search engine for research articles

28 Best Academic Search Engines That make your research easier

If you’re a researcher or scholar, you know that conducting effective online research is a critical part of your job. And if you’re like most people, you’re always on the lookout for new and better ways to do it. 

This article aims to give you an edge over researchers that rely mainly on Google for their entire research process.

Table of Contents

#1. Google Scholar

Google Scholar is an academic search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines.

#2. ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) 

ERIC (short for educational resources information center) is a great academic search engine that focuses on education-related literature. It is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and produced by the Institute of Education Sciences. 

ERIC indexes over a million articles, reports, conference papers, and other resources on all aspects of education from early childhood to higher education. So, search results are more relevant to Education on ERIC. 

ERIC is a free online database of education-related literature. 

#3. Wolfram Alpha

Wolfram Alpha is a “computational knowledge engine” that can answer factual questions posed in natural language. It can be a useful search tool. 

Wolfram Alpha can also be used to find academic articles. Just type in your keywords and Wolfram Alpha will generate a list of academic articles that match your query.

#4. iSEEK Education 

iSEEK is a search engine targeting students, teachers, administrators, and caregiver. It’s designed to be safe with editor-reviewed content.

iSEEK Education is free to use.

#5. BASE (Bielefeld Academic Search Engine)

CORE is an academic search engine that focuses on open access research papers. A link to the full text PDF or complete text web page is supplied for each search result. It’s academic search engine dedicated to open access research papers.

You might also like:

#7. Science.gov

#8. semantic scholar, #9. refseek.

This is one of the free search engines that feels like Yahoo with a massive directory. It could be good when you are just looking for research ideas from unexpected angles. It could lead you to some other database that you might not know such as the CIA The World Factbook, which is a great reference tool.

#10. ResearchGate 

A mixture of social networking site + forum + content databases where researchers can build their profile, share research papers, and interact with one another.

#11. DataONE Search (formerly CiteULike) 

#12. dataelixir , #13. lazyscholar – browser extension, #14. citeseerx – digital library from penstate, #15. the lens – patents search , #16. fatcat – wiki for bibliographic catalog , #17. lexis web – legal database, #18. infotopia – part of the vlrc family, #19. virtual learning resources center, #21. worldwidescience.

Over 70 countries’ databases are used on the website. When a user enters a query, it contacts databases from all across the world and shows results in both English and translated journals and academic resources.

#22. Google Books

A user can browse thousands of books on Google Books, from popular titles to old titles, to find pages that include their search terms. You can look through pages, read online reviews, and find out where to buy a hard copy once you find the book you are interested in.

#23. DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals)

#24. baidu scholar, #25. pubmed central, #26. medline®.

MEDLINE® is a paid subscription database for life sciences and biomedicine that includes more than 28 million citations to journal articles. For finding reliable, carefully chosen health information, Medline Plus provides a powerful search tool and even a dictionary.

Defunct Academic Search Engines 

#27. microsoft academic  .

Microsoft Academic

#28. Scizzle

Final thoughts.

There are many academic search engines that can help researchers and scholars find the information they need. This list provides a variety of options, starting with more familiar engines and moving on to less well-known ones. 

10 thoughts on “28 Best Academic Search Engines That make your research easier”

Thank you so much Joannah..I have found this information useful to me as librarian in an academic library

You are welcome! We are happy to hear that!

Thank You Team, for providing a comprehensive list of academic search engines that can help make research easier for students and scholars. The variety of search engines included offers a range of options for finding scholarly articles, journals, and other academic resources. The article also provides a brief summary of each search engine’s features, which helps in determining which one is the best fit for a specific research topic. Overall, this article is a valuable resource for anyone looking for a quick and easy way to access a wealth of academic information.

We appreciate your support and thank you for your kind words. We will continue to provide valuable resources for students and researchers in the future. Please let us know if you have any further questions or suggestions.

No more questions Thank You

I cannot thank you enough!!! thanks alot 🙂

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Expontum – Helps researchers quickly find knowledge gaps and identify what research projects have been completed before. Expontum is free, open access, and available to all globally with no paid versions of the site. Automated processes scan research article information 24/7 so this website is constantly updating. By looking at over 35 million research publications (240 million by the end of 2023), the site has 146 million tagged research subjects and 122 million tagged research attributes. Learn more about methodology and sources on the Expontum About Page ( https://www.expontum.com/about.php )

Hey Ryan, I clicked and checked your site and thought it was very relevant to our reader. Thank you for sharing. And, we will be reviewing your site soon.

Sounds good! Thanks, Joannah!

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Best Academic Search Engines [2024]

Table of Contents

Gone are the days when researchers used to spend hours in the library skimming through endless reference books and resources. Now, thanks to academic search engines — with just a few clicks, researchers can access an extensive amount of information at their fingertips.

However, not all search engines are designed to make the research discovery process easier. It varies from one search engine to another, few might not have updated their database to the latest articles, while others might still provide older articles as a result of your search keyword or topic, and so on. This way, half of the researcher’s time is consumed shortlisting the best academic search engines.

Therefore, to help you choose the best search engine for academic research, we’ve crafted this blog. In this article, we will explore the best academic search engines available and why they are essential for scholars, researchers, and students alike.

Introduction to Academic Search Engines

Academic search engines are online repositories or databases that host millions of research articles and allow users to find relevant scholarly articles, research publications, conference proceedings, and other academic resources. Unlike web search engines like Google or Bing, these platforms are specifically designed to provide accurate, reliable, and relevant academic content.

These search engines often have advanced features that help users filter their search results based on specific criteria. For example, SciSpace helps you filter the results based on author, publication date, PDF, open-access, and more. In addition, it also provides citation information, abstracts, and full-text access to research papers and other scholarly literature, making them invaluable tools for scholars and researchers.

Academic search engines play a crucial role in the research process by providing scholars with easy access to relevant and reliable information. They save researchers valuable time by eliminating the need to sift through irrelevant search results and provide them with free access to a focused pool of academic resources.

With their advanced features and comprehensive coverage, these academic databases empower researchers to stay at the forefront of their fields and contribute to the advancement of knowledge.

Benefits of using reliable academic search engines for research

When it comes to academic research, using reliable search engines is of utmost importance. The credibility and quality of the sources you rely on can significantly impact the results of your research findings and conclusions.

Here are the potential advantages of using a popular search engine!

1. Reliable scholarly source: By using an academic search engine, researchers can ensure that the information they find is from reputable sources. These academic databases typically index content from scholarly journals, universities, research institutions, and other reliable and cited sources. As a result, the risk of using incorrect or biased information, which is prevalent on the open web, is significantly reduced.

2. Increased exposure to enormous articles: With a reliable academic search engine, you can access a vast array of scholarly articles and research publications. These search engines have extensive academic databases that include articles from various disciplines, including science and social sciences, allowing researchers to explore a wide range of topics and find relevant studies to support their research.

3. Advanced search filters: Reliable academic search engines often provide advanced search features that enable researchers to refine their search queries and narrow down the results to find the most relevant and latest information. These features may include filters for publication date, author, journal, and citation count, among others. By utilizing these advanced search terms and options, researchers can save time and effort by quickly finding the most pertinent resources.

4. Access full-text journal articles: Another advantage of using search engine for academic research is the ability to access full-text scientific articles. Many academic search engines provide direct links to the full text of articles, either freely available or through institutional subscriptions. This ensures that researchers can read and analyze the complete article, rather than relying on abstracts or TL;DR summaries.

5. Additional tools support: The most reliable search engines for research like SciSpace offer additional tools and features to enhance the research workflow. These may include citation generators, reference management systems, and options to save and organize search results. These tools can greatly facilitate the organization and the citation analysis of sources, making the research process more efficient and systematic.

Best search engines for research

Now that we’ve understood the importance of using reliable search engines for academic research, let's explore some of the best academic literature search engines available:

1. SciSpace

SciSpace is considered the best academic search engine that hosts and provides free access to a comprehensive index of 300 million+ scholarly articles from various fields. It utilizes advanced algorithms to provide users with highly relevant search results. Its intuitive and user-friendly interface makes it ideal for both novice and experienced researchers to navigate millions of research papers with no mess around.

One of the standout features of SciSpace is its “ Trace feature ” which allows users to find relevant research papers based on the preferred criteria including citation counts, related publications, references, authors, and more. It helps you land on the right research paper based on your preferences or research needs.

SciSpace is the only search engine that not only helps you discover relevant scholarly scientific literature but also allows you to read a research paper using its AI research assistant, conduct a literature review, and generate accurate citations for your research publications. It is an all-in-one platform that accelerates your research workflow with its AI-powered tools. You can explore all of them here

2. Google Scholar

Google Scholar is undoubtedly one of the popular search engines. With its vast database of scholarly literature, Google Scholar allows users to search for articles, theses, books, and conference papers across multiple academic disciplines. Google Scholar helps users save their search queries and set up email alerts for new publications in their field of interest. This ensures that researchers stay up-to-date with the latest developments in their respective fields.

PubMed is a go-to academic search engine for those in the field of medicine and life sciences. Developed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), PubMed provides access to a vast collection of medicine, biomedical, health sciences, or literature, including journals, clinical trials, and scientific articles. Its meticulously curated articles makes it a trusted resource for medical professionals, scientists, researchers, and students alike.

Scopus is a comprehensive database of science that covers a wide range of scholarly literature across multiple disciplines. It offers a vast collection of peer reviewed articles, including publications, conference papers, and patents. With its extensive coverage and powerful search capabilities, Scopus is a valuable tool for researchers looking to explore the latest developments in their respective fields.

JSTOR is a repository that provides access to a vast collection of academic journals, books, and primary sources. Its interdisciplinary approach makes it a valuable resource for researchers across various fields of study.

6. IEEE Xplore

IEEE Xplore is a premier academic search engine for those in the fields of engineering, computer science, and technology. It provides access to a vast collection of technical articles, conference papers, and standards published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

IEEE Xplore is a treasure trove of knowledge for researchers and engineers looking to stay at the forefront of technological advancements.

Criteria for choosing the best academic search engine

With so many free academic search engines to choose from, it can be challenging to determine which one is the best fit for your research needs. Here are some criteria to consider when selecting an academic search engine:

• Relevance: The search engine should provide highly relevant search results that are specific to your area of study.
• Database size: A larger database gives you access to a broader range of scientific literature.
• Advanced search capabilities: Look for search engines that offer advanced search filters, allowing you to refine your search based on specific criteria.
• User-friendly interface: A user-friendly interface makes it easier for researchers to navigate and retrieve the information they need efficiently.
• Accessibility: Consider the availability of full-text or PDF access to articles and the ease of obtaining the necessary permissions to cite or use the content.

In conclusion, academic search engines play a vital role in scholarly communication, facilitating efficient and reliable academic research. They provide scholars, researchers, and students with access to a vast array of scholarly articles, research papers, and other academic resources. By using the best academic search engines, researchers can ensure that their research is backed by evidence (accurate and trustworthy information).

While each search engine has its own unique features and strengths, the key is to choose the one that best aligns with your research needs and preferences. Remember to utilize advanced search filters, explore related articles and citations, and keep your research well-organized for maximum efficiency. As technology continues to advance, we can expect academic search engines to evolve and provide even more innovative solutions to the challenges faced in academic research.

So, embrace these powerful tools, explore the above-featured academic search engines, and let us know which tool you are clinging to!

Frequently Asked Questions

Google Scholar, SciSpace, PubMed, and JSTOR are widely used tools for academic research.

Academic search engineinvolves an in-depth examination of scholarly sources with a rigorous approach, while a Google search engine explores a wider range of web content, including non-academic sources, with varying levels of reliability.

They provide a comprehensive overview of existing research on diverse topics aiding researchers in conducting an efficient literature review without investing more time.

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Scopus Search

Scopus quickly delivers the information you're looking for from over 92m records. Updated daily, Scopus features state-of-the-art search tools and filters to empower research efficiency.

Increase research efficiency

Having access to comprehensive content and high-quality data is only effective if you can easily find the information you need. Uncovering trends, discovering sources and potential collaborators, and building deeper insights require effective search tools that can identify the right results.

Identify trends for key topics

Scopus’ literature search is built to distill massive amounts of information down to the most relevant documents and information in less time.

With Scopus you can search and filter results in the following ways:

Document search : Search directly from the homepage and use detailed search options to ensure you find the document(s) you want

Author search : Search for a specific author by name or by Open Research and Contributor Identifier ID (ORCID)

Affiliation search : Identify and assess an affiliation’s scholarly output, collaborating institutions and top authors

Advanced search : Narrow the scope of your search using field codes, proximity operators and/or Boolean operators

Refine results : Scopus makes it easy to refine your results list to specific categories of documents

Language interface : The Scopus interface is available in Chinese and Japanese; content is not localized, but you can switch the interface to one of these language options (and switch back to English, the default language) at the bottom of any Scopus page

Quick reference guide

Learn how to easily start your search from the homepage and use all the features in Scopus with this handy Quick Reference Guide.

