Which Google site do you use -- the .com? In my experience, the gear icon appears only on a results page, and not on the home page. If you don't get it on the results page either, try this: When you have a problem with one particular site, a good "first thing to try" is clearing your Firefox cache and deleting your saved cookies for the site. (1) Bypass Firefox's Cache Use Ctrl+Shift+r to reload the page fresh from the server. Alternately, you also can clear Firefox's cache completely using: orange Firefox button (or Tools menu) > Options > Advanced On the Network mini-tab > Cached Web Content : "Clear Now" If you have a large hard drive, this might take a few minutes. (2) Remove your Google cookies (save any pending work first). While viewing a page on the site: * right-click and choose View Page Info > Security > "View Cookies" * Alt+t (open the classic Tools menu) > Page Info > Security > "View Cookies" This will open a dialog where you can remove the individual cookies. Then try reloading the page and searching again. Does it work any better?