Search Functions

Search functions find files and folders by property values.


Syntax
Operators
Date Syntax
Date Constants
Search Modifiers
Sub-expressions
Lists
Substitution
Formulas
Column Header Search
Slow queries
Search weights
All functions



Syntax

function:value

Where function is the search function by name and value is the query input.

For example:
date-modified:today
size:>10mb



Dashes (-) in search function names can be omitted.

For example:
datemodified:today
is the same as:
date-modified:today



Use double quotes to match text literally and escape operators.

For example:
artist:"John Doe"
-or-
artist:John" "Doe



Use a * after the function name to treat the rest of the search as literal text.

No further parsing is performed.

For example:
content*:<div class="menu"> = matches files containing the literal text <div class="menu">
-or-
si*:"1+1=2" = searches the system index for the literal text "1+1=2"



If the value is empty, Everything matches non-zero values or non-empty text.



The following operators can be used with numerical values:

function:<=value

Less than or equal to value.

function:<value

Less than value.

function:value

Equal to value within the specified value granularity.
size:1kb is the same as size:1024..2047

function:==value

function:=value

Exactly equal to value.
size:=1kb is the same as size:1024

function:>value

Greater than value.

function:>=value

Greater than or equal to value.

function:!=value

Not equal to value.

function:!value

Not equal to value with specified granularity.

function:start..end

function:start-end

Is in the range of values from start to end (inclusive).

function:unknown

The property value is unknown (has not been indexed yet, or Everything failed to gather the property value).

For example:
size:<=10mb = size is less than or equal to 10MB
size:<10mb = size is less than 10MB
size:==1kb = size is exactly 1024 bytes
size:=1kb = size is exactly 1024 bytes
size:1kb = size is between 1024 and 2047 bytes
size:>=10mb = size is greater than or equal to 10MB
size:>10mb = size is greater than 10MB
size:!=1kb = size is not exactly 1024 bytes
size:!1kb = size is not between 1024 and 2047 bytes
size:2mb..3mb = size is between 2MB and 3MB
size:2mb-3mb = size is between 2MB and 3MB



Operators

space	AND
|	OR
!	NOT
< >	Grouping
" "	Match text literally and escape operators.

Date Syntax

month/year or year/month

For example:
date-modified:07/2026
date-modified:2026/07

day/month/year, month/day/year or year/month/day

The order depends on locale settings.

For example:
date-modified:02/07/2026
date-modified:2026/07/02
date-modified:07/02/2026

ISO 8601 extended

YYYY[-MM[-DD[Thh[:mm[:ss[.sss]]]]]]

* wildcard is supported in ISO 8601 extended format.

For example:
date-modified:2026-07
date-modified:2026-07-02
date-modified:2026-07-02T10:52
date-modified:*-02
date-modified:*-*-*T9:00..*-*-*T17:00

ISO 8601 basic

YYYYMMDD[Thh[mm[ss[.sss]]]]]

For example:
date-modified:20260702

YYMMDD

For example:
date-modified:260702 => 2026-07-02

YYYY

Four-digit year.

For example:
date-modified:2026

YY

Two digit year in the current century.

For example:
date-modified:26 = match files/folders modified in 2026

Relative duration

x<years|months|weeks|days|hours|minutes|seconds>

Matches values from now back by the specified duration.

For example:
date-modified:2days = modified in the last 2 days.
date-modified:3months = modified in the last 3 months.
date-modified:4hours = modified in the last 4 hours.

Excel DateTime

10000 - 99999 => (1927-05-18 - 2173-10-13)

For example:
date-modified:46189.7795022

FILETIME

9+ digit FILETIME value (decimal or hex with 0x prefix)

For example:
date-modified:134260745917910877
date-modified:0x1DCFD6FE3B74F5D

Date Constants

Date constants can be used anywhere a date value is expected.

today
yesterday
january|february|march|april|may|june|july|august|september|october|november|december
jan|feb|mar|apr|may|jun|jul|aug|sep|oct|nov|dec
sunday|monday|tuesday|wednesday|thursday|friday|saturday
sun|mon|tue|wed|thu|fri|sat
mtd|ytd|qtd
unknown



Search Modifiers

Prefix a search function with zero or more search modifiers to apply the associated effect.

For example:
case:regex:content:"^Start of the file content with some digits \d\d\d\d"



Sub-expressions

content:<abc 123>
is the same as:
content:abc content:123

content:<abc|123>
is the same as:
content:abc | content:123



Lists

Semicolon (;) delimited lists can be used with any search function that accepts a number, date or text.

Semicolons can be escaped with double quotes (").

