> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.hermesvoice.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Web Search

> Search the web with your voice.

## What it does

Web Search opens a search engine with your query. Say "search google for pizza", and Google opens with "pizza" as the search.

## Configuration

| Setting             | Default     | Description                         |
| ------------------- | ----------- | ----------------------------------- |
| **Search Engine**   | Google      | Google, DuckDuckGo, Bing, or Custom |
| **Browser**         | Default     | Which browser to open               |
| **Query Handling**  | Passthrough | How to process the query            |
| **Open in New Tab** | On          | Open in new tab vs current          |
| **Focus Browser**   | On          | Bring browser to foreground         |

***

## Search engines

### Built-in engines

| Engine     | URL                           |
| ---------- | ----------------------------- |
| Google     | `google.com/search?q={query}` |
| DuckDuckGo | `duckduckgo.com/?q={query}`   |
| Bing       | `bing.com/search?q={query}`   |

### Custom search engines

Create searches for any website by entering a custom URL with `{query}` as the placeholder.

| Site           | Custom URL                                            |
| -------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| YouTube        | `youtube.com/results?search_query={query}`            |
| Amazon         | `amazon.com/s?k={query}`                              |
| Stack Overflow | `stackoverflow.com/search?q={query}`                  |
| Wikipedia      | `en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search={query}` |
| Reddit         | `reddit.com/search/?q={query}`                        |
| GitHub         | `github.com/search?q={query}`                         |
| Twitter/X      | `x.com/search?q={query}`                              |

***

## Query handling modes

### Passthrough (default)

Uses your speech directly as the query.

```
Speech: "search youtube for coding tutorials"
Query: "coding tutorials"
```

### Template

Apply pretext or posttext to modify the query.

```
Pretext: "site:reddit.com "
Speech: "search reddit for mechanical keyboards"
Query: "site:reddit.com mechanical keyboards"
```

### Direct URL

Opens a URL without a query. Useful for opening specific pages.

```
Trigger: "open github"
URL: "github.com"
(No query needed)
```

***

## Browser options

| Browser | Description                 |
| ------- | --------------------------- |
| Default | Your system default browser |
| Safari  | Apple Safari                |
| Chrome  | Google Chrome               |
| Firefox | Mozilla Firefox             |

***

## Examples

### Basic web search

**Trigger**: "search google for"
**Mode**: Prefix
**Engine**: Google

Say: "search google for best restaurants nearby"
Opens: Google with "best restaurants nearby"

### Site-specific search

**Trigger**: "search youtube for"
**Mode**: Prefix
**Engine**: Custom (`youtube.com/results?search_query={query}`)

Say: "search youtube for swift tutorials"
Opens: YouTube with "swift tutorials"

### Reddit with site filter

**Trigger**: "search reddit for"
**Mode**: Prefix
**Engine**: Google
**Pretext**: `site:reddit.com `

Say: "search reddit for mechanical keyboards"
Opens: Google with "site:reddit.com mechanical keyboards"

***

## Creating a web search trigger

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Triggers">
    Go to **Settings → Triggers**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create new trigger">
    Click **+** or **New Trigger**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the phrase">
    Enter your trigger phrase (e.g., "search google for").
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose Prefix matching">
    Select **Prefix** so your query comes after the phrase.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Web Search">
    Choose **Web Search** as the action type.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure search">
    * Pick your search engine
    * Choose your browser
    * Set query handling if needed
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save**.
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## Tips

* **Use prefix matching** for searches with queries
* **Use exact matching** for opening specific sites (like "open github")
* **Create multiple search triggers** for different engines (Google, YouTube, Amazon)

***

## Related

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Variables" icon="code" href="/triggers/variables">
    Dynamic values in your queries.
  </Card>

  <Card title="App Launcher" icon="rocket" href="/triggers/types/app-launcher">
    Open apps instead of websites.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>