# How To Use the Site Search Operator | Google Search Central

# `site:` search operator


A `site:` query is a search operator that allows you to request search results from
the particular domain, URL, or URL prefix specified in the operator. For example:

| `site:` examples ||
|---|---|
| `site:example.com` | Show results only from the `example.com` domain (`www.example.com` and `recipes.example.com`). |
| `site:https://www.example.com/ramen` tsukemen | Shows results for pages that contain URLs that start with `https://www.example.com/ramen` and are relevant to the term tsukemen. |

The `site:` search operator is available on all Google Search properties.

> [!IMPORTANT]
> If a URL is indexed in Google, it can show up in search results for `site:` queries that are related to the URL, however it's not guaranteed. If a URL doesn't show in a `site:` query, use the [URL Inspection tool](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/9012289) to make sure the URL can be indexed and to submit the URL to indexing. Also, double-check the query is correct; `site:https://www.example.com` doesn't return the same results as `site:https://example.com/`.

## Uses for site owners

A `site:` query can help in a few ways with debugging a site. A few examples:

| `site:` examples ||
|---|---|
| `site:example.com` | Returns a list of indexed and serving URLs. > [!NOTE] > The list of URLs returned is not always exhaustive. Bigger sites shouldn't expect to see all their URLs in the results. A more specific prefix in the query may yield more results than broader prefixes. |
| `site:https://example.com/recipes/tsukemen.html` | May help you understand whether a specific URL is indexed and served. |
| `site:example.com viagra casino` | Helps with identifying and monitoring spam problems on your site. |
| `site:https://example.com/` lemon | Shows which URLs on the site can show up for the term "lemon". |
| `site:https://example.com/recipes/tsukemen.html` lemon | Shows whether the specific URL is indexed for the term "lemon". |

## Limitations

[Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgrDKE7xcEk)


The `site:` operator was designed primarily for search users and so it has some
restrictions that site owners might find limiting. Specifically:

- The `site:` operator doesn't necessarily return all the URLs that are indexed under the prefix specified in the query. Keep this in mind if you want to use the `site:` operator for tasks like identifying how many URLs are indexed and serving under a prefix.
- A `site:` operator without a query (for example `site:example.com`) doesn't rank the results. It will generally show the shortest URL for the prefix at the top, but otherwise the results are relatively random.