Editing Metasearch engine (section)

== Advantages ==
By sending multiple queries to several other search engines this extends the [[coverage data]] of the topic and allows more information to be found. They use the indexes built by other search engines, aggregating and often post-processing results in unique ways. A metasearch engine has an advantage over a single search engine because more results can be [[Data retrieval|retrieved]] with the same amount of exertion.<ref name=Architecture/> It also reduces the work of users from having to individually type in searches from different engines to look for resources.<ref name=Architecture/>

Metasearching is also a useful approach if the purpose of the user's search is to get an overview of the topic or to get quick answers. Instead of having to go through multiple search engines like Yahoo! or Google and comparing results, metasearch engines are able to quickly compile and combine results. They can do it either by listing results from each engine queried with no additional post-processing (Dogpile) or by analyzing the results and ranking them by their own rules (IxQuick, Metacrawler, and Vivismo).

A metasearch engine can also hide the searcher's IP address from the search engines queried thus providing privacy to the search.