Dear Google, Please Give Android A Real Universal Search Tool

Google is the most widely used search engine on the internet. Billions of people use it every day on their PCs, phones, tablets, and other devices. Given that Google started as a search company, you’d expect Android to feature a robust universal search. However, nothing could be farther from the truth. Despite over 17 major releases, Android still lacks a decent universal search option, with the search experience being wildly inconsistent across the top Android phones.

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But it’s not

The Google Search widget is preloaded on the home screens of most Android phones. Ideally, you should be able to use it to quickly search for your installed apps, browse apps on the Play Store, find your contacts, or do a web search. This happens, but only on Google Pixel phones.

The Pixel Launcher’s search widget offers a nearly universal search-like feature, allowing you to find the app or contact you want quickly. You can also initiate a search on YouTube, Maps, and the Play Store from the widget.

It’s also possible to search for a contact in WhatsApp using the Pixel Launcher’s search bar and start a conversation, saving time and the need for extra taps.

On other Android devices, including the best Samsung phones, the Google Search widget can only initiate a web search. For similar functionality, I need to use the search tool in One UI Home’s app drawer. It’s a similar story with other Android brands, where universal search is handled through the launcher’s search function.

Google added universal search functionality to its search widget in Android 12 and introduced relevant APIs for this purpose. Given that the feature is part of Android and the Google Search widget is preinstalled on most Android phones, you’d expect it to deliver a consistent search experience across devices. However, that’s not the case. It’s more likely a result of Android’s long-standing fragmentation issue.

You might think that the universal search experience on Pixel phones is good. However, like almost everything Google does, the feature is half-baked. The “universal” search cannot go through my calendar entries, device settings, messages, Drive, or Google Photos library.

Apple delivers a better search experience with Spotlight on the iPhone. When I swipe down on the home screen to bring up the search bar, I can quickly find whatever I need: contacts, images, addresses, notes, and more.

Android phones, like OnePlus and Xiaomi, ship with an AI-powered universal search tool as part of their skin. Still, a core feature like search shouldn’t offer an inconsistent experience across devices.

Third-party launchers win at search

Google lags in its own game

On Android, third-party launchers like Nova and Smart Launcher come close to delivering a true universal search experience. Smart Launcher pulls results from my calendar, files stored on the device, system settings, contacts, Play Store, and more. Plus, for contacts, I can tap the arrow next to their name and call, text, email, or WhatsApp them right away.

Nova Launcher’s built-in search is even more powerful. I can use it to search my Telegram contacts, Slack, Spotify library, Google Drive, Netflix, and more. This is thanks to the company behind Nova acquiring one of my favorite Android apps: Sesame Search.

Although the app is available on the Play Store and continues to function, it has not received an update in nearly three years. Yet, I stick with it because it makes searching on any Android phone incredibly powerful. I dread the day Sesame Search will stop working, but for now, it remains among my most-used apps on any phone I use.

Another aspect I like about Sesame Search is that I can exclude contacts, apps, or create custom shortcuts. For example, I turned off Accessibility and Locale setting shortcuts from appearing in search results, as I don’t need them. Similarly, I show only select contacts in search to avoid cluttering the results with my entire contact list.

Pixel Search is the only other app that comes close to offering a universal search experience on Android. It brings the Pixel Launcher’s search functionality to other Android phones. However, like Sesame Search, it has not been updated since 2023. It also lacks fuzzy search, so unless I start the search with the exact term, the app or contact doesn’t appear in the results.

If third-party launchers do search better, what’s stopping me from switching to one? Android does not play well with third-party launchers, leading to buggy animations and other random glitches.

The issue is not as pronounced on Samsung and Pixel devices, but on other phones, it degrades the experience. On my Xiaomi 15 Ultra, I can’t use a third-party launcher with navigation gestures activated. Similarly, on Oppo phones, using a launcher other than the stock one results in an unwanted delay when returning to the home screen from any app.

Android deserves a smarter, unified search

This is why Google must step up and use the Google Search widget to provide a consistent, universal search experience on all Android phones. There’s no reason not to do this, especially when Google is the world’s largest search company. A unified search tool will only enhance the experience of using Android phones.