With a staggering market share of over 80%, Google is the world’s leading desktop search engine, according to statistically. Even if you prefer a browser other than Chrome, chances are the first option you changed was setting Google Search as your default search engine. Beyond services that have become household names like Gmail, YouTube and Maps, there are more underrated google apps available to the masses. One service that isn’t talked about often is Google Alerts.

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For the uninitiated, Google Alerts allows you to monitor the internet for search terms and content that might interest you. Google Alerts can prove a useful solution for staying on top of breaking news and updates on specific search topics, with notifications sent straight to your email.

What makes Google Alerts even more attractive is that the tool is completely free and requires only a Gmail account to work Read on to learn how you can set up Google Alerts to receive emails for custom search topics.

To create a Google Alert, follow these steps:

1. Head towards Google Alerts website in your browser and sign in using your Google account.
2. Enter a search topic of your choice in the search box. You will see some alert previews populated below. If you are not satisfied with the results, try using a narrower or broader search term.
3. Clicking “Show Options” will allow you to customize how these alerts are retrieved and sent to you.
4. Once you’re done, click the “Create Alert” button.

When you expand the options before creating an alert, you can change a few parameters. You can choose to have these alerts delivered as they are downloaded, once a day or once a week. The “Sources” option will help you narrow down where you want to select your search results, whether it’s news, blogs, or video sources. The other options allow you to choose the language, region and email address where you want to receive the alerts.

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You can edit the alerts you have set up by clicking the pencil icon in the “My Alerts” section. Clicking on the settings gear icon will allow you to choose a specific delivery time for your alerts, as well as the option to condense all alerts into one email – making it easier clean up your Gmail inbox later. To delete an alert, click the trash can icon next to the search term.