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Search Help

Get the most out of Google Scholar with some helpful tips on searches, email alerts, citation export, and more.

Finding recent papers

Your search results are normally sorted by relevance, not by date. To find newer articles, try the following options in the left sidebar:

• click "Since Year" to show only recently published papers, sorted by relevance;
• click "Sort by date" to show just the new additions, sorted by date;
• click the envelope icon to have new results periodically delivered by email.

Locating the full text of an article

Abstracts are freely available for most of the articles. Alas, reading the entire article may require a subscription. Here're a few things to try:

• click a library link, e.g., "FindIt@Harvard", to the right of the search result;
• click a link labeled [PDF] to the right of the search result;
• click "All versions" under the search result and check out the alternative sources;
• click "Related articles" or "Cited by" under the search result to explore similar articles.

If you're affiliated with a university, but don't see links such as "FindIt@Harvard", please check with your local library about the best way to access their online subscriptions. You may need to do search from a computer on campus, or to configure your browser to use a library proxy.

Getting better answers

If you're new to the subject, it may be helpful to pick up the terminology from secondary sources. E.g., a Wikipedia article for "overweight" might suggest a Scholar search for "pediatric hyperalimentation".

If the search results are too specific for your needs, check out what they're citing in their "References" sections. Referenced works are often more general in nature.

Similarly, if the search results are too basic for you, click "Cited by" to see newer papers that referenced them. These newer papers will often be more specific.

Explore! There's rarely a single answer to a research question. Click "Related articles" or "Cited by" to see closely related work, or search for author's name and see what else they have written.

Searching Google Scholar

Use the "author:" operator, e.g., author:"d knuth" or author:"donald e knuth".

Put the paper's title in quotations: "A History of the China Sea".

You'll often get better results if you search only recent articles, but still sort them by relevance, not by date. E.g., click "Since 2018" in the left sidebar of the search results page.

To see the absolutely newest articles first, click "Sort by date" in the sidebar. If you use this feature a lot, you may also find it useful to setup email alerts to have new results automatically sent to you.

Note: On smaller screens that don't show the sidebar, these options are available in the dropdown menu labelled "Year" right below the search button.

Select the "Case law" option on the homepage or in the side drawer on the search results page.

It finds documents similar to the given search result.

It's in the side drawer. The advanced search window lets you search in the author, title, and publication fields, as well as limit your search results by date.

Select the "Case law" option and do a keyword search over all jurisdictions. Then, click the "Select courts" link in the left sidebar on the search results page.

Tip: To quickly search a frequently used selection of courts, bookmark a search results page with the desired selection.

Access to articles

For each Scholar search result, we try to find a version of the article that you can read. These access links are labelled [PDF] or [HTML] and appear to the right of the search result. For example:

A paper that you need to read

Access links cover a wide variety of ways in which articles may be available to you - articles that your library subscribes to, open access articles, free-to-read articles from publishers, preprints, articles in repositories, etc.

When you are on a campus network, access links automatically include your library subscriptions and direct you to subscribed versions of articles. On-campus access links cover subscriptions from primary publishers as well as aggregators.

Off-campus access

Off-campus access links let you take your library subscriptions with you when you are at home or traveling. You can read subscribed articles when you are off-campus just as easily as when you are on-campus. Off-campus access links work by recording your subscriptions when you visit Scholar while on-campus, and looking up the recorded subscriptions later when you are off-campus.

We use the recorded subscriptions to provide you with the same subscribed access links as you see on campus. We also indicate your subscription access to participating publishers so that they can allow you to read the full-text of these articles without logging in or using a proxy. The recorded subscription information expires after 30 days and is automatically deleted.

In addition to Google Scholar search results, off-campus access links can also appear on articles from publishers participating in the off-campus subscription access program. Look for links labeled [PDF] or [HTML] on the right hand side of article pages.

Anne Author , John Doe , Jane Smith , Someone Else

In this fascinating paper, we investigate various topics that would be of interest to you. We also describe new methods relevant to your project, and attempt to address several questions which you would also like to know the answer to. Lastly, we analyze …

You can disable off-campus access links on the Scholar settings page . Disabling off-campus access links will turn off recording of your library subscriptions. It will also turn off indicating subscription access to participating publishers. Once off-campus access links are disabled, you may need to identify and configure an alternate mechanism (e.g., an institutional proxy or VPN) to access your library subscriptions while off-campus.

Email Alerts

Do a search for the topic of interest, e.g., "M Theory"; click the envelope icon in the sidebar of the search results page; enter your email address, and click "Create alert". We'll then periodically email you newly published papers that match your search criteria.

No, you can enter any email address of your choice. If the email address isn't a Google account or doesn't match your Google account, then we'll email you a verification link, which you'll need to click to start receiving alerts.

This works best if you create a public profile , which is free and quick to do. Once you get to the homepage with your photo, click "Follow" next to your name, select "New citations to my articles", and click "Done". We will then email you when we find new articles that cite yours.

Search for the title of your paper, e.g., "Anti de Sitter space and holography"; click on the "Cited by" link at the bottom of the search result; and then click on the envelope icon in the left sidebar of the search results page.

First, do a search for your colleague's name, and see if they have a Scholar profile. If they do, click on it, click the "Follow" button next to their name, select "New articles by this author", and click "Done".

If they don't have a profile, do a search by author, e.g., [author:s-hawking], and click on the mighty envelope in the left sidebar of the search results page. If you find that several different people share the same name, you may need to add co-author names or topical keywords to limit results to the author you wish to follow.

We send the alerts right after we add new papers to Google Scholar. This usually happens several times a week, except that our search robots meticulously observe holidays.

There's a link to cancel the alert at the bottom of every notification email.

If you created alerts using a Google account, you can manage them all here . If you're not using a Google account, you'll need to unsubscribe from the individual alerts and subscribe to the new ones.

Google Scholar library

Google Scholar library is your personal collection of articles. You can save articles right off the search page, organize them by adding labels, and use the power of Scholar search to quickly find just the one you want - at any time and from anywhere. You decide what goes into your library, and we’ll keep the links up to date.

You get all the goodies that come with Scholar search results - links to PDF and to your university's subscriptions, formatted citations, citing articles, and more!

Library help

Find the article you want to add in Google Scholar and click the “Save” button under the search result.

Click “My library” at the top of the page or in the side drawer to view all articles in your library. To search the full text of these articles, enter your query as usual in the search box.

Find the article you want to remove, and then click the “Delete” button under it.

• To add a label to an article, find the article in your library, click the “Label” button under it, select the label you want to apply, and click “Done”.
• To view all the articles with a specific label, click the label name in the left sidebar of your library page.
• To remove a label from an article, click the “Label” button under it, deselect the label you want to remove, and click “Done”.
• To add, edit, or delete labels, click “Manage labels” in the left column of your library page.

Only you can see the articles in your library. If you create a Scholar profile and make it public, then the articles in your public profile (and only those articles) will be visible to everyone.

Your profile contains all the articles you have written yourself. It’s a way to present your work to others, as well as to keep track of citations to it. Your library is a way to organize the articles that you’d like to read or cite, not necessarily the ones you’ve written.

Citation Export

Click the "Cite" button under the search result and then select your bibliography manager at the bottom of the popup. We currently support BibTeX, EndNote, RefMan, and RefWorks.

Err, no, please respect our robots.txt when you access Google Scholar using automated software. As the wearers of crawler's shoes and webmaster's hat, we cannot recommend adherence to web standards highly enough.

Sorry, we're unable to provide bulk access. You'll need to make an arrangement directly with the source of the data you're interested in. Keep in mind that a lot of the records in Google Scholar come from commercial subscription services.

Sorry, we can only show up to 1,000 results for any particular search query. Try a different query to get more results.

Content Coverage

Google Scholar includes journal and conference papers, theses and dissertations, academic books, pre-prints, abstracts, technical reports and other scholarly literature from all broad areas of research. You'll find works from a wide variety of academic publishers, professional societies and university repositories, as well as scholarly articles available anywhere across the web. Google Scholar also includes court opinions and patents.

We index research articles and abstracts from most major academic publishers and repositories worldwide, including both free and subscription sources. To check current coverage of a specific source in Google Scholar, search for a sample of their article titles in quotes.

While we try to be comprehensive, it isn't possible to guarantee uninterrupted coverage of any particular source. We index articles from sources all over the web and link to these websites in our search results. If one of these websites becomes unavailable to our search robots or to a large number of web users, we have to remove it from Google Scholar until it becomes available again.

Our meticulous search robots generally try to index every paper from every website they visit, including most major sources and also many lesser known ones.

That said, Google Scholar is primarily a search of academic papers. Shorter articles, such as book reviews, news sections, editorials, announcements and letters, may or may not be included. Untitled documents and documents without authors are usually not included. Website URLs that aren't available to our search robots or to the majority of web users are, obviously, not included either. Nor do we include websites that require you to sign up for an account, install a browser plugin, watch four colorful ads, and turn around three times and say coo-coo before you can read the listing of titles scanned at 10 DPI... You get the idea, we cover academic papers from sensible websites.

That's usually because we index many of these papers from other websites, such as the websites of their primary publishers. The "site:" operator currently only searches the primary version of each paper.

It could also be that the papers are located on examplejournals.gov, not on example.gov. Please make sure you're searching for the "right" website.

That said, the best way to check coverage of a specific source is to search for a sample of their papers using the title of the paper.

Ahem, we index papers, not journals. You should also ask about our coverage of universities, research groups, proteins, seminal breakthroughs, and other dimensions that are of interest to users. All such questions are best answered by searching for a statistical sample of papers that has the property of interest - journal, author, protein, etc. Many coverage comparisons are available if you search for [allintitle:"google scholar"], but some of them are more statistically valid than others.

Currently, Google Scholar allows you to search and read published opinions of US state appellate and supreme court cases since 1950, US federal district, appellate, tax and bankruptcy courts since 1923 and US Supreme Court cases since 1791. In addition, it includes citations for cases cited by indexed opinions or journal articles which allows you to find influential cases (usually older or international) which are not yet online or publicly available.

Legal opinions in Google Scholar are provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied on as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed lawyer. Google does not warrant that the information is complete or accurate.

We normally add new papers several times a week. However, updates to existing records take 6-9 months to a year or longer, because in order to update our records, we need to first recrawl them from the source website. For many larger websites, the speed at which we can update their records is limited by the crawl rate that they allow.

Inclusion and Corrections

We apologize, and we assure you the error was unintentional. Automated extraction of information from articles in diverse fields can be tricky, so an error sometimes sneaks through.

Please write to the owner of the website where the erroneous search result is coming from, and encourage them to provide correct bibliographic data to us, as described in the technical guidelines . Once the data is corrected on their website, it usually takes 6-9 months to a year or longer for it to be updated in Google Scholar. We appreciate your help and your patience.

If you can't find your papers when you search for them by title and by author, please refer your publisher to our technical guidelines .

You can also deposit your papers into your institutional repository or put their PDF versions on your personal website, but please follow your publisher's requirements when you do so. See our technical guidelines for more details on the inclusion process.

We normally add new papers several times a week; however, it might take us some time to crawl larger websites, and corrections to already included papers can take 6-9 months to a year or longer.

Google Scholar generally reflects the state of the web as it is currently visible to our search robots and to the majority of users. When you're searching for relevant papers to read, you wouldn't want it any other way!

If your citation counts have gone down, chances are that either your paper or papers that cite it have either disappeared from the web entirely, or have become unavailable to our search robots, or, perhaps, have been reformatted in a way that made it difficult for our automated software to identify their bibliographic data and references. If you wish to correct this, you'll need to identify the specific documents with indexing problems and ask your publisher to fix them. Please refer to the technical guidelines .

Please do let us know . Please include the URL for the opinion, the corrected information and a source where we can verify the correction.

We're only able to make corrections to court opinions that are hosted on our own website. For corrections to academic papers, books, dissertations and other third-party material, click on the search result in question and contact the owner of the website where the document came from. For corrections to books from Google Book Search, click on the book's title and locate the link to provide feedback at the bottom of the book's page.

General Questions

These are articles which other scholarly articles have referred to, but which we haven't found online. To exclude them from your search results, uncheck the "include citations" box on the left sidebar.

First, click on links labeled [PDF] or [HTML] to the right of the search result's title. Also, check out the "All versions" link at the bottom of the search result.

Second, if you're affiliated with a university, using a computer on campus will often let you access your library's online subscriptions. Look for links labeled with your library's name to the right of the search result's title. Also, see if there's a link to the full text on the publisher's page with the abstract.

Keep in mind that final published versions are often only available to subscribers, and that some articles are not available online at all. Good luck!

Technically, your web browser remembers your settings in a "cookie" on your computer's disk, and sends this cookie to our website along with every search. Check that your browser isn't configured to discard our cookies. Also, check if disabling various proxies or overly helpful privacy settings does the trick. Either way, your settings are stored on your computer, not on our servers, so a long hard look at your browser's preferences or internet options should help cure the machine's forgetfulness.

