Bing
What Are Bing Search Operators?
Bing search operators are words, symbols, and advanced keywords that narrow or refine a search. They can help you search an exact phrase, exclude unwanted terms, search within one website, find particular file types, require words in a page title or body, and limit results by location or language.
These techniques are useful for everyday research as well as SEO research, content discovery, troubleshooting, and checking how pages from a website appear in search. For a similar reference for another search engine, see our Google Search Tricks.
Bing Search Operators Cheat Sheet
| Operator | What It Does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| "phrase" | Searches for an exact phrase | "web hosting" |
| - or NOT | Excludes a term from the search | hosting -wordpress |
| OR or | | Finds results containing either term | WordPress OR Joomla |
| site: | Limits results to a particular website or domain | site:rshweb.com hosting |
| filetype: | Limits results to a particular file type | SEO filetype:pdf |
| ext: | Limits results to pages with a specified filename extension | SEO ext:docx |
| intitle: | Requires a term in the page title | intitle:hosting |
| inbody: | Requires a term in the page body | inbody:WordPress |
| inanchor: | Requires a term in anchor text | inanchor:hosting |
| contains: | Finds pages that contain links to a specified file type | music contains:mp3 |
| loc: | Limits results to a country or region | hosting loc:US |
| language: | Limits results to a specified language | hosting language:en |
| ip: | Finds sites hosted at a specified IP address | ip:13.107.21.200 |
| url: | Checks whether a domain or URL is in the Bing index | url:rshweb.com |
| location: | Alternative to loc: for limiting results to a country or region | hosting location:US |
| prefer: | Adds emphasis to a search term or operator to focus the results | football prefer:organization |
| feed: | Finds RSS or Atom feeds related to a search term | feed:technology |
| hasfeed: | Finds webpages that contain an RSS or Atom feed related to a term | site:rshweb.com hasfeed:hosting |
Syntax matters: do not insert a space between an advanced keyword and the value after its colon. Use site:rshweb.com, not site: rshweb.com. Microsoft also specifies that Boolean operators such as NOT and OR should be capitalized.
Search Bing for an Exact Phrase
Put quotation marks around a phrase when you want Bing to look for those words together in that order. For example, "web hosting" is more precise than searching the same two words without quotation marks.
Exclude Words or Search for Alternatives
Use a minus sign or NOT to exclude a term. For example, hosting -wordpress searches for hosting while excluding results associated with WordPress. Use OR or the vertical bar | when either of two terms is acceptable, such as WordPress OR Joomla.
You can also use parentheses to group terms when building more complex searches. Keeping the query readable makes it easier to understand which terms Bing is including, excluding, or treating as alternatives.
Search a Specific Website With Bing
The site: operator limits results to a particular domain. For example, site:rshweb.com bing searches RSH Web Services pages for Bing-related content. Combine it with an exact phrase for a narrower query, such as site:rshweb.com "web hosting".
This is useful when a website has a large amount of content or when you want to see which pages Bing returns for a topic. Browse our RSH Web Services blog index for more search, SEO, hosting, privacy, and Internet guides.
Find PDFs and Other Documents With Bing
Bing supports several advanced keywords for file-related searches. filetype: restricts results to a particular file type, such as SEO filetype:pdf. ext: limits results to pages with a specified filename extension, such as SEO ext:docx. contains: works differently: it finds pages that contain links to files of a specified type, such as music contains:mp3.
Search Page Titles, Body Text and Anchor Text
Use intitle: when a word must appear in a page title, inbody: when it must appear in the body text, and inanchor: when it must appear in anchor text. For example, intitle:hosting site:rshweb.com combines a title requirement with a site restriction.
These operators can be useful when researching how a topic is covered across a website. Website owners working on search visibility can also review our SEO tips and best practices.
Search Bing by Location or Language
The loc: keyword can limit results to a country or region, while language: limits results by language. Examples include hosting loc:US and hosting language:en. Location and language filtering can be useful when a general search returns results that are geographically or linguistically irrelevant.
