Google dorks: a simple cheat sheet

2min read

A Google dork is just a search query that uses one or more advanced operators. The operators are useful for tailoring search results: finding a PDF, searching one specific website or excluding noisy results.

Below is a cheat sheet. Put no space between an operator and its value: use site:example.com, not site: example.com.

Operator	What it does	Example
`site:`	Limits results to a domain, URL or URL prefix	`site:example.com accessibility`
`inurl:`	Finds a word in the URL	`inurl:docs accessibility`
`allinurl:`	Finds all the following words in the URL	`allinurl:docs api authentication`
`intitle:`	Finds a word or phrase in the page title	`intitle:"beginner's guide"`
`allintitle:`	Finds all the following words in the page title	`allintitle:home energy guide`
`intext:`	Finds a word or phrase in the page body	`intext:"dependency injection"`
`allintext:`	Finds all the following words in the page body	`allintext:home energy efficiency`
`filetype:`	Limits results to a file type	`filetype:pdf annual report`
`ext:`	Common alias for `filetype:`	`ext:csv population`
`before:`	Finds pages published or updated before a date	`before:2025-01-01 electric cars`
`after:`	Finds pages published or updated after a date	`after:2026-01-01 renewable energy`
`"..."`	Matches an exact word or phrase	`"structured concurrency"`
`-`	Excludes a word, phrase or operator	`jaguar speed -car`
`OR` or `\|`	Matches either query	`marathon OR race`
Space	Acts like `AND`; both terms are required	`solar panel maintenance`
`*`	Stands in for one or more unknown words	`"largest * in the world"`
`..`	Matches a number range	`camera 2020..2025`
`( )`	Groups parts of a more complex query	`(train OR bus) timetable`
`related:`	Looks for sites related to a domain; results can be inconsistent	`related:bbc.co.uk`
`define:`	Shows a definition	`define:idempotent`
`imagesize:`	Finds pages containing an image of an exact size; Google Images only	`imagesize:1200x800 landscape`
`src:`	Finds pages referencing a particular image URL; Google Images only	`src:example.com/image.png`
`cache:`	Requested Google's cached copy; now retired and generally does not work	`cache:example.com`
`info:`	Requested information about a URL; now retired and generally does not work	`info:example.com`

Reliability

Google does not promise that operator results are exhaustive. Some undocumented operators work inconsistently or disappear over time.

Responsible use

Dorks are incredibly powerful and as a result are incredibly popular with hackers. They often use them to find known vulnerabilities across many sites or targeet a specific domain and scan common issues.

Resources

https://developers.google.com/search/docs/monitor-debug/search-operators