For reference, a list of search operators available on Bluesky.
These can be used in Bluesky's search box.
": Search by Exact Phrase
Surround a phrase in double quotes (") to perform an exact phrase search:
"pixel art"The query above will search for posts that include the phrase "pixel art" exactly. If we searched for it without quotes, it would match "art made pixel by pixel" because it would match the words separately.
#: Search by Hashtag
To search for a hashtag, just type it after the hash sign (#):
#pixelartObservation: hashtag search is case-insensitive. #PixelArt will match #pixelart.
@: Search Posts that Mention a User
To search for posts that mention a user, type @ followed by their handle.
Note that handles on Bluesky are really long, and you have to type the whole thing, e.g.:
@kianamosser.bsky.socialSome users have their own website as their handle. You would have to type that, then.
@virtualcuriosities.comto:
Bluesky also lets you search for mentions with the prefix to:.
to:virtualcuriosities.commentions:
The prefix mentions: also does the same thing.
mentions:virtualcuriosities.commentions:me
Searching for mentions:me shows posts that mentions you. :-)
mentions:meEscaping
You can escape this operator by surrounding it by quotes.
"@virtualcuriosities.com"This searches for posts that contain the text "@virtualcuriosities.com" instead of searching by mention.
Note: since you need to type @virtualcuriosities.com in the text of the post to mention someone, I'm not really sure what the difference would be!
from: Search Posts by a User
The from: operator lets you search for posts made by a specific user. Like with to: above, you need to type the user's handle.
from:virtualcuriosities.comCombining Operators
By itself, from: isn't very useful since you can just see the user's posts in their profile page. But we can combine this with other operators, e.g.
from:virtualcuriosities.com #blueskyThis would search for all posts made by @virtualcuriosities.com that contain the hashtag #bluesky.
from:me
You can use from:me to search by posts made by yourself, and combine this with other operators like the hashtag operator as well.
URL: Search Posts that Link to a URL
If you paste a URL in the search box, you can search for posts that link to that URL.
https://www.virtualcuriosities.com/articles/2142/how-to-block-words-on-blueskySearching for the above will find all posts that shared one of my articles on Bluesky. :-)
domain: Search Posts that Link to a Website
The domain: operator lets us search for all posts that shared links belonging to a domain name. For example:
domain:virtualcuriosities.comIf you are a webmaster you can use this to search for posts that shared links to your website.
Observation: the domain: operator supports subdomains, e.g. domain:br.virtualcuriosities.com displays only posts that link to the br subdomain, excluding those that link to the www subdomain.
Observation: the domain: operator also supports URL paths, e.g. domain:reddit.com/r/pixelart/ displays only posts that link to that subreddit. However, it seems it ignores path parts are that made entirely out of numbers, as domain:virtualcuriosities.com/articles/2142/ doesn't match anything presumably because of the 2142 numeric ID.
since: Search Posts Posted After a Date
We can use the since: operator to search for posts posted since a given date. The date must be in YYYY-MM-DD format, or be a YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SSZ formatted UTC timestamp. (timezones currently don't work, so it has to be UTC).
since:2024-11-01 #pixelartObservation: since: is an inclusive lower bound. If you use since:2024-01-01, it will include only dates STARTING FROM first of January (i.e. the whole year). Posts posted on first of January will be included as well.
Observation: this operator fails silently with omission. For example, since:2024 will NOT search for posts since:2024-01-01, it will just not filter at all.
until: Search Posts Posted Before a Date
The until: operator is the opposite of since:. We can use it to search for posts posted before a given date.
until:2024-01-01 #pixelart Observation: until: is an exclusive upper bound. If you use until:2024-01-01, it will include only dates BEFORE first of January (i.e. the previous year). Posts posted on the first of January won't be included.
Note: I tried to use this to see if I could first who was the first person to use the term "skeet" on Bluesky, but all I found was a post dated from 1990 that read "test backdate skeet via API."
lang: Search Posts by Language
Bluesky lets you choose the language of a post before posting it. You can search posts by language with the lang: operator. What comes after the operator must be a two-character ISO 639-1 language code. Some values:
| Language | Code |
|---|---|
| English | en |
| Spanish | es |
| German | de |
| Japanese | ja |
| Portuguese | pt |
If your language isn't in the list above, check the full list here: [https://www.loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/code_list.php].
For example, let's say we want to find pixel art posts that were only made by Japanese artists. That isn't actually possible, but we can filter by the Japanese language, which should be good enough.
#pixelart lang:jaNote: by default, Bluesky sets the language of your posts to be the language of the interface. This means that if a Japanese person creates an account, their posts will be set to Japanese language by default even if they only post in English. Consequently, some posts may be categorized as belonging to the wrong language, and you're likely to find a few posts in English no matter what language you search.
Observation: personally I found it very easy to post in the wrong language when I was posting. I think if the language picker showed a country flag it would be easier to realize you're posting in the wrong language.
Sources
- https://bsky.social/about/blog/05-31-2024-search (accessed 2024-11-20)
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