Learn how to use the Siri voice assistant on your Mac to search the web, find pictures, and more — without leaving the app you are in.
Siri is a terrific helper, and it can retrieve saved passwords, get you back to your iPhone Home Screen, read your text messages to you, and more.
So, if you’re still getting used to all that Siri can do for you on Mac, then why not let it help you find what you need on the internet?
Remember that you can use Siri with your voice or even type your requests.
Press and hold Command + Space Bar or just say “Hey Siri” to invoke Apple’s voice assistant.
Search the web
Say, “Hey Siri, search the web for” and then pop in your search term or keyword.
You’ll get a list of the top results, can select to view one of them, or click Show Google Results or See more in Safari. You’ll be directed to exactly what Siri found for you in your Mac’s default web browser.
Search a specific website
You can also ask Siri to search a specific website. Try, “Hey Siri, search [website name] for,” and follow it up with what you’re looking for. For example, you can search iDownloadBlog for tutorials.
Quick look pictures
You can ask Siri to show you pictures, and when they are presented in a grid, you can right-click on one to open it in Quick Look. This way, you can see the bigger version of the image without opening it in the web browser.
Search with a specific search engine
Do you prefer your search results come from a specific search engine? Use “Hey Siri, search [search engine name] for” and enter your phrase or keyword. For instance, you can search DuckDuckGo, Google, Bing, or another popular search engine specifically.
This will trigger Siri to open your default browser, right to the results page for your keyword, using the search engine you asked for.
Note that this may not work in newer versions of macOS.
Related: How to change the default search engine in Safari
Save your search results
You can save your search results from Siri as well, so you can refer back to them anytime.
When Siri gives you your search results, click the plus sign in the upper right corner. Your results will then be saved in the Today view of your Mac Notification Center.
When you’re finished, click the X in the upper right corner to remove them.
Unfortunately, this handy feature seems to have disappeared from newer versions of macOS such as macOS Sonoma.
What do you use Siri for the most on your devices? Do you have any tips you’d like to share?
Check out next: How to use Siri on Mac like a pro to make it work for you