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Description: Abstract Objectives: To investigate the search strategies and keyword searches used in 95 residential care reviews. Study design: Methodological study (cross-sectional) Methods: First, I attempted to download the full-text versions of all 95 residential care reviews identified in a recently published project. I then searched the full-texts obtained to identify the database search strategies used. I extracted all residential care keywords used in the first search strategy identified in an Excel file. Keywords related to kinship care were not extracted. All keywords extracted were also added to a personal list of residential care keywords, if not included already. The titles and abstracts of all residential care reviews selected were extracted in an Excel file and analyzed using Excel’s COUNTIF function to identify the most commonly occurring keywords/strings. The sensitivity of residential care keywords found within my personal list but not within search strategies was then assessed using Excel’s COUNTIF function. Results: Among the 95 residential care reviews, 5 (5,26%) did not report a search strategy, a search strategy was mentioned but not found for 2 reviews (2,11%) and I could not access the search strategy for 5 reviews (5,26%). Keywords were not extracted from 4 reviews given extensive use of controlled vocabulary (MeSH) or advanced search functions (adj, near, ?, etc.). The only review that did not report searches conducted in English was excluded from analysis. This left 78 review search strategies for analysis. Review authors used from 0 to 53 residential care keywords/strings (mean = 9 keywords, median = 7,5 keywords). 288 unique keywords/strings were used by review authors. The 10 most commonly used keywords were: foster care (51,28%), residential care (47,44%), out of home care (29,49%), out-of-home care (24,36%), group home (20,51%), institutional care (19,23%), children’s home (17,95%), child welfare (16,67%), looked after (16,67%) and looked-after (14,10%). 198 keywords/strings were only found once. The keywords most commonly found within the titles and abstracts of residential care reviews were: foster, foster care, resident, residential, placement, in care, residential care, institution, out-of-home and out-of-home care. Four keywords/strings were found in more than 4% of the titles and abstracts of residential care reviews but could not be identified within residential care reviews search strategies: care setting, out of care, residential youth care and care placement. Funding: No funding was received for this work. Registration and study protocol: See https://osf.io/7dqkp Data and materials: See https://osf.io/7dqkp. All other data should otherwise be included within this manuscript. Keywords: Children’s homes, residential care, electronic searches, systematic review