Lists are treated as OR expressions.

width:1920;3840
is the same as:
width:1920 | width:3840



Substitution

Everything will substitute $property-name: with the property value from the current file or folder.

Substitution works with filename functions (most string functions).

exists:$shortcut-target:
regex:^(.*)\.[^.]*$ sibling:$1:
extension: stem:.$extension: = stem contains the extension / duplicated extension in filename



Formulas

Everything will use Formulas when no function is specified and $property-name: is used.

The file or folder matches if the formula evaluates to true.

$date-modified:==$date-created: = date-modified is equal to date-created
UPPER($name:)>="N" UPPER($name:)<="S" = name starts with N to S
$name:[1]=='o' = second letter of name is o
len($stem:)%3==0 = stem length is a multiple of 3
*.lnk !EXISTS($shortcut-target:) = matches lnk files where the shortcut target doesn't exist



Column Header Search

To search for text in an active column:

• Right click a result list column header and click Search property...

Search function names will generally match the text shown for the associated property.



Slow queries

A progress bar is shown at the bottom right of the status bar for queries that take a long time.
Double click the progress bar to cancel the search.



Search weights

Each search function has an internal weight that measures the estimated speed of the function.
Search functions are reordered from fastest to slowest.
Faster search functions are executed first.

For example:
content:"abc 123" "c:\my docs\"
will find files in c:\my docs before looking for file content.

There are three major weight groups:

• Search functions that access indexed information (fast)
• Search functions that access the disk or system index (medium)
• Search functions that access file content (slow)

All functions

Image functions:
35mm-focal-length:

UI functions:
add-column:

35mm-focal-length:

Matches files based on 35mm-equivalent focal length in millimeters.

Type: numeric

Examples:
35mm-focal-length:77mm
35mm-focal-length:28mm..36mm

add-column:

Add columns to the result list.

Specify a semicolon (;) delimited list of columns by property name.
Columns are temporarily added while this search is active.

Right-click the result list column header and click Add Columns... to browse property names.
Use a :<zero-based-index> suffix to specify the position of the added column.
Use a JSON array of column objects to specify the column property name and width in logical pixels.

Aliases: addcol: add-columns:

Examples:
add-column:length
add-column:width;height
add-column:file-signature:1
addcol:"crc32":0
add-column:[{"name":"width","width":50},{"name":"height","width":50}]

See also columns:
See also remove-columns:



add-layout:

Temporarily add to the layout with the specified semicolon delimited list of display items by name.

list can include zero or more of the follow items:

• preview
• folders
• filters
• filterbar
• menu
• menubar
• fullscreen-menu
• fullscreen-menubar
• statusbar
• header

For example:
add-layout:preview;folders

See also layout:
See also remove-layout:



album:

Search for album title as text.

Examples:
album:"My Album Name"
album:abc



album-artist:

Search for album artist as text.

Examples:
album-artist:"Foo Bar"
album-artist:Alice



alignment-requirement:

Search for files matching the file alignment info in bytes.

For example:
alignment-requirement:4096



allocation-size:

Search for files with the specified allocation size in bytes.

The allocation-size property is the true size-on-disk value.

For example:
allocation-size:>1mb
allocation-size:65536
allocation-size:200mb..300mb

See also size-on-disk:



alternate-data-stream-ansi:
ads-ansi:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as ANSI containing the specified text.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-ansi:abc
alternate-data-stream-ansi:"my text search"



alternate-data-stream-count:
ads-count:

Search for files with the specified number of alternate data-streams.

The unnamed data-stream is not counted.

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-count:>0
alternate-data-stream-count:3..4



alternate-data-stream-hex:
ads-hex:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as hex containing the specified text.
Each byte is represented by two hexidecimal values.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-hex:68656C6C6F
alternate-data-stream-hex:350300006500000031



alternate-data-stream-name:
alternate-data-stream-names:
ads-name:
ads-names:

Search for files with the specified alternate data-stream names.

The stream names are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-names:Zone.Identifier



alternate-data-stream-text-plain:
ads-text-plain:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as text/plain containing the specified text.
Everything will attempt to determine the encoding as UTF-8, UTF-16, UTF-16BE or ANSI.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:abc
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:"my text search"



alternate-data-stream-utf-16:
ads-utf-16:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as UTF-16 (wchar/unicode) containing the specified text.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:abc
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:"my text search"



alternate-data-stream-utf-16be:
ads-utf-16be:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as UTF-16BE (Big Endian wchar/unicode) containing the specified text.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:abc
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:"my text search"



alternate-data-stream-utf-8:
ads-utf-8:

Search for files with any alternate data-stream data as UTF-8 containing the specified text.

