Google’s Mobile Search Adds “Open Now” Filter

When you’re on the move, there’s often no sense finding local businesses that are closed. That’s the impetus behind a new feature that Google has added to the iPhone and Android-powered devices: a tool to filter results that are open now.

After doing a search, the new “Show only businesses open now” filter shows up above the search results. After clicking to use the filter, the corresponding search results also include the hours that each business is open. (They also include a disclaimer warning searchers that the information might not be accurate.)

It’s a useful tool, but somewhat limited by Google’s ability to get exact hours of local businesses — which means businesses that have taken the time to claim their Google Places listing and include what times they’re open get a little benefit over those that haven’t.