January 30, 2025

Just like useful keyboard shortcuts, Google Drive also includes powerful search parameters which can make finding files a lot easier. This is by using advanced keyword operators to perform precise searches.

They are as follows :

Google Drive advanced search features

Exact match : Type the exact keyword in quotes to search for documents having that keyword.

using exact match searching in Google Drive

Owner : To search for documents created by a specific user/email, use the owner: prefix followed by email address to search.

finding files by owner email in Google Drive

This comes in handy when collaborating with different users.

Type : Use the type: prefix to filter and search for specific document types.

searching for files by extension in Google Drive

Include the file format like PDF, spreadsheet and so on to search for.

Dates : Another useful feature when trying to search for documents created before or after a given date.

searching for files created before or after specific dates in Google Drive

You can use the before: and after: search operators followed by the date to look for documents created before or after the specific dates.

Title : Use the title: operator followed by the keyword to search only the documents that include that specific keyword in their title.

searching for files only by their title in Google Drive

Deleted files : To search for files and documents that are deleted, use the is:trashed operator. This will show all the deleted files.

searching for deleted files in Google Drive

Starred files: Use the is:starred operator to only look for files that are starred. This is similar to is:trashed as it only searches a specific category.

Include & Exclude : Another useful search operator is the include and exclude. Use OR to include words and the – sign followed by the keyword to exclude them.

Shared with and by : The to: prefix followed by user email will search for all the files shared with that particular user. Similarly, the with: prefix with email will show files shared by that user.

These search functions can make working with Google Drive a lot more easier and boost productivity especially when you have a lot of files to search or filter through.

All done.

By admin

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