New features
Preselect quick filters on taxonomy pages
Taxonomies quick filters can now auto-select the value matching the current taxonomy archive, so visitors instantly see relevant results. Enable it with the new Preselect option. See also filtering by current page.
Options for non-product results
Non-product results (categories, tags, attributes, users) get their own display options: show the product count, include empty archives, and show the taxonomy name. Learn more about category results.
Relevance weight for search fields
Assign a relevance weight to each search source (title, content, SKU, attributes) so more important fields rank their matches higher. See our relevance-based search guide.
Multiple values in results filters
Results filters now accept multiple values per rule with new in list and not in list conditions, so one rule can match several categories at once.
Search bar as a menu item
Add the search form to any navigation menu from Appearance → Menus and choose which form to show, with no code needed. It is another placement option alongside the search widget.
Updates
EAN Barcode integration
The EAN Barcode Generator integration now indexes child (variation) barcodes too, so customers can find a specific variation by its code, much like search by SKU.
Divi 5 theme support
Added compatibility with the new Divi 5 theme, so the search bar renders correctly on the latest Divi version.
WooCommerce Memberships integration
Membership-restricted products are now hidden from search even when restricted through a category or term, not just directly. Restricted-content caching was also updated to respect each user's access.
Flatsome theme header styles
Fixed the search bar styles inside the Flatsome theme header so it matches the theme design.
New logic for filters with Any value
Reworked the Any value handling in results filters, so it now includes all matching results instead of unintentionally narrowing them.
Child terms in multi-level quick filters
Selecting a parent term in a multi-level quick filter now includes all of its child terms, so a top-level category also matches products in its subcategories.
Updated settings page styles
Refreshed the settings page styles to match the latest WordPress admin design.
Bug Fixes
Hardened admin AJAX calls
Added extra validation and capability checks to the plugin's admin-side AJAX requests.
YITH Wishlist admin page location
Fixed the YITH WooCommerce Wishlist integration so the plugin admin page shows in its correct location.
Remote notice close button
Fixed the close button on remote notices so dismissing them works reliably.
Complex quick filters results
Fixed complex quick filters returning incorrect results in some configurations.
Reindex deadlock protection
Added safeguards against database deadlocks during search table reindex on busy stores.
Gutenberg block form selection
Fixed the form selector in the Gutenberg search block; it now falls back to a default form id and always lists the available forms.
Aborted AJAX search requests
Fast typing no longer cancels in-flight requests or shows stale results: the plugin keeps requests that are already responding and discards out-of-date ones. See AJAX search.
Development Changes
aws_new_plugin_version_released hook
New aws_new_plugin_version_released action hook fires when a new plugin version is detected.
Table existence checks
Improved the internal helpers that check whether the plugin database tables exist.
New awsResultsHidden JS event
New awsResultsHidden JavaScript event fires when the search results container is hidden.
Custom search term buttons handler
Updated the front-end handler for custom search term buttons for more reliable clicks.