How Search ranks results
This page explains how Search goes from a query to an ordered list of products, and which setting acts at each step. Read it when a result surprises you, before changing your settings.
Which products match
Section titled “Which products match”A product matches when at least one word of the query is found in one of its searchable fields. A product holding every word ranks above one holding only some of them, but a partial match still shows: “red trail shoes” also brings up red shoes that are not for trail, further down.
A word is found when it is in a field:
- as typed, ignoring case and accents (“velo” finds “Vélo”),
- with a typo, within your typo settings (“snekers” finds “sneakers”),
- through a synonym of one of your synonym groups (“trainers” finds “sneakers”),
- as the beginning of a word, for the last word of the query only, so that results follow the shopper’s typing (“runn” finds “running”).
Search compares words, not their meaning or their grammar. When your shoppers use a word your products don’t carry (a plural, a regional term, a brand nickname), add a synonym group.
Only the first 8 words of a query count.
Search also keeps only the products a shopper can buy: active, published on your online store, sold in the shopper’s market, and, unless you show out-of-stock products, with a variant for sale. See A product is missing from the results.
In which order
Section titled “In which order”Search compares matching products criterion by criterion. Each criterion only decides between products that are equal on all the ones above it.
| # | Criterion | The product that comes first | Your setting |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pinned products | A product pinned for this query, in the order of the pin rule. | Pinned products |
| 2 | Matched words | Holds more of the query’s words. | |
| 3 | Exact words | Holds more of them without a typo (a synonym counts as exact). | Typos |
| 4 | Same field | Holds all the matched words in one same field. | |
| 5 | Field order | Holds its words in fields higher in your list. | Searchable fields order |
| 6 | In stock | Has a variant for sale, when you show out-of-stock products. | Show out-of-stock products |
| 7 | Your order for ties | Best seller, newest, or lowest or highest price. | Order of equally relevant products |
Products still equal after the last criterion keep a stable order, the same from one search to the next.
The distance between the words and their order in the query don’t count: “shoes running” ranks like “running shoes”.
Example
Section titled “Example”A shopper types “trail shoes”, with Title above Description in your searchable fields:
| Product | Where the words are | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| “Trail running shoes” | Both words in the title | 1st: both words, same field, highest field |
| “Speedcross” | “trail” and “shoes” in the description | 2nd: both words, same field, lower field |
| “Trail jacket” | “trail” in the title | 3rd: one word only |
Pin “Speedcross” on the query “trail shoes” and it comes first, whatever its words. Set Best sellers first and, between two products tied on criteria 1 to 6, the one that sells more comes first.
Before the shopper types
Section titled “Before the shopper types”With nothing typed yet, no word decides: the suggestions show your products in your order of equally relevant products, titled after it (“Best sellers”, “New arrivals”…). Without a preference, they show as “Our products”.
One result per product
Section titled “One result per product”Search looks at each variant of a product, then shows the product once, ranked by its best matching variant: a product sold in several colors ranks on its blue variant for the query “blue”. The number of results counts products, not variants.
Collections, articles and pages
Section titled “Collections, articles and pages”When you show them, collections, articles and pages are ranked the same way, in their own section, on fixed fields: a collection on its title, handle and description; an article on its title, handle, tags, blog, author and body; a page on its author, body and title. Pinned products, out-of-stock settings and your order for ties only apply to products.
Improve your ranking
Section titled “Improve your ranking”- A product you sell shows too low or not at all: check the field holding its words is in your searchable fields, and high enough, or pin it for the query.
- Unrelated products show first: move a broad field (Description, Tags) down the list, or remove it.
- Your shoppers’ words differ from yours: add synonyms.
- A reference or brand finds look-alikes: add the field to Fields without typos, or the word to Words without typos.
- To do it from real searches, let Search tuning test changes for you, and find the queries to fix in the Search analytics (no-result queries, queries with results but no click).
