diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/BrowseView.tsx b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/BrowseView.tsx
index 021e02e5e83..8afd4cb9d51 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/BrowseView.tsx
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/BrowseView.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 import React, { useCallback, useEffect } from 'react';
 
+import { Spinner } from '@grafana/ui';
+import EmptyListCTA from 'app/core/components/EmptyListCTA/EmptyListCTA';
 import { DashboardViewItem } from 'app/features/search/types';
 import { useDispatch } from 'app/types';
 
@@ -11,6 +13,7 @@ import {
   setItemSelectionState,
   useChildrenByParentUIDState,
   setAllSelection,
+  useBrowseLoadingStatus,
 } from '../state';
 import { DashboardTreeSelection, SelectionState } from '../types';
 
@@ -24,6 +27,7 @@ interface BrowseViewProps {
 }
 
 export function BrowseView({ folderUID, width, height, canSelect }: BrowseViewProps) {
+  const status = useBrowseLoadingStatus(folderUID);
   const dispatch = useDispatch();
   const flatTree = useFlatTreeState(folderUID);
   const selectedItems = useCheckboxSelectionState();
@@ -95,6 +99,27 @@ export function BrowseView({ folderUID, width, height, canSelect }: BrowseViewPr
     [selectedItems, childrenByParentUID]
   );
 
+  if (status === 'pending') {
+    return <Spinner />;
+  }
+
+  if (status === 'fulfilled' && flatTree.length === 0) {
+    return (
+      <div style={{ width }}>
+        <EmptyListCTA
+          title={folderUID ? "This folder doesn't have any dashboards yet" : 'No dashboards yet. Create your first!'}
+          buttonIcon="plus"
+          buttonTitle="Create Dashboard"
+          buttonLink={folderUID ? `dashboard/new?folderUid=${folderUID}` : 'dashboard/new'}
+          proTip={folderUID && 'Add/move dashboards to your folder at ->'}
+          proTipLink={folderUID && 'dashboards'}
+          proTipLinkTitle={folderUID && 'Browse dashboards'}
+          proTipTarget=""
+        />
+      </div>
+    );
+  }
+
   return (
     <DashboardsTree
       canSelect={canSelect}
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/SearchView.tsx b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/SearchView.tsx
index ad29eb87190..1c4653de2a9 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/SearchView.tsx
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/components/SearchView.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import React, { useCallback } from 'react';
 
-import { Spinner } from '@grafana/ui';
+import { Button, Card, Spinner } from '@grafana/ui';
 import { useKeyNavigationListener } from 'app/features/search/hooks/useSearchKeyboardSelection';
 import { SearchResultsProps, SearchResultsTable } from 'app/features/search/page/components/SearchResultsTable';
 import { useSearchStateManager } from 'app/features/search/state/SearchStateManager';
@@ -69,7 +69,18 @@ export function SearchView({ width, height, canSelect }: SearchViewProps) {
   }
 
   if (value.totalRows === 0) {
-    return <div style={{ width }}>No search results</div>;
+    return (
+      <div style={{ width }}>
+        <Card>
+          <Card.Heading>No results found for your query.</Card.Heading>
+          <Card.Actions>
+            <Button variant="secondary" onClick={stateManager.onClearSearchAndFilters}>
+              Clear search and filters
+            </Button>
+          </Card.Actions>
+        </Card>
+      </div>
+    );
   }
 
   const props: SearchResultsProps = {
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.test.ts b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..87d302558d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+import { configureStore } from 'app/store/configureStore';
+import { useSelector } from 'app/types';
+
+import { BrowseDashboardsState } from '../types';
+
+import { useBrowseLoadingStatus } from './hooks';
+
+jest.mock('app/types', () => {
+  const original = jest.requireActual('app/types');
+  return {
+    ...original,
+    useSelector: jest.fn(),
+  };
+});
+
+function createInitialState(partial: Partial<BrowseDashboardsState>): BrowseDashboardsState {
+  return {
+    rootItems: undefined,
+    childrenByParentUID: {},
+    openFolders: {},
+    selectedItems: {
+      $all: false,
+      dashboard: {},
+      folder: {},
+      panel: {},
+    },
+
+    ...partial,
+  };
+}
+
+describe('browse-dashboards state hooks', () => {
+  const folderUID = 'abc-123';
+
+  function mockState(browseState: BrowseDashboardsState) {
+    const wholeState = configureStore().getState();
+    wholeState.browseDashboards = browseState;
+
+    jest.mocked(useSelector).mockImplementationOnce((callback) => {
+      return callback(wholeState);
+    });
+  }
+
+  describe('useBrowseLoadingStatus', () => {
+    it('returns loading when root view is loading', () => {
+      mockState(createInitialState({ rootItems: undefined }));
+
+      const status = useBrowseLoadingStatus(undefined);
+      expect(status).toEqual('pending');
+    });
+
+    it('returns loading when folder view is loading', () => {
+      mockState(createInitialState({ childrenByParentUID: {} }));
+
+      const status = useBrowseLoadingStatus(folderUID);
+      expect(status).toEqual('pending');
+    });
+
+    it('returns fulfilled when root view is finished loading', () => {
+      mockState(createInitialState({ rootItems: [] }));
+
+      const status = useBrowseLoadingStatus(undefined);
+      expect(status).toEqual('fulfilled');
+    });
+
+    it('returns fulfilled when folder view is finished loading', () => {
+      mockState(
+        createInitialState({
+          childrenByParentUID: {
+            [folderUID]: [],
+          },
+        })
+      );
+
+      const status = useBrowseLoadingStatus(folderUID);
+      expect(status).toEqual('fulfilled');
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.ts b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.ts
index 097ef3ebb7e..1523ea2ec91 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.ts
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/hooks.ts
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ const flatTreeSelector = createSelector(
   (wholeState: StoreState) => wholeState.browseDashboards.openFolders,
   (wholeState: StoreState, rootFolderUID: string | undefined) => rootFolderUID,
   (rootItems, childrenByParentUID, openFolders, folderUID) => {
-    return createFlatTree(folderUID, rootItems, childrenByParentUID, openFolders);
+    return createFlatTree(folderUID, rootItems ?? [], childrenByParentUID, openFolders);
   }
 );
 
