# What is the lowest number NOT found on Google?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [September 12, 2004, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132 "2004-09-12T13:38:12Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/1 "2004-09-12T13:38:12Z")
While this is a legitimate GQ topic, I would rather make a game of it.
The idea is simple enough. Do a Google search for strings of numbers, and find the smallest one you can that has zero/no hits. When you find a contender, post only the last 3 digits of it here. That way you can prove you found the number, without giving it away before others have had a chance to play. If you find a new low “unGoogle” number after already posting a larger one, of course do post the last 3 of the new number as well.
The guidelines are easy and fair. Negatives don’t count. If you find that -2349772375 isn’t there, it counts as positive 2349772375 an as such is larger than - 123456. Also, no leading zeros are allowed. 0005 may equal 5 in some situations, but not on Google. And don’t use decimal points, hex, binary, fractions, etc. Keep it clean and simple.
I have found a couple sites on Google that have looked at this problem.
[http://wetware.hjalli.com/000073.html](http://wetware.hjalli.com/000073.html)
[http://douweosinga.com/blog/0312/2003Dec06\_1](http://douweosinga.com/blog/0312/2003Dec06_1)
They goofed up by posting the results on the web, which we are going to be smart enough NOT to do. Right? So later in the game, when it is time to reveal the results of our searches, I nicely request that you post your complete number with BLANKS between the digits. Post 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 , not 9999999999. That way if Google is looking over your shoulder, you won’t invalidate your results.
To start things off I will give the last 3 digits of my current low: 273. Anybody think they can beat me?
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### Author:  [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/2 "2004-09-12T16:12:28Z")
9 8 1 2 3 3 3 8
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### Author:  [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/3 "2004-09-12T16:13:44Z")
Oops, make that 338
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### Author:  [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/4 "2004-09-12T16:30:36Z")
Well, I found a much lower one: 227
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### Author:  [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/5 "2004-09-12T16:41:12Z")
This may be a dumb question, but how do we know how low the ‘low’ is if people only post the last three digits? 227 might be 3227 or 22438227
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### Author:  [@Already\_in\_Use](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Already_in_Use)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/6 "2004-09-12T17:16:55Z")
Google doesn’t search the boards, so we can post the numbers without spaces.
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### Author:  [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/7 "2004-09-12T17:52:02Z")
> [@chrisk](#):
>
> This may be a dumb question, but how do we know how low the ‘low’ is if people only post the last three digits? 227 might be 3227 or 22438227
We don’t know until the end. But I am pretty certain that the lowest nonGoogle number is somewhere greater than 3400000. My own submission, 273, is much greater than 3400000, but less than **DanBlather** ’s inadvertent reveal. I have no idea whether his second try is greater or less than mine.
Separate Q: I like the sound of “nonGoogle” more than “unGoogle” or “Googleless” to describe these numbers. Anyone else have a suggestion or preference?
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### Author:  [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/8 "2004-09-12T22:51:10Z")
> [@](#):
>
> We don’t know until the end.
What’s the end?
I got a …704
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### Author:  [@Gamaliel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gamaliel)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/9 "2004-09-12T23:01:49Z")
Why not just use spoiler boxes?
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### Author:  [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/10 "2004-09-12T23:18:17Z")
> [@Gamaliel](#):
>
> Why not just use spoiler boxes?
Ok,
48298704
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### Author:  [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/11 "2004-09-12T23:26:07Z")
If Google doesn’t search the boards, then fine…but are we sure it wouldn’t register the text in spoiler boxes? Or does it eliminate results where the background and text colours match?
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### Author:  [@Lockz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lockz)
#### Post date: [September 12, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/12 "2004-09-12T23:36:08Z")
You might have to check in ATMB, but I think the Boards have a robots.txt file set up so that robots who are friendly (like Google’s) will see the file set up and won’t go through the site.
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### Author:  [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/13 "2004-09-13T01:18:47Z")
> [@Happy Lendervedder](#):
>
> Ok,
>
> 48298704
My latest beats that by several million.
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### Author:  [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/14 "2004-09-13T01:37:56Z")
My best so far…
39230700
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### Author:  [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/15 "2004-09-13T03:36:19Z")
34000284
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### Author:  [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/16 "2004-09-13T11:55:01Z")
29476057
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### Author:  [@mkl12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mkl12)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/17 "2004-09-13T12:39:19Z")
23883610
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### Author:  [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/18 "2004-09-13T12:52:57Z")
18176534
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### Author:  [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/19 "2004-09-13T13:03:50Z")
Ahem.
It appears that certain posters who shall remain unnamed are having a little trouble following the rules 😉 . Rather than penalize you all 10,000,000 (dollars or pushups, your choice), how about we change the rules and make everybody happy? We can turn this in to a group project rather than the “contest” I envisioned.
I will put my low number in a box as soon as I figure out how.
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### Author:  [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2004, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-lowest-number-not-found-on-google/264132/20 "2004-09-13T13:07:21Z")
16176273. That wasn’t as hard as it looks.
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