Here’s how to find results similar to another Google search result. Let’s say you’re interested in finding sites similar to that of Consumer Reports. First, search for their site.
Click on the Similar pages link that appears on the bottom line for the Consumer Reports result.
The link may be useful for finding more consumer resources, or information on Consumer Reports’ competitors.
You can also find similar pages by using the Page-Specific Search selector on the Advanced Search page or by using the related: search operator. If you expect to search frequently for similar pages, you may want to install a GoogleScout browser button.
Note: The similar pages feature is most effective on pages that are popular, i.e, that are linked to from many pages.
How does Google find similar pages?
By finding other sites listed on pages that link to the specified page. Let’s see how Google chooses sites similar to Google Guide. I use the related: search operator, which returns the same results as the Similar pages link.
Now let’s look at one of the sites that link to Google Guide, as it was at the time we made the screen shot above. On the Michigan State University (MSU) Libraries page, www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/home/home5.htm (shown in the screen shot below), Google Guide is listed near the top of the page just after a link to Google’s Zeitgeist page, www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html. The next three sites listed as being similar to Google Guide (Metaspy, the MEL Internet Myths and Hoaxes, and Web Characterization) are also listed on the MSU page. Google automatically selected these sites by considering many factors including the popularity of the pages containing links to Google Guide, the positions, sizes, and proximities of other links to the Google Guide link.
Another resource for similar results is the category link that may appear just below the snippet or above your search results, which is described next. If there isn’t a category link, try using Google’s Directory.
Exercises
These problems give you practice in using Google’s Similar pages feature. For hints and answers to selected problems, see the Solutions page.
- Find a site that will get your name off mailing lists so that you receive less commercial advertising mail. Click on the Similar pages link to find other such sites.
- What sites are similar to the Internet Movie Database?