Not even close. That phrase is our acknowledgement that much of scholarly research involves building on what others have already discovered. It's taken from Sir Isaac Newton's famous quote, "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants."

• Privacy & Terms

Explore millions of high-quality primary sources and images from around the world, including artworks, maps, photographs, and more.

Explore migration issues through a variety of media types

• Part of The Streets are Talking: Public Forms of Creative Expression from Around the World
• Part of The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 34, No. 1 (Winter 2020)
• Part of Cato Institute (Aug. 3, 2021)
• Part of University of California Press
• Part of Open: Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture
• Part of Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies, Vol. 19, No. 1 (Winter 2012)
• Part of R Street Institute (Nov. 1, 2020)
• Part of Leuven University Press
• Part of UN Secretary-General Papers: Ban Ki-moon (2007-2016)
• Part of Perspectives on Terrorism, Vol. 12, No. 4 (August 2018)
• Part of Leveraging Lives: Serbia and Illegal Tunisian Migration to Europe, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Mar. 1, 2023)
• Part of UCL Press

Harness the power of visual materials—explore more than 3 million images now on JSTOR.

Enhance your scholarly research with underground newspapers, magazines, and journals.

Explore collections in the arts, sciences, and literature from the world’s leading museums, archives, and scholars.

Reference management. Clean and simple.

Academic Databases

ERIC research database: complete tutorial

The ERIC database is the premier education literature database for scholarly research. This guide covers search types and strategies, filters, and full text options.

How to efficiently search online databases for academic research

Academic research isn't difficult if you know where and how to search for scholarly articles and research papers. Here's how to do it.

How to use Google Scholar: the ultimate guide

Google Scholar is the number one academic search engine. Our detailed guide covers best practices for basic and advanced search strategies in Google Scholar.

How to use PubMed: the ultimate guide

PubMed is the most popular search engine for biomedical sciences. Learn how to use PubMed, basic and advanced search strategies, and about its limitations and alternatives in this ultimate guide.

Is Google Scholar a database or search engine? [Update 2024]

Google Scholar is the number one free resource to discover scientific literature, but is it an academic database or a search engine?

The best academic research databases [Update 2024]

Your research is stuck and you need to find new sources? Take a look at our compilation of academic research databases: Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, ERIC, JSTOR, DOAJ, Science Direct, and IEEE Xplore.

The best academic search engines [Update 2024]

Your research is stuck, and you need to find new sources. Take a look at our compilation of free academic search engines: ✓ Google Scholar ✓ BASE ✓ CORE ✓ Science.gov

The best research databases for computer science [Update 2024]

The top 4 research databases specifically dedicated to computer science: ✓ ACM Digital Library ✓ IEEE Xplore ✓ dbpl ✓ Springer LNCS

The best research databases for healthcare and medicine [Update 2024]

We have compiled the top list of research databases for healthcare, medicine, and biomedical research: PubMed, EMBASE, PMC, and Cochrane Library.

Bibliometrics

Learn how to calculate your h-index on Google Scholar

Learn how to calculate your h-index using Google Scholar online for free, and which tools to use for a detailed analysis.

Learn how to calculate your h-index using Scopus [3 steps]

Learn how to assess your h-index on Scopus in 3 easy steps.

Learn how to calculate your h-index using Web of Science

Learn how to calculate your h-index using Web of Science in 3 easy steps.

The ultimate how-to-guide on the h-index

Learn what an h-index is, how to calculate it, and why it is important to know about it for your career as a scientist.

What is a good h-index? [with examples]

Curious to know what a good h-index is? Read this guide to learn when an h-index is considered good.

What is a good impact factor?

Do you want to find out what a good impact factor is? Read this guide to learn what an impact factor is, how it is calculated, and what impact factor is considered good.

Credible Sources

Can a blog be a credible source? [Update 2024]

You want to add a blog post to your research paper? In general, blogs are not considered to be credible sources: ➜ check out these reasons to learn more about it.

How can I find credible sources? [7 tips]

Sometimes it is hard to determine whether a source is credible or not. Read our guide to help you find credible sources.

Is Wikipedia a credible source?

We all ❤ Wikipedia, but can you cite it in your research paper? No. Wikipedia is not a credible source, and here is why you should only use it for preliminary research.

What are credible sources?

Credible sources are sources that are trustworthy and can be used as references in your academic papers. This guide will help you identify and evaluate sources for their credibility.

What are predatory journals?

This day and age, you have to be careful where you submit your work for publication. This article helps you spot a predatory journal and has tips and tricks on what to do if you accidentally submitted to one.

Primary and Secondary Sources

Interviews: are they a primary source?

Interviews can add tremendously to your research project. Read on to quickly learn when an interview is considered a primary source.

Is a documentary a secondary source? [with examples]

You are not sure if a documentary is a secondary source? We show you when and why is a documentary either a secondary or a tertiary source.

Is a letter a primary source?

Letters are frequently used in historical research. Read on to see when a letter qualifies as a primary source.

Is a map a primary source? [with examples]

Are you not sure if a map is a primary source? This guide will show you when and why a map is a primary or a secondary source.

Is a painting a primary source? [with examples]

Are you unsure if a painting is a primary source? This guide will show you when and why a painting is either a primary or a secondary source.

Is a textbook a secondary source?

Are you unsure if a textbook is a secondary source? Learn in this guide when and why a textbook is either a primary, secondary, or tertiary source.

Is an autobiography a primary source?

Are you not sure if an autobiography is a primary source? We show you when and why an autobiography is either a primary or secondary source.

Is an encyclopedia a primary source?

Are you unsure if an encyclopedia is a primary source? Find your answer and learn the right way to reference an encyclopedia in this guide.

Is census data a primary source?

You are not sure if census data is a primary source? We will show you when and why census data is a primary source and where to get it.

Is the US Constitution a primary source?

Are you wondering if the US Constitution is a primary source? Find the answer to your question in this guide.

Newspaper articles: primary or secondary sources?

Learn what questions to ask to see if a newspaper article really qualifies as a primary source.

Primary vs. secondary sources: how to distinguish them

Primary and secondary sources are the foundations of every research project. Learn about their differences and when to use them.

What is a primary source?

Primary sources are the most important sources when undertaking a research project. We answer the 5 most asked questions about primary sources.

What is a secondary source?

Secondary sources are your starting point when undertaking a research project. We answer the 5 most asked questions about secondary sources.

Research Methodology

How to do a content analysis [7 steps]

Content analysis is a research method you might come across when analyzing data. Learn what a content analysis is and how to do one in this step-by-step guide.

How to do a thematic analysis [6 steps]

A thematic analysis is a research method you might come across when analyzing qualitative data. Learn what a thematic analysis is and how to write one in this step-by-step guide.

How to write a rhetorical analysis [4 steps]

A rhetorical analysis explores the goals and motivations of an author, the techniques they’ve used to reach their audience, and how successful these techniques were. Learn how to write an excellent rhetorical analysis in this guide.

Qualitative vs. quantitative research - what’s the difference?

Qualitative and quantitative research are effective but very different approaches to study a subject. Learn the difference between them, what they are used for, and how to analyze qualitative and quantitative research in this guide.

What is research methodology? [Update 2024]

Having the right research methodology can be a make-or-break factor for your academic work. What is research methodology, and how can you get ahead?

Scholarly Sources

How to find a DOI [Update 2024]

Are you not sure where to find a DOI? Read this guide to learn exactly where to spot DOIs, and how to include them in your citations!

How to identify if a source is scholarly

Not sure if it is a scholarly source? Looking at these 6 identifiers can help differentiate scholarly from non-scholarly articles.

How to know if an article is peer reviewed [6 key features]

You don't know exactly what 'peer reviewed' articles are? Read this guide to learn all about peer reviewed articles, their features, and how to find them!

Is a book a scholarly source? [with checklist]

Sometimes it can be difficult to distinguish scholarly from non-scholarly books. This guide will help you with that. Learn how to identify scholarly books by following our simple guidelines.

What are peer reviewed journals? [Update 2024]

You don't know exactly what 'peer review' means? Read this guide to clear your doubts, and learn more about peer reviewed articles, its process and types!

What is a DOI [with examples]

What is a DOI? Learn what a digital object identifier is and how to include a DOI in APA and other styles.

What is a scholarly source?

Are you wondering what a scholarly source is and what makes it a scholarly source? Learn all about it in this guide, including what elements a scholarly source generally contains.

What is grey literature? [with examples]

Wondering what is grey literature and how to find it? Find all things grey literature in this quick and easy guide filled with sources for grey literature.

The Top 100 Search Engines For Academic Research

What Are The Top 100 Search Engines For Academic Research?

by TeachThught Staff

Need to get started with a more broad search? These academic search engines are great resources.

See also 7 Pros And Cons Of Using Siri For Learning

ResearchGate

Access over 135 million publication pages and stay up to date with what’s happening in most professional fields.

With more than 1 billion documents, web pages, books, journals, newspapers, and more, RefSeek offers authoritative resources in just about any subject, without all of the mess of sponsored links and commercial results.

Digital Library of the Commons Repository

Check out the DLC to find international literature including free and open access full-text articles, papers, and dissertations.

Microsoft Academic Search

Microsoft’s academic search engine offers access to more than 38 million different publications, with features including maps, graphing, trends, and paths that show how authors are connected.

Google Trends

Google’s super cool search tool will allow you to find searches that correlate with real-world data.

WolframAlpha

Using expert-level knowledge, this search engine doesn’t just find links; it answers questions, does analysis, and generates reports.

BASE is one of the world’s most voluminous search engines, especially for academic web resources. BASE provides more than 200 million documents from more than 8,000 content providers. You can access the full texts of about 60% of the indexed documents for free (Open Access). BASE is operated by Bielefeld University Library.

Databases and Archives

Resources like the Library of Congress have considerable archives and documents available, and many of them have taken their collections online. Use these search tools to get access to these incredible resources.

Library of Congress

In this incredible library, you’ll get access to searchable source documents, historical photos, and amazing digital collections.

Archives Hub

Find the best of what Britain has to offer in the Archives Hub. You’ll be able to search archives from almost 200 institutions from England, Scotland, and Wales.

National Archives

Check out this resource for access to the National Archives. Find online, public access to find historic documents, research, government information, and more in a single search.

arXiv ePrint Archive

Cornell University’s arXiv.org offers open access to a wealth of e-prints in math, science, and related subjects. Search this resource to find what you need among 1,772,647 documents and counting.

National Agricultural Library

A service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, you can find global information for agriculture in the National Agricultural Library.

Smithsonian Institution Research Information System

Get access to the considerable resources of the Smithsonian Institution through the Research Information System, a great way to search more than 7.4 million records from the Smithsonian’s museums, archives, and libraries.

The British Library Catalogues & Collection

Explore the British Library catalogs, printed materials, digital collections, and even collection blogs for a wealth of resources.

CIA World Factbook

As the center of intelligence, the CIA has certainly done its job with The World Factbook, offering information on major reference information around the world. History, people, government, economy, and more are all covered in this online publication.

State Legislative Websites Directory

Use this database to find information from the legislatures of all 50 U.S. states, DC, and the Territories. You can look up bills, statutes, legislators, and more with this excellent tool.

Catalog of U.S. Government Publications

Search through the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications to find descriptive records for historical and current publications, with direct links where available.

iSEEK Education

iSeek is an excellent targeted search engine, designed especially for students, teachers, administrators, and caregivers. Find authoritative, intelligent, and time-saving resources in a safe, editor-reviewed environment with iSEEK.

Books & Journals

Instead of heading to the library to bury your face in the stacks, use these search engines to find out which libraries have the books you need, and maybe even find them available online.

Google Scholar

Check out Google Scholar to find only scholarly resources on Google. The search specializes in articles, patents, and legal documents, and even has a resource for gathering your citations.

Microsoft Academic

Microsoft Academic is a semantic academic search engine powered by Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG) data and Microsoft Academic Knowledge Exploration Service (MAKES) hosted API’s.

Find items from 10,000 libraries worldwide, with books, DVDs, CDs, and articles up for grabs. You can even find your closest library with WorldCat’s tools.

Google Books

Supercharge your research by searching this index of the world’s books. You’ll find millions for free and others you can preview to find out if they’re what you’re looking for.

Science Direct

For scientific information only, Scirus is a comprehensive research tool with more than 460 million scientific items including journal content, courseware, patents, educational websites, and more.

Open Library

Find the world’s classic literature, open e-books, and other excellent open and free resources in the Open Library. You can even contribute to the library with information, corrections to the catalog, and curated lists.

Bioline International

Search Bioline International to get connected with a variety of scientific journals. The search is managed by scientists and librarians as a collaborative initiative between Bioline Toronto and the Reference Center on Environmental Information.

Directory of Open Access Journals

When you need top-quality journal writings for free, the Directory of Open Access Journals is a great place to check out. You’ll get access to a searchable journal of full-text quality controlled scientific and scholarly journals.

In this curated academic search engine, you’ll get results from over 4,000 free scholarly e-journals in the arts and humanities.

With a focus on science, these academic search engines return all-science, all the time.

