Shopify search & discovery: filters, search and navigation after WooCommerce (2026)

WooCommerce's layered navigation (sidebar filters for price, attributes, categories) was powered by WooCommerce's built-in faceted filtering or plugins like WooCommerce Product Filter, WOOF, or FacetWP. On Shopify, filtering is handled by the Shopify Search & Discovery app (free) and faceted filtering via collection filter configuration. This guide covers how to replicate and improve your WooCommerce filter setup.

WooCommerce filtering vs Shopify

Feature	WooCommerce	Shopify equivalent
Attribute-based filters (Color, Size)	Widget: Filter Products by Attribute	Search & Discovery: Product option filters
Category filters	Widget: Filter Products by Category	Collection hierarchy + navigation
Price range slider	Widget: Filter Products by Price	Search & Discovery: Price filter
Stock availability filter	Widget: Filter Products by Stock Status	Search & Discovery: Availability filter
Custom meta/ACF filters	FacetWP or WOOF	Search & Discovery: Metafield filters
AJAX filtering (no page reload)	FacetWP or WooCommerce native	Shopify theme storefront filters (URL-param based, JS-enhanced)
Product search	WooCommerce search widget	Shopify native search + predictive search
Search boosting	SearchWP plugin	Search & Discovery: product pinning + boosting

Shopify Search & Discovery app

Install the Shopify Search & Discovery app (free, from Shopify): Admin → Apps → Search & Discovery. This is the control panel for all filtering and search configuration.

Filter types available

• Product type: Groups products by product type field. Useful for top-level filtering.
• Vendor: Filter by product vendor (brand).
• Price: Automatic price range filter based on collection's price spread.
• Availability: "In stock" toggle filter.
• Product option: Any Shopify variant option (Color, Size, Material, etc.).
• Metafield: Any product metafield with a defined metafield definition.

Setting up collection filters

Step 1: Define metafields (for custom filters)

Before you can filter by a metafield, you must create a metafield definition in Shopify Admin → Settings → Custom data → Products:

Namespace: product_info
Key: material
Type: single_line_text (or list.single_line_text for multiple values)

Step 2: Configure filters in Search & Discovery

1. Open Search & Discovery app
2. Select "Filters" → "Add filter"
3. Choose filter type: Product option, Metafield, Vendor, Price, etc.
4. For metafield filter: select the metafield definition you created
5. Filter applies to all collections automatically (or configure per-collection)

Step 3: Verify theme support

Your Shopify theme must support collection filtering. Dawn and most premium themes support Search & Discovery filters out of the box. Check: Admin → Online Store → Themes → Customize → Collection page → enable filtering.

Common filter setups by industry

Fashion / apparel filters

• Color (product option — values: Red, Blue, Black, etc.)
• Size (product option — values: XS, S, M, L, XL)
• Price range
• Availability (in stock)
• Material (metafield: product_info.material)
• Brand/Vendor

Electronics filters

• Brand (Vendor filter)
• Price range
• Compatibility (metafield — list of compatible devices)
• Connectivity (metafield: WiFi, Bluetooth, USB-C)

Automotive parts filters (YMM)

• Vehicle year (metafield)
• Vehicle make (metafield)
• Vehicle model (metafield)
• Brand/Vendor
• Part type (product type)

Board games / toys filters

• Age range (metafield)
• Player count (metafield)
• Playtime (metafield)
• Game mechanics (metafield: list type)
• Complexity (metafield)

Predictive search (search-as-you-type)

Shopify's predictive search displays real-time product suggestions as customers type in the search box:

• Enable in Search & Discovery app → Search → Predictive search
• Configure which product fields appear in suggestions: title, product type, vendor, tags
• Boost specific products: pin products to top of search results for specific queries
• Synonyms: "sofa" = "couch" = "settee". Add synonyms in Search & Discovery → Search → Synonyms.
• Stop words: words to ignore in search queries

Search boosting and merchandising

• Pin products: Manually place specific products at the top of search results for a query. Use for seasonal promotions or clearance items.
• Boost products: Prioritize a product or collection in search results algorithmically.
• Bury products: Push products lower in results (e.g., discontinued items).
• WooCommerce equivalent: SearchWP with result boosting — Shopify's built-in boosting covers most use cases without a plugin.

Filter display customization

The visual presentation of filters depends on the theme. Most themes support:

• Sidebar filters: Vertical filter panel on collection pages (standard desktop layout)
• Top filter bar: Horizontal filter row above product grid (mobile-friendly)
• Drawer/flyout: Filter panel that slides in from left when "Filter" button is clicked
• Color swatches: For color filters, display as swatches instead of checkboxes (theme-dependent, often requires theme customization)

To display color swatches for filter values: most premium themes include color swatch support for product option filters. Configure swatch colors in the theme settings or via a metafield-based swatch system.

Navigation menus and mega menus

WooCommerce product category navigation (widget-based sidebar category lists or navigation menus) maps to Shopify navigation:

• Admin → Online Store → Navigation
• Menus: create main menu, footer menu, collection navigation menus
• Collection links: link directly to Shopify collections
• Mega menu: most premium Shopify themes support multi-column dropdown mega menus via theme editor
• WooCommerce product category widget in sidebar → Shopify collection list section in theme sidebar (if theme supports sidebar on collection pages)

Search & Discovery setup checklist

• Install Shopify Search & Discovery app (free)
• Identify all filter dimensions needed based on product types in catalog
• Create metafield definitions for custom filter attributes (before product import if possible)
• Ensure metafield values are populated during product import/migration
• Configure filters in Search & Discovery: product options, metafields, price, availability
• Verify theme supports collection filtering (test on Dawn or target theme)
• Enable predictive search
• Add synonyms for common product names (brand synonyms, regional spelling variants)
• Pin top-selling products for major search queries
• Test filters on mobile: filter drawer UX is critical for mobile conversion
• Rebuild navigation menus to match WooCommerce category hierarchy in Shopify collections

The most common post-migration complaint from merchants is "search doesn't work as well as on WooCommerce." This is almost always a metafield data issue — filters can only work on data that's actually populated. The migration process must include populating all filterable metafields (material, compatibility standards, age range, etc.) for the filter setup to deliver results. An empty metafield filter shows zero results and destroys trust. Prioritize metafield data completeness for your top-selling products before launching with filters enabled.