Google users append &udm=14 to search

Google users are appending “&udm=14” to search URLs to force the company’s Web filter and strip out AI Overviews, knowledge cards and other Google-built result modules. The workaround drew fresh attention in guides published on May 15, including posts from Tom’s Guide and gHacks that showed readers how to make the parameter part of their default search flow. Google’s own help documentation says AI Overviews are a core Search feature and “cannot be turned off,” but it also says users can select the Web filter to show only text-based links. The result is a growing user workaround built around a setting Google already exposes, but does not make the default. ### What does “&udm=14” actually do in Google Search? Google Search’s help page says the Web filter displays “only text-based links without features like AI Overviews.” The `udm=14` parameter appears to call that filter directly from the URL, producing a stripped-down results page centered on standard web links rather than AI-generated summaries or other search modules. (tomsguide.com) The gHacks guide published on May 15 said Web mode also removes knowledge cards, hotel listings and flight panels. That article described the change as a display filter, not a ranking change, saying it does not improve freshness or quality of results by itself. ### If Google says AI Overviews cannot be turned off, why does this still work? (support.google.com) Google’s support documentation draws a distinction between disabling the feature and choosing a filtered results view. The company says AI Overviews are “a core Google Search feature” and “cannot be turned off,” but it separately tells users they can select the Web filter after running a search. (ghacks.net) A Google Search Community thread from 2025, answered by a Product Expert alumnus rather than Google staff, went further and suggested adding `&udm=14` to the URL as a “more persistent option.” That thread is not an official product announcement, but it shows the parameter was already circulating inside Google’s support ecosystem before this week’s burst of public guides. (support.google.com) ### Why are users looking for a link-only version now? Google has expanded AI-generated search features over the past two years. In May 2024, the company said AI Overviews would begin rolling out to everyone in the United States. In March 2025, Google said AI Overviews were used by more than 1 billion people and introduced AI Mode as a separate experimental experience for more complex queries. (support.google.com) Google’s current help page says AI Overviews are gradually becoming available to more users, languages and regions, and warns that AI responses “may include mistakes.” The same page tells users checking important information to consult more than one source and click through to supporting links from the web. ### Has Google responded to complaints about hidden sources? (blog.google) Google said on May 6 that it was updating AI Mode and AI Overviews to make it easier for users to “find relevant websites, deep insights and original content from across the web.” Hema Budaraju, vice president of product management for Search, wrote that Google was adding more direct links, article suggestions and subscription highlights inside AI search features. (support.google.com) That language amounts to a company acknowledgment that source visibility is a live product issue, though Google framed the update as an improvement rather than a response to backlash. Reuters could not independently verify how widely `udm=14` is being used, but the timing of the guides and Google’s own product changes shows a public contest over how much mediation users want between a query and the underlying sources. That inference is based on Google’s May 6 blog post, its help documentation and the user guides published this week. (blog.google) ### Can users make the Web view the default? The gHacks guide said desktop Chrome users can create a custom site search that automatically appends `&udm=14`, and it provided a URL template using `%s` for the query string. The same article pointed Android and iOS Chrome users to TenBlueLinks.org, which it said registers a Google Web search engine configuration using the same parameter. (blog.google) Google’s official help pages do not present `udm=14` as a supported setting for all searches. As of May 16, 2026, the company’s public guidance still points users to the Web filter after a search, while its product blog says more AI Overview and AI Mode link features are rolling out to users and publishers. (support.google.com) (ghacks.net)