The Best Search Engines For Your Information Need








Finding Your Topic


Picking a Topic
RefDeskFree and family friendly web site reviewing high quality internet resources.
RefSeek Search academic sites and documents for a variety of subjects.
AcademicInfo  Browse a long list of relevant sites and guides for any topic of  interest.
Related topics 
GoogleUse google’s related searches to find more hidden topics within your topic.
BingFind your topic and click related searches for more ideas on what to look for.
Narrow My Topic
SurfWaxFind the latest news and feeds for your topic within the past 7 days.
iSeekNarrow down your search by result type, grade level, subject, subtopic, sources and file types.
WikipediaFind an article on your topic, then check the table of contents for more ideas.
Controversial Topics
Google TrendsCheck the latest news, data and trends people are searching for.
IdebateUse the search bar and get all the “Points For” and “Against for” of a topic.
ProConGet the Pros & Cons  for a wide variety of subjects.
Background for my Topic
SweetSearch Get information about your topic from  academic articles and websites only.
WikipediaFind an article and check the resources and links pointing out for more information.
BritannicaAn encyclopedia to get related articles and accurate information about your topic of interest.

High Quality Results


Chosen by Experts
LibguidesFind guides for your topic coming from university and educational related websites only.
InfotopiaA search engine for students  and a resource website for multiple subjects.
Personal Help
AllExperts Get answers for your questions from many volunteering experts.
Ask a librarianGet research advice from a professional librarian. May take a few days for a reply
Quality Sites
Google.comTop of the results on google have high quality content and popularity.
Quora.comTop answers are written by experts with their credentials listed. You can find high quality links from their answers as well.
Primary Sources
Library of CongressThe best source of books, maps, photos, videos, statistics, documents for American history.
Archives.govWorldwide Archives and Archival Services.
Exhibitions OnlineFind exhibitions on the web selected the Smithsonian Library.
Peer-Reviewed Journals
Google Scholar Find peer-reviewed journals and articles from all around the web.
Directory of Open Access JournalsNarrow your results by subject, publisher and language.

By Discipline


Official Government Information
USA.govGet official information from the US Government.
Foreign GovernmentsAlphabetical list of the official websites of national governments worldwide.
UK GovernmentInformation and services from the UK’s government website
In depth Information about a Country or Territory
CIA World FactBookSelect the country or area from the drop down menu.
(UNPO) Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization. Websites from occupied nations, minorities, indigenous people and independent states and territories.
Science & Engineering
ScopusSubscription based search engine for books, journals and conference proceedings.
Google ScholarFind research papers, articles, patents and journals from any scientific discipline.
National Science Digital LibraryRefine your search based on your education level and subject.
Health
MedlinePlus Find everything about diseases and other any other health topic.
Mayo ClinicUse the search bar to find anything related to health.
Kids HealthHealth related information for kids and parents.
Legal Documents, Agencies & News
FindLawLearn about the law, search cases and find news or specific cases across the US.
Legal Information InstituteWorldwide information about the law including legal primary resources and law related articles organized by topics.
State Legislative Websites Directory A database of all U.S state legislatures and territories’ home page, statutes, bills, issues, legislators and more.
Creative & Performing Arts
Intute Resource Archive Use drop down menu and select  arts or humanities for a detailed and organized list of resources.
Art History on the WebResources for every timeline of art history.
JURN A customer search of thousands of e-journals and articles. Contains 3,000 links to selected to free journals in the arts & humanities.

By Timeline


Last Hour
GoogleUse google’s advanced search settings and select past hour.
Google TrendsFind topics & pictures within the past hours.
Today
Google NewsGet the latest news and topics. Refine your search any category and location.
NewsNowBreaking global news & headlines as seen by the UK
NewseumBrowse today’s front page treatment of news from nearly 780 newspapers across the country.
Recent
GoogleLimit your search by any timeline you wish.
Yahoo NewsSimilarly, search for news and filter by time period.
Recent & Detailed
BBC Special ReportsIn-depth coverage of current worldwide topics.
New York Times TopicsCollected news, reference, photos, graphics, audio and video files for every topic listed.
PolitiFact Search news by using a keyword and browse facts & statements made by Congressmen, the White Houses and other political groups.
Long term studies & reports
ProPublicaNews & Investigations in the public interest.
Center for Public IntegrityReporting of public issues to “to reveal abuses of power, corruption and dereliction of duty by powerful public and private institutions…”
Center for Investigative ReportingProduces stories to reveal scandals and corruption from any agency and corporation.
Particular Period ( era, decade or century)
HistoryWorldEnter a starting year and a topic . Then get a timeline with information and images for each period.
Wikipedia List of TimelinesA complete list of timelines for any topic. Ex: human activity, film industry, Universe Timeline.
Historical
American MemoryThe United States’ primary source of documents and images. Browse by topic, period, medium and place.
ipl2Go to the history  section or use the search to find your topic
Digital History High quality resources including primary resources, historical documents, multimedia and guides.
.Ancient
Ancient History SourcebookA search bar for online resources which include ancient-texts, images, audio and more. You can also browse by regions.
ipl2Go to the the ancient history section or use the search bar for broad topics (Ex: Greece, Egypt).

