A search engine sends out queries to websites to see if the website’s content best matches the search query entered into the search engine. It returns with a results page, ranked from most relevant, according to algorithms.

A metasearch engine submits queries to multiple search engines and aggregates the results into a list. The search engine can sort this list they came from, by subject, or by relevance. The user can then choose which results best match their intent.

The pros of using a metasearch engine include the potential to be anonymous online and not have your user data vacuumed by Google.

Meta searches give you a much bigger picture of what is out there online. You’re not influenced by one search engine and past user history.

In addition, metasearch engines can be quick in finding you a wide variety of results. While they give an overview, they don’t provide detailed results, so they are so speedy.

One of the disadvantages of metasearch engines is they sacrifice detail in the name of speed. They can give you a broad range of results but not a detailed result for your search query.

You cannot always guarantee a wide net of search results with a metasearch engine. They may limit themselves to specific search engines, and you may not know which ones they are pulling from. A limited search engine reach can skew results.