Close
Close
The Smart Search function in Web of Science is a new search system as of 2025. It offers a simpler search function where you can enter a natural language query rather than breaking it down into specific keywords and search fields.
The system will then use this to generate a traditional Boolean search (with AND, NOT, OR keywords) and a semantic search (using similar terms to the ones you have entered), combine these two searches behind the scenes, and generate a set of relevant papers and a set of relevant researchers. You can opt to see only the "boolean" or "semantic" searches to see the different sets of results, if you choose.
To enable Smart Search, use the slider on the top right of the Web of Science page.
It defaults to searching 'All databases', but you can choose to switch this to 'Core Collection'. If you search in 'All databases', then the results will be tagged with the database they are drawn from. 'All databases' will get more results, but the search may be less focused than searching just 'Core Collection'.
As you type in a search term, it will suggest potential searches, topic groups, and journals to focus your search on.
You can search in either English or simplified Chinese; if you search in Chinese, then it will add a switch allowing you to automatically translate the titles on the search results into Chinese, and it will also allow you to translate the abstracts as well. There are plans to add other languages here in future.
Smart Search is useful for getting a quick overview of relevant papers, especially in a field where you do not know what the terms used might be. However, as you do not have full control over the search terms used, it is not suitable for anything where you want to obtain a comprehensive set of results. It may also potentially have more false positives than a carefully constructed keyword search.
It would also not be appropriate for things such as a systematic review, where you want to be able to report the exact search terms used to generate your results, as Smart Search does not make these available.