Multiple streams are separated by a semicolon (;)

Examples:
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:abc
alternate-data-stream-text-plain:"my text search"



alternate-row-color:
no-alternate-row-color:

Temporarily enable or disable alternate row color for all windows.

Examples:
alternate-row-color:
no-alternate-row-color:



altitude:

Search photos for the specified altitude in meters.

Examples:
altitude:>600m
altitude:-50..50m



ancestor:

Search for files and folders with the specified absolute full path of an ancestor. (parent or grandparent)
This function is similar to parent: except subfolders are also searched.

Examples:
ancestor:C:
ancestor:C:\Windows
ancestor:"C:\Program Files"

See also parent:



ancestor-attr:
ancestor-attrib:
ancestor-attribute:
ancestor-attributes:

Search for files and folders where an ancestor (parent or grandparent) has the specified attributes.

Attribute indexing is required.

To enable attribute indexing:

• In Everything, from the Tools menu, click Options.
• Click the Indexes tab on the left.
• Check Index attributes.
• Click OK.

The Hidden and System attributes are ignored for root volumes (eg: C:)

Examples:
ancestor-attr:HDI



ancestor-child:
ancestor-child-file:
ancestor-child-folder:

Search for files and folders where an ancestor (parent or grandparent) has a child with the specified filename.

Use ancestor-child-file: to match files only.
Use ancestor-child-folder: to match folders only.

Examples:
!whole:ancestor-child-file:.gitignore exclude folders, subfolders and files with a .gitignore file.



ancestor-file-list-0:
ancestor-file-list-1:
ancestor-file-list-2:
ancestor-file-list-3:
ancestor-file-list-4:
ancestor-file-list-5:
ancestor-file-list-6:
ancestor-file-list-7:
ancestor-file-list-8:
ancestor-file-list-9:

Search for files and folders that have an ancestor in a file list slot.
The file list slot can define absolute full paths or full names.
Hold down CTRL and click the ancestorfilelist0: - ancestorfilelist9: text in the search box to add or remove folders from the file list.

For example:
ancestorfilelist1:



ancestor-name:

Search for files and folders with an ancestor containing the specified name. (parent or grandparent)
This function is similar to parent-name: except subfolders are also found.

Examples:
ancestor-name:"Program Files"
exact:ancestor-name:windows

See also parent-name:



ancestor-sibling:
ancestor-sibling-file:
ancestor-sibling-folder:

Search for files and folders where an ancestor has a sibling with the specified name. (parent or grandparent)
The ancestor itself is not included in the search.
Use ancestor-sibling-file: to match sibling files only.
Use ancestor-sibling-folder: to match sibling folders only.

Examples:
whole:ancestor-sibling:".gitignore"

See also sibling:
See also parent-sibling:



ansi-content:
contenta:

Search file content and treat the content as ANSI text.

Examples:
ansi-content:"my content"
ansi-content:abc

Searching content is very slow.
Combine with other filters for the best performance.

aperture:

Search photos for the specified aperture.

Examples:
aperture:>4
aperture:2..4



artist:
artists:

Search media files for the specified artist.

Examples:
artist:"John Doe"
artist:"Jane Doe"


aspect-ratio:

Search photos and videos for the specified aspect ratio.

Examples:
aspect-ratio:>16:9
aspect-ratio:16:8..16:10
aspect-ratio:1.3..1.5
aspect-ratio:>1
aspect-ratio:<1
aspect-ratio:square
aspect-ratio:landscape
aspect-ratio:portrait



ascii-content:

Search file content and treat the content as ASCII text.
Characters outside the ASCII range are treated as binary values.

Examples:
ascii-content:"my content"
ascii-content:abc

Searching content is very slow.
Combine with other filters for the best performance.

attr:
attrib:
attribute:
attributes:

Search for files and/or folders with the specified attributes.

Enable attribute indexing for the best performance.

Attributes can be zero or more of the following:

• R = Read Only
• H = Hidden
• S = System
• D = Directory
• A = Archive
• V = Integrity Stream
• X = No Scrub Data
• N = Normal
• T = Temporary
• L = Reparse Point
• C = Compressed
• O = Offline
• I = Not Content Indexed
• E = Encrypted
• U = Unpinned
• P = Pinned
• M = Recall on Data Access

-or-

Zero or more Windows file attributes in decimal or hex (with 0x prefix).

Examples:
attributes:rash
attributes:0x200` (find sparse files)



attr-dupe:
attrib-dupe:
attribute-dupe:
attributes-dupe:
dupe-attr:
dupe-attrib:
dupe-attribute:
dupe-attributes:

Show only results where the attribute information is duplicated.

