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A Complete Guide to ChatGPT’s “Search/Browsing” Feature (2025 Edition) — Does It Use Google?

Bottom Line (at a glance)

  • By default, Google Search is not used. ChatGPT Search pulls results via third-party search providers. Official materials state it uses “third-party search providers.” For Enterprise/Edu, it currently specifies Bing only.
  • However, there is a user shortcut that redirects you to Google directly (!g your query). This is outside ChatGPT Search itself.

1) What ChatGPT Search actually is

  • When needed, ChatGPT searches the web and returns an answer with source links. You can also trigger it manually (e.g., “View all tools → Search” or via the slash menu).
  • Under the hood, your question is rewritten into optimized search queries, sent to a third-party provider, and the results are aggregated. The answer shows citations and a Sources list.
  • On the model side, it uses a fine-tuned GPT-4o, combining results from third-party search providers and directly provided partner content.

Important: There is no claim that Google’s ranking algorithms or backend are used. On the contrary, “third-party providers” are explicitly mentioned, and Enterprise/Edu documentation names Bing only.

2) Relationship with Google (clarified)

  • Default is not Google: Search relies on third-party search (documented in blog/help).
  • Enterprise/Edu: The current third-party search provider is Bing only. If providers change, OpenAI says it will notify customers.
  • User-initiated option: After setting the browser integration so your default address-bar search goes to ChatGPT, you can use !g to jump straight to Google (again, this is outside ChatGPT Search).

3) What gets sent and privacy basics

  • Consumer Search: When searching, your query and an approximate location (based on IP) may be shared with the third-party search provider. It is stated that your ChatGPT account info and the raw IP itself are not shared.
  • Enterprise/Edu: Bing receives a query that is decoupled from your account. Documentation also notes the possibility of sharing general location and IP. Admins can toggle Search on/off.

4) How Deep Research/Agent differs

  • Search: Looks up a small number of sites quickly and returns a short answer with links.
  • Deep Research: Performs multi-step, autonomous exploration across many sources to produce a detailed, cited report (takes minutes). As of July 2025, the visual browser was integrated into Agent mode.

5) How to use it (quick start)

  1. Lightweight, recent facts: Ask normally → If needed, Search runs → Check citations.
  2. Trigger it yourself: View all tools → Search or “/” → Search.
  3. In-depth investigations: Choose Deep Research and specify evaluation criteria/output format (you’ll get a report with citations).

6) Common misconceptions (brief)

  • “Is it just Google results?”
    No. By default it uses third-party providers (for Enterprise/Edu Bing only) and ChatGPT summarizes the findings.
  • “I want Google specifically.”
    Use !g your query to open Google directly (this is not ChatGPT Search).

7) Notes for admins (organizational rollout)

  • You can enable/disable Search in Admin settings (for your workspace or per GPT, as applicable).

8) Summary

  • Per current official materials, ChatGPT Search does not use Google by default.
  • For individuals, it relies on third-party search providers (with Bing mentioned as an example); Enterprise/Edu documentation explicitly says Bing only. If you prefer Google, you can jump to it with !g, which sits outside the ChatGPT Search pipeline.

Sources: OpenAI’s official blog (“Introducing ChatGPT Search”), Help Center pages for “ChatGPT search,” “ChatGPT Search for Enterprise and Edu,” and “Deep Research.”