Autocomplete also commonly known as Google Search Suggestions is a feature within Google designed to make it faster to complete searches you are beginning to type. If you turn on your Google Search Suggestions, you might notice, that every time you start typing something in your search box, a list of suggestions is displayed below the search box and they alter depending on what you proceed to type.
According to Google, Autocomplete reduces typing by 25% on average which saves people time. However, the previous statement is debatable since some individuals find the feature disrupting with inaccurate suggestions making them prefer to manually input their searches.
Contents
How Does Google Search Suggestions Work
The Google Search suggestions feature looks at what you start to type in the search bar, then sorts through trillions of Google past searches to find the ones that include the letter you just typed and displays some of the most common ones.
What you see in autocomplete are predictions based on lots of data about how people search. That is why the first queries you usually see, are your own past searches because data shows that users tend to repeat their searches. Those predictions are indicated by a clock icon and you can delete them right in the search bar by clicking on the Cancel icon (X).
A query in one part of the world may not be common in another. That is why Autocomplete considers location as well as the language being used when displaying predictions.
Autocomplete also takes into account what searches have been trending which is why queries related to the news or recent events may move up the list of predictions when relevant.
The last thing autocomplete does not show predictions identified as inappropriate or harmful or otherwise against Google policies
How to Turn Off Google Search Suggestions or Google Autocomplete
1. Start the Chrome browser on your computer.
2. Sign in to your Google account and navigate to the Google homepage.
3. Tap on the ‘More options‘ menu (three dots) at the extreme upper right corner just next to your Google profile.
4. Click on “Settings.”
5. Under “You and Google,” click on “Sync and Google Services.”
6. Enable “Autocomplete Searches and URLs.”
How to Turn Off Google Search Suggestions or Google Autocomplete
1. Launch the Chrome browser on your computer.
2. Sign in to your Google account and navigate to the Google homepage.
3. Tap on the ‘More options‘ menu (three dots) at the extreme upper right corner just next to your Google profile.
4. Click on “Settings.”
5. Under “You and Google,” click on “Sync and Google Services.”
6. Disable “Autocomplete Searches and URLs” and “Make Searches and Browsing Better.”
7. Restart Chrome and you will notice that the suggestions have been disabled.