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How To Circle to Search on Android

In This Article

In This Article

Circle to Search is a new AI-powered feature for Android, as it launched alongside theSamsung Galaxy S24 Ultrain January 2024 and is now available on theGoogle Pixel 8and8 Pro.

Circle to Search is a much easier way to search and look up text or images. Simply circle, highlight or tap images/texts on your screen to select and then search for them on Google.

This works in numerous instances, for example if you’re online shopping, want to identify a plant or animal or want to look up a word or phrase seen on your screen.Circle to Search will work with all apps, including social media and video apps like TikTok.

Using Circle to Search is simple and intuitive to use. Keep reading to learn how to use Circle to Search on your new Android device.

What you’ll need:

What you’ll need:

The short version:

Step1

There are two ways to do this. If you’re in Gesture navigation mode, then long-hold the navigation button at the bottom of your screen. If you’re in three-button navigation mode, long-press the Home button.

Step2

Circle the image or text that you want to search for

Circle, tap or scribble on the screen to select the text, image or video you want to look up.

Step3

Refine search if needed

If you haven’t quite got the results you were looking for, then you can add extra text in the search bar.

Step4

Results will appear on screen

You can find more results if you swipe up.

Troubleshooting

Check your Settings, as this feature might not be turned on. To do this visit Settings > Search for > and then tap the Digital assistant app. Check that Default digital assistant is set to Google and Use screenshot is on.

Tap on the X in the top-left corner.

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Jess joined the Trusted Reviews team early in 2024, after working for almost three years in lifestyle and technology PR. Using the skills gained from her previous role, Jess has taken on a new challen…

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Why trust our journalism?

Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.

Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.

Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.