AWS Bedrock Web Search adds domain filtering and location controls

AWS announced domain filtering and optional user location controls for Web Search on AWS Bedrock on October 23, 2026. According to the AWS announcement, both settings are configured on the web_search tool in an existing OpenAI Responses API request.

Domain filters narrow the source pool

The tool’s filters parameter accepts up to 100 allowed_domains to restrict search results to selected domains, or up to 100 blocked_domains to exclude unwanted sources, AWS says.

For engineering teams, an allowlist offers a way to focus search results on selected documentation or reference sites. A blocklist leaves the source selection broader while excluding particular domains. Treat either approach as a source-selection decision, not a substitute for evaluating the resulting answer.

A practical evaluation would compare filtered and unfiltered answers for citation relevance and coverage. Check both whether answers cite the intended sites and whether the source restrictions leave important parts of a question unanswered.

Location targets geographic relevance

AWS says developers can optionally supply location parameters so Web Search can return results relevant to that geography. The announcement identifies regional availability and local services as example use cases, but does not provide a parameter schema or request example.

Use location context to guide relevance rather than to establish customer eligibility. For a location-dependent answer, check whether the cited page addresses the intended geography and whether its availability conditions are current.

Availability: four AWS Regions at announcement

The release notice lists both controls as available wherever Bedrock Web Search was supported at announcement:

• US East (N. Virginia)
• US East (Ohio)
• US West (Oregon)
• AWS GovCloud (US-West)

That is the announced regional scope, not availability across every AWS Region.