Firefox Address Bar: Keyword Searches, Bookmark Keywords, and @ Shortcuts for Power Users

Firefox's address bar has extensive search customization that most users never explore. Here's how to set up keyword searches, manage multiple search engines, and make the address bar a powerful launcher.

Understanding the Address Bar (Awesome Bar)

Firefox's address bar doubles as a search box. When you type:

• A URL: Firefox navigates directly
• A keyword + space + query: Uses a keyword search engine
• Plain text: Uses your default search engine

The "Awesome Bar" also suggests:

• Bookmarks (with their title and URL)
• History
• Tabs (active tabs show "Switch to tab")
• Search suggestions from your search engine

Setting a Default Search Engine

Settings → Search → Default Search Engine

Built-in options: Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, Qwant, and others.

Adding a custom search engine:
Any site with a search box can be added. On the site:

1. Click in the search box
2. Right-click → "Add a Keyword for this Search"
3. Enter a keyword (like gh for GitHub) and save

Or: Right-click a link to a search results page → "Add a Keyword for this Search".

Manual custom engine (works for any URL with %s as placeholder):
Settings → Search → Add search engine

• Name: "MDN"
• URL: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/search?q=%s
• Keyword: mdn

Now type mdn javascript promise in address bar → searches MDN.

Keyword Searches

Keywords let you search specific engines from the address bar:

Built-in examples (depends on your setup):

• g query → Google search
• ddg query → DuckDuckGo

Create your own:

gh typescript generics    → GitHub search
mdn flexbox               → MDN search  
npm express middleware    → npm search
so javascript proxy       → Stack Overflow search

Useful search engine keywords to set up:
| Keyword | URL | Purpose |
|---------|-----|---------|
| mdn | https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/search?q=%s | Web docs |
| npm | https://www.npmjs.com/search?q=%s | Node packages |
| gh | https://github.com/search?q=%s | GitHub |
| so | https://stackoverflow.com/search?q=%s | Stack Overflow |
| crt | https://crates.io/search?q=%s | Rust crates |
| pypi | https://pypi.org/search/?q=%s | Python packages |
| hub | https://hub.docker.com/search?q=%s&type=image | Docker Hub |
| arch | https://archlinux.org/packages/?q=%s | Arch packages |
| apt | https://packages.ubuntu.com/search?keywords=%s | Ubuntu packages |

Bookmark Keywords

Bookmarks can also have keywords:

1. Bookmark any URL
2. Right-click the bookmark → Edit Bookmark
3. Add a "Keyword" field

Now type the keyword in the address bar → navigates to that bookmark.

Example: Bookmark https://github.com/my-org/my-repo with keyword repo — type repo in address bar → jumps directly to that repo.

Pro pattern: Bookmark URLs with %s in them and give them keywords:

https://github.com/org/%s
keyword: org

Type org my-repo → opens github.com/org/my-repo

This turns any URL pattern into a keyword launcher.

Smart Suggestions

The address bar suggests as you type. Priority order:

1. Open tabs (blue "Switch to tab" indicator)
2. Bookmarks (star icon)
3. History
4. Search suggestions
5. Search shortcuts (@keyword for specific engines)

@ search shortcuts (Firefox-specific):
Type @ in the address bar to see available search engine shortcuts:

• @duckduckgo → search DuckDuckGo
• @bookmarks → search only bookmarks
• @history → search only history
• @tabs → search open tabs

This is useful when you want to search a specific source without typing a full keyword.

Configuring Suggestion Sources

Settings → Search → Search Suggestions:

• Show search suggestions: toggle on/off
• Show recent searches: toggle
• Show trending search topics: toggle

In about:config for more control:

browser.urlbar.suggest.searches = true/false    (search suggestions)
browser.urlbar.suggest.history = true/false     (history matches)
browser.urlbar.suggest.bookmark = true/false    (bookmark matches)
browser.urlbar.suggest.openpage = true/false    (open tab matches)
browser.urlbar.maxRichResults = 10              (max suggestions shown)

Search Bar vs Address Bar

Firefox used to have a separate search box (to the right of the address bar). Most users removed it as redundant.

If you prefer a dedicated search box:
Settings → Search → Search bar → Add search bar to toolbar

With a separate search box:

• Address bar: navigation only (URLs and about: pages)
• Search bar: search only

Most power users use the unified address bar with keyword searches.

Firefox Suggest (Contextual Suggestions)

Firefox Suggest is Mozilla's feature that provides recommendations from sponsored and other sources in the address bar.

Settings: Settings → Search → Address Bar — Firefox Suggest

• Suggestions from Firefox: non-personalized Mozilla content
• Suggestions from sponsors: paid listings (can be disabled)

Privacy note: Firefox Suggest can be configured to work without sending your keystrokes to Mozilla. In "offline mode" suggestions come from locally-downloaded data.

Disable if unwanted:

• Settings → Search → uncheck "Contextual suggestions"
• Or about:config: browser.urlbar.quicksuggest.enabled = false

Search from Selection

Right-click any selected text on a page → "Search [engine] for [selected text]"

The search engine used is your default. You can change this in about:config:

browser.search.context.loadInBackground = true/false

Search Shortcuts in about:config

Some useful address bar tweaks:

browser.urlbar.searchSuggestionsChoice = true    (allow Firefox to save search suggestion pref)
browser.urlbar.oneOffSearches = true             (show search engine icons in bar)
browser.urlbar.speculativeConnect.enabled = false (disable preloading first suggestion)

speculativeConnect.enabled = false: Firefox preloads the top suggestion as you type. Disabling this reduces network activity but makes navigation slightly slower after you press Enter.

One-Click Search Engine Access

In the address bar, after typing a query (without pressing Enter):

• Small search engine icons appear below (if oneOffSearches is enabled)
• Click an icon to search that specific engine
• Or press the down arrow to select the engine

This is faster than typing a keyword when you occasionally want a different engine.

Summary: Fastest Workflows

Fastest navigation:

1. Keyword search engines for frequently searched sites
2. Bookmark keywords for frequently visited pages
3. @tabs shortcut to find and switch to an open tab

Configuration steps:

1. Add keyword searches for: MDN, npm, GitHub, Stack Overflow
2. Add bookmark keywords for: your company repo, dev tools, internal apps
3. Review Settings → Search → remove suggestion sources you don't want
4. Disable Firefox Suggest sponsored suggestions if you prefer

With a tuned address bar, Firefox becomes as fast to navigate as a keyboard-driven environment.