How to Change Your Google Search Location and See Results From Any City or Country

Google knows where you are, and it will not let you pretend otherwise. There is no box in the settings where you type a city. If you want to see the results a searcher in Denver or Manchester sees, you have to use one of a few workarounds.

This guide covers four that work in September 2026, from a URL trick you can use right now to an API for doing it at scale. Pick the one that matches how many searches you need to run.

Why Google will not just let you pick a city

Google removed the manual location setting years ago. Today it detects your location from your IP address, your device’s GPS if you allow it, and your account history. The settings page shows what it detected and lets you switch on precise location. That is all.

The reason matters for anyone doing SEO. Results change with location, and for local searches they change block by block. Our guide on checking local rankings for any city shows how different two cities can look. So “what do we rank for” always needs a “where”.

Method 1: The uule parameter (free, exact, one search at a time)

Google accepts a URL parameter called uule that encodes a place. Add it to a search URL and Google returns the results for that place.

Here is a search for coffee shops as seen from London:

https://www.google.com/search?q=coffee+shops&uule=w+CAIQICIdTG9uZG9uLEVuZ2xhbmQsVW5pdGVkIEtpbmdkb20&hl=en&gl=gb

The uule value is built from the canonical place name, London,England,United Kingdom. The format is:

1. Start with w+CAIQICI.
2. Add one character that stands for the length of the place name. For a 29-character name it is d.
3. Add the place name encoded in base64, with any trailing = removed.

A few ready-made values:

The place names come from Google’s geo targets list, the same list Google Ads uses. Many free web tools generate the value for you from a city name. Search for “uule generator”.

Tips. Use a private window so your history does not leak in. Add gl= for the country and hl= for the language. Scroll to the bottom of the page. Google shows the location it used, which is your check that it worked.

Limits. One search at a time. Google may ignore the value now and then. And it sets the search location, not your device, so a few personalized elements can still leak through.

Method 2: Override your location in the browser (free, good for map packs)

Chrome and other Chromium browsers let you fake your GPS coordinates. Google then treats you as standing at that point, which is the most realistic way to see local packs.

1. Open Chrome and press F12, or right-click and choose Inspect.
2. Open the three-dot menu in the developer tools panel, then More tools, then Sensors.
3. Under Location, choose a preset city or pick Other and type a latitude and longitude.
4. Reload Google and search. If Google asks for location permission, allow it.
5. Check the location Google shows at the bottom of the results.

Tips. Combine with device mode in the same panel to see the mobile page. Use a private window, and note that Google may still use your IP address for the country, so pair this with gl= if you are crossing borders.

Limits. Still one search at a time. The override resets when you close the panel.

Method 3: Country-level parameters and the Ads preview tool (free, no code)

If you only need another country, two simple options.

URL parameters. Add gl= with the two-letter country code and hl= with the language:

https://www.google.com/search?q=plumber&gl=gb&hl=en

This switches Google’s country and language. It does not pick a city.

Google Ads Ad Preview and Diagnosis tool. Inside any Google Ads account, under Tools, there is a preview tool. It shows the results page for a keyword, a location down to city level, a language, and a device. It exists so advertisers can check their ads, but the organic results and features are shown too. It is free, needs no code, and is one of the most exact ways to see another city’s page. You need a Google Ads account, which is free to create.

VPN. A VPN gives you an IP in another country, so Google switches country. It is rough, it cannot pick a city, and Google often adds a consent screen or a captcha. Use it only when nothing else is available.

Method 4: A SERP API with location codes (any scale)

When you need dozens of keywords in dozens of cities, or a weekly check, do not click through URLs. A SERP API accepts a location per request and returns the page as data.

Google gives every country, region, and city a numeric ID. The United States is 2840, the United Kingdom is 2826, London is 1006886, New York is 1023191. You can look them up for free:

curl "https://api.serplify.io/v1/locations?country=GB&limit=5000" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer live_your_key_here"

Then request the page for that place:

curl -X POST https://api.serplify.io/v1/serp/search \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer live_your_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "keyword": "coffee shops",
    "location": { "code": 1006886 },
    "language": { "code": "en" },
    "device": "mobile"
  }'

You can also pass a name, { "name": "London,England,United Kingdom" }, or a point with a radius, { "coordinate": "51.5074,-0.1278,10" }. The response lists every block on the page with its position, including the local pack with each business’s rating and Google place ID. Each request costs $0.005.

For the full setup with scheduling and storage, see how to track rankings in bulk.

Which method should you use?

How to confirm it worked

Whatever method you use, do two checks.

1. Scroll to the bottom of the results page. Google prints the location it used under the results. If it says your real city, the trick did not take.
2. Search something local. Pizza or pharmacy should show a map pack for the place you set. If the pack shows your own neighborhood, start over in a fresh private window.

Common mistakes

• Using your normal signed-in browser. Your history and account location leak in. Use a private window.
• Forgetting the country. A uule for Manchester with a US IP can produce a mixed page. Add gl=gb.
• Checking desktop for a local business. Local searches happen on phones. Use device mode or set device to mobile. See why mobile and desktop rankings differ.
• Reading one result as the truth. Results move daily. For anything you report, check the trend, as we explain in how to check your Google rankings.

Quick recap

• Google does not let you type a location, so you set it another way.
• The uule parameter and the browser location override are exact and free for one-off checks.
• Country parameters and the Google Ads preview tool cover the simple cases with no code.
• A SERP API with Google location codes handles many keywords and cities on a schedule.
• Always confirm the location Google prints at the bottom of the page.