YouTube is the second largest search engine on the Internet after Google. This guide discusses advanced search operators that you can use with your YouTube search queries for more accurate video searches.
How to Search YouTube like a Pro!
Find a specific YouTube channel
royal wedding, channel
YouTube will have numerous videos related to the royal wedding but if you are only looking for their official YouTube channel, add the word channel to your query separated by a comma.
Watch live videos on YouTube
zoo, live
Add live to your search queries and watch live stream videos such as live news, live gaming channels, live concerts, sports events or even cooking sessions.
Limit your search to recently uploaded videos
oprah winfrey, this week
This will only show recent videos related to Oprah that have been uploaded to YouTube in the past week. You may also use “today” or “this month” to limit your search to videos that were uploaded in the past month.
Find only official videos, no fan material please
never say never, partner
If you are looking for the ‘official’ Justin Bieber track and don’t want to see any parodies or fan material in the search results, add the word ‘partner’ to your search query.
Find movies on YouTube
jackie chan, movie
Yes, you can find full-length movies on YouTube. The search operator for finding movies is, you got it right, movie.
Find 4K or HD only videos on YouTube
the king’s speech trailer, hd
Add the keyword hd to your search query and YouTube will only show High-definition video clips that are either 720p (1280×720) or 1080p (1920×1080 pixels). Or add 4k to limit your search to 4K content.
Find 3D video clips on YouTube
avatar, 3d
Got a pair of 3D glasses? Add the keyword 3D to your search query and discover 3D videos. You may also enjoy some 3D content on YouTube without the glasses – see details.
Find video playlists on YouTube
bryan adams, playlist
Playlists are a great option if you want to find and watch (or listen) multiple related videos in one go – like all the Old Spice commercials or your favorite Savage Garden tracks. You may also copy YouTube playlists to your own account.
Find lengthy videos on YouTube
tom and jerry cartoons, long
Add the keyword long to your search query and YouTube will only return videos that are at least 20 minutes in length. Or append short to limit search to videos that are 4 minutes in length or less.
Perform exact-match searches on YouTube
allintitle:”google goes gaga”
You can borrow the popular allintitle search operator from Google on YouTube to perform exact title matches. Might be useful when the original video is not available in your country due to geographic restrictions.
Mix and Match YouTube Search operators
ted talks, hd, this month, long
The best part about YouTube search is that you combine multiple search operators with commas and apply them all to your query (much like the Boolean AND operator). The above example will help use find all TED talks that have recently been uploaded to YouTube.
Liked it? See similar search guides for Google News, Google Alerts and Windows Search.