Help - Scour

Getting Started

Scour is a privacy-respecting metasearch engine. Simply type your query in the search box and press Enter or click the search button.

Unlike traditional search engines, we don't track you, store your search history, or create a profile about you.

Search Categories

Use the category tabs to narrow the engines and result types used for your search.

🌐 General

Web pages and articles

🖼️ Images

Photos and graphics

🎬 Videos

Video content

📰 News

Bang Commands

Bang commands send your search directly to another site. Use either !shortcut terms or terms !shortcut. Built-in bangs are available, and server or user-defined bangs can be added on top.

Popular Bangs

!g Google

!ddg DuckDuckGo

!b Bing

!br Brave Search

!sp Startpage

!w Wikipedia

!yt YouTube

!gh GitHub

!so Stack Overflow

!rd Reddit

!tw Twitter/X

!az Amazon

!gm Google Maps

!osm OpenStreetMap

!wa Wolfram Alpha

!mdn MDN Web Docs

!npm npm

!pypi PyPI

!gopkg Go Packages

!scholar Google Scholar

!arxiv arXiv

!archive Internet Archive

!spot Spotify

By Category

Category	Examples
Search	`!g` `!b` `!ddg` `!br` `!sp` `!q` `!kagi` `!perplexity`
Images	`!gi` `!bi` `!fl` `!pexels` `!pixabay` `!pinterest` `!tineye`
Video	`!yt` `!v` `!twitch` `!tiktok` `!rumble` `!pt`
Maps	`!gm` `!osm` `!waze` `!yelp` `!tripadvisor`
News	`!gn` `!hn` `!bbc` `!techcrunch` `!verge` `!reuters`
Social	`!tw` `!mast` `!fb` `!linkedin` `!bluesky` `!lb`
Code & Dev	`!gh` `!gl` `!so` `!npm` `!pypi` `!gopkg` `!docker` `!mdn`
Shopping	`!az` `!eb`
Science	`!scholar` `!arxiv`
Reference	`!w` `!wa` `!britannica`
Files	`!archive`

Examples

!g python tutorial — Search Google for "python tutorial"
privacy search !ddg — Send the query to DuckDuckGo from the end of the search
!w artificial intelligence — Go to Wikipedia article
!gh octocat — Search GitHub
!npm express — Look up npm package

View full bang list (JSON)

Instant & Direct Answers

Direct answers use the type:term format and open as full-page results. Instant answers are triggered from the regular search box and can also be accessed over the API.

Full-page direct answers (`type:term`)

Network & Security

dns:example.com DNS records lookup

whois:example.com Domain WHOIS info

cert:example.com SSL certificate info

headers:example.com HTTP response headers

asn:AS15169 ASN information

subnet:192.168.1.0/24 Subnet / CIDR calculator

resolve:example.com Hostname to IP resolution

robots:example.com robots.txt contents

sitemap:example.com Sitemap URLs

tech:example.com Technology stack detection

feed:example.com RSS / Atom feeds

expand:short.url/x Expand shortened URL

safe:example.com Safe browsing check

Encoding & Conversion

qr:https://example.com Generate QR code

jwt:token Decode JWT token

html:<b>text</b> HTML entity encode/decode

escape:hello & world Escape special characters

ascii:hello ASCII art text

unicode:U+1F600 Unicode character lookup

emoji:smile Emoji search

Developer Tools

json:format {"key":"val"} Format / validate JSON

yaml:from-json {"key":"val"} Format YAML or convert JSON and YAML

regex:[a-z]+ Explain regex pattern

beautify:code Beautify / format code

cron:* * * * * Explain cron expression

chmod:755 File permission converter

timestamp:1700000000 Unix timestamp converter

slug:Hello World Generate URL slug

case:hello world Case conversion (upper/lower/title/camel)

Reference

tldr:git tldr simplified man page

man:grep Full Unix man page

cheat:git Command cheatsheet

rfc:2616 RFC document

cve:CVE-2024-1234 CVE vulnerability info

pkg:express Package info (npm / PyPI / Go)

http:404 HTTP status code explanation

port:443 Port number info

Content & Knowledge

wiki:python Wikipedia article summary

dict:ephemeral Dictionary definition

thesaurus:happy Synonyms and antonyms

slang:yolo Slang / internet slang definition

country:DE Country information (ISO code or name)

license:MIT Open-source license summary

Text Tools

lorem:3 Lorem ipsum text (paragraphs, words, or sentences)

word:hello world Text statistics and reading time

diff:text1|text2 Text diff comparison

useragent:my Parse a User-Agent string

mime:application/json MIME type lookup

File Directories

directory:linux iso Search open directory listings

directory:pdf book Find document directories

directory:mp3 album Find music directories

Cache & Archive

cache:example.com Cached version of a page

rotl:34 Rules of the Internet direct answer

Instant answer examples

2 + 2 Calculator result

sqrt(144) Math functions and expressions

convert 10 km to miles Unit conversion

time in tokyo Current time and timezone lookups

what is my ip Your current IP address

#ff5733 Color preview and conversion

Search Operators

Refine your searches with these operators:

