Google link cleaner
Keep the result. Remove the extra Google link parts.
Paste a copied search result or Google URL to keep the useful destination and remove supported redirect or tracking information.
Four kinds of Google link
Which one you have depends on how the link was copied.
A redirect wrapper
google.com/url?q=...The destination is carried inside the URL itself, so the cleaner can unwrap it and return the direct link.
A search results page
google.com/search?q=...The search terms and useful display options stay. Session and result-position labels are removed.
A shopping or ad click
?srsltid=...Lands on the destination site directly but carries a Google click token, which is removed.
A direct result link
example.com/articleOften already clean. The tool says so rather than changing anything it does not recognise.
Google links, cleaned
Real output from the cleaner on this page, including a redirect unwrapped back to its destination.
A copied redirect link
- Before
- https://www.google.com/url?q=https://example.com/research/paper&sa=t&ved=2ahUKEwjabc&usg=AOvVaw
- After
- https://example.com/research/paper
Unwrapped to the destination carried in the q field. The wrapper and everything attached to it disappears with it.
A search results page
- Before
- https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+remove+utm&sxsrf=ALeKk01&ei=abc123&ved=0ahUKEwj&source=hp&oq=how+to
- After
- https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+remove+utm
Removed five session and interaction fields. The search terms are kept, so the link still reproduces the search.
A Google Shopping click
- Before
- https://www.example-shop.com/item/123?srsltid=AfmBOooLongGoogleShoppingToken
- After
- https://www.example-shop.com/item/123
The link already points at the shop, but srsltid identifies the specific listing click that sent you there.
Why a Google link is rarely the link you want
When you copy a search result, what lands on the clipboard depends on how you copied it. Right-clicking the result heading usually gives the destination directly. Copying from the address bar after clicking through, or copying on some mobile browsers, can instead give a google.com/url wrapper with the real destination buried inside a query parameter.
The wrapper works, in that it eventually delivers the reader to the right page. But it routes them through Google first, it obscures where the link goes before they click, and it carries labels describing the search session that produced it.
A wrapper is also fragile in a way a direct link is not. It depends on Google continuing to operate that redirect in the same form. A direct link depends only on the destination site.
What the extra fields on a search URL do
A Google search URL copied from the address bar typically carries several fields beyond the query. The ones this cleaner removes are the session and interaction labels: ei, which identifies the search session, ved, which records which result was clicked and where it sat on the page, and sxsrf, oq, and source, which describe how the search was entered and refined.
What stays is the part that reproduces the search: q for the terms, plus tbm and udm for the search vertical, hl for language, and num and start for result count and pagination. A cleaned search link still runs the same search for whoever opens it.
Citing and archiving
This matters most when a link is meant to last. A citation in a document, a source in a bug report, a reference in a wiki, or a link submitted to an archive service should point at the source itself rather than at a search engine's redirect for it.
A direct link is easier for a reader to evaluate before clicking, survives independently of the search engine, and archives cleanly. A wrapper often fails to archive at all, because the archiving service captures the redirect rather than the page.
Common questions
Why can Google links be so long?
Some copied links include redirect wrappers, source labels, click information, or search settings around the destination.
What does cleaning one change?
It keeps the destination or search and removes supported redirect and tracking parts when they are present.
Should I clean links before citing them?
A direct source link is usually easier for someone else to read, verify, archive, and reuse.
Does the cleaned search link still work?
Yes. The search terms and display options are kept, so the link reproduces the same search. Only the session and result-position labels are removed.
What is srsltid?
A click token attached to links reached through Google Shopping listings. It points at the destination site directly but identifies the specific listing click that sent you there.
More cleaning tools
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URL cleaner
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Tracking remover
What Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Amazon attach to a shared link.
UTM remover
The five utm_ fields, who reads them, and why removing them is safe.
Photo cleaner
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