Search+ vs NotebookLM
NotebookLM, which Google's help center now calls Gemini Notebook, is a free Google notebook that answers from the sources you add, with inline citations, and accepts a wide range of sources: PDFs, Word and PowerPoint files, Google Docs, web pages, YouTube links and audio. Search+ is a document workspace: it takes PDF, Word and Excel files, reads scanned pages with OCR and accepts files up to 5 GB each, applies standing instructions to every question, and cites the excerpt behind each answer. Choose NotebookLM for audio overviews, YouTube sources or Google Drive sync. Choose Search+ for a document set you return to under the same rules.
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At a glance
| Search+ | NotebookLM | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A web app for asking questions across document workspaces, with cited answers | A Google research notebook that answers from your sources |
| Files you can add | PDF, Word and Excel files; OCR for scanned pages; up to 5 GB per file | PDF, Word, PowerPoint, text, Google Docs, Slides and Sheets, web and YouTube links, audio, images |
| Answers | Inline citations; open one to read the supporting excerpt | Grounded answers with inline citations |
| Sharing | Team plan available | Share with people or publicly; advanced sharing on paid plans |
| Where it runs | Browser only | Browser, plus a mobile app |
How Search+ and NotebookLM differ
Both take many file types; limits differ
NotebookLM lists PDF, Word, PowerPoint, text, Markdown, CSV, Google Docs, Slides and Sheets, images, audio, web URLs and public YouTube videos as sources, each up to 200 MB or 500,000 words. Search+ takes PDF, Word and Excel files, reads scanned pages with OCR, and accepts files up to 5 GB each. If your sources are YouTube videos or audio recordings, check NotebookLM first.
NotebookLM turns sources into new formats
NotebookLM can produce study guides, briefings, audio overviews and mind maps from a notebook. Search+ answers in chat: summaries, comparisons and traced claims arrive as cited answers you read in the conversation, with no generated audio or diagrams.
Search+ keeps standing rules for the whole workspace
In Search+, Workspace Context holds instructions such as priorities, terminology or evidence standards, written once and applied to every question in that workspace. This suits long projects where every answer should follow the same reading rules, such as separating evidence from interpretation.
Sync and sharing options favour NotebookLM
NotebookLM notebooks can be shared with individual people or publicly, and sources imported from Google Drive re-sync every few minutes. Search+ has no integrations.
Search+ vs NotebookLM, feature by feature
Checked against public pages on October 11, 2026. "Not covered here" means the pages we checked do not say; it is not a claim that the feature is missing.
| Topic | Search+ | NotebookLM |
|---|---|---|
| Files | PDF, Word and Excel files; OCR for scanned pages; up to 5 GB per file | Many types (see above) |
| Citations | Inline citations; open one to read the supporting excerpt | Inline citations |
| Question scope | Whole workspace or one document | Select individual sources in the Source panel |
| Standing instructions | Workspace Context, applied to every question | Custom chat, available to everyone |
| Saved work | Workspaces and conversation history are saved | Notebooks persist |
| Sharing and teams | Team plan available | Yes, individual or public |
| Export and outputs | No export | Generated formats such as study guides |
| Where it runs | Browser only | Browser and mobile app |
| Price | See current plans on searchplus.ai | Free; more with Google AI plans |
As of 2026-10-11
Sources: Learn about Gemini Notebook (Google help); Add or discover new sources (Google help); Gemini Notebook plans (Google help); Gemini Notebook FAQ (Google help)
Pricing
NotebookLM is free with a Google account; Google AI plans and qualifying Workspace licenses raise its limits. Prices as of October 2026, from support.google.com. For Search+ plans, see the pricing section on the Search+ homepage.
| Product | Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NotebookLM | Free | $0 | Sign up with a Google account |
| NotebookLM | Google AI Plus, Pro, Ultra | Varies per month | Higher limits and more features |
Prices as of 2026-10
About each product
Search+
Search+ is a web app for working with documents. You create a workspace for each project, upload PDF, Word and Excel files, and ask questions across every document or narrow a question to one. Answers come with inline citations; open one to read the excerpt behind it. Workspace Context holds standing instructions that apply to every question, and workspaces and conversations are saved so you can pick up where you left off.
NotebookLM
NotebookLM is Google's AI research notebook, now named Gemini Notebook in Google's help center. You add sources, chat with them and get answers with inline citations, and you can turn sources into study guides, briefings, audio overviews and mind maps. Free users can add up to 50 sources per notebook, each up to 500,000 words or 200 MB.
Which one fits your work
Choose Search+ when
- You return to the same document set over weeks
- You want standing instructions applied to every answer in a project
- You want to open each citation and read the excerpt behind the claim
- You prefer a tool that only answers from the documents in your workspace
Choose NotebookLM when
- Your sources include YouTube videos, audio or Google Docs
- You want audio overviews, study guides or mind maps
- You need to share a notebook with other people
- You want sources that stay in sync with Google Drive
How to try both on the same documents
- Pick one project with five to ten documents you already know well.
- Load the same PDFs into a NotebookLM notebook and a Search+ workspace.
- In Search+, write your reading rules once in Workspace Context.
- Ask both the same three questions, including one that needs several documents.
- Open the citations in each and check which answers you can verify fastest.
Questions about Search+ and NotebookLM
Is NotebookLM the same as Gemini Notebook?
Can Search+ read the same files as NotebookLM?
Do both tools cite their sources?
Is NotebookLM free?
Sources
Recheck public pages before making a buying decision. Spotted an error? Tell us through the Search+ app and we will correct it.
Checked 2026-10-11
Keep a document project in one workspace
Upload your documents, set your reading rules once, and check every answer against its excerpt.
Start a workspace