Writing search queries

A search query is just words and a few simple connectors. Jobably turns it into a precise search behind the scenes and always shows you what it understood, both while you type and in scan health afterward.

You usually don’t have to write it

Everywhere a query can be edited, Jobably shows a guided builder with three plain boxes:

• Match ANY of these — one is enough ("VP Engineering", "Head of Engineering", …)
• Must ALSO contain — every one required
• Must NOT contain — excludes

Add terms as chips; phrases are quoted and grouped for you, and the exact expression it builds is always shown underneath — what you see is what runs. An Advanced toggle switches to the raw expression for anything the boxes can’t say. If a hand-written query is too intricate for the boxes, Jobably opens it in Advanced rather than ever silently changing what it means.

The rest of this page explains the raw syntax — useful in Advanced mode or when reading what the builder produced.

The basics

You write	What it means
"VP Engineering"	this exact phrase
A OR B	either one
A, B, C	any of them — a comma is a shorthand for OR
A AND B (or just A B)	both
NOT recruiter	leave these out
("VP Eng" OR "Head of Eng") NOT agency	grouping with parentheses

Operators must be CAPITALISED. OR, AND and NOT combine terms; or, and and not in lower case are treated as ordinary words, so “Research and Development” searches for that department rather than for two separate things.

As you type in the search form, a live preview shows exactly how your query was understood, plus any warnings. What you see in the preview is exactly what runs.

Traps Jobably catches for you

Job search queries have some surprising traps. These are real ones we hit — each is now handled automatically, with a warning so you know.

Short words like “IT”

Search engines ignore tiny common words (“it”, “of”, “the”). Without care, a search for IT manager would quietly become just manager. Jobably notices when a short word is written in ALL CAPS, treats it as an acronym, and keeps it — and tells you it did.

Connectors inside quotes

"marketing OR sales" searches for that literal phrase — the OR is just a word inside quotes. If you meant “marketing or sales,” drop the quotes.

NOT after a group

("A" OR "B") NOT C excludes C from everything in the parentheses — the whole group, not just the last item. It works the way you’d read it.

Phrases match word order exactly

"Director of Procurement" will not match a posting titled “Procurement Director.” When the order isn’t essential, spell out both: "Director of Procurement" OR "Procurement Director". Jobably warns you whenever a phrase is order-sensitive.

A search that can’t match anything

If every word in your query is one the search engine ignores, the search would silently find nothing. Jobably flags this immediately instead of letting you wonder why results never arrive.