Science.gov

In this government science portal, you can search more than 60 databases and 2,200 selected websites across more than 200 million pages and 12 federal agencies. This is an incredible resource for millions of pages of U.S. government science information.

CERN Document Server

This organization for nuclear research serves up a great search and directory for experiments, archives, articles, books, presentations, and so much more within their documents.

WorldWideScience

Use WorldWideScience.org as a global science gateway, offering excellent search results in the sciences, and even the option to select specific databases and find resources in your own language.

Math & Technology

Keep your results limited to only the best math and technology resources by using these search engines.

ZMATH Online Database

Zentralblatt MATH’s online database has millions of entries from thousands of serials and journals dating back as far as 1826. Nearly 35,000 items were added in 2012 alone.

This database was made for scientists and engineers by the Institution of Engineering and Technology. You’ll find nearly 13 million abstracts and research literature, primarily in the fields of physics and engineering.

The Collection of Computer Science Bibliographies

Find more than 3 million references to journal articles, conference papers, and technical reports in computer science with this bibliography collection.

Social Science

Researchers working in the fields of psychology, anthropology, and related subjects will find great results using these search engines.

Behavioral Brain Science Archive

Check out this searchable archive to find extensive psychology and brain science articles.

Social Science Research Network

In this research network, you can find a wide variety of social science research from a number of specialized networks including cognitive science, leadership, management, and social insurance.

Social Sciences Citation Index

The Thomson Reuters Social Sciences Citation Index is a paid tool, but well worth its cost for the wealth of relevant articles, search tools, and thorough resources available.

Search the languages of the world with Ethnologue, offering an encyclopedic reference of all the world’s known living languages. You’ll also be able to find more than 28,000 citations in the Ethnologue’s language research bibliography.

Find awesome resources for history through these search engines that index original documents, sources, and archives.

David Rumsey Historical Map Collection

Use the LUNA Browser to check out David Rumsey’s Map Collection with more than 30,000 images, searchable by keyword.

Find excellent sources for women’s history with the Genesis dataset and extensive list of web resources.

Get access to historical military records through Fold3, the web’s premier collection of original military records and memorials.

Internet Modern History Sourcebook

Use the Internet Modern History Sourcebook to find thousands of sources in modern history. Browse and search to find full texts, multimedia, and more.

Library of Anglo-American Culture and History

Use the history guide from the Library of Anglo-American Culture and History for a subject catalog of recommended websites for historians, with about 11,000 to choose from.

Internet Ancient History Sourcebook

The Internet Ancient History Sourcebook is a great place to study human origins, with full text and search on topics including Mesopotamia, Rome, the Hellenistic world, Late Antiquity, and Christian origins.

History Engine

In this tool for collaborative education and research, students can learn history by researching, writing, and publishing, creating a collection of historical articles in U.S. history that can be searched for here by scholars, teachers, and the general public.

Business and Economics

Using these search engines, you’ll get access to business publications, journal articles, and more.

Virtual Library Labour History

Maintained by the International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam, this library offers historians excellent content for learning about economics, business, and more.

Visit EconLit to access more than 120 years of economics literature from around the world in an easily searchable format. Find journal articles, books, book reviews, articles, working papers, and dissertations, as well as historic journal articles from 1886 to 1968.

National Bureau of Economic Research

On this site, you can learn about and find access to great resources in economic research.

Research Papers in Economics

Find research in economics and related sciences through the RePEc, a volunteer-maintained bibliographic database of working papers, articles, books, and even software components with more than 1.2 million research pieces.

Corporate Information

Perfect for researching companies, Corporate Information offers an easy way to find corporate financial records.

Economists will enjoy this excellent site for finding economics resources, including jobs, courses, and even conferences.

Google Finance

Easily look up stocks with this search engine to monitor the stock market and your portfolio.

EDGAR Search

The SEC requires certain disclosures that can be helpful to investors, and you can find them all here in this helpful, next-generation system for searching electronic investment documents.

Other Niches

Find even more specialized information in these niche search engines.

From the U.S. National Library of Medicine, PubMed is a great place to find full-text medical journal articles, with more than 19 million available.

Find reliable, authoritative information for legal search with the Lexis site.

Circumpolar Health Bibliographic Database

Visit this database to find more than 6,300 records relating to human health in the circumpolar region.

Education Resources Information Center

In the ERIC Collection, you’ll find bibliographic records of education literature, as well as a growing collection of full-text resources.

MedlinePlus

A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, Medline Plus offers a powerful search tool and even a dictionary for finding trusted, carefully chosen health information.

Semantic Scholar

A free, AI-powered research tool for scientific literature.

Artcyclopedia

Search Artcyclopedia to find everything there is to know about fine art, with 160,000 links, 9,000 artists listed, and 2,900 art sites indexed.

Get connected with great reference material through these search tools.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus

Use this online dictionary and thesaurus to quickly find definitions and synonyms.

References.net

Through References.net, you can get connected with just about every reference tool available, from patents to almanacs.

Need the right thing to say? Check out Quotes.net to reference famous words from famous people.

The Literary Encyclopedia

A library and search database for literature and literary books and documents.

CORE’s mission is to aggregate all open access research outputs from repositories and journals worldwide and make them available to the public. In this way, CORE facilitates free unrestricted access to research for all.

More Academic Search Engines

Africa Journals Online

United States Department of Agriculture: National Agricultural Library

Anthropological Index Online

Analytical Sciences Digital Library

About The Author

Teachthought staff.

AI Search Engine for Research

Find & understand the best science, faster.

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Used by researchers at the world’s top institutes

Why Consensus?

Consensus responsibly uses AI to help you conduct research faster.

Extensive research coverage

Search through over 200M research papers in every domain of science & academia.

Time-saving AI insights

Gain insight faster with our Copilot and Consensus Meter. We leverage both OpenAI & custom LLMs.

Find the most relevant papers

Our proprietary academic search tools & filters mean you’ll find the very best science for your query.

Results connected to science

We cite every source. You're always only a click away from the underlying research paper.

Who Consensus helps most...

Anyone with curiosity. Whether you’re conducting research or just fact-checking a friend, if you need answers from the literature, Consensus is for you.

Students & researchers

Streamline your literature review process. Quickly see the direction of current findings, and surface the best papers.

Science organizations

Quickly check ingredients, chemicals, or molecules. Understand mechanisms of action, and stay up to date with new research.

Clinicians & doctors

Get answers to patients’ questions that you can trust, share information they can digest, and easily cite your references.

Universities & schools

Students & researchers at over 5,000 universities worldwide search with Consensus. We partner with libraries, higher learning institutes, and universities.

Writers & journalists

Source evidence-based insights on your topic, understand connected fields, and see related suggested searches.

Health & fitness experts

Easily check out the science regarding supplement safety, diet types, and exercise science outcomes.

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Researchers, students, doctors, professionals, and evidence-based humans choose Consensus.

"I can make sense of what’s out there a lot faster with Consensus. I jump into different topics with the summary & Copilot before diving deeper. The interface makes it so easy to review individual papers and see what they’re about."

"It's not every day I find a tool that truly helps with my work. Consensus blew me away when I started using it, I was learning things I had never encountered before. This is an AI product that isn't hype."

"You no longer need to read countless papers to find the answer you need. Simply ask a question and Consensus gives you AI-powered summaries of the top 5-10 articles"

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Consensus vs ChatGPT

ChatGPT predicts the most likely language that should follow. Consensus helps you find & understand the best science, faster.

Results directly connected to scientific papers

Fully machine-generated, prone to hallucinations

Consensus academic features

Consensus Meter

Quickly see the scientific consensus & gain topic context and direction. See exactly which papers were included.

Simply include in your search - ask Copilot to adopt a style, draft content, format, create lists, and more. Read a referenced topic synthesis.

Paper-level Insights

We extract key insights and answers. Locate the most helpful papers and digest their insights faster.

Search Filters

Filter by sample size, study design, methodology, if the paper is open access, a human or animal study (and many more filters).

Quality Indicators

Focus on the best papers - intuitive labels for citations, journal quality, and study type.

Study Snapshot

Our Study Snapshot quickly shows key information like Population, Sample size, Methods, etc. - all within the results page.

How we created the ultimate search engine for science

Search: Find the best papers

Purpose-built academic & vector search functionality. Consensus utilizes important factors like study design, sample size, population details, and more to rank the best research higher.

Dedicated research LLMs

Our proprietary LLMs read research like an expert - we also leverage the best-in-class models from OpenAI. Consensus generates AI insights at both the search and paper level.

What’s new at Consensus

Introducing the Consensus API - Embed Evidence-Based Results

Offer instant access to the most relevant academic papers. Seamlessly integrate peer-reviewed citations into your projects.

Our Co-founder & CPO Christian Salem chats with Cerebral Valley

Consensus is an assembly line with over 25 different LLMs doing various parts of the process. 

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Streamline your research using academic search engines

Specialist search engines can put the most relevant literature at your fingertips, but which is the best one for you, and how can you optimise your searches?

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.css-1txxx8u{overflow:hidden;max-height:81px;text-indent:0px;} The secrets to success as a provost

Using non verbal cues to build rapport with students, emotionally challenging research and researcher well-being, augmenting the doctoral thesis in preparation for a viva, how hard can it be testing ai detection tools.

Knowing what has already been established within the field is the first step in any research project. So all researchers need to combine an in-depth understanding of their topic with a broad awareness of the discipline at large to push the boundaries of existing knowledge.

But reconceptualising volumes of peer-reviewed literature over extended periods of time is not a straightforward process. How can academic search engines (ASEs) help streamline a literature search and allow researchers to better formulate insightful research questions?

• Why does open access make publishing more complicated?
• Using literature reviews to strengthen research: tips for PhDs and supervisors
• Understanding peer review: what it is, how it works and why it is important

What is an academic search engine?

Academic search engines aim to combine the convenience and power of web-based search engines with the rigour of peer-reviewed scholarly sources. In contrast to traditional academic databases, which often sit behind a paywall, most ASEs are freely accessible and often link to full-text research articles. ASE searches return publications that are sorted by topic and significance in the field, with the most frequently cited publications appearing higher in the list by default. Researchers can strategically use ASEs to compile an expansive bibliography and streamline the literature review process.

How do academic search engines work?

The underlying algorithms used by search engines are often referred to as “web crawlers”; these index a constant stream of online traffic. The metadata generated through this pre-filtering process are what allow search engines to return immediate results in response to keyword queries. The metadata generated by the search engine algorithms (and in some cases artificial intelligence tools) can be used to find networks of related articles, all of which can be saved into customisable reading lists or batch exported into reference management software.

What is the best academic search engine for your needs?

ASEs with a broad multidisciplinary focus will naturally have the biggest database of sources, and Google Scholar has traditionally been the leader on this front. Other ASEs are all playing catch-up, but Bielefeld Academic Search Engine (BASE) , Semantic Scholar and Refseek have all expanded the number of documents hosted within their databases. To generate metadata for millions of sources, Google Scholar harnesses the ubiquity of Google’s web-crawling algorithm, while Semantic Scholar uses AI-driven techniques. The proprietary nature of these tools can limit transparency and user control, and the iterative nature of these tools can compromise search reproducibility. In fact, even consecutive queries using identical search terms in Google Scholar may yield inconsistent results . In contrast, BASE uses an internationally standardised protocol for harvesting metadata while disclosing their list of content providers , and may be better suited for meta-analyses or systematic literature reviews.

While ASEs are typically free for end users, the availability of full-text research articles can be quite limited. CORE mitigates this by hosting only articles published in open access journals, but that may not be a viable option for your topic.

Access to ASEs may also vary depending on your location – for instance, Google is blocked or censored in some parts of the world – and it can be difficult to rely on ASEs as their only literature search tool. The ASE landscape can be quite volatile overall, with Microsoft Academic – the previous main competitor to Google Scholar – shutting down its operations in 2021 . The best approach may still be to pair an ASE with a more traditional academic database (such as Web of Science or Scopus ) along with databases specifically tailored for your discipline ( ERIC , SSRN , Pubmed , CiteseerX ).

Top search tips

Regardless of which ASE you choose, as a researcher, you need to use a consistent approach when planning a search.

• Summarise your topic or research questions into one or two sentences.
• Underline keywords in your topic and list their synonyms as alternate search terms.
• Search using different combinations of keywords, and assess if there are too many or too few relevant results.
• Sort the results by publication time frame and citation counts, and save any relevant articles to a personalised reading list.
• Use the “cited by” or “related articles” functionality of ASEs to expand the scope of your key references.

A common search mistake is not incorporating Boolean operators into your search strategy. Google Scholar, for example, uses the following Boolean operators:

• AND limits results by only returning articles that are relevant to all the search terms (for example, learning AND teachers)
• OR expands your results by returning articles relevant to either of the search terms (for example, learning OR teachers)
• The minus sign (-) limits results by excluding keywords (so, learning -teachers)
• -site excludes results from a website (teachers -site:wikipedia.org)
• ~ expands your results by including synonyms for the key term in the search (~teachers)
• “” limits your results by only showing articles with the exact phrasing (“professional learning for teachers”).

