Using the Search & Discovery app

The Shopify Search & Discovery app is a free Shopify app that lets merchants manage storefront search, collection filters, product boosts, synonyms, and product recommendations.

Pixel Union themes that support Shopify’s storefront filtering can display filters configured through the Search & Discovery app on collection pages and search results pages.

Use this article to learn how to set up and manage filters, search features, and recommendations for your store.

Install the Search & Discovery app

To get started, install Shopify’s Search & Discovery app from the Shopify App Store.

Download and install Shopify's Search & Discovery app to edit filters, search features, and related products. This free app provides a control center for these key theme features.

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Confirm your theme supports filters

Filters only display on your storefront if your theme supports Shopify storefront filtering.

To check whether your current theme supports filters:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Content > Menus.
  2. Find the Collection and search filters section.
  3. If your theme does not support filters, Shopify will display a message in this section.

You can still create filters in the Search & Discovery app even if your theme does not support them, but they will not display to customers until you use a compatible theme.

Create and edit filters

Use the Filters area in the Search & Discovery app to add, remove, rename, reorder, and manage storefront filters.

To add or edit filters:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Filters.
  3. Click Add filter or select an existing filter.
  4. Choose a filter source.
  5. Optional: Rename the filter label.
  6. Optional: Adjust filter behavior, sorting, grouping, or visual display settings.
  7. Click Save.

You can also drag and reorder filters in the Search & Discovery app to control the order customers see them on your storefront.

Available filter types

Shopify supports both standard filters and custom filters.

Standard filters

Standard filters are available to all stores and can include:

  • Availability
  • Category
  • Price
  • Product type
  • Tags
  • Vendor

Custom filters

Custom filters are based on your store’s product data. These can include:

  • Product options, such as Size or Color
  • Product metafields
  • Category metafields
  • Variant metafields
  • Metaobject reference metafields

You can use a combination of standard and custom filters, up to Shopify’s current limit of 25 filters per store.

Filter limits and considerations

Before setting up filters, review these Shopify limitations:

  • Collections with more than 5,000 products do not display filters.
  • Searches with more than 100,000 results do not display filters.
  • A storefront filter can display up to 100 filter values.
  • A store can use up to 25 filters.
  • Each filter source can only be used once.
  • The price filter only displays for the store’s default currency.
  • Product tag filter values only display to customers shopping in the store’s default language.
  • Vendor filter values are always based on the store’s default language.

If a collection is too large to display filters, consider dividing it into smaller collections.

Rename filters

You can rename filters to change the customer-facing label.

For example, you can rename a filter from Product type to Category or from Vendor to Brand.

To rename a filter:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Filters.
  3. Select the filter you want to rename.
  4. Update the Filter label.
  5. Click Save.

Changing the filter label does not change the original product data source.

Group filter values

You can group similar filter values together so they appear as one option to customers.

For example, if your products use color values such as Onyx, Ebony, and Midnight, you can group them under a single value called Black.

To group filter values:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Filters.
  3. Add or select a filter.
  4. In the values area, select the values you want to group.
  5. Click Create group.
  6. Add the group name.
  7. Click Done.
  8. Click Save.

Filter groups can help simplify long filter lists and make browsing easier for customers.

Sort filter values

Filter values are sorted automatically by default, but some filters can be sorted manually.

To manually sort filter values:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Filters.
  3. Select the filter you want to edit.
  4. Under Sort, choose Manually.
  5. Drag values into the preferred order.
  6. Click Save.

Shopify may also offer a Reorder for me option using Shopify Magic for supported filter types.

Manage empty filter values

Empty filter values are filter options that do not currently return matching products.

You can choose how Shopify handles empty filter values:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Settings.
  3. In the Filters > Empty values section, choose one of the available options:
    • Hide empty filter values
    • Show empty values at the end
    • Show empty values in the default order
  4. Click Save.

Hiding or moving empty values can help customers focus on available products.

Visual filters and swatches

Some filter values can display visual elements, such as color swatches, patterns, or images.

Visual filters are typically created using metafields or metaobject references. These can be useful for filters such as color, material, pattern, or finish.

To display visual filters, your theme must support Shopify’s filter value API. If visual filters are configured in Shopify but do not display as expected, the theme may not support that specific visual filter output.

Filter behavior

Filters from different filter groups usually work together as an AND condition.

For example, if a customer selects Red from a Color filter and Medium from a Size filter, Shopify returns products that match both Red and Medium.

Multiple values within the same filter usually work as an OR condition.

For example, if a customer selects Red and Blue from the same Color filter, Shopify returns products that match either Red or Blue.

Some filter types, such as product tags, metafield lists, and metaobject reference lists, can be adjusted to use different logic in the Search & Discovery app.

Configure search features

Use the Search area in the Search & Discovery app to manage search behavior.

Synonyms

Synonyms allow Shopify search to connect similar terms.

For example, you can create synonyms so a search for sneakers can also return products using the term shoes.

To add synonyms:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Search.
  3. Open the synonyms settings.
  4. Add the search terms you want Shopify to treat as related.
  5. Click Save.

Product boosts

Product boosts let you promote specific products for certain search terms.

For example, you can boost a specific product when customers search for bestseller, gift, or new arrival.

To manage product boosts:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Search.
  3. Open the product boost settings.
  4. Add or edit product boosts.
  5. Click Save.

Manage product recommendations

Use the Recommendations area in the Search & Discovery app to manage related products.

To edit product recommendations:

  1. From your Shopify admin, go to Apps > Search & Discovery.
  2. Click Recommendations.
  3. Select the product you want to edit.
  4. Add or adjust the recommended products.
  5. Click Save.

These recommendations can appear in theme sections that support Shopify product recommendations.

Troubleshooting filters

If filters are not displaying as expected, check the following:

  • Confirm your current theme supports storefront filtering.
  • Confirm filters have been added in the Search & Discovery app.
  • Confirm the collection has fewer than 5,000 products.
  • Confirm the search result has fewer than 100,000 results.
  • Confirm the selected filter has values that apply to the products shown.
  • Confirm the filter does not exceed Shopify’s filter value limits.
  • Confirm the price filter is being viewed in the store’s default currency.
  • Confirm the customer is viewing the store in a supported language for that filter type.
  • If using visual filters, confirm your theme supports Shopify’s filter value API.

If the filters are configured correctly in Shopify but still do not display on your storefront, contact support with your store URL, theme name, theme version, and screenshots of the filters configured in the Search & Discovery app.

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