How to Disable AI Overview in Google Search (What Works in 2026)

You can’t fully disable AI Overviews in Google Search: as of October 2026 Google offers no setting that turns them off, and it treats them as a core part of Search. What you can do is avoid them, either per search with the Web filter or permanently by making a browser use Google’s AI-free “Web” results page (the udm=14 address) as its default search engine.

Below is what each method does, how to set it up, and where the limits are.

Why there is no off switch

Google describes AI Overviews as a standard Search feature, in the same category as knowledge panels. According to the Google help text quoted by GEO Toolbox, turning off “AI Overviews and more” in Search Labs “will not disable all AI Overviews in Search,” and AI Overviews “can’t be turned off.”

That matters because many older guides still tell you to switch off the Search Labs experiment. Doing so only affects experimental features; normal AI Overviews keep appearing. If you already tried that and nothing changed, this is why.

Quick comparison of the options

All of these are workarounds, not official controls. Google could change any of them without notice, so details may differ after October 2026.

Method 1: Use the Web filter (fastest)

Google has a results filter called Web that shows only regular text links, without AI Overviews or most other extras. Tom’s Guide and 9to5Google both describe this as the simplest way around the AI box.

1. Search on Google as usual.
2. Look at the row of filters under the search box (All, Images, News, and so on).
3. Select Web. If you don’t see it, open More and choose Web there.

The downside: Google doesn’t remember this choice. Your next search goes back to the default “All” view, so you have to pick Web again each time.

Method 2: Make the Web view your default (udm=14)

When you click the Web filter, Google adds udm=14 to the address of the results page. If you tell your browser to search with that address, every search from the address bar lands on the AI-free Web view automatically. This is the closest thing to a permanent “off” setting.

In Chrome on desktop

These steps follow the setup described by Make Tech Easier and others. Menu names can vary slightly between Chrome versions.

1. Open Chrome Settings and go to Search engine, then Manage search engines and site search.
2. Next to Site search, click Add.
3. Give it a name such as “Google Web” and a shortcut such as gw.
4. In the URL field, enter: {google:baseURL}search?udm=14&q=%s
5. Save it, then open the three-dot menu next to the new entry and choose Make default.

Now anything you type into the address bar opens Google’s Web results. You can still reach the normal view at any time by clicking All on the results page.

In Edge, Brave, Vivaldi and Firefox

Most desktop browsers let you add a custom search engine in their search settings. Chromium-based browsers (Edge, Brave, Vivaldi) accept the same URL as Chrome. If a browser doesn’t understand the {google:baseURL} placeholder, use a plain address instead:

https://www.google.com/search?udm=14&q=%s

The %s is where your search terms go, so keep it exactly as written.

On phones

Custom search engines are much more limited on mobile. Safari on iPhone, for example, does not let you add your own search engine, and the Google app has no option for it either. On a phone, the practical options are:

• Use the Web filter after each search (Method 1).
• Bookmark https://www.google.com/search?udm=14&q= and type your search at the end of the address.

Some third-party browser extensions and redirect sites automate the udm=14 trick, including on Safari. They are not made by Google, and a redirect site can see your search queries, so weigh that before installing one. We don’t recommend a specific one here.

A caveat on udm=14

Google doesn’t document the udm parameter anywhere, as Korben points out. It has worked reliably since the Web filter appeared, but because it is undocumented, it could change or stop working. If your default search suddenly starts showing AI Overviews again, check whether the Web filter still adds udm=14 to the address.

Method 3: Add “-ai” to your search

Several 2026 guides report that adding -ai to the end of a query (for example, best hiking boots -ai) stops the AI Overview from appearing for that search. This uses Google’s normal minus operator, which excludes a word from results.

Treat this one with caution. The reports come from blogs rather than Google, we found no independent testing, and it also excludes pages containing the word “AI” from your results, which can be a problem if your search is actually about AI. The Web filter and udm=14 are more dependable.

What about browser extensions?

Extensions that “block” AI Overviews generally hide the box after the page loads. According to GEO Toolbox, that means the overview may still be generated in the background; you just don’t see it. They also depend on Google’s page layout, so they can break when Google changes it. If you only want a cleaner page, the udm=14 default does the job without installing anything.

Switching search engines

If you want no Google AI summaries at all, the only complete option is to use a different default search engine. Every major browser lets you change it in its search settings. Be aware that several other search engines have added their own AI answer features, so check their settings for an equivalent option before assuming the new one is AI-free.

If you run a website: the UK publisher opt-out

The searcher-side workarounds above don’t stop Google from using your site’s content in AI Overviews. For publishers, there is a newer development, but it is limited.

On 3 June 2026, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority ordered Google to give website owners a way to stop their content from being used in AI Overviews, AI Mode and AI-powered Discover results, while keeping their normal search visibility, as SiliconANGLE reported. The order includes a rule that Google may not demote sites in regular results for opting out. Google said it was testing the controls with a subset of UK site owners in Search Console, and the CMA gave it nine months to implement the changes.

As of October 2026 we could not confirm whether the Search Console control is available to every UK site, or when (or whether) it will come to other countries. If you manage a UK site, check Search Console directly rather than relying on third-party summaries.

The bottom line

There is no official way to disable AI Overviews for your Google account. For most people, the best fix is to set {google:baseURL}search?udm=14&q=%s as the default search engine in a desktop browser, and to tap Web after searching on a phone. Both use Google’s own results page, need no extensions, and take a minute to set up. Just check back occasionally, since Google can change how any of this works.