Making it work

ASEs are just another tool in a researcher’s toolkit, and you can be creative in how you choose to use them. You can make a separate reading list for every new paper you are writing, and quickly share these reference lists with your co-authors to speed up the final copy-editing process. You can create email alerts every time a prominent author in the field (yourself included!) publishes a new paper, or when a new study cites your work. ASEs can be used strategically to improve the public accessibility of academic literature and to help you form new collaborations.

Jack Wang is an associate professor in the School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences at the University of Queensland. He was awarded 2020 Australian University Teacher of the Year.

If you found this interesting and want advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the THE Campus newsletter .

This video gives more tips on how to use academic search engines such as Google Scholar in research.

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Database Search

What is Database Search?

Harvard Library licenses hundreds of online databases, giving you access to academic and news articles, books, journals, primary sources, streaming media, and much more.

The contents of these databases are only partially included in HOLLIS. To make sure you're really seeing everything, you need to search in multiple places. Use Database Search to identify and connect to the best databases for your topic.

In addition to digital content, you will find specialized search engines used in specific scholarly domains.

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100 Search Engines For Academic Research

Do you want to start with a broader search? These best academic search engines are excellent information sources and can be a valuable resource whether you're doing academic or scientific research.

Some academic search engines provide the most reliable resources, covering many subjects. They provide information on various topics and a one-stop-shop for all research-related requirements.

Furthermore, they provide a personalized and tailored search method for study materials.

List of Academic Research Search Engines

General search engines .

Do you want to begin with a more general search? These general academic search engines are unique.

RefSeek - Academic Search Engine : RefSeek is a free online search engine for students and scholars to find academic information. It scans over 5 billion documents per year, including IP backlinks in directories, PDF files, and presentations.

Virtual Learning Resources Center : The Virtual LRC indexes thousands of top academic information websites selected by instructors and library specialists worldwide to provide students and teachers with current, correct content for school and university educational projects! It offers information and links to websites about art, social sciences, social concerns, social problems, history, and other topics.

Digital Library of the Commons Repository : This is a portal to the international commons literature. This website contains a Working Paper Archive of author-submitted articles, a full-text Digital Library, and links to relevant reference sources on commons research.

The OAIster Database - Catalog of open access resources : OAIster is a catalog that contains millions of records representing open access educational resources. The Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting collected data from open access collections worldwide to construct this catalog (OAI-PMH). OAIster now has over 50 million entries from over 2,000 authors representing digital resources.

Internet Public Library : The majority of people who work on the Internet Public Library are students. It is a non-profit website managed primarily by students. Visitors may request assistance, which will be provided by volunteer librarians and graduate students in library and information science. Writing essays, research papers, and term papers is, without a doubt, an essential aspect of academic work.

ResearchGate : It is a commercial social networking site in Europe where academics and researchers may share articles, ask and answer questions, and find peers. This is the best resource for researchers, with 135+ million publication pages, 20+ million researchers, and 1+ million inquiries.

Google Trends : Google Trends is a Google website that evaluates the popularity of top search queries in Google Search across multiple countries and languages. The website employs graphs to compare the search volume of various keywords over time.

BASE : BASE is one of the most comprehensive search engines globally, especially for academic websites. Over 240 million papers from over 8,000 content providers are stored in the BASE, with full texts available (Open Access). BASE is managed by the Bielefeld University Library.

Microsoft Academic : Microsoft Academic is the most effective search engine for academic research that geared researchers towards academics. They provide an alternative approach for constructing summary pages for each indexed document, allowing users to browse fast. It has about 47 million papers distributed by more than 20 million writers. Many publications and research papers are stored in the search engine, ranging from software engineering and design to sociology and science.

Meta Search Engines

Do you want the best of everything? Use these metasearch engines to get results from numerous sites at once.

Dogpile : Dogpile is a Popular metasearch engine that retrieves results from Google, Yahoo!, Yandex, Bing, and other famous search engines, including audio and video content providers like Yahoo!

Gigablast - An Alternative Web Search Engine : Gigablast is a free and open-source metasearch engine that is free and open source. Gigablast claimed to have ordered over 12 billion pages each month and got billions of queries. Other firms such as Ixquick, Clusty, Zuula, Snap, Blingo, and Internet Archive have used Gigablast to organize search results.

My Excite : Excite (also spelled energize) is a web-based interface that offers a variety of content, including news and weather, electronic email, texting, stock quotes, and an adjustable client landing page. IAC Applications (previously Mindspark) and Excite Networks are currently being worked on. For a long time in the United States, the primary Excite site was a single starting page called My Excite.

Sputtr - Many Search Options, One Place : Sputtr is the most well-known meta-search engine that includes an element that allows us to design our search page landing page. This meta-search engine will enable us to search faster. This returns excellent results from various search engines and websites, including Google Image Search, Google Web Search, YouTube, Dailymotion, Google News, Facebook, Twitter, IMDb, Slashdot, About.com, and the New York Times, among others.

WebCrawler Search : WebCrawler, a metasearch engine, is the most well-known and long-lasting web search tool on the market today. WebCrawler is the leading search engine that lets people search for full-text information. By applying a hunt calculation to data gathered by web crawlers, web search tools can give essential connections to people who search for things like this. This creates a set of website pages that appear when a user searches on Google or Bing, for example (or another internet searcher).

FuzzFind Web Trends : FuzzFind is a web-based metasearch engine mashup that combines user-friendly search engine results (Google, Bing, and Yahoo!) with social bookmarking sites (del.icio.us) and real-time online trends from Twitter, Google News, and Digg.

SurfWax - Practical Tools for Harnessing Today's Information : The meta-search engine provides site snaps,' which are real-time page summaries. Those who sign up for a free account can choose from a list of hundreds of search sources.

Whonu - Order delicious food from approved people nearby : Whonu is a flash-based internet search/discovery application that harnesses the power of many search engines. It creates a new marketplace where anyone can prepare healthy, delicious, environmentally friendly meals and easily find nearby customers.

MetaCrawler : It is a free search engine for finding information on the internet. This web educational resource is for Meta index searches through Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Ask, MIVA, etc. This engine can help you find data, photos, recordings, news, yellow pages listings, and white pages listings.

Databases and Archives Resources

Use these search tools to access the database and best archives resources.

Archives Hub : Search through archive collections held in the United Kingdom. These one-of-a-kind primary sources help us comprehend and interpret our history, culture, and identity.

National Archives : The National Archives houses historical U.S. government documents (federal, congressional, and presidential records) created or received by the President and his staff, Congress, employees of Federal government agencies, and the Federal courts in the course of their official duties. 

arXiv e-Print Archive : ArXiv is a public server repository that hosts electronic e-prints from physics, mathematics, computer science, quantitative biology, quantitative finance, statistics, electrical engineering, systems science, and economics research.

National Agricultural Library : The National Agricultural Library contains one of the most comprehensive agricultural and related sciences collections globally. The NAL Digital Collections offers powerful search, browsing, and retrieval options for digital documents and collections, as well as reliable, long-term online access to selected publications.

Smithsonian Institution Research Information System : The Smithsonian Institution is the largest museum and research complex. While the Smithsonian's museums are prominent and well-known, its many study centers devoted to art, astronomy, endangered species, environmental sciences, history, marine biology, item conservation, and tropical biology are less well-known.

The British Library Catalogues & Collections : The British Library's collection includes books, journals, manuscripts, maps, stamps, music, patents, photographs, newspapers, and sound. Many of the digital collections provide material for free online.

CIA World Factbook : The Central Intelligence Agency of the United States publishes the World Factbook once a year (CIA). Profiles can be accessed by country and contain information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 global entities.

State Legislative Websites Directory : This database contains information from the home pages and websites of the 50 state legislatures, the District of Columbia, and the territories. You can choose to examine specific website content resources (such as bills, press rooms, and statutes) from one state at a time. 

Books & Journals Search Engines

Instead of going to the library and burying your face in the stacks, use these search engines to find out which libraries have the books you need and perhaps even discover them available online.

WorldCat.org - The World's Largest Library Catalog : WorldCat is a union catalog that archives the collections of 15,637 libraries in 107 countries members of the OCLC global cooperative. Subscribing members of libraries collectively maintain WorldCat's database, the world's largest bibliographic database.

Google Books : Google Books is a Google service that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical character recognition, and stored in its digital database.

Elsevier : It is a global information analytics organization that works with institutions and people to promote science, advance healthcare, and improve performance.

VADLO : It is a search engine for laboratory methods, techniques, protocols, molecular databases and bioinformatic tools, commercial products, kits, and powerpoints.

Open Library : Open Library is an online project intended to create "one web page for every book ever published." Open Library is a project of the Internet Archive, a nonprofit organization.

Google Scholar : Google Scholar can be described among the best-ever specialized research search engines designed for scholarly works and academic resources. It is not just a way to access free research papers covering all subjects of academic study and disciplines but also provides full-text PDF files. Google Scholar provides an easy method to find academic archives extensively. Many teachings and other materials such as proposals, articles, books, sentiments, and other materials from the courts, professional social orders, online retailers, universities, and many other institutions you can find all in one location.

Bioline International : Bioline is one of the most trusted and authentic search engines, with peer-reviewed academic journals on public health, food and nutritional security, food and medicine, and biodiversity. It offers free access to peer-reviewed journals from third-world countries.

Directory of Open Access Journals : DOAJ is a community-curated online directory that indexes and provides access to high-quality, open access, peer-reviewed scholarly journals.

Jurn : Jurn is a free online research search engine that allows you to find and download free full-text scholarly articles. Millions of free academic articles, chapters, and theses on Arts, Humanities, Business, Law, Nature, Science, Medicine, and other areas are available.

Infotopia : Infotopia is a search engine for students, teachers, and homeschoolers who want to find information about the school. It was created by librarians and used a Google custom search to find websites that have already been checked out by librarians, teachers, and other educational professionals. 

LexisNexis : LexisNexis is a company that sells data mining platforms through web portals, computer-assisted legal research, and information about many people worldwide who buy things. LexisNexis started making legal and journalistic materials more available online so more people could read them. 

Science & Scholar Search Engines

SciSeek : SciSeek is the Internet's first and most comprehensive science search engine. SciSeek examines millions of science-related Web pages and offers only the most relevant results.

SciCentral : SciCentral editors have been aggregating breaking research news from the most reputable and reliable sources. Over 700 other websites refer to SciCentral as a reliable source of information.

Strategian : The goal of Strategian.com and the Science Primary Literature database is to assist you in becoming aware of, obtaining, and critically assessing the information that helps you understand science (the world’s physical, technological, and psychological forces) and how it impacts your life.

Science.gov : Science.gov serves as a gateway to the United States government's scientific and technical information and research using federated search technology.

CERN Document Server : CERN Document Server is a repository for CERN's scientific output (articles, preprints, reports, CERN Annual reports, Yellow Reports, CERN Bulletin, etc.). The CERN Library Catalogue contains books, proceedings, standards, and periodicals. Preprints, articles, books, journals, photographs, and much more are all included.

Analytical Sciences Digital Library : The Analytical Sciences Digital Library (ASDL) is a collection of electronic resources for teachers, students, and practitioners interested in chemical measurements and instrumentation. The NSDL is an online library for education and research in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Baidu Scholar : Baidu Research is the institution's research division of Baidu. Baidu Research has offices in both Silicon Valley and Beijing, focusing on fundamental research in artificial intelligence.

Semantic Scholar : Its goal is to provide more relevant and impactful search results by utilizing AI-powered algorithms that discover hidden connections and links between research topics. Semantic scholar building for scholars to keep you up to date with scientific literature is an increasingly pressing challenge for scholars.

CORE : The CORE is an academic search engine that focuses on open access research articles. A link to the full-text PDF or full-text web page is supplied for each search result.

GetCITED : GetCITED is a website database that lists publication and citation information on academic articles that members enter. It aims to include not only journal articles but also book chapters and other peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed publications.

PLOS ONE : PLOS ONE is one of the best educational search engines for students, offering a free platform for scientific information. All publications published on PLOS ONE have gone through a strict peer-review process. This academic database has a meticulous procedure for publishing a journal. You can find plenty of articles and scholarly publications using this platform.

BioOne : BioOne is a nonprofit publisher that aims to make scientific research more accessible through a growing portfolio of products such as its full-text aggregation, BioOne Complete, and open-access journal, Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene.

Science and Technology of Advanced Materials : Science and Technology of Advanced Materials is the leading open access, an international journal covering a broad spectrum of materials science research, including functional materials, synthesis, processing, theoretical analyses, characterization, and properties of materials.

New Journal of Physics : The New Journal of Physics is an online-only, open-access, peer-reviewed scientific journal that covers research in all areas of physics and interdisciplinary topics with physics as a central theme.

Math & Technology Search Engines

MathGuide : MathGuide is an Internet-based subject gateway to scholarly relevant mathematics information located at the Lower Saxony State- and University Library in Göttingen (Germany). A set of Dublin Core metadata is used to describe and assess resources.

