How to Pull Off the "No Results" Google Prank

Shock your friends with this clever practical joke on Google

Last Updated: June 11, 2024 Tested

Do you want to prank your friends/coworkers using Google? There is a URL trick which makes it appear as though there are no results for a search term, and it baffles anyone who doesn't know about it.

Things You Should Know

Begin by conducting a traditional Google search.
Add "&num=0" to the end of the Google search result's URL to limit the number of results to zero.
Show this new URL to the person you want to prank.

Steps

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{"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/f\/f9\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-1-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-1-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/f\/f9\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-1-Version-3.jpg\/v4-728px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-1-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}

Go to Google.
{"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/c\/cf\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-2-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-2-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/c\/cf\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-2-Version-3.jpg\/v4-728px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-2-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}

Search for a popular search term. This could be anything from "linux" to "real estate". It doesn't have to be extremely popular, just common enough that there will be quite a few listings.

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{"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/8\/8b\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-3-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-3-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/8\/8b\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-3-Version-3.jpg\/v4-728px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-3-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}

This forces Google to limit the number of results, in this case, to 0. Using a negative number instead will also work.
{"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/8\/82\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-4-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-4-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/8\/82\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-4-Version-2.jpg\/v4-728px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-4-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}

You can accomplish this in a variety of ways, including emailing them the link, or just showing them your computer screen. The person will likely be very surprised, and may call their friends over to see.
{"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/b\/b5\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-5-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-5-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/b\/b5\/Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-5-Version-3.jpg\/v4-728px-Play-the-%22No-Results%22-Google-Prank-Step-5-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}

Conduct a search for something if the people being pranked start to worry. Once you conduct a search in the search box, it will show all results normally and you can laugh at them.

Expert Q&A

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Tips

You can use the &num= trick with other numbers, like to make it look as though there is one result.

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There are also tricks that accomplish the same feat involving Boolean search terms , though this method is easier to conceal.

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Use the Date Range method for people who don't know much about Google syntax.

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Warnings

Avoid showing this to people who know a lot about Google, as they will know how you did it.

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Helpful 8 Not Helpful 4
If you email the link, they may notice the code at the end.

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If you show this to people, tell them how it works so they won't think there is a problem. You wouldn't want someone calling tech support about this.

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Things You'll Need

A computer
Internet
A little bit of knowledge about Google
A person to prank

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How to Pull Off the "No Results" Google Prank

Things You Should Know

Steps

Expert Q&A

Tips

Warnings

Things You'll Need

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