Google Dataset Search: A Search Engine Just for Data
Google Dataset Search is a free search engine for data files instead of web pages. Google does not keep the data itself. It reads descriptions that publishers add to their own pages (a standard tag called schema.org "Dataset" markup) and points you to the "thousands of repositories across the Web" where the files live: city portals, government agencies, universities and other sites.
Three ways to use it this week
- A restaurant or caterer can search "restaurant inspections" plus its city or state to find local inspection records and see what inspectors write up.
- A landscaper or pool company can search "rainfall" plus its city to find local weather and rainfall records for planning the season.
- A business that publishes its own numbers, such as a yearly price survey for its trade, can add Dataset markup to that page so the data can show up here with its name on it.
Try it now (no key, no account)
Open this link: datasetsearch.research.google.com/search?query=restaurant inspections texas
When we tried it on October 13, 2026, it said "19 datasets found." The first was the City of Austin's Food Establishment Inspection Scores, with CSV, JSON and XML downloads.
Handy filters
Along the top of the results you can narrow by last updated date, download format, usage rights, topic and provider, plus a Free filter for datasets "described as free to access or have a license that allows redistribution." Each result also has a Cite button that writes a ready-made citation.
Limits and rules
- It only finds datasets whose publishers describe them with the markup, so data from a publisher that never added it will not show up.
- Results mix official sources with copies and summaries on other websites. In our rainfall test, city and federal data sat next to weather sites. Check who published a dataset before you rely on it, and prefer the original.
- Searching is free and needs no sign-in. The data sites it sends you to set their own rules.
License and credit
Google does not set the license. Its usage-rights filter carries the note "License from data provider. Please review the applicable license to make sure your contemplated use is permitted." Open each dataset's own page, read its license, and credit the publisher. The Cite button's citation is a good start, for example: data.austintexas.gov (2026). Food Establishment Inspection Scores [Dataset].
Golden Rock can add Dataset markup to a client's website so the data they publish is easier for Google to find.
Who should care: anyone who has asked, "Is there data on this somewhere?" and didn't know where to start looking.