When I use the minus sign to exclude certain terms in my search, it does not exclude them. The image shows a Brave search where I used -crossword to exclude all entries with the word crossword. You can see that it did NOT exclude them.
Thank you,
John
This is known problem, search engine operators do not work on brave search.
Sometimes they do, sometimes they do not, as far as I know.
The search team knows about it and will make sure to bring this requested feature in few months (probably by August).
Any idea where this enhancement is in the development process?
As of today operators (at least “-” exclude) appears to be working when searching under “All” but does not appear to work for any other tab (Images, News, Videos). Curious how search operators have not been a critical component of Brave search since when? Forever? Re-thinking my Brave advocacy as this simply seems insane to me. Can someone please, for my ignorance, explain how what seems like such a basic component of a major search engine isn’t working?
As of today this STILL doesn’t work. I tried to search for 6 pocket accordian folder excluding amazon (because Amazon is a malignant tumor)
-amazon 6 pocket accordian folder
everything that came up had Amazon
November 5, 2024
Original Post was February 2023
Still does not work.
Other tools lacking swift, simple precision:
Goggles and !Bangs
as of August 7th 2025 this fundamental feature is STILL non functional. if you try to exclude terms from your search it will do the exact opposite and think you’re looking for specifically that. for instance, I am looking for a transparent bubble texture, however i kept getting bubble shaped fonts, not what im looking for, trying to exclude fonts then makes that the only search result i get. this is going to force me to use any other search engine/ browser.
Brave Search FAQ:
‘https://support.brave.app/hc/en-us/articles/4403568397837-Brave-Search-FAQ’
What !bangs can I use in Brave Search?
‘https://support.brave.app/hc/en-us/articles/4410152384781-What-bangs-can-I-use-in-Brave-Search’
Brave also uses the DuckDuckGo !bangs:
https://duckduckgo.com/bangs
Very long list of !bangs:
‘https://duckduckgo.com/bang_lite.html’
Regarding Brave Search Engine Operators (“SEO”):
https://search.brave.com/help/operators
To add/correct/update a !bang, visit:
https://duckduckgo.com/newbang
In my experience, the plus and particularly the minus symbols usage have NOT been reliable.
Alternative Example, enter into the Brave Search Field (not in the URL address field) at https://search.brave.com:
- penny
and search. Notice the results. Next, enter in the Brave Search Field (not in the URL address field):
- penny NOT site:wikipedia AND NOT site:usmint.gov
Notice the results and the difference between the two results sets.
Brave Search - Goggles Syntax and More:
‘Does Brave Search has its own 'custom search' or 'programmable search' as does Google? - #7 by 289wk’
DuckDuckGo Search Engine Tips:
‘https://duckduckgo.com/duckduckgo-help-pages/results/syntax’
Google Search Engine Operators:
‘https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-search-operators-commands/215331/’"