Examples:
attribute-dupe:



audio-bitrate:

Search for the audio bit rate in kilobits per second.

Examples:
audio-bitrate:320
audio-bitrate:>224kbps
audio-bitrate:64kbps..128kbps



audio-bits-per-sample:
bits-per-sample:

Search for audio files with the specified bits per sample.

Examples:
audio-bits-per-sample:24
audio-bits-per-sample:<16



audio-channels:
channels:

Search for audio files with the specified number of audio channels.

Examples:
audio-channels:2
audio-channels:>2
audio-channels:1



audio-format:

Search for audio files with the specified format.

Examples:
audio-format:PCM
audio-format:Vorbis
audio-format:"MPEG Audio"



audio-sample-rate:
sample-rate:

Search audio and video files for the specified audio sample rate in Hz.

audio-sample-rate:44100
audio-sample-rate:44.1khz
audio-sample-rate:>44100
audio-sample-rate:11025..22050



audio-track-count:

Search audio and video files for the specified number of audio tracks.

audio-track-count:0
audio-track-count:>1



author:
authors:

Search documents for the specified author.

Examples:
author:"John Doe"
author:"Jane Doe"



author-url:

Search documents for the specified author URL.

Examples:
author-url:www.voidtools.com



available-free-disk-size:

Search for the free disk space in bytes on the volume of the current file.

Examples:
root: available-free-disk-size:<10gb



background-search:
no-background-search:

Allow or disallow background content searching.
If disabled, the search does not complete until all results are found.
The default behavior is to search content in the background.

Examples:

.txt content:foo no-background-search:


basename:
name:

Search the basename of the current file.
The basename includes the file extension.

Examples:
basename:hosts
name:c:

See also stem: (basename without extension)



beats-per-minute:

Search for audio files with the specified beats-per-minute.

Examples:
beats-per-minute:120
beats-per-minute:>200
beats-per-minute:150..180



binary-content:

Search file content and treat the content as a byte stream.
Everything will search the byte stream for ASCII, ANSI, UTF-8, UTF-16LE and UTF-16BE text.
Use binary:content: to treat the content and search as binary.

Examples:
binary-content:"my content"
binary-content:abc

Searching content is very slow.
Combine with other filters for the best performance.

binary-type:

Search for executable files with the specific type.

Can be one of the following:

• 32-bit Windows
• MS-DOS
• 16-bit Windows
• PIF
• POSIX
• 16-bit OS/2
• 64-bit Windows

Examples:
binary-type:"64-bit Windows"



birth-object-id:

Search for files and folders with the specified birth object identifier in hexadecimal.

For example:
birth-object-id:0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef

See also birth-volume-id:
See also domain-id:
See also object-id:



birth-volume-id:

Search for files and folders with the specified birth volume identifier in hexadecimal.

For example:
birth-volume-id:0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef

See also birth-object-id:
See also domain-id:
See also object-id:



bit-depth:
bits-per-pixel:
bpp:

Search photo and video files for the specified color bit-depth.

Examples:
bit-depth:8
bit-depth:16
bit-depth:>=24



bom:
byte-order-mark:

Search for files that contain or do-not contain a UTF-8, UTF-16LE or UTF-16BE byte order mark.

Examples:
bom:UTF-8
bom:"UTF-16 (BE)"
bom:"UTF-16 (LE)"
bom:none



bookmark:
bookmarks:

Apply the specified semicolon delimited list of search bookmarks by name.
Use :parameters to pass parameters to the bookmarks macro.

For example:
bookmark:"My Bookmark";"My bookmark with a macro":"my bookmark parameters";bookmark1



bookmarks-sidebar
no-bookmarks-sidebar

Temporarily show or hide the bookmarks sidebar.

Examples:
bookmarks-sidebar:
no-bookmarks-sidebar:



brightness:

Search for photo and video files for the specified brightness levels.

Examples:
brightness:3.2..5.7
brightness:<0



byte-offset-for-partition-alignment:

Search for files and folders that belong to a file system with the specified bytes offset for partition alignment in bytes.

For example:
byte-offset-for-partition-alignment:1048576



byte-offset-for-sector-alignment:

Search for files and folders that belong to a file system with the specified bytes offset for sector alignment in bytes.

For example:
byte-offset-for-sector-alignment:512
byte-offset-for-sector-alignment:4096




byte-stream-content:
octet-stream-content:

Search file content and treat the content and search as a byte stream.

Examples:
byte-stream-content:"hello world"
byte-stream-content:\x00\x00

Searching content is very slow.
Combine with other filters for the best performance.