Why Are Google Search Results Different On Each Browser?

Does anybody know why google search results are different on different browsers?

Thanks to anyone, plus I think this would make a great topic...

I find it is mostly with local type results..

If you Google Morgantown Cruise, it will show different results on safari, firefox, and IE on a pc.

Any takers?

check if you are accessing using different google's (.com, .co.uk, ....)

I had noticed that some time ago, but never gave it much thought. be nice to know though...

Google now changes the ranking based on your search history. If you click 'view customizations' on the top right of the SERP. you can choose to see the results without the changes. I think you could also just clear your browsers cookies.

I've cleared cache, cookies, temp folders, accessing via different browsers still does give different results.

Not on proxies... All clean entries.

Different results... weird. I was just about to start a thread on this, glad someone else noticed.

The Google rankings are now becoming extremely dynamic. I believe that this is due to fluctuations in different datacenters. In my opinion, the results began to vary a lot more from search to search around 2-3 months ago.

Also, search history can affect the rankings if you are signed in to a Google account.

If you want the true rank of your site, it's best to check your position on several us proxies (if that's where your money comes from) and take the average.

Blueprint said:

I've cleared cache, cookies, temp folders, accessing via different browsers still does give different results.

Not on proxies... All clean entries.

Different results... weird. I was just about to start a thread on this, glad someone else noticed.

Click to expand...

I've done all of the same...

I can only think it may be due to a sites browser compatibility... Most times I notice the same results is when big name, well made sites are taking tops. In other words, competitive keywords... My brain hurts from all the storming.

Sound good?

Micallef said:

The Google rankings are now becoming extremely dynamic. I believe that this is due to fluctuations in different datacenters.

Click to expand...

That's dead on in my opinion.

Google as a fixed entity doesn't exist. Read over articles by some of their inhouse math PhDs and you get the idea that they're the number one database entity in the world. They've banks of computers running parallel with load balancing and in different states of sorting.

One concept used to route requests is my browser (among other things). So a Firefox requests is sent to one databank in a particular state of sorting and ranking; the IE request is sent to a different database with a different state of existence.

In the long run everything balances out; in the short run you'll see temporary differences in page position and page rank.

its called personalized results. http://www.google.com/support/accounts/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=54041

Kid Shaleen said:

That's dead on in my opinion.

Google as a fixed entity doesn't exist. Read over articles by some of their inhouse math PhDs and you get the idea that they're the number one database entity in the world. They've banks of computers running parallel with load balancing and in different states of sorting.

One concept used to route requests is my browser (among other things). So a Firefox requests is sent to one databank in a particular state of sorting and ranking; the IE request is sent to a different database with a different state of existence.

In the long run everything balances out; in the short run you'll see temporary differences in page position and page rank.

Click to expand...

If it was purely down to load balancing, different browsers wouldnt really effect the results.

If there was a session variable to hold which datacenter/load balancer, then if you closed firefox and then reopened, you would be sent to a different one (Or a chance to go to the same one i guess).

Generally speaking, i would have thought the load balancing tracks IP's and points the same IP to the same data center every time (That seems more logical). But once again, different browsers would not differ which data center to go to. Unless ofcourse they were managing IP's with UserAgents in one.

My first thought on this topic is definitely the web history, Personally i think google probably mines data based on IP, whether you have cookies or not. And thats how they remember your past searches even if your not logged into an account, or have cleared your cookies/cache etc.

If your using Chrome, then your definitely probably going to be stuffed. Even typing into the address bar, when you get that little drop down that gives you the number 1 result for that website. All the time your typing its constantly sending requests to google (You can use wireshark or similar to view it).

Google is watching!

I'm travelling around Asia at the moment, moving around very quickly from place to place, and my IP is constantly changing. I use firefox and regularly clear my cookies. Obviously not logged into gmail.

I must say that it doesn't seem to be the IP changes that hearld the biggest alterations in rank for me. I'll stay somewhere for a week, and my rankings will jump from 2 to 5 to 3 in that week, under the same IP. When I move to a new place, sometimes the rankings are different but not usually. From what I've seen, there doesn't seem to be enough of a correlation between IP change and rank change,

However, I don't think it's because of browser changes either. To me, it seems like internal fluctuations in Google's individual datacenters as it constantly re-evaluates its results.

Sometimes i forgot to say before, I got so caught up in the browser thing.
Something to remember about Google. Is that they will be evaluating which result you click each time you do the search. If you do that search multiple times, and click the same result half way down the page each time, i would think they start raising that result. Since your going to click it anyway, may aswell make it higher.

I think it would also transcend into other search terms aswell. If you are constantly clicking that site in the results, it should start rising for you.

Something we all have to remember. Is that google is about the end users experience, not the SEO's experience. So moving around results to suit the end user is in their best interests.

Micallef said:

I'm travelling around Asia at the moment, moving around very quickly from place to place, and my IP is constantly changing. I use firefox and regularly clear my cookies. Obviously not logged into gmail.

I must say that it doesn't seem to be the IP changes that hearld the biggest alterations in rank for me. I'll stay somewhere for a week, and my rankings will jump from 2 to 5 to 3 in that week, under the same IP. When I move to a new place, sometimes the rankings are different but not usually. From what I've seen, there doesn't seem to be enough of a correlation between IP change and rank change,

However, I don't think it's because of browser changes either. To me, it seems like internal fluctuations in Google's individual datacenters as it constantly re-evaluates its results.

Click to expand...

Sir you make me more jealous than you can imagine... hopefully in a year i'll be able to get my 30 bucks a day from IM and get back to traveling!!

pyronaut said:

Sometimes i forgot to say before, I got so caught up in the browser thing.
Something to remember about Google. Is that they will be evaluating which result you click each time you do the search. If you do that search multiple times, and click the same result half way down the page each time, i would think they start raising that result. Since your going to click it anyway, may aswell make it higher.

Click to expand...

yes as mentioned they do that now with the personalised results turned on as default (and of course if you are logged on and have it turned on)

But if its switched off this shouldnt be a factor....should it?

I'd go with the data centres theroy

You can disable personalized search for any Google search even if you are logged into Gmail, etc - just do this:

1.) Do the search
2.) In the resulting Google URL add this to the end:

&pws=0

3.) Hit enter to get non-personalized search info