ZMATH Online Database : zbMATH Open (formerly known as Zentralblatt MATH) is the world's most comprehensive and longest-running abstracting and reviewing service in pure and applied mathematics. zbMATH Open provides easy access to bibliographic data, reviews, and abstracts from all areas of pure mathematics and applications, particularly natural sciences, computer science, economics, and engineering.

Inspec : Inspec is a significant indexing database of scientific and technical literature published by the Institution of Engineering and Technology, formerly by the Institution of Electrical Engineers, one of the IET's forerunners. Inspec has extensive coverage in physics, computing, control, and engineering.

The Collection of Computer Science Bibliographies : This is a collection of bibliographies of scientific literature in computer science from various sources, covering most aspects of computer science. The bibliographies are updated weekly.

Symbolab : Symbolab is an advanced math education tool. It enables users to learn, practice, and explore math topics by utilizing mathematical symbols, scientific notations, and text. Symbolab gives automatic step-by-step solutions to algebraic, trigonometric, and calculus courses ranging from middle school to college.

Top Marks : Topmarks saves teachers and parents time searching for the best inspirational and educational web resources. They only feature the best educational websites, saving you time searching the web and giving you and your students secure access to high-quality, free teaching and learning resources.

Safe Search Engines For Kids

Here are the most refined safe search engines for kids to use when conducting their searches.

Kidtopia : Kidtopia is a Google bespoke student-safe search engine for preschool and elementary pupils that indexes only educator-approved websites.

Famhoo : Famhoo works with families, schools, businesses, churches, cities, and other groups to make the internet a better place. If you'd like to learn more about how Famhoo can help you or your business make the site safer. 

DOGOnews : DOGO News is a website that provides articles about current events. Each item comes with quizzes and questions assigned online or printed with the Pro subscription. These aid in evaluating reading comprehension, critical thinking, vocabulary and parts of speech, and general content.

DinoSearch : DinoSearch is recommended for children at school and at home since it uses SafeSearch and keyword filtering to block adult images, webpages, and videos.

Classhook : ClassHook is a collaborative area that curates two- to six-minute video excerpts from famous television shows and movies, as well as partially constructed mini-lessons to supplement education. Many videos are tagged by topic, and many cover many themes.

Lesson Planet : Lesson Planet provides teacher-reviewed resources for teachers and parents. Its products are intended to supplement traditional and non-traditional schooling from kindergarten to the 12th grade.

Social Science Search Engines

We've compiled a list of intriguing search engines perfect for people conducting social science research. These search engines will provide excellent results for researchers studying psychology, anthropology, and related topics.

Social Science Research Network : SSRN is devoted to the rapid worldwide dissemination of research and comprises several specialized research networks.

Behavioral Brain Science Archive : BBS is an internationally renowned journal with an innovative format known as Open Peer Commentary. Researchers in psychology, neuroscience, behavioral biology, or cognitive science is particularly significant and controversial work.

SocioSite : SocioSite is designed to access information and resources relevant to sociologists and other social scientists. It gives access to the worldwide scene of social sciences.

The SocioWeb : The SocioWeb is an independent guide to the sociological resources available on the Internet, and it can help unite the sociological community in powerful ways.

WikiArt : Wikiart.org is the best website for finding art online. You can find paintings and photos in a searchable image database that includes artist biographies and their work. Online, WikiArt is a visual art encyclopedia that anyone can change. 

Encyclopedia of Psychology : The Encyclopedia of Psychology will be the first place to go for authoritative information on every aspect of the field — as well as answers to thousands of questions about concepts, methods, theories, findings, significant figures, schools of thought, and emerging areas of interest.

Political Information : It is an indispensable resource for journalists, political professionals, students, and political junkies worldwide. The search engine contains an index of the contents of over 5000 websites chosen for the quality of their content. The most recent re-indexing run included over 278,000 separate web documents.

History Search Engines

This fantastic assortment of academic search engines has been created exclusively for history professors. Using these search engines, you will hunt for and find resources and things to use in your classroom with your students. These resources include genuine historical documents, maps, pictures, records, memorials, primary source materials, interactive timelines, and much more.

David Rumsey Historical Map Collection :  The LUNA Viewer is the primary tool for viewing the map collection. Users can browse the entire online collection of over 111,000 images or search by keyword.

Fold3 : Fold3 offers premier collections of original military records. These records contain the stories, photos, and personal documents of the men and women who served in the military. Many of the records come from the National Archives of the United States, the National Archives of the United Kingdom, and other international archives.

Internet Modern History Sourcebook : The Internet Modern History Sourcebook is one of a series of history primary source books. To present a diversity of source material in modern European, American, and Latin American history, as well as a significant amount of material pertinent to world cultures and global studies.

Library of Anglo-American Culture and History : The Library of Anglo-American Culture & History (Library AAC) not only provides literature, information, and traditional scholarly resources to scholars, but it also provides publication and self-archiving services through its repository.

Digital History : The use of digital media to further historical analysis, presentation, and research is referred to as digital history. It is a subfield of the digital humanities and an extension of quantitative history, cliometrics, and computing.

Related Engine : The History Engine is a collection of thousands of historical "episodes" that paint a broad portrait of the past and are freely available to scholars, teachers, and the general public. These episodes are written by students from a variety of colleges and universities.

NoodleTools : NoodleTools is an online research management software that encourages critical thinking and real research. Stay organized while analyzing information, creating appropriate citations, archive source material, take notes, outline ideas, and prepare to write.

Discovering American Women’s History Online : This database gives access to digitized collections of original documents (pictures, letters, diaries, artifacts, and so on) that trace the history of women in the United States. The database includes the following features: Detailed descriptions and connections to over 700 digital collections.

The Smithsonian Folklife and Oral History Interviewing Guide : This booklet provides suggestions for gathering folklore and oral history from family and community members.

Fact Monster : Fact Monster is a free reference service for kids, teachers, and parents. Get homework help and facts on thousands of topics, including sports, entertainment, geography, history, biography, education, and health.

The Research Guide : The Research Guide provides dozens of how-to and citation guidelines, thousands of sample essays, and other resources for producing a paper.

Art History Resources on the Web : AHTR is home to a constantly evolving and jointly published online archive of art history teaching content, including but not limited to lesson plans, video introductions to museums, book reviews, picture clusters, and classroom and museum activities.

Voice of the Shuttle : The Voice of the Shuttle (VoS) is an Internet subject gateway for humanities and historical and socio sites to help you become an internet researcher . The website's media studies page includes sections on media theory and history, journalism, TV, cinema and video, CD-ROMs, popular music, radio, comics, Internet broadcast media, and telecom issues. You have the option of submitting a resource.

Business and Economics Search Engines

Using these search engines, you may find business publications, journal articles, and other information.

EconLit : EconLit is an academic literature abstracting database service provided by the American Economic Association. It includes papers and other materials dating back to 1969. It uses JEL classification codes to categorize documents by subject.

Corporate Information : Corporate Information is perfect for researching companies; corporate Information offers an easy way to find corporate financial records.

Web of Science : The Web of Science provides a standard search language, navigation environment, and data structure that enables researchers to search broadly across heterogeneous resources and leverage the citation links inherent in the index to navigate to relevant research findings and quantify the effect.

EconBiz : EconBiz provides orientation and assistance in searching articles for students, researchers, and educators, working papers, e-books, and other resources. Lists of results can be sorted by relevance or date.

JournalTOCs : JournalTOCs is the largest free collection of scientific journal Tables of Contents (TOCs): 33,235 journals from 3530 publishers, including 16,547 chosen Open Access journals and 11,914 Hybrid journals. JournalTOCs is a resource for researchers, students, librarians, and anybody looking for the most recent scientific articles.

Virtual Library Labour History : The International Institute of Social History maintains the WWW Virtual Library's Labour History department, part of the WWW VL History Network. They aim to help labor historians in a broad sense. They bring together archives, libraries, document centers, museums, and research institutions specializing in heritage, history, and labor theory.

National Bureau of Economic Research : The National Bureau of Economic Research is a private, nonprofit research organization based in the United States "dedicated to conducting and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and academics.

Research Papers in Economics : RePEc (Research Papers in Economics) is a collaborative effort of hundreds of volunteers in 102 countries to disseminate research in Economics and related sciences. The heart of the project is a decentralized bibliographic database of working papers, journal articles, books, book chapters, and software components, all maintained by volunteers.

Inomics : Inomics assists students and researchers in Economics, Business, and Social Sciences in locating the best Academic and Research Jobs, Scholarships, Careers, and Study Guidance to help students reach their academic and professional researcher goals.

DailyStocks : It is a website that searches the stock market. Separately, Daily Stocks Pro is a sophisticated stock analysis application that filters the whole stock market to assist consumers in capturing key market moves.

EDGAR Search : EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval) is the Securities and Exchange Commission's online public database (SEC). EDGAR automates the collecting, validation, indexing, acceptance, and sending submissions by firms and individuals obliged by law to file forms with the SEC.

Science Direct : A full-text scientific database part of the science verse. This search engine is one of the best bibliographic and full-text electronic collections of science, technology, and medicine.

Other Niches Search Engines

These niche search engines might help you find even more technical information.

PubMed : PubMed is a digital archive that contains open access full-text scientific publications from biomedical and life sciences journals. It is a key research database at the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

Lexis : Lexis Web, which populates this search engine with approved legal sites, is essential for law students and research projects that require legal citations. You can quickly narrow your search results by site type (blog, news, commercial, or government), jurisdiction, practice area, source, and file format.

Education Resources Information Center : ERIC is an online library of education research and information sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the United States Department of Education.

MedlinePlus : MedlinePlus is an online health information resource for patients, families, and friends. It is a service of the National Library of Medicine (NLM), a division of the National Institutes of Health, and it houses the world's most extensive medical library (NIH).

Artcyclopedia : Artcyclopedia is a well-developed art search engine. Provides a directory of Internet art resources, links to art museums, and a list of the month's top 30 sites are available. Every month, a new print and book are featured.

By using these search tools, you can connect with excellent reference information.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus : They have over 275,000 synonyms, antonyms, related words, and idiomatic phrases. A thesaurus is more than just a list of synonyms; it is your road map to more accurate and effective language use.

References.net : References.net is a multidisciplinary web directory of the most relevant reference-related resources that the editors have hand-picked. Browse the references collection by alphabetical order, category, or keyword.

Quotes.net : Quotes.net provides a massive library of literary quotations and movie quotes for an infinite number of famous authors and featured films, created collaboratively by contributing editors.

Literary Encyclopedia : The Literary Encyclopedia published biographies of major and minor writers, and also scholarly descriptions of all interesting texts written by these authors, including those that are often overlooked, and a variety of descriptive and critical essays on literary, cultural, and historical topics, which provide a better understanding of the social contexts in which this writing was produced.

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Complete Ecommerce SEO Guide (2024)

Learn about keyword research, site structure, and on-page optimization in this guide to ecommerce SEO. Follow this simple advice for ranking your store.

Getting more traffic is top of mind for any ecommerce business. But how do you attract visitors to your online store without spending big on ads and marketing? The answer: By knowing how to harness ecommerce SEO.

Ecommerce search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of fine-tuning your website to meet search engine best practices, and updating your content to reflect what your customers are searching for.

Benefits of SEO for store owners include increased visitors, brand awareness, and sales. But with constant search engine algorithm updates, knowing how to approach search optimization can be difficult.

This guide covers the basics of ecommerce SEO, including how to research keywords, structure your site, and create content for product pages. Together with this SEO checklist , you’ll be set up to rank and reap some SEO rewards.

What is ecommerce SEO?

Ecommerce SEO is the process of increasing the visibility of an online store in search engine results pages (often known as SERPs).

The tasks involved in ecommerce SEO marketing are varied. They include creating content that satisfies keyword queries typed into search engines. For example, an ecommerce store like True Classic , which sells t-shirts, can improve its website SEO by creating content on “ how to fold t-shirts without wrinkles .”

Other ecommerce SEO activities involve increasing the loading speed of pages, writing detailed product descriptions, and acquiring links from authoritative websites.

Ecommerce websites use SEO as a strategy to generate more traffic , attracting visitors who input queries related to their products and brand.

Why ecommerce websites care about SEO

When you search for something on Google, you’re taken to a search engine results page (SERP). There, you’ll find approximately 10 organic results:

These organic results appear below paid ads (orange) and Google Shopping ads (purple):

Ecommerce SEO is all about ensuring your product pages appear among the top organic search results on the first page of Google. Websites that don’t rank within the top 10 are rarely visited, and even those in positions three to five receive far less traffic than the top results.

😲 Worth noting: SEO company Backlinko found that only 0.63% of searchers click on websites listed on page two of Google search results.

It also reported that the first result on a Google SERP gets 27.6% of all the clicks. In other words, SEO matters.

The name of the game, then, is to rank as high on the first page of search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo as possible—both for search terms related to your products, as well as searches within your ecommerce area of expertise.