Combine Bing Search Operators for More Precise Results
| Search Goal | Example Query |
|---|---|
| Find an exact phrase on one website | site:rshweb.com "WordPress hosting" |
| Search one website while excluding a topic | site:rshweb.com hosting -wordpress |
| Find PDF documents about a phrase | "SEO checklist" filetype:pdf |
| Require a word in page titles on one site | intitle:hosting site:rshweb.com |
| Search for either of two platforms | WordPress OR Joomla |
| Search multiple websites for one topic | (site:rshweb.com OR site:microsoft.com) hosting |
| Require multiple terms in the page body | inbody:wordpress inbody:hosting |
| Search results from multiple countries | hosting (loc:US OR loc:GB) |
Combining operators can remove a great deal of irrelevant material from a broad search. Start with one restriction, check the results, and add another operator only when it makes the query more useful.
Bing vs. Google Search Operators
| Search Task | Bing | |
|---|---|---|
| Exact phrase | "phrase" | "phrase" |
| Exclude a word | -word | -word |
| Search one website | site: | site: |
| Find a file type | filetype: | filetype: |
| Either of two terms | OR | OR |
Bing and Google share several familiar search operators, but their advanced-search features are not identical and support can change. Do not assume that every operator documented for one search engine behaves the same way in another. See our Google Search Tricks for Google-specific examples.
Check Whether a Website Is Indexed by Bing
The url: keyword can be used to check whether a domain or URL is in Bing's index. For example, url:rshweb.com checks the RSH Web domain. The site: operator can also show results Bing returns from a domain, such as site:rshweb.com.
Search operators are useful for quick checks, but website owners who need search-engine visibility guidance should also review their technical SEO, crawlability, page structure, and content. Our SEO guide covers additional optimization practices.
Useful Everyday Bing Searches
Bing can also answer many ordinary queries without advanced operators. Search for a city followed by weather or forecast, enter a mathematical expression or unit conversion, search an airline and flight number for available flight information, or enter a stock ticker with the word stock. The exact presentation of these answers can vary by query, location, and Bing's current search features.
For location-oriented features beyond standard web search, see our Using Bing Maps guide.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bing Search
What are Bing search operators?
Bing search operators are commands, symbols, and advanced keywords that refine search results. They can limit a query to an exact phrase, exclude terms, search a particular website, find certain file types, or require words in specific parts of a page. Browse the RSH Web Services blog index for more search and Internet guides.
How do I search an exact phrase in Bing?
Put quotation marks around the words you want Bing to search as a phrase. For example, "web hosting" asks Bing to search for that exact phrase rather than treating the words only as separate terms.
How do I exclude a word from Bing search results?
Use a minus sign directly before the word you want to exclude, such as hosting -wordpress. Bing also supports the uppercase NOT operator for excluding a term.
How do I search only one website with Bing?
Use site: followed immediately by the domain, with no space after the colon. For example, site:rshweb.com hosting searches RSH Web Services for pages related to hosting. For website-search and visibility tips, see our SEO tips guide.
How do I find PDF files with Bing?
Add filetype:pdf to the search. For example, SEO filetype:pdf limits the search to PDF files related to SEO. Bing also supports ext: for filename extensions and contains: for pages that link to a specified file type.
Can I combine multiple Bing search operators?
Yes. For example, site:rshweb.com "WordPress hosting" combines a site restriction with an exact phrase. Combining operators can make a broad search much more precise.
How do I search Bing by country or language?
Use loc: to limit results by country or region and language: to limit results by language. Examples include hosting loc:US and hosting language:en.
Are Bing and Google search operators the same?
Some common operators, including quotation marks, the minus sign, site:, filetype:, and OR, are used by both search engines. Their advanced features are not completely identical, however. See our Google Search Tricks for Google-specific techniques, or visit the RSH Web Services support center for additional website and hosting help.
Summary
Bing search operators can make searches faster and more precise when you know which command fits the task. Start with quotation marks, exclusions, OR, site:, and filetype:, then use advanced keywords such as intitle:, inbody:, loc:, and language: when you need tighter control. For more search, SEO, hosting, and Internet tutorials, browse the RSH Web Services blog index.
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