How to Search Documents on iPhone: 7 Ways to Explain

Control F has long been synonymous with searching for documents on your PC. You can use this shortcut to locate words, phrases, and even sentences that appear in a document. It is very convenient and suitable for most text-filled interfaces. But when it comes to phones and mobile operating systems, things change. If you have an iPhone, you can no longer press Ctrl f (or Command f on macOS) to start searching for something in a document.

But don’t worry, you can easily search for documents on your iPhone, and all the help you need is right here.

Can I search documents on iPhone?

Yes. Although where to search for documents on iPhone and what to search for varies, in most cases it's easy to search for documents or web pages on iPhone.

So whether you have a web page that you want to search for content, or a document file like a PDF, DOCX, or anything else, you can search the document file to find the word or phrase you're looking for. It's easy - even though the method may change depending on the file type.

How to Search Documents 7 Ways

The process of searching for content in a document changes depending on the document type and the application you use to open it. Let’s see how to open and search documents on iPhone.

1. How to search for notes in the Apple Notes app

Open the

Notes app from your iPhone.

#Click on the

note you want to search for.

#Click on the three-dot icon in the upper right corner of the screen.

Click

to find in your notes.

Click on the input area labeled "Search" text. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will search for the phrase "nerds chalk".

Please note that we have 2 instances of the phrase "nerds chalk" in this note. Also, please note that word searches in the Notes application are not case-sensitive, so the result is "Nerds Chalk."

Click the down arrow to navigate to the next instance of the phrase "nerds chalk" in this note.

As shown below, this is the second and final instance of the phrase "nerds chalk" in this note.

#We also test whether the word search in the Notes application also treats your input as part of a word. For example, in the image below it is clear that even though the search query is "nerd", the Notes application still locates instances where the search query "nerd" occurs as part of a complete word.

#Also note that spaces in search queries will be treated as separate characters. For example, in the image below, phrases containing spaces like "Nerds Chalk" will not appear in the search query "nerdschalk".

2. How to search for documents in the Files app

Open the

Files app from your iPhone’s Home screen.

#Select the location where your documents are stored and click on it. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will select a document stored on the iPhone.

Click on the document you want to search for.

#Click the magnifying glass icon near the top of the screen.

Click the input area and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will be searching for the word "Shakespeare"

#Note that we have 5 instances of the word "Shakespeare" in this document.

#Click the down arrow to navigate to the next instance of the phrase "Shakespeare" in this document.

As shown below, this is the 2nd of 5 instances of the phrase "Shakespeare" in this document. You can click the down arrow again to locate the instance below the document.

3. How to search for documents in the Pages app

Open thePages app from your iPhone’s home screen.

#Select the location where your documents are stored and click on it. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will select documents stored on the iPhone itself.

Click on the document you want to search for.

Note: PDF files will not be viewable in the Pages application.

#Click the three-dot icon near the top of the document.

Scroll down and click Find.

Click the input area and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will search for the phrase "nerds chalk".

The first instance of your search query will be highlighted in yellow.

You can select the next or next search query by clicking on the "Next" or "Previous" option respectively. Previous instance.

4. How to search web pages you have saved in Safari

Open a saved web page from a web browser. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will open a web page shortcut created through the Safari web browser.

Click the Share button (the square with an upward arrow) below the search bar.

Scroll down and click to find options on the page.

Click the input area and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will search for the word "nerdle".

The first instance of your search query will be highlighted in yellow.

Note: This method may produce confusing numbers for your search query. For example, in the image below, it is clear that there is an instance of the word "nerdle" above the highlight. However, the highlighted word is numbered 1.

You can click the up or down arrow to locate the previous or next instance of the search query, respectively.

5. How to search your downloaded or saved documents in Safari

Open Safari/Chrome or any other web browser from your iPhone. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will open the Safari web browser.

Click the download icon on the left side of the search bar. However, if this icon is not available, please click on the "aA" icon.

click to download.

Click on the document you want to search for.

Click the magnifying glass icon near the top of your browser window.

Click the input area and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will search for the word "industry".

The first instance of your search query will be highlighted in yellow.

You can click the up or down arrow to locate the previous or next instance of the search query, respectively.

6. How to search pdf in Adobe Acrobat Reader on iPhone

Open from the home screen of iPhoneAdobe Acrobat Reader application.

#Click on the document you want to search for.

#Click the magnifying glass icon near the top of the screen.

Click the input area marked with the "Find in documents" text mark and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will search for the word "time".

Press on your keyboard to search .

Instances of your word search query will be highlighted.

You can click the left or right arrow to locate the previous or next instance of the search query, respectively.

7. How to Search for Documents in Google Docs on iPhone

Open the Docs app from your iPhone’s Home screen.

#Click on the document you want to search for.

#Click on the three-dot icon in the upper right corner of the screen.

Click the Find and Replace option.

Click the input area marked with the "Find in documents" text mark and enter the phrase you are looking for. For the purposes of this tutorial, we will search for the word "nerd."

Press on your keyboard to search . Instances of your word search query will be highlighted.

You can click the up or down arrow to locate the previous or next instance of the search query, respectively.

FAQ

Does the iPhone have a function similar to Control F to search for text in a document?

No, apparently, the iPhone doesn’t have a keyboard shortcut like Control F for searching text. Additionally, the iPhone doesn't offer a consistent method or shortcut for searching for text across various apps.

However, depending on the application that contains your document, various search strategies are available. Feel free to read our tutorial above to learn more.

Is word search in iPhone case-sensitive?

No, searching for words or phrases in documents on iPhone is not case-sensitive. For example, in the image below, it doesn’t matter that the letter “S” at the beginning of our search query is lowercase. Highlighted results still start with a capital "S".

#Are spaces treated as separate characters when searching for documents on iPhone?

Yes. When searching for phrases in documents on iPhone, a space is treated as a separate character. In fact, this is necessary because without space characters, searching for sentences containing multiple words is impossible.

Can I use word search in documents in "docx" format?

In a broad sense, is of . However, this depends on the application in which the document is stored. If you open a document through Google Docs, you can do a word search. Additionally, the Pages app on iPhone allows you to search for words in documents in “docx” format.

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