How to Find What You Want on Pinterest

Last Updated: September 6, 2019

You can find a lot of things and pictures using Pinterest. With everything on it, you will definitely find something you want. You can browse through other people's boards with similar interests, or you can find and pin your own stuff. You can even create your own boards with stuff you like and share these.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Pinterest Website

Using the Home Feed

1
Log into Pinterest online. Open a new web browser and go to “pinterest.com.” Click the “Log in” button on the middle box, and you will be brought to the login page. Enter your email and password, then click the “Log in” button to proceed.
- You can also log in with your Facebook, Google, and Twitter accounts. There are three separate buttons for connecting to your social network and logging in with that account. Click on the respective button.
2
View the Home Feed. Once logged in, you will be directed to the Home Feed. Here, all your recent pins as well as recent pins of users and boards that you have followed will be displayed. Depending on how many pins and boards you have followed, the list can be very long. Scroll down the page to see if any catch your interest.

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3
View a pin. If you would like to view a pin, just click on it. The photo will expand on your screen, with a description at the bottom. If you click the expanded image, you will be taken to its source website.
4
Pin the image. If you would like to save the image in one of your boards, click the red “Pin it” button at the top left. This will open a list of your existing boards. Hover over the one where you want to pin the image in and another “Pin it” button will appear to the right. Click the button to save the image to the selected board.
- If you want to save the pin into a new board, just scroll to the bottom of the list of boards and click “Create a Board.” Enter the name of the board in the field provided and click “Create.”

Using the Search Field

1
Enter keywords in the search field. If you are unable to find what you're looking for in the Home Feed, use the search box at the top of the main page. Enter what you're looking for here.
- For instance, if you're interested in vegetable gardening, type “vegetable garden” in the search box.
2
View the results. Photo titles matching your search parameters or selected category will be displayed. Go through them to see if what you're looking for is here.
3
Filter the results more. There are also buttons of related topics right under the search box to further streamline your search. Clicking on any of these buttons will add this term in your search, filtering the results.
- For instance, the “vegetable garden” search will show filters like “how-to,” “container,” “small,” among others. If you select “container,” the search will refresh and show results on container vegetable gardens.
4
Pin a photo. If you see something you like and would like to pin it to your board, hover over the photo. A “Pin it” button will appear. Click on it.
5
Pick a board to save the photo in. The photo box will appear with all your existing boards. Hover over the board where you'd like to pin the photo. A “Pin it” button will appear here too. Click on it. The photo will be added to your selected board.
6
Pin more photos. You will be brought back to the results page after pinning your first image. Continue scrolling through it, and repeat searching, filtering, and pinning photos that interest you to your boards.
7
Browse results of Pinners and Boards. If you'd like to find grouped items related to the keywords you searched for, you can check the Pinners and the Boards tabs at the top of the search results page.
- Browsing Pinners—Right under the search box are several small tabs. By default, it's set to “All Pins.” If you'd like to see Pinners, click the Pinners tab. Pinners are users just like you. If they've made their boards public, you can browse through their boards. There's a chance you will find someone with similar interests, and you can check out his or her boards to find what you want.
- Browsing Boards—If you'd like to see Boards, click the Boards tab. Boards are the boards on Pinterest created by users, or pinners, like you. If the boards are public, you can browse through them.
8
Follow a Pinner or board. If you see a Pinner or a board you like, click the “Follow” button at the top. The selected Pinner or board will be added to the items you're following on Pinterest.
- When you follow a Pinner or board, any new pins will be added to your Home feed pins. This will ensure that you always get to view things that interest you as soon as you log into your account.
9
Open a board. Click the board you want to view. You don't need to be following a Pinner or a board to open it. The photos pinned under the board will be displayed.
10
Pin photos from the board. Scroll through the photos under the selected board. If you see something you like, you can pin it to your board. Hover over the photo and a “Pin it” button will appear. Click on it to pin it to one of your own boards. You can then continue pinning other photos under the same board.

