When I use the spotlight and enter a phrase or question in the text field, then clicking it with the safari icon on its left will sometimes take me to an existing page. It's very inconvenient because I'll have to type the question or phrase again in the search textfield. It’s inconsistent; it is sometimes okay and sometimes not.
Is there a solution to this problem? Or is it a bug in safari that hasn't been fixed?
iPhone XR
Hello neighborsKnowsMyName,
Welcome to Apple Support Communities!
If we understand your post correctly, when searching with Spotlight and you click on the Safari suggestion it routes to an existing web page. We'd like to help!
Follow the steps below for help with searches.
Search for something
On your Mac, click the Spotlight icon(if shown) in the menu bar, press Command-Space bar, or press
You can drag the Spotlight window anywhere on the desktop.
Tip: If the Spotlight icon isn’t in the menu bar, add it using Dock & Menu Bar preferences.
In the search field, type what you’re looking for—results appear as you type.
Spotlight lists top hits first; click a top hit to preview or open it. Spotlight also suggests variations of your search; you can view those results in Spotlight or on the web.
In the results, do any of the following:
Show a preview: Press the Tab key. Depending on the type of item selected in the results, you can interact with it. For example, select an app to list recently opened files, then click a file to open it. Or click the Play button to hear a song. Or click a button to purchase an app from the App Store.
See results of a suggested search in Spotlight: Click an item preceded by the Spotlight icon.
See results of a suggested search on the web: Click an item preceded by the Safari icon.
Open an item: Double-click it. Or select the item, then press the Return key.
Show the location of a file on your Mac: Select the file, then press and hold the Command key. The file’s location appears at the bottom of the preview.
Copy an item: Drag a file to the desktop or a Finder window.
See all results from your Mac in the Finder: Scroll to the bottom of the results, then click Search in Finder. To refine the results in the Finder, see Narrow your search results.
During downtime, or if you reach the time limit set for apps in Screen Time preferences, app icons in results are dimmed and an hourglass iconis shown. See Schedule downtime.
Let us know if you have any questions.
Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.
Take care!
New spotlight search will route to an existing web page
