Search on a WordPress site: why the built-in one disappoints and how to improve it

The short answer: WordPress search looks for the words you wrote in titles and texts, and little else: it does not forgive typos, does not understand synonyms and rarely finds products or custom fields. For a small site, it does. For a shop or a site with lots of content, it is worth improving, and understanding what people search for is a mine of ideas.

What the site needs

What What to do
What it searches The titles and text of pages and posts. It does not search well in custom fields, in plugins’ own data or in PDFs.
What it does not do It does not correct “chairr” to “chair”, and does not know that “shoe” and “footwear” are alike.
Where to put the box In the header, in the menu or on the 404 page: Widgets and sidebars.
Improving it A better search plugin, or a search that also looks in products and categories (in a shop, WooCommerce brings its own).
What you learn The searches people make say what the site is missing: Google Analytics.

Getting started

1 Put the search box where people look for it, and do not hide it.
2 Test five real searches: a product name, a typo, a similar word, something that is only in a custom field. See what fails.
3 Tidy the content with clear titles: the built-in search depends heavily on them: Categories and tags.
4 If that is not enough, install a search plugin that tolerates typos and searches everything that matters, and try it on a copy: Installing plugins.
5 Watch the searches with no results and write what is missing.
A search with a heavy plugin can make the site slow, especially on shared hosting and with lots of content. Measure before and after: What makes a difference when the site is slow. On a big site, search may need a service of its own, not the hosting.
For search by meaning instead of words, and AI search over your own content: Semantic search. On a growing shop: Which plan for a directory.

Want help improving your site’s search? Open a ticket with the address.

Open a support ticket

SEE ALSO

Widgets and sidebars in WordPress: what they are, and what changed with block themes

Google Analytics: setting it up and what to look at first

Categories and tags in WordPress: how to use each without making a mess

Installing WordPress plugins: where, which ones, and how many

The site is slow: what actually makes a difference

Structured data and rich results: what they are and how to add them

RECOMMENDED PRODUCT

WordPress hosting

One-click install, updates handled, and speed that holds up. from 5.940,00 Kz/mo (3-year plan, with coupon)

See plans
  • 0 Users Found This Useful
Was this answer helpful?

Related Articles

How to install WordPress in a few clicks You don't have to download WordPress, create a database and upload files by hand. The installer in cPanel does all of it...
Common WordPress errors: white screen, critical error and how to find the cause The site stopped opening and shows a blank white screen, or the line «There has been a critical error on this website»....
Cannot get into the WordPress dashboard: the six usual causes The site opens, but the admin dashboard does not. Either it asks for the password in an endless loop, or it says the det...
How to remove WordPress from a domain, without leaving anything behind You want WordPress off a domain, because the installation broke, because you are starting over, or because the site is b...
Protecting the WordPress login: three steps in order of effect WordPress’s login address is the same on every site in the world: /wp-admin and /wp-login.php. That means any automated...
The mobile menu does not open on a phone: the usual causes in WordPress and other sites The short answer: on the computer the menu works, but on the phone the three-line button does nothing. Almost always it...