Using the Category List

1
Click the Category menu. If you would prefer to search by topic category rather than using keywords or the Home Feed, click the three-bar icon to the right of the search field. A list of categories—Animals and Pets, Arts, DIY and Crafts, Gardening, Health and Fitness, Photography, Travel, to name a few—will drop down.
2
Click on a category to view pins under it. Images will be displayed below the search field relating to the category you selected. Scroll through these pins to see if what you're looking for is there.
3
Filter the pins some more. Under the search field will be a horizontal list of related topics. You can click on any of these to filter down the category. For instance, if you selected the “Gardening” category, related topics could be “Annual Plants,” “Fruits,” Garden Planning,” “Vegetable Gardening,” etc. Selecting on any of these related topics will refresh the page to show pins more related to the filtered category.
4
Pin an image. If you hover over a pin, you will see a “Pin it” button appear at the top left. Click this, select a board to pin the image to, and click “Pin it” again to save the pin.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Pinterest Mobile App

Using the Home Feed

1
Launch Pinterest. Locate the app on your device and tap on it. The app icon has a white background with the Pinterest (P) logo on it.
- If you don't have the app yet, it's available for both Android and iOS devices for free.
2
Log in. If this is your first time using the Pinterest app, you will be asked to log into your account or to sign up. To log in, just enter your registered email address and password, and tap “Sign in” to proceed. You can also tap “Continue with Facebook” or “Continue with Google” to sign using either of these social networks.
3
Swipe up on the screen to view pins on the Home Feed. The Home Feed contains recent pins made by people or boards you are following. Swipe up on the screen to view more pins.
4
View a pin by tapping on it. The pin will expand on the screen. Here, you'll find a “Read it” button to the bottom right of the expanded image. If you click this, you will be directed to the pin's source website using your device's default browser.
5
Pin the image. If you like the image, pin it to your board by tapping the red “Pin it” button. A list of your boards will appear, tap one and the pin will be saved there. If you want to create a new board, just enter the new board's name in the field at the top, and tap “Create.”

Using the Search Bar

1
Tap the magnifying glass icon. Depending on your device, it can be at the top toolbar (Android) or bottom (iOS). This will bring you to the Search screen.
2
Enter the names or keywords of the things you want in the search box at the top. For example, if you want to search for anything related to Star Wars, you can type “Star Wars” there.
3
View the results. Photo titles matching your search will be displayed. Scroll through these to see if you can find what you're looking for here.
4
View related topics. Similar to the Pinterest website, there are related topics buttons at the top, below the search field. Swipe left on the related topics bar to see more options. You can tap on any of these buttons to filter the results and add to your search.
- For instance, if you searched for “Star Wars,” related topics that may come out might be “Food,” “Movie,” and “Crafts,” to name a few. After you've selected a topic, the results will refresh with new pins. Check out the filtered results to see if what you're looking for is here.
5
Filter the results. If you've searched your keywords and still you did not find what you're looking for, you can further filter the results by Pinners or Boards in order to see other related pins already collected in sets by other pinners in their own boards.
- Browsing by Pinners—Tap the controls button on the right side of the search box to view more filter options. Here, tap “Pinners.”
- Browsing by Boards—Tap on the controls button on the right side of the search box, but instead of “Pinners,” select “Boards.”
6
View the Pinner or board. Tap on the name of the pinner or board from the results. If you've selected a Pinner, you will be brought to his profile screen. If you've selected a board, you will be brought to the board.
7
Follow the Pinner or board. Tap the “Follow” button on the top right corner. New posts will appear automatically in your feed. The Pinners and boards you've followed will appear under your profile screen so it will be easy to find them again later.
8
View photos. You can browse and view photos collected by the pinners or boards you follow. Tap the photo you want and it will be shown in full screen. You can still pin these photos to your own boards.

Image titled Find What You Want on Pinterest Step 31

Using the Category List

1
Tap the magnifying glass on the Home Feed screen. This will open the search page. On the page will be the search bar at the top, and below are lists of categories you can browse through.
2
Select a category. Since Pinterest is a place where varied pins of interest are stored, there will be several categories listed in alphabetical order. Swipe up on the screen to see more. You'll find topics from “Animals and Pets” to “Holiday and Events” to “Women's Fashion.” Tap on a category to view pins under it.
3
Filter the category further. If you think that the category you selected can be filtered down to something more specific, swipe left on the related topics bar at the top and then tap on a specific topic you want to view pins on.
4
Select a pin to view. Swipe up on the screen to view all pins under the selected category. If you find something that interests you, tap on it to view the image in full. From here, you can view the source website of the pin or pin the image to your own board.