diff --git a/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.test.ts b/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.test.ts
index 0064a45938d..d240b4bfb1e 100644
--- a/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.test.ts
+++ b/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.test.ts
@@ -639,6 +639,33 @@ describe('defaultSyntax', () => {
     expect(printedQuery).toBe(query);
   });
 
+  describe('phrases with special characters', () => {
+    const wrappedSpecialChars = "~`!@#$%^&+={}[];',.?".split('');
+
+    wrappedSpecialChars.forEach((char) => {
+      test(`${char} should be wrapped in quotes`, () => {
+        const query = `user:("foo${char}bar")`;
+
+        const ast = defaultSyntax.parse(query);
+        const printedQuery = defaultSyntax.print(ast);
+        expect(printedQuery).toBe(query);
+      });
+    });
+
+    const unwrappedSpecialChars = ['\\"', '(', ')', '_', '-', ':', '*', '\\'];
+
+    unwrappedSpecialChars.forEach((char) => {
+      test(`${char} should not be wrapped in quotes`, () => {
+        const query = `user:("foo${char}bar")`;
+        const expected = `user:(foo${char.replaceAll('\\', '')}bar)`;
+
+        const ast = defaultSyntax.parse(query);
+        const printedQuery = defaultSyntax.print(ast);
+        expect(printedQuery).toBe(expected);
+      });
+    });
+  });
+
   test('single term or expression', () => {
     const query = 'f:(foo)';
     const ast = defaultSyntax.parse(query);
diff --git a/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.ts b/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.ts
index f5579819fc0..4679a53e222 100644
--- a/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.ts
+++ b/src/components/search_bar/query/default_syntax.ts
@@ -451,7 +451,11 @@ const printValue = (value: Value, options: ParseOptions) => {
     return value.toString();
   }
 
-  if (value.length === 0 || value.match(/\s/) || value.toLowerCase() === 'or') {
+  if (
+    value.length === 0 ||
+    value.match(/[^\w\-_*:()"/\\]/) || // Escape spaces and special characters not used as syntax identifiers
+    value.toLowerCase() === 'or'
+  ) {
     return `"${escapePhraseValue(value)}"`;
   }
 
diff --git a/upcoming_changelogs/6356.md b/upcoming_changelogs/6356.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..2c5911e544b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/upcoming_changelogs/6356.md
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+- `EuiSearchBar` now automatically wraps special characters not used by query syntax in quotes