Google NotebookLM is a free AI tool that reads your own documents — PDFs, Google Docs, web pages — and lets you ask questions, get summaries, and even listen to a podcast-style audio overview. Everything it tells you is grounded in the files you uploaded, not the general internet.
Most AI tools answer questions using the whole internet. NotebookLM is different: it only uses the documents you give it. Upload a PDF, a Google Doc, or a web article, and then ask anything about it. The AI stays focused on your material — nothing more, nothing less.
That makes it especially useful for research, work projects, school reading, and anything where you want answers grounded in a specific source rather than a general AI guess.
Open NotebookLM
Go to notebooklm.google.com in your browser. Sign in with your Google account — the same one you use for Gmail or Google Drive. NotebookLM is free to use.
You'll land on the home screen, which shows any existing notebooks and a button to create a new one. Click New Notebook.
Add your first source
Every notebook starts empty. You need to give NotebookLM something to read. Click Add source (or the large + button in the Sources panel on the left).
You'll see options to upload a file, paste a web URL, link a Google Doc or Slides file, or paste text directly. Choose the option that fits your material:
- For a PDF (a report, a book chapter, a contract): click Upload and choose the file.
- For a web article: paste the URL.
- For a YouTube video: paste the video link and NotebookLM will read the transcript.
You can add multiple sources to one notebook — up to 50 sources on the free plan (NotebookLM Plus raises this to 100). Each individual source can be up to 500,000 words or 200 MB, whichever comes first.
Wait for sources to load
After you add a source, NotebookLM processes it. This usually takes a few seconds to a minute depending on the file size. A progress indicator shows when it's ready. When the source appears in the left panel with a checkmark, it's done.
You can add more sources while others are still loading.
Ask your first question
Once your source is loaded, click in the chat box on the right side and ask anything about your document. Write naturally:
- "What are the main points of this report?"
- "Explain section 3 in simple terms."
- "Does this mention anything about deadlines?"
NotebookLM will answer using only what's in your uploaded sources. It also shows inline citations — small numbered markers that link to the exact passage it used. Click any citation to jump directly to that spot in the source document.
Use the Notebook Guide for instant overviews
Look for the Studio panel on the right side of the page. It offers one-click outputs from your sources, including Audio Overview, Video Overview, Mind Map, Study Guide, Briefing Doc, FAQ, Flashcards, Quiz, Slide Deck, Infographic, and Data Table. All are available on the free tier; free users have daily limits (for example, 10 reports, flashcards, or quizzes per day and 3 audio overviews per day).
- Study Guide — key concepts and review questions from your sources
- Briefing Doc — a plain-language summary designed to get someone up to speed fast
- Flashcards — auto-generated question-and-answer cards for memorizing key facts
- FAQ — automatically generated questions and answers based on the content
These are generated fresh from your documents. Click any of them to get a structured overview without typing a single question.
Generate an Audio Overview
One of NotebookLM's most popular features is Audio Overview. Find the Audio Overview button in the Notebook Guide panel and click Generate.
Two AI voices will have a conversation about the content of your documents — explaining key ideas, asking each other questions, and summarizing what they found. The result is an audio file whose length depends on the format you select. The Brief is a single-speaker summary that runs under two minutes. The Deep Dive (the default) is a longer two-host conversation that can run up to 20 minutes. The Critique and The Debate are additional two-host formats. Generation typically takes a couple of minutes. Free accounts can generate up to 3 Audio Overviews per day.
This is great for:
- Getting a feel for a long document before reading it in full
- Reviewing material while commuting, cooking, or doing something else
- Sharing a spoken summary of a complex document with someone who won't read the full text
Organize different topics with separate notebooks
Create a new notebook for each separate topic or project. NotebookLM keeps notebooks completely isolated — sources from one notebook don't affect another. Some examples of how to organize:
- One notebook per work project
- One for a trip you're planning (add itinerary PDFs, articles, hotel pages)
- One for a health topic you're researching (add doctor's notes, articles from trusted sources)
- One for a book or course you're working through
What to try next
If you want to see how NotebookLM compares to other AI research tools, AI Search vs Google gives you a clear breakdown of what each tool does best. And if you're new to AI tools overall, What Is ChatGPT is a friendly place to start.
