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Using Advanced Search

Need to slice through millions of podcasts and episodes with laser-focused precision? The Advanced Search builder lets you combine keywords with AND, OR, and NOT logic, no memorization of Boolean operators required. Use it to include or exclude terms, bundle concepts into groups, and surface only the results that matter. Here's how!

Heads up: Advanced search is available on desktop and tablet. On mobile, you can still use boolean operators manually.

Opening the Builder

Click in the global search bar (desktop only).
Press Open Advanced on the right side of the bar.
The search bar expands into the Advanced Search window.

Tip: You can also open Advanced Search after typing a query, nothing is lost.

Building Your Search

1. Add search terms to a Group

Type a keyword or phrase.
Use the dropdown beside the field to choose AND, OR, or NOT.
Click + to add more terms to the same group.
Each group works like parentheses in a Boolean statement.

2. Add Groups

Click add group at the bottom.
Choose AND, OR, or NOT between groups using the center dropdown.
Add your search terms within the group.
Add as many groups as you need.

3. Run the search

The Search button activates once at least one term is present.
Results open in the standard search view, labeled as a Boolean query.
Edit the query any time: reopen Advanced Search, tweak terms or groups, then search again.

When to Use Groups

You can create groups however you like, but as a general rule of thumb: if the text inside parentheses sounds natural when you say it out loud, it probably deserves its own group.

Scenario	Why use a separate group?	Example
Distinct concepts	Keep unrelated ideas cleanly separated.	(fitness AND* “strength training”)* AND (nutrition AND* protein)*
Nested inclusion/exclusion	Combine a must-have block with a shared NOT list.	(“climate change” AND* policy)* NOT (oil OR Exxon)
Synonyms vs. core term	Wrap synonyms together so they stay tied to the same logic.	(“NYC” OR “new york city”) AND (tourism)
Audience + topic	Split audience qualifiers from topical terms for quick edits.	(“small business” OR SMB) AND (“digital marketing” OR SEO)

Practical Tips

Action	How to do it
Exclude common false positives	Add them as NOT terms in the same group.
Alternate spellings or nicknames	Place them in one group with OR between each term.
Start over quickly	Click Clear All in the top right.
Close the builder	Click × or press Esc—your draft remains intact until you reload the page.

Using Boolean Search Operators

You can skip the advanced UI and build your own complex queries within the search bar. Here's how.

Finding What You Need

Advanced Search now uses exact match.

All keywords or phrases are treated as exact matches by default. This means if you enter a multiple-word phrase like major league, it will be treated as "major league" automatically. You don’t need to add quotation marks, and if you do, rest assured that they aren’t duplicated.

Combining and Filtering: Using Boolean Search Operators

Use Parenthesis to Activate Boolean Search Operators

If you want to refine your search using special operators (like +, |, or -), you must wrap your entire search in parentheses. This ensures the operators work correctly.

✅ Correct Example: (Mets + Yankees) → This will find results that mention both "Mets" and "Yankees."
🚫 Incorrect Example: Mets + Yankees → This may not work as expected.

Important: Quotation marks ("") for exact searches can be used within search operators.

Basic Boolean Search Operators

These are simple tools to help refine your searches:

1. AND: Search for Multiple Terms `(x + y)`

Use + to require multiple words to appear in your search results.

Example: (Mets + Yankees) → This finds results that contain both "Mets" and "Yankees."

2. OR: Search for Either Term (x | y)

Use | when you want to find results that mention either of the terms.

Example: (Mets | Yankees) → This finds results that contain either "Mets" or "Yankees."

3. NOT: Exclude a Term (x -y)

Use - to remove certain words from search results.

Example: (Sports -baseball) → This finds results about "Sports" but excludes anything about "baseball."

Note:
To keep results clear and consistent, you won’t be able to use a NOT operator inside a group that’s already set to NOT. While the option will still show up in the dropdown, it’ll be disabled with a tooltip that says "Unavailable when group relationship is set to "Not"".

Advanced Boolean Search Operators

If you need even more control over your search results, these advanced tools can help:

1. Nesting Boolean Search Operators (Using Parentheses `()`)

Use parentheses to group search terms together so that operators work correctly.

Example: ((quick | brown) + fox) → This ensures that the search finds results containing either "quick fox" or "brown fox."
- If parentheses were not used, such as (quick | brown + fox), the search might return results for just "quick," along with "brown fox," but not "quick fox."

2. Finding Similar or Misspelled Words (Fuzziness `~N`)

Use ~N after a word to allow for small variations or typos in your search.

Example: (colour~1) → This will find both "color" and "colour" since they differ by only one character.

3. Allowing Words to Be Reordered (Slop `~N` for Phrases)

Use ~N after a phrase in quotes to allow slight variations in word order or small insertions.

Example: ("Doctor Reginald Saunders"~1) → This will also find:
- "Doctor Reginald Saunders"
- "Doctor Saunders"
- "Doctor Saunders, Reginald"
- "Saunders, Doctor Reginald"
- "Doctor Reginald McGuffin"
- (Since there is only a one-word difference from the search phrase, these still match.)

Using Advanced Search and Boolean Operators