Operator	Example	Description
`"..."`	`"exact phrase"`	Search for exact phrase
`-word`	`apple -fruit`	Exclude word from results
`*`	`best * for python`	Wildcard — matches any word
`OR`	`cat OR dog`	Either term
`AND`	`privacy AND security`	Both terms required
`site:`	`site:example.com query`	Search within a specific site
`-site:`	`-site:spam.com query`	Exclude a site from results
`filetype:`	`filetype:pdf report`	Find specific file types
`intitle:`	`intitle:guide`	Find word in page title
`inurl:`	`inurl:blog`	Find word in URL
`intext:`	`intext:privacy policy`	Find word in page body text
`define:`	`define:ephemeral`	Dictionary definition
`before:`	`before:2023-01-01 python`	Results before a date
`after:`	`after:2024-01-01 python`	Results after a date
`lang:`	`lang:en linux`	Filter by language
`related:`	`related:github.com`	Sites similar to a given URL
`cache:`	`cache:example.com`	Cached or archived copies of a URL
`info:`	`info:example.com`	Information about a URL
`define:`	`define:ephemeral`	Dictionary-style definition lookup
`weather:`	`weather:tokyo`	Weather-specific query operator
`stocks:`	`stocks:AAPL`	Stock symbol lookup
`map:`	`map:berlin`	Map/location-focused query
`movie:`	`movie:arrival`	Movie/title-focused query
`source:`	`source:reuters ai`	News-source filter

Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts work best on search and results pages. They never replace normal navigation, so everything still works without JavaScript.

Shortcut	Action
`/` or `s`	Focus search box
`Escape`	Clear search / Close dialogs
`t`	Cycle theme (dark → light → auto)
`?`	Show keyboard shortcuts
`j` / `k`	Navigate results (down/up)
`Enter`	Open selected result
`o` / `O`	Open the selected result in the current tab or a new tab
`h` / `l`	Go to the previous or next page of results
`gg` / `G`	Jump to the first or last result
`1`–`9`	Open result number 1 through 9

API Documentation

This application exposes REST endpoints, direct-answer APIs, GraphQL, and an OpenAPI description for integrations and automation.

OpenAPI / Swagger

Interactive REST API explorer with try-it-out functionality

GraphQL Playground

Interactive GraphQL explorer with schema documentation

API Endpoints

Method	Endpoint	Description
`GET`	`/api/v1/search`	JSON search results
`GET`	`/api/v1/search/related`	Related search suggestions for a query
`GET`	`/api/v1/autocomplete`	Autocomplete suggestions
`GET`	`/api/v1/instant`	Instant answers for plain-language queries
`GET`	`/api/v1/direct/{type}/{term}`	Direct answers for `type:term` style queries
`GET`	`/api/v1/engines`	Available engines and status
`GET`	`/api/v1/categories`	Available search categories
`GET`	`/api/v1/bangs`	Available bang shortcuts
`GET`	`/api/v1/server/help`	Help page content as JSON
`GET`	`/openapi` / `/openapi.json`	OpenAPI UI and raw OpenAPI specification
`GET` / `POST`	`/graphql`	GraphQL explorer and API endpoint
`GET`	`/opensearch.xml`	OpenSearch descriptor for browser integration

Example: Search API

# Search for "golang tutorial"
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/search?q=golang+tutorial&category=general&limit=20"

# Image search with strict safe search
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/search?q=nature&category=images&safe_search=2"

# Get related searches
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/search/related?q=golang+tutorial"

Example: Instant Answers

# Calculator
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/instant?q=sqrt(144)"

# Unit conversion
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/instant?q=convert+10+km+to+miles"

# IP lookup
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/instant?q=what+is+my+ip"

Example: Direct Answers

# HTTP status explanation
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/direct/http/404"

# Rules of the Internet
curl "https://scour.li/api/v1/direct/rules/34"

Privacy Features

No tracking: We don't track your searches or create user profiles
No search history: Your searches are not stored on our servers
Sanitized result links: Common tracking parameters are stripped from result URLs before they are shown
Tor support: Access via Tor hidden service for maximum anonymity (see below)
Minimal cookies: Only essential cookies for preferences (no analytics)
No JavaScript required: Core search works without JavaScript
Open source: Full source code available for audit

Tor Access

This application is available as a Tor hidden service for enhanced privacy.

Onion Address

xkilv6hywtgomy7ds6mas6xu5b6ielawbikmynlpxizhwbkamnjwvdad.onion

How to Connect

Download Tor Browser
Open Tor Browser and wait for it to connect
Copy the onion address above and paste it into the Tor Browser address bar

Using Tor provides additional privacy by hiding your IP address and encrypting your connection through the Tor network.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are results different from Google?

We aggregate results from multiple sources without personalization. Results aren't filtered based on your history, location, or profile, so they may differ from what you see on personalized search engines.

How do I access via Tor?

Install Tor Browser and use our .onion address. See the Tor Access section above for the address and instructions.

Can I self-host this?

Yes! This is free and open source software.

What search engines do you use?

We aggregate results from multiple engines including Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Brave, Qwant, Mojeek, Yahoo, Yandex, Baidu, Startpage, Wikipedia, arXiv, PubMed, GitHub, Hacker News, Reddit, YouTube, OpenStreetMap, and Wolfram Alpha.

How do instant answers work?

Many instant answers are generated locally for calculations, formatting, conversions, parsing, and text tools. Some lookups query remote sources or your configured search backends when that is required for the feature.

Need More Help?

If you have questions or need assistance, please contact us.