Google Search in 1998
Quick Facts
- Summary
- A plain 1998-style Google results page, shown inside a retro browser window.
- Creator
- Launched
- 2013-09-26
- Status
- Active
(Enhanced by elgooG)
Try the Easter Egg
The Original Version
How It Started
Google introduced the “Google in 1998” Easter egg on September 26, 2013, for its 15th birthday. It looked back to the company’s beginnings in September 1998.
Searching for “google in 1998” opens a results page styled after the early service.
What It Did
The official effect presented search results in an early Google layout: the logo with an exclamation point, blue links, and minimal decoration. It referenced the period when Larry Page and Sergey Brin’s PageRank system helped establish Google’s approach to ranking web pages.
Impact and Reach
The anniversary comparison highlighted the difference between early text-based results and later interfaces with images, information panels, and direct answers.
What’s Enhanced Here
This edition places the historical results layout inside a late-1990s browser frame and adds a link to a recreated homepage from the same period.
The Enhanced Experience
What’s Different Here
This page rebuilds a 1998 results page with a sample search for “google”, pixel-style letters, and an Internet Explorer 4.0-style window. Clicking the Google logo takes you to the rebuilt homepage.
The Easter Egg Experience
Try a query in either search box, then press Enter or click Google Search. The page reloads and shows your query in both boxes; the “google” sample results stay the same. You can also choose a results count or use the “I'm feeling lucky” button. Historical links and pagination stay on this page.
How to Try It
- Click the button above to open the sample results page.
- Scroll through the 1998-style text and blue links.
- Enter a query and press Enter or click Google Search; each search reloads the same sample results.
- Click the Google logo to visit the recreated 1998 homepage.
The browser frame follows Internet Explorer 4.0, released in 1997. The fixed sample results illustrate early Google’s layout; they are not live search results or rankings calculated by this page.
Final Thoughts
“Google Search in 1998” shows a sample results page inside a 1998-style browser window. Scroll through the blue links, then click the logo to see the homepage from the same year.
Try the Easter Egg
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is Google Search in 1998?
This recreation presents the “google” example in a retro browser window, inspired by Google's September 2013 birthday throwback. Submit a query from either search box with Enter or Google Search: the page reloads with your text and keeps the same sample results. Historical links and pagination are display-only. The Google logo opens the recreated 1998 homepage.