Facts

People

Biography.comGet biographies, videos and articles of the most famous people in history. Search by name, profession or any other keyword.
Who2 A search engine for famous people. Each biography includes four links related to their work and other profiles.
Dictionary of Canadian Biography Biographies for famous Canadians throughout history.
Place
CIA World FactbookGet facts & current issues from every country.
Country StudiesGet text documents containing historical, social, economic, political and national security data of every country.
Stately KnowledgeGet facts, links and encyclopedia articles of every state in the US.
Company
NYPL: Searching for Company InformationFind company information based on your need
Quick Answers for References
Ask.comGet basic answers for facts, statistic, biographies, etc.
Britannica EncyclopediaGet the basics for any topic.

Opinion and Perspectives


Opinions on Current Issues
Yahoo News Get opinions from anchors, columnists and cartoonists for current issues.
Headline SpotHeadlines from every state in the USA and from international newspapers.
Polling ReportBrowse results of U.S. public opinion surveys.
News from other Countries Perspectives
World PressGet summaries and views coming from outside the USA.
NewspaperindexA list of newspapers from around the world.
ABYZ News LinksGet broadcasts, news websites, newspapers, magazines and press agencies from every country.
Multiple perspectives on hot social and political topics
ProConsPro/con on current social issues written by experts. Links to related articles.
Public AgendaAn overview by the public of current social issues with pros and cons.
UN News CentreGet News & issues as seen by the UN from each region and country
Compare news treatment
NewseumFront pages of U.S. newspapers to compare
PressReaderGet news & reports from +100 countries and in +60 languages.

Specific Type of Media


Maps
Google MapsView satellite and street level maps of any part of the world.
Yahoo MapsAlternative to Google Maps.
National Geographic MapsBrowse all kinds of maps. (Ex: travel, scientific, political, etc)
American Fact Finder MapsBrowse thematic & reference maps (statistical data and geographical features)  from any part of the U.S
Photographs and Visual Images
Google ImageUse the search bar to find an image and advanced settings to filter results by size, resolution & more.
Yahoo ImagesSame as google
FlickrSearch user submitted photos by topic then filter out your results.
Fine Art
ArtcyclopediaSearch by artists, subject, location or browse by Name, Medium, Subject. Filter results by images, articles, books, museums,etc.
Video
GoogleSearch by keywords and filter your results by using the Tools menu.
Aol VideoBrowse videos by categories and subcategories.
Internet ArchiveGet access to films, documentaries, news, series and other cultural videos. Filter results by topics and different sources.
Radio
Public Radio FanRadio Programs and Podcasts from around the world.
Music
GoogleFor lyrics search for title/performer + “song lyrics”. For song’s history search for title + “origin”.
Sounds
FindSoundsGet sound effects and music samples. Select a category and filter your results by file format, resolution, sample rate and file size.
Speeches
American RhetoricUse the search bar here or browse by categories to get speeches, lectures, debates, events, interviews in text, audio and video formats.
History and Politics Out LoudBrowse full audio with transcripts of 20th century and historical  events, figures, songs and more.
American MemoryFind sound recordings of American primary source speeches
Quotations
Bartleby.comQuotations Find classic passages, phrases and proverbs.
Quotations PageSearch for quotations organized by the categories: author, motivational and subject.
QuotelandType a keyword or search by categories.
Statistical data
World StatisticsLinks to worldwide websites containing statistics from every country.
Dictionary or TheSaurus
Merriam-Webster Dictionary and ThesaurusDefinitions, synonyms and audio-pronunciation
WordCentralDefinitions with images
Encyclopedias
Wikipedia Volunteer-created and collaboratively edited. Useful for references and current topics. Information can easily be altered but quickly repaired.
Britannica EncyclopediaInformation reviewed by experts. More reliable
Almanac Data
Information Please AlmanacFacts and Statistics
Books and Other Printed Works
WorldCatFind Books and Reviews. Check your local library’s catalog
Google ScholarView Free and Paid scholarly articles and journals. Locate more information by checking citations. Use advanced search to filter results by author, title, date and subject area.
Google BooksSearch books by title, author or any keywords found inside books.

Special Requirements


Periodic search with Notifications of new results sent to you
Giga Alert Get notifications of new search results sent to your email everyday (Up to 3 search queries for free subscriptions).
Google AlertsGet an email notification by google itself send to your email whenever new results are found for your topic. (No limit in number of queries)
Results by Country of Origin
GoogleUse advanced search to find websites of different countries by domain name or by language used.
Search Engine outside the U.S
Search Engine ColossusGet Search engines & website directories from different countries.
Locate Resources by File Type
GoogleUse advanced search and select file type (.pdf, .ps, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .rtf)
YahooClick on File Format to limit results by file type (.html, .pdf, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .xml, .txt)

Are you a…


Kid
Kids ClickShows only kid friendly sites with educational content (grades K-7). Selected by librarians.
ipl2 for Kids Kid friendly search engine.
KiddleVisual and safe search engine for kids.
Newbie to the Internet
GoogleLargest general purpose search engine
YahooLarge, general purpose search engine
Research Expert
Google’s Advanced SearchNarrow results with specific commands.
ExaleadHighly specific search queries.