you need is gone

Sometimes search finds a result that no longer exists. An archived copy may survive: Web Archive Viewer’s guide to the Wayback Machine and its alternatives explains where to look. And if you’re researching with lots of tabs open, our list of browser keyboard shortcuts will save you plenty of clicks.