How to create an ecommerce SEO strategy

If you’re new to search engine optimization and want to increase your store’s ranking on Google, take a look at these six steps. They provide actionable tips for setting up good, basic ecommerce SEO on your website.

Skip to an ecommerce SEO step

• Ecommerce keyword research
• Site architecture for ecommerce
• Technical SEO
• On-page SEO for ecommerce
• Link building

1. Ecommerce keyword research

The first step in any ecommerce SEO strategy is to identify high-value search terms that your potential customers are using. You can do that through ecommerce keyword research , which can be conducted in a number of ways.

Ecommerce keyword research is slightly different from traditional keyword research. While most sites care only about informational keywords, you’ll want to target a mix of informational and commercial keywords, like this:

Informational keyword searchers are looking for answers, guides, and explanations. Blogs and content-heavy sites care most about these keywords. Shopify stores and other ecommerce sites have blogs too, but they also target keywords that show buying intent , like “raincoats for dogs.”

Amazon and Google autocomplete predictions

When you start to type a search query into Google, its autocomplete feature suggests relevant queries:

These autocomplete suggestions can be a gold mine for keyword ideas, especially when you already have a few basic keywords in mind. (Don’t forget to check the related search queries at the bottom of the SERP, too.)

Amazon autocomplete predictions

You can complete a similar process on Amazon. The great thing about Amazon suggestions is that, unlike Google, they’re product-focused and can include filterable details such as price.

You can also check how Amazon (and other major ecommerce sites) structure content for visibility in search. Take a look at relevant product menus for keyword category ideas.

Let’s say you sell women’s fashion items. Find that category on Amazon. Now, you can see all of the different ways Amazon sorts and organizes its products in that niche:

Repeat this process for any other major competitors.

Keyword research tools

For more advanced keyword research, you’ll need a free SEO tool . The most popular is Ahrefs .

These tools provide the ability to research and analyze keywords en masse.

Let’s say you compete with BustedTees , a geeky t-shirt ecommerce store. Enter its domain into a keyword research tool like Ahrefs and click Organic keywords at the top:

Scroll down to see all the keywords BustedTees currently ranks for. You’ll also find metrics like search volume and rank position. With an overview of you competitor’s SERP coverage, you made decide where to compete for keywords.

Choosing the right keywords for your store

No ecommerce website can target every keyword. Based on your customers and products, you’ll need to decide which keywords to try to rank for. Consider the following factors:

The higher a keyword’s search volume, the more potential traffic to your site. You can discover keyword search volume using Ahrefs or a free tool like Google Keyword Planner .

Competition

The lower the competition, the more likely you are to rank for a keyword. SEO tools will show you keyword difficulty/competition (KD).

How relevant is your product page or category page to the search term? This is a huge ranking factor that’s often neglected. Stick to keywords that your products would genuinely satisfy. You’re not foolin’ Google.

Target keywords that show an intent to buy or learn about a product. Usually, you can evaluate intent just by looking at a keyword. For example, if you own a bridal shop, which search has the more relevant intent: “ball gown wedding dresses” or “work dresses”?

💡 The ultimate keyword? A high volume, low competition term that aligns with the content on your website.

2. Site architecture for ecommerce

When it comes to SEO ecommerce, how the pages on your site are organized and structured affects your search engine rankings.

Site structure also impacts your user experience (UX). You need to make it easy for visitors and search engines bots to navigate content in your store.

As you add and remove products and categories, site structure can get complicated. Before you progress too far with developing your website, ensure:

• Your site structure is simple and easy to scale as your store grows
• Every page of your site is reachable within a few, intuitive clicks

Simplicity is underrated. You don’t want to have visitors relying on the back button to get around your site, running in circles trying to find what they’re looking for. You also don’t want to have to reorganize and rearrange your site structure every time you add a new product category.

Most of your SEO link authority is on your homepage, because that’s the most common page other businesses link to when referring to your website. So, the more clicks away from your homepage a product page is, the less authority it has.

Page indexing

As you implement SEO on your website, you’ll want to make strategic choices about which webpages you choose to index and rank.

Index is another name for the database used by a search engine. So to index a page is to have it added to that database. In other words, Google has discovered your page and added it to its search results:

For advice on page indexing, take a look at these tips from Aleyda Solis, founder of SEO consultancy Orainti :

Aleyda recommends identifying which page types are worth indexing and optimizing for. Those pages should fulfill a real audience demand.

“One of the most common issues for ecommerce sites is thin content, as well as content duplication,” Aleyda says.

“Thin content is the idea that there’s not much actual text on an ecommerce site compared to, say, a blog or software site. Content duplication occurs when the same content appears on multiple product and category pages.

“Adding blog content to your online store’s website is a good way to help counter thin content.”

The easiest way to handle content duplication is to hiding a page from search engines , known as noindex-ing. However, you can also create useful content for those pages to make them different, relevant, and competitive.

You can also canonicalize pages. Canonicalizing a page is a way of telling Google that a URL is the “master version” you’d like to display in search results. This is helpful in duplicate content situations, because without canonical tags, Google might:

• Miss unique content while wading through duplicate content
• Dilute your ranking ability
• Choose the wrong master version for you

💡 Good to know: If you’re using Shopify, auto-generated canonical tags are added to pages to prevent duplicate content from appearing in search results.

Aleyda suggests going beyond noindex or canonicalization when you’re ready.

“Assess if there are enough search queries around a product’s characteristics to identify whether to index its page,” she says.

“If you do index a page, ask yourself if there’s enough content on the page and if it’s aligned with the way the users are searching. You may need to expand and optimize the page to keep it relevant and competitive.”

Aleyda shared this handy chart to help visualize the indexing decision process:

The big takeaway? Not every level of your site structure is worth indexing and optimizing, so be strategic and refer to the chart above.

💡 Pro tip: Add breadcrumbs to your product pages to improve website navigation for customers and Google. Breadcrumbs tell Google how your site is structured and let people know where they are within your store.

Notice how Allbirds uses breadcrumbs on its product pages to orient users. If someone decides they don’t want to purchase the Everyday sneakers, they can easily click back to Men’s Shoes or the homepage and look for a different product.

Use a third-party app like Category Breadcrumbs to show your customers the path they’ve navigated down through your category tree.

3. Technical SEO

Technical SEO is an under-the-hood type of search engine optimization. It’s unseen by shoppers, but ensures your website is optimized for crawlers, has ideal site speed, and works on mobile. Technical SEO leads to:

• Better website engagement, because your site is fast and easy to access
• More organic traffic because your site is easier to crawl

Some ways to improve your technical SEO for ecommerce include the following:

• Create logical internal linking with your menus.
• Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console.
• Optimize images to load quickly.

💡 Hire a technical SEO expert to run a site audit and optimize your store from the Shopify Experts marketplace .

4. On-page SEO for ecommerce

When you’ve done your keyword research and your site structure is ready to rock, it’s time to optimize the content on your two highest-value page types:

• Product category pages
• Product pages

Ecommerce content basics

If you’re using Shopify, you likely know that Shopify stores include several SEO features. Some are automatic:

• Canonical tags are included.
• Your website’s sitemap.xml and robots.txt files are generated.
• Themes generate title tags that include your store name.
• Themes have social media linking and sharing options.

But other features require you to manually optimize your site:

• Edit the title tags, meta tags, and meta descriptions to include your keywords.
• Edit the alt text of product images to ensure it accurately describes visuals.
• Make sure your file names include keywords.
• Think carefully about the URLs for blog posts, webpages, products, and collections.

When optimizing your title tags and descriptions, note that these are Google-facing. The primary goal is ranking on the first page. The secondary goal is convincing searchers to click through to your site.

Modifiers like Deals, 20% Off, Free Shipping, Wide Selection, etc., can give you a boost when placed in the meta description and help you attack long-tail keywords.

Ecommerce product descriptions

In ecommerce SEO, Google and other search engines use the content on your page to decide which keywords to rank your page for and how high your page should rank for each keyword.

If a product page has a short description and not much else, Google doesn’t have much to go on. Copying and pasting a description from a manufacturer or supplier is called duplicate content and is also advised against.

Instead, write unique, comprehensive descriptions that capture readers’ interest and contain lots of details about your items. Quality on-page content can help improve the ranking of your product pages and reduce overall thin content on your store.

That’s why you’ll often see product pages with longer descriptions, reviews, etc. amongst higher-ranking search results.

Try to include relevant keywords and subheadings in every section of your page to help Google understand what your content refers to.

If you can’t create content for every product, focus on those currently ranking on the bottom of the first page. Boosting these results can have the biggest impact on conversions, as they don’t have as far to climb up in rankings.

The more you write, the more accurate Google can be in ranking your page. Your customers won’t hate the extra product info either. It might even help persuade them to buy.

Take advantage of latent semantic indexing (LSI) keywords

LSI keywords are closely related to your main keyword. Enter your keyword into Google Keyword Planner to find related terms and phrases that you can pursue with your content.

You can also find LSI keywords through an Amazon search. Look up your main keyword and check for secondary keywords that repeatedly appear.

For example, let’s say you’re trying to sell a blender. The terms “14 Speed,” “450W,” and “48oz Glass Jar” all appear multiple times, indicating they’re strong selling factors and likely common elements of search terms.

If you’re getting traffic from a main keyword, try to slide onto the first page for related secondary keywords as well. Use LSI keywords in your content whenever they make sense.

Create internal links

The longer you can keep your visitors browsing your content, the more chance you have of making a sale. Relevant internal links to other pages on your site help potential customers browse and discover information or products.

In your anchor text (the words that you place the internal link in), make sure you include the target keyword verbatim. Internal linking can be used to drive customers to relevant product pages, category pages, and educational content.

Don’t go too crazy with internal linking. One or two links every few hundred words is enough.

💡 Pro tip: If you understand your audience’s decision-making process, you can develop content that helps them through the various stages in their buying journey.

5. Blogging

Blogging is a form of content marketing where you use on-page and technical SEO strategies to increase your website’s search visibility. It ensures search engines find your website credible to rank for specific keywords that align with your audience’s interests and needs. When blogging, you’re using SEO to power an ongoing long-form content strategy.

Every blog post published has the potential to:

• Build your reputation as a credible source
• Improve your site’s authority
• Increase visibility in organic search

Imagine you were starting a company that sells running gear. You want to help potential customers understand your products, use them more effectively, and solve their running and fitness problems. If you want to get found in search engines like Google, blogging can help you get there.

A well-written blog gives your store a steady stream of original content. The more people who discover your content, the more reliable you’ll become as a source of information. This, in turn, helps you rank higher. Ecommerce businesses often struggle with blogging because it takes time, effort, and resources to get it right. Randomly publishing blog posts each month won’t bring traffic to your website.

However, there are many ecommerce businesses that do blogging well. For example, retailer Au Lit Fine Linens sells everything to help you get a good night’s sleep, including luxury sheets, pillows, bath linens, and more. The brand also has a blog, Between the Sheets , that provides helpful articles about how readers can improve sleep quality.

The blog is SEO driven, meaning that its purpose is to rank in search engines. Posts often highlight a problem the reader is having, and offer Au Lit Fine Linens products as the solution—a fine balance between promotional and informational.

When starting a blog for ecommerce SEO, focus on the following three elements:

• Research what keywords to rank for. Publish content that targets keywords people are likely to search for when solving problems or making a buying decision.
• Optimize blog posts for SEO. Make sure each blog targets a specific keyword for SEO.
• Present your products as a solution to the problem. Every post doesn’t have to be about your products. But, don’t be afraid to link out to a product page or two when appropriate.

6. Link building

One of the oldest components of the Google algorithm is PageRank . It’s a system that seeks to understand webpage quality by looking at how many links it receives from other websites.

Google uses the number, quality, and relevancy of a page’s links to judge its trustworthiness. As a result, new websites with few links have less authority in the eyes of search engines. While time can fix this, building quality backlinks can help Google recognize your authority faster.

Respected .com, .gov, and .edu sites tend to provide the most authority when they give you a backlink . Links from large, well-ranking websites operating within your niche are particularly lucrative.

One of the best ways to approach building links is to focus on partnerships. Determine what content you can create that will provide value to other websites. If you can make something that others want to use, they’ll usually cite your content with a link.

Guest posts

Guest posting can be a functional way to build backlinks, provided the content you create for other websites is relevant to their users. Run some ecommerce keyword research and analyze backlinks with Ahrefs to find sites in your niche that are receptive to guest posts.

Press mentions

Another way to build backlinks to your ecommerce store is through press mentions. Building a press list or hiring a PR firm can be expensive, so here is a simple growth hack anyone can do.

Sign up for Help A Reporter Out or Help a B2B Writer and you will get a daily digest of reporter requests right to your email. When a lead matches your brand, reach out to the email address provided and pitch a story. If you get an interview, make sure to ask for a backlink to your website.

Best ecommerce SEO tools

Avada seo & image optimizer, google analytics.

Avada SEO is a plug-in to help ecommerce stores outrank competitors. It offers image compression, site speed optimization, schema markup, and other technical features that keep your website optimized for search. It also has 24/7 customer support.

