⚡ Get All Content for 20% Off ⚡

Bing vs. Google: Which Search Engine is Best? Microsoft's search engine claims users prefer it to Google. Here, we identify their strengths and weaknesses.

By AJ Kumar

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You might have seen the commercials online or on TV: Bing has been waging a marketing war on Google, claiming that blind users prefer Bing's results over Google's by a 2-to-1 margin.

But has Microsoft's search engine really advanced enough to pose a credible threat to Google? While you can test the comparison on your own at BingitOn.com, I've identified strengths and weaknesses for both. Either engine may have an edge depending on your personal preferences.

From social integration to speed to quality, here's a look at how they stack up:

Google advantage: Provides more relevant information.
While Bing's recent changes make it a more viable search option, it's still lacking in terms of result quality in response to informative queries.

In this case, I tested the phrase, "income tax rates." While the Google search engine results page (SERP) displayed information on both 2012 and 2013 tax rates in the first five listings, the only dated information found in Bing's results was a single listing mentioning 2011 tax rates.

Related: How a Facebook Search Engine Could Change the Way People Find Your Business

Bing advantage: Social integrations are stronger.
Bing's results win in terms of the smoothness of its social integrations. The company's contracts with both Facebook and Twitter give it access to more social data than Google, which must rely on the lesser-used Google+ network. The way it integrates social recommendations into its SERPs is also much less cluttered than Google's results.

Google advantage: Instant search saves time.
Although Google and Bing both offer instant search features -- which display potential search queries as you're typing into the search box -- Google's instant search tends to provide more relevant results, more quickly.

To measure this, I began entering the sample query, "latest Packers score" into both engines. Google provided this as a possible query result after only "latest Pack," while Bing required the full "latest Packers s" to turn up the same result.

Bing advantage: Results pages are more attractive.
Bing's search results pages have a certain visual appeal. And it appears that there are plenty of people who agree.

In many ways, Bing's results look like Google's used to, before Google cluttered its listings with "+1" buttons, social annotations and other useless features.

Related: What You Need to Know About Using Google's Webmaster Tools

Google advantage: Connected products provide more background information.
If you use any of Google's other products -- such as Google Reader or Google+ -- the search giant already has a wealth of information available to understand you and tailor its results to the listings that are most likely to be of value to you. While Bing offers similar products -- such as Bing Reader -- they aren't nearly as widely adopted as Google's offerings, meaning that Bing's internal integrations aren't likely to influence the company's SERP results for many users.

In this case, because I'm subscribed to SEO and social monitoring service SEOMoz in my Google Reader account, I was more likely to see posts from SEOMoz contributing authors appear in my Google query results than in Bing's listings. To me, this adds value by increasing the likelihood that results will appear from authors I know and trust.

Bottom line: Everyone's search engine use comes down to personal preference. For me, I'm sticking with Google until Bing is able to claim a much greater advantage over the web's largest, most preferred search engine.

Which do you think is the more effective search engine? Google or Bing? Let us know in the comments below.

AJ Kumar

Entrepreneur Leadership Network® Contributor

Digital Maestro

Aj Kumar, the “Digital Maestro,” is the founder of The Limitless Company, a smart content creation engine for your brand. AJ and his team are on a mission to help entrepreneurs in the Creator Economy build for-profit human-healing brands.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

The Remote Side Hustle a 43-Year-Old Musician Works on for 1 Hour a Day Earns Nearly $3,000 a Month: 'All From the Comfort of Home'

Sam Ziegler wanted to supplement his income as a professional drummer — then his tech skills and desire to help people came together.

Marketing

Ever Wonder Why Certain Websites Rank Higher Than Yours? This SEO Expert Reveals The Secret to Dominating Search Results

It's often the smart use of SEO, now supercharged with AI, particularly in keyword optimization.

Business News

AI Is Impacting Jobs. Here Are the Gigs Affected the Most, According to an Analysis of 5 Million Upwork Postings

The researcher said in the report that freelance jobs were analyzed first because that market will likely see AI's immediate impact.

Franchise

The Top Franchise Brands Growing Globally

While our main Fastest-Growing Franchises list focuses on North American growth, more and more brands are looking to grow worldwide. These are the 25 that had the greatest franchise growth outside the U.S. and Canada from July 2022 to July 2023.