Rules

Live Search rules combine logic with actions to shape a shopper’s search experience in your store. You can use rules to boost, bury, pin, or hide products to calibrate search results in real time to support your business goals.

Each rule has three main components:

  • Conditions – The conditions that trigger an action.
  • Events – The actions that take place when the conditions are met.
  • Details – The name of the rule, and optional time frame and description.

You can combine multiple conditions and actions, and schedule a rule to be active for a period.

Requirements

A simple rule can have a single condition and a single event, while a complex rule can have up to ten conditions that trigger up to 25 events.
Rules can have:

  • Up to ten conditions
  • Up to 25 events

Query text can contain:

  • Alphanumeric characters (letters and numbers)
  • Either upper or lowercase characters. Capitalization is ignored.

Logical Operators

The logical operators AND and OR join two conditions and return different results. All logical operators used in a rule with multiple conditions are the same. It is not possible to use both AND and OR in the same rule.

Match Operators

The Match operators All and Any determine the logical operator that is used to join multiple conditions in the rule, and can be used to change the existing operator.

  • All - Uses the AND logical operator to join multiple conditions. A rule that uses the All Match operator can have only one Search query is condition.
  • Any - Uses the OR logical operator to join multiple conditions.

When composing a complex rule, it can help to write it out with indentation to describe the conditions, associated events, and product names or SKUs that are needed to return the results you want to achieve. Then, build the rule and test the result.

Order of precedence with multiple rules

Only one rule is applied to a search term at any one time.
If multiple rules are found to be applicable to a search phrase, then all these rules are applied. If there is a collision between two rules—rule 1 that boosts sku1 but rule 2 hides the same SKU—then the most recently applied rule (rule 2) takes precedence.

  • Rules are ordered by the “Last Modified” timestamp. The most recently modified rule is applied first, and older rules after that, in timestamp order.
  • The query is condition takes precedence over other conditions. If a newer rule contains a query contains condition, but an older rule has a query is condition, the query is rule is applied.

Storefront requests

If an active rule containing a query is condition matches the search phrase, it is applied. If there are multiple matching rules with a query is condition, the most recently updated active rule is applied.
Otherwise, the most recently updated active rule is applied.

Preview requests

Request made in the Admin work slightly differently. When previewing in the Admin, all rules are applied, including those expired and scheduled.

  • If rule being previewed has a query is condition, it is applied.
  • If rule being previewed does not have a query is condition, and a subsequent active, matching rule with a query is condition is found, the query is rule is applied.
  • If rule being previewed does not have a query is condition, and no other rule with a query is condition is found, then the rule being previewed is applied.

Category rules and category product assignments

Live Search allows you to filter by Categories.
However, in Adobe Commerce you can create a virtual category with Category product assignments. This type of category is built at runtime and does not exist in the category database. Therefore, Live Search cannot read or use this category type.

On this page