EmailBest Reviewed
Search Engines
- Best search engine overall Google *Est. $0
- Best alternative search engine Yahoo! Search *Est. $0
- Search engine for direct answers, customization Windows Live Search *Est. $0
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Best alternative search engine
- Relevant results
- Search Pad for notes
- Shortcuts for common queries
- Robust advanced search
- No direct answers to questions
- Cluttered interface
April 2009. Yahoo! Search lags well behind Google in popularity, but reviews say both search engines provide relevant results most of the time. Because results overlap only partially, search experts recommend using both tools for Internet research. The new Yahoo! Search Pad makes it easy to take notes as you research without switching programs, and Yahoo! Search provides shortcuts for quick answers to many common queries (such as area codes, weather and traffic reports). Using advanced search, you can even narrow results to show only pages with a Creative Commons license (a form of copyright that allows for fair use of creative works). Unless you prefer the Yahoo! portal for other reasons such as e-mail or instant messaging, however, reviews recommend Google as the best search engine with which to start.
We found the most credible reviews of Yahoo! Search by professionals at the University of California, Berkeley Library and InfoPeople.org. A February 2009 review at The Wall Street Journal covers the new Search Pad feature. We also found Yahoo! Search included in several recent comparison tests of search engines at Dolores Labs, SearchEngineLand.com, Laptop Magazine and StraightUpSearch.com.
Our Sources
1. University of California, Berkeley Library
Yahoo! is the second search engine recommended by experts at the UC Berkeley Library, for use (along with Exalead) as a supplement to top-ranked Google.
Review: Recommended Search Engines, Editors of University of California, Berkeley Library, Feb. 2009
This site designed for librarians recommends Yahoo! Search as one of the three best search engines, noting that its advanced search lets you search for documents with a Creative Commons license.
Review: Best Search Tools Chart, Joe Barker, Sept. 2008
This article praises the way Yahoo! Search offers its new Search Pad note-taking option automatically if it detects you might be doing research.
Review: Yahoo Lets Users Take Notes, Jessica E. Vascellaro, Feb. 4, 2009
4. Dolores Labs
Based on results of 500 random queries, testers find the results at Yahoo! Search about as relevant as those at Google and Live.com -- with all three providing relevant results for about 80 percent of the queries. (Ask.com gets a lower rating for relevance.)
Review: Search Engine Relevance -- an Empirical Test, Brendan O'Connor, Apr. 3, 2008
Yahoo! Search loses points to Live.com and Ask.com in this recent comparison review, because both the latter search engines provide direct answers to a query for "oscar winners," while Yahoo! (and Google) only provide links to the information.
Review: And the Oscar for Best Search Engine for Oscar Winners Goes to É Microsoft Live & Ask.com, Danny Sullivan, Feb. 23, 2009
6. Laptop Broker.comDetails/Subscribe
This detailed review compares Yahoo! with Google based on eight different factors, including not only search results but also maps, mobile versions, photo search and other tools. Yahoo! outperforms Google for photos, games, email and instant messaging, but Google is the overall winner because of its superior search results and maps.
Review: Google vs. Yahoo, Joanna Stern, Aug. 16, 2007
Yahoo! Search, along with Google and Ask.com, lose points to Live.com based on a comparison of the results on a search query for "Olympics" (highly relevant at the time of this review). The anonymous reviewer finds lots of good information at Yahoo! Search, but Live.com makes it easier to access.
Review: Search Engines Compete for Olympic Audience, "Alex", Aug. 15, 2008