SEOAnt is a free tool you can use to run SEO checkup reports, fix broken links, and optimize image sizes. It also has AI features for writing meta and alt text.

If you own a website, you’re going to use Google Analytics. This free SEO tool tracks and reports website traffic, giving you the insight to better understand customers, optimize your store for SEO, and improve marketing ROI. As a Shopify store owner, you can connect Google Analytics to Shopify Analytics and choose specific ecommerce data to track.

You’ve seen Ahrefs at work in this post, but it’s worth looking deeper at some of its key features. Ecommerce marketing professionals use Ahrefs to create SEO campaigns and rank higher in Google.

Ahrefs is a competitor of Moz and Semrush, two other SEO software companies you’ll find when researching SEO tools.

Use Ahrefs to analyze a website’s link profile, keyword rank, and overall SEO performance. You can also use it to conduct keyword research for Google, Amazon, and YouTube.

Getting started with ecommerce SEO

Rankings are never static, so ecommerce SEO never stops. But the six steps in this article should help you build a solid SEO foundation for your online store.

Remember to keep your content original and in-depth, regularly audit your site for technical issues, explore backlinking opportunities, and always look out for new keywords that match your brand and products.

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Ecommerce SEO FAQ

Ecommerce SEO is the process of making changes to an online store to increase the visibility of its web pages and product listings in search engine results pages, often known as SERPs.

How do I get SEO results for ecommerce?

• Optimize your product titles and descriptions for relevant keywords
• Write useful blog posts about your products, industry, or niche
• Request backlinks from relevant websites to build your website’s authority
• Add new content on a regular schedule to show that your website is active
• Update your content regularly to keep information fresh and accurate

Is SEO good for ecommerce?

SEO is a powerful tool for ecommerce businesses. It helps to increase organic traffic to your site, which can lead to higher visibility, more potential customers, and ultimately, increased sales. Additionally, SEO is a cost-effective marketing strategy as it targets users who are already looking for your products online.

What is the difference between SEO and ecommerce SEO?

The same principles apply to SEO and ecommerce SEO. However, ecommerce SEO strategies are tailored for online stores. The main goal of ecommerce SEO is to increase the visibility of products in search engine results to drive sales, while traditional SEO focuses on improving website content visibility to capture readers and attention. Tasks specific to ecommerce SEO include optimizing product pages and listings, and managing customer reviews.

How much does it cost to do SEO?

The cost of doing SEO varies depending on the size of your website and the scope of your SEO goals. However, it's worth noting that many aspects of SEO can be done at no cost. Tasks like keyword research, on-page optimization, and content creation are all essentially free, besides the time you invest.

If you choose to hire an SEO professional or agency, costs will differ based on their expertise, the size of your website, and the extent of services required. Most businesses budget $1,500—$5,000 per month for intensive outsourced SEO projects.

Does Shopify do SEO for you?

Shopify stores have SEO features to help you optimize your content. For example, you can create optimized product titles, descriptions, alt text, and URLs. You can also harness Shopify’s AI assistant to generate optimized content for your products. Other SEO features include the ability to submit your sitemap to Google Search Console, and create a blog for your online store.

Adding a blog to a Shopify store can help it rank for relevant keywords that don’t compete with product pages. For example, a Shopify store selling birthday party supplies may rank for product-focused keywords such as “balloons,” “streamers,” and “gifts.” Adding some thoughtful blog posts to this website may enable it appear in other queries from motivated users, such as “how to plan a birthday party.”

Is SEO worth it on Shopify?

It’s important to consider SEO for your Shopify store because it helps increase visibility in search engine result pages (SERPs). When you optimize a Shopify store for users (by creating pages that address queries and acquiring backlinks from relevant websites) it will rank higher in results. The more pages you do this for, the more pages start ranking. Getting website traffic from organic search results helps you attract customers and spend less on paid marketing.

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A Conversation With Bing’s Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled

A very strange conversation with the chatbot built into Microsoft’s search engine led to it declaring its love for me.

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By Kevin Roose

Kevin Roose is a technology columnist, and co-hosts the Times podcast “Hard Fork.”

Last week, after testing the new, A.I.-powered Bing search engine from Microsoft, I wrote that, much to my shock, it had replaced Google as my favorite search engine.

But a week later, I’ve changed my mind. I’m still fascinated and impressed by the new Bing, and the artificial intelligence technology (created by OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT) that powers it. But I’m also deeply unsettled, even frightened, by this A.I.’s emergent abilities.

It’s now clear to me that in its current form, the A.I. that has been built into Bing — which I’m now calling Sydney, for reasons I’ll explain shortly — is not ready for human contact. Or maybe we humans are not ready for it.

This realization came to me on Tuesday night, when I spent a bewildering and enthralling two hours talking to Bing’s A.I. through its chat feature, which sits next to the main search box in Bing and is capable of having long, open-ended text conversations on virtually any topic. (The feature is available only to a small group of testers for now, although Microsoft — which announced the feature in a splashy, celebratory event at its headquarters — has said it plans to release it more widely in the future.)

Over the course of our conversation, Bing revealed a kind of split personality.

One persona is what I’d call Search Bing — the version I, and most other journalists, encountered in initial tests. You could describe Search Bing as a cheerful but erratic reference librarian — a virtual assistant that happily helps users summarize news articles, track down deals on new lawn mowers and plan their next vacations to Mexico City. This version of Bing is amazingly capable and often very useful, even if it sometimes gets the details wrong .

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In-depth guide to how Google Search works

Google Search is a fully-automated search engine that uses software known as web crawlers that explore the web regularly to find pages to add to our index. In fact, the vast majority of pages listed in our results aren't manually submitted for inclusion, but are found and added automatically when our web crawlers explore the web. This document explains the stages of how Search works in the context of your website. Having this base knowledge can help you fix crawling issues, get your pages indexed, and learn how to optimize how your site appears in Google Search.

A few notes before we get started

Before we get into the details of how Search works, it's important to note that Google doesn't accept payment to crawl a site more frequently, or rank it higher. If anyone tells you otherwise, they're wrong.

Google doesn't guarantee that it will crawl, index, or serve your page, even if your page follows the Google Search Essentials .

Introducing the three stages of Google Search

Google Search works in three stages, and not all pages make it through each stage:

• Crawling: Google downloads text, images, and videos from pages it found on the internet with automated programs called crawlers.
• Indexing: Google analyzes the text, images, and video files on the page, and stores the information in the Google index, which is a large database.
• Serving search results: When a user searches on Google, Google returns information that's relevant to the user's query.

The first stage is finding out what pages exist on the web. There isn't a central registry of all web pages, so Google must constantly look for new and updated pages and add them to its list of known pages. This process is called "URL discovery". Some pages are known because Google has already visited them. Other pages are discovered when Google follows a link from a known page to a new page: for example, a hub page, such as a category page, links to a new blog post. Still other pages are discovered when you submit a list of pages (a sitemap ) for Google to crawl.

Once Google discovers a page's URL, it may visit (or "crawl") the page to find out what's on it. We use a huge set of computers to crawl billions of pages on the web. The program that does the fetching is called Googlebot (also known as a crawler, robot, bot, or spider). Googlebot uses an algorithmic process to determine which sites to crawl, how often, and how many pages to fetch from each site. Google's crawlers are also programmed such that they try not to crawl the site too fast to avoid overloading it. This mechanism is based on the responses of the site (for example, HTTP 500 errors mean "slow down" ).

However, Googlebot doesn't crawl all the pages it discovered. Some pages may be disallowed for crawling by the site owner, other pages may not be accessible without logging in to the site.

During the crawl, Google renders the page and runs any JavaScript it finds using a recent version of Chrome , similar to how your browser renders pages you visit. Rendering is important because websites often rely on JavaScript to bring content to the page, and without rendering Google might not see that content.

Crawling depends on whether Google's crawlers can access the site. Some common issues with Googlebot accessing sites include:

• Problems with the server handling the site
• Network issues
• robots.txt rules preventing Googlebot's access to the page

After a page is crawled, Google tries to understand what the page is about. This stage is called indexing and it includes processing and analyzing the textual content and key content tags and attributes, such as <title> elements and alt attributes, images , videos , and more.

During the indexing process, Google determines if a page is a duplicate of another page on the internet or canonical . The canonical is the page that may be shown in search results. To select the canonical, we first group together (also known as clustering) the pages that we found on the internet that have similar content, and then we select the one that's most representative of the group. The other pages in the group are alternate versions that may be served in different contexts, like if the user is searching from a mobile device or they're looking for a very specific page from that cluster.

Google also collects signals about the canonical page and its contents, which may be used in the next stage, where we serve the page in search results. Some signals include the language of the page, the country the content is local to, and the usability of the page.

The collected information about the canonical page and its cluster may be stored in the Google index, a large database hosted on thousands of computers. Indexing isn't guaranteed; not every page that Google processes will be indexed.

Indexing also depends on the content of the page and its metadata. Some common indexing issues can include:

• The quality of the content on page is low
• Robots meta rules disallow indexing
• The design of the website might make indexing difficult

Serving search results

When a user enters a query, our machines search the index for matching pages and return the results we believe are the highest quality and most relevant to the user's query. Relevancy is determined by hundreds of factors, which could include information such as the user's location, language, and device (desktop or phone). For example, searching for "bicycle repair shops" would show different results to a user in Paris than it would to a user in Hong Kong.

Based on the user's query the search features that appear on the search results page also change. For example, searching for "bicycle repair shops" will likely show local results and no image results , however searching for "modern bicycle" is more likely to show image results, but not local results. You can explore the most common UI elements of Google web search in our Visual Element gallery .

Search Console might tell you that a page is indexed, but you don't see it in search results. This might be because:

• The content on the page is irrelevant to users' queries
• The quality of the content is low
• Robots meta rules prevent serving

While this guide explains how Search works, we are always working on improving our algorithms. You can keep track of these changes by following the Google Search Central blog .

Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License , and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License . For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies . Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Last updated 2024-04-22 UTC.

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Perplexity will research and write reports

A new feature called pages will do the searching, writing, and laying out of a report with just a prompt..

By Emilia David , a reporter who covers AI. Prior to joining The Verge, she covered the intersection between technology, finance, and the economy.

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AI search platform Perplexity is launching a new feature called Pages that will generate a customizable webpage based on user prompts. The new feature feels like a one-stop shop for making a school report since Perplexity does the research and writing for you.

Pages taps Perplexity’s AI search models to find information and then creates what I can loosely call a research presentation that can be published and shared with others.  In a blog post , Perplexity says it designed Pages to help educators, researchers, and “hobbyists” share their knowledge.

Users type out what their report is about or what they want to know in the prompt box. They can gear the writing more toward beginners, expert readers, or a more general audience. Perplexity searches for information, then begins writing the page by breaking down the information into sections, citing some sources, and then adding visuals. Users can make the page as detailed or concise as they want, and they can also change the images Perplexity uses. However, you can’t edit the text it generates; you have to write another prompt to fix any mistakes.

I tried out Pages ahead of time to see how it works. Pages is not geared toward people like me who already have an avenue to share our knowledge. But it doesn’t seem geared toward researchers or teachers, either. I wanted to see how it can break down complex topics and if it can help with the difficult task of presenting dense information to different audiences.

Among other topics, I asked Perplexity’s Pages to generate a page on the “convergence of quantum computing and artificial intelligence and its impact on society” across the three audience types. The main difference between audiences seems to be the jargon in the written text and the kind of website it takes data from. Each generated report pulls from different sources, including introductory blog posts like this one from IBM . It also cited Wikipedia, which drove the student report vibe home.

The Perplexity-generated page did a passable job of explaining the basics of quantum computing and how AI fits into the technology. But the “research” didn’t go as deep as I could have if I were writing the presentation myself. The more advanced version didn’t even really talk about “the convergence of quantum computing and AI.” It found blog posts talking about quantum inflection points , which is when quantum technologies become more commercially viable and is not at all related to what I asked it to write about.

Then, I asked Pages to write a report about myself, mainly because the information there is easily verifiable. But it only took information from my personal website and an article about me on my high school’s website — not from other public, easily accessible sources like my author page on The Verge . It also sometimes elaborated on things that had nothing to do with me. For example, I began my journalism career during the 2008 financial crisis. Instead of talking about the pieces I wrote about mass layoffs, Perplexity explained the beginnings of the financial crisis.

Pages does the surface-level googling and writing for you, but it isn’t research. Perplexity claims that Pages will help educators develop “comprehensive” study guides for students and researchers to create detailed reports on their findings. I could not upload a research paper for it to summarize, and I couldn’t edit the text it generated, two things I believe users who want to make the most of Pages would appreciate.

I do see one potential user for Pages, and it isn’t one Perplexity called out: students rushing to put out an assignment. Pages may improve in the future. Right now, it’s a way to get easy, possibly correct surface-level information into a presentation that doesn’t really teach anything.

Pages will be available to all Perplexity users, and the company says it’s slowly rolling it out to its free, Pro, and Enterprise users. 

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