If you used the Internet in the 1990s or earlier, then you probably remember what it was like trying to find information without help from search engines. The few search engines that existed weren’t very comprehensive. In a pre-Google world, there just wasn’t a great way to find what you wanted.

That started to change later in the decade. Internet technology started to evolve faster than anyone could have anticipated.

Companies like Yahoo! and Google made the Internet a more useful tool. Since then, those search engines have become the default ways for finding information about consumer goods, real estate, entertainment, and media. Some sites, however, have moved beyond this. Trovit.com, for instance, does more than search the Internet for relevant info. It searches the Internet to find specific types of information that people need to make smart purchasing choices.

About Trovit.com

Trovit.com is one of the world’s largest vertical search engines. It specializes in helping users find classified lists for real estate, cars, jobs, and rental properties. While Trovit.com isn’t well known in the United States, it is extremely popular in Europe and some parts of Latin America.

The company headquarters is located in Barcelona, Spain. It was founded in 2006, but it has since launched several other versions of the site in a variety of languages to meet the needs of global consumers.

In my experience, Trovit has gotten a lot better over the last couple years at meeting the needs of people in the U.S., where I live. When I first visited the site several years ago, I was struck by how little information it had about North American countries, including Canada. Now, it seems to have many more listings. That’s definitely a good thing, not only for people living in North America but also for people who want to visit.

Top Features of Trovit.com

For me, the best thing about Trovit is that it mines a ton of websites so I can see the results I need on one screen. I don’t want to visit four different sites just so I can get the best deal. I want everything in one place so I can compare them easily. That’s Trovit.com’s specialty.

I also like that Trovit.com lets job seekers publish their resumes to find work. I work as a freelancer, so I’m always looking for new opportunities. Trovit.com makes this as easy as it could possibly be. Last year, I got three short-term jobs through Trovit.com. Several more companies contacted me about work, but I decided not to pursue those opportunities. I also got one long-term job through Trovit. That was several months ago, and I’m still making money from something I enjoy. I never would have found that opportunity without this website.

Trovit integrates Google Maps into its real estate results. This is really useful for anyone who wants to buy property in a specific area. Personally, I haven’t used the site to buy a house or apartment. But that’s only because I already owned a home when I first discovered Trovit. When I decide to move, I will definitely use it, especially if I’m moving to a new city that I don’t know much about.

If you primarily access the Internet through a mobile device, then you will want to download the Trovit.com app. It gives you the same functionality as the website, but it’s optimized for smaller screens like the one on your smartphone. You can access the site through your phone’s Web browser, but, honestly, that doesn’t work as well as the app. You can get the app by downloading it from the Apple App Store or Google Play. You can also submit your phone number on the Trovit website. When I did this, I got a download link almost immediately.

Trovit.com Prices

Trovit.com doesn’t charge for its search services. Like most search engines, it earns money by displaying ads.

I’ve never published an ad on Trovit, so I don’t know what their rates are. The site says that you can publish your ad for free, but I doubt that that’s 100% accurate. You probably get a week or so of free advertising before you have to pay. Considering how many companies use it, though, I would guess that those rates are pretty affordable.

Criticism of Trovit.com

Some people complain that Trovit.com doesn’t offer the latest listings for real estate, cars, and jobs. I don’t want to dismiss this concern outright, but it doesn’t make any sense to me. Yes, it is true that Trovit.com doesn’t always give you the latest information. But that’s only because the site mines information from other websites. If a website hasn’t updated a job description or a real estate listing, I don’t see how anyone can expect Trovit.com to give them more recent information. That just doesn’t make any sense.

Still, there are people who make this criticism. I don’t know where they think they will get better services. Maybe they’ve encountered problems that I haven’t seen. Like I said, I’m not trying to dismiss anyone else’s experience, but this doesn’t seem like a valid criticism to me.

I’ve also seen people complain that Trovit.com’s Google Maps integration doesn’t work very well. This struck me as a little odd, so I looked into it. It turns out that some addresses don’t show up on Google Maps. In most cases, this usually happens because the real estate company hasn’t made the listing searchable. If a company doesn’t provide a listing’s exact address, then Google Maps can only offer a view of the general area. When this happens, you may need to contact the original poster for more information.

Trovit.com Customer Support

I’ve never had to contact customer support, but I decided to visit the site’s Contact page to learn more about this. It turns out that there are several ways you can get answers to your questions. It looks like the best way is to send the company an email. When you go to the site’s Contact page, choose the description that applies to you best. The page offers customer service links for job listings, press officers, classified as, and other options.

FAQ About Trovit.com

Pros of Using Trovit.com

• XML feed for classified ad websites
• Searches specific to categories
• Vertical search engine that includes results from all over the Internet

Cons of Using Trovit.com

• Relies on third-party sites to update information
• Some listings do not offer details about jobs and properties

Conclusion

There are a ton of websites that promise to help people find cheaper apartments, houses, cars, hotels, and travel options. As far as I know, though, there is only one site that lets you search all of those topics at once. Most sites focus on just one or two things. Trovit.com has taken things to the next level.

I find this really convenient. My work keeps me online throughout most of the day, so I probably have a lot more experience with this than most people. When I need to find information about cars, which is common for me, I don’t even bother using most search engines because they don’t offer an accurate perspective of local prices. I could spend five times the effort comparing information from several different sites, but we all know that wasted time is the same as wasted money. Trovit.com does that work for me.

Most people don’t need to use the Internet the way I do. I get that, but I think this still applies. In fact, it might apply to other people even more. When you don’t spend a lot of time comparing websites and doing independent research, you never have the opportunity to decide how you can get the most out of the Internet. Trust me on this. Most sites aren’t nearly as comprehensive as Trovit.com.