@@ -32,6 +32,16 @@ const selectedItemsForActionsSelector = createSelector(
   }
 );
 
+export function useBrowseLoadingStatus(folderUID: string | undefined): 'pending' | 'fulfilled' {
+  return useSelector((wholeState) => {
+    const children = folderUID
+      ? wholeState.browseDashboards.childrenByParentUID[folderUID]
+      : wholeState.browseDashboards.rootItems;
+
+    return children ? 'fulfilled' : 'pending';
+  });
+}
+
 export function useFlatTreeState(folderUID: string | undefined) {
   return useSelector((state) => flatTreeSelector(state, folderUID));
 }
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/reducers.ts b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/reducers.ts
index 86414f423ec..1fcd31ff6df 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/reducers.ts
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/reducers.ts
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ export function setItemSelectionState(
   let nextParentUID = item.parentUID;
 
   while (nextParentUID) {
-    const parent = findItem(state.rootItems, state.childrenByParentUID, nextParentUID);
+    const parent = findItem(state.rootItems ?? [], state.childrenByParentUID, nextParentUID);
 
     // This case should not happen, but a find can theortically return undefined, and it
     // helps limit infinite loops
@@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ export function setItemSelectionState(
   }
 
   // Check to see if we should mark the header checkbox selected if all root items are selected
-  state.selectedItems.$all = state.rootItems.every((v) => state.selectedItems[v.kind][v.uid]) ?? false;
+  state.selectedItems.$all = state.rootItems?.every((v) => state.selectedItems[v.kind][v.uid]) ?? false;
 }
 
 export function setAllSelection(state: BrowseDashboardsState, action: PayloadAction<{ isSelected: boolean }>) {
@@ -115,7 +115,7 @@ export function setAllSelection(state: BrowseDashboardsState, action: PayloadAct
       }
     }
 
-    for (const child of state.rootItems) {
+    for (const child of state.rootItems ?? []) {
       state.selectedItems[child.kind][child.uid] = isSelected;
     }
   } else {
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/slice.ts b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/slice.ts
index 39db1edbdb9..3f8f0db9862 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/slice.ts
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/state/slice.ts
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import * as allReducers from './reducers';
 const { extraReducerFetchChildrenFulfilled, ...baseReducers } = allReducers;
 
 const initialState: BrowseDashboardsState = {
-  rootItems: [],
+  rootItems: undefined,
   childrenByParentUID: {},
   openFolders: {},
   selectedItems: {
diff --git a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/types.ts b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/types.ts
index aa97eb5d737..f9681e83872 100644
--- a/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/types.ts
+++ b/public/app/features/browse-dashboards/types.ts
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ export type DashboardTreeSelection = Record<DashboardViewItemKind, Record<string
 };
 
 export interface BrowseDashboardsState {
-  rootItems: DashboardViewItem[];
+  rootItems: DashboardViewItem[] | undefined;
   childrenByParentUID: Record<string, DashboardViewItem[] | undefined>;
   selectedItems: DashboardTreeSelection;
 
diff --git a/public/app/features/search/state/SearchStateManager.ts b/public/app/features/search/state/SearchStateManager.ts
index 104511ad2e0..211d0742884 100644
--- a/public/app/features/search/state/SearchStateManager.ts
+++ b/public/app/features/search/state/SearchStateManager.ts
@@ -95,6 +95,7 @@ export class SearchStateManager extends StateManagerBase<SearchState> {
       tag: [],
       panel_type: undefined,
       starred: undefined,
+      sort: undefined,
     });
   };