How to manage PrestaShop faceted search module on PrestaShop 1.7

If you've got a PrestaShop online store with a large product catalog, you already realize you need to make sure your customers can find what they want without too much guess-work. Your most prospective customers are the ones who use the search function on your site. Only 40% of online stores offer faceted search, so adding it to your PrestaShop store can boost your conversion rates and make you much more familiar with online customers. Within this article, I will introduce to you a short and simple tutorial about PrestaShop faceted search module on PrestaShop version 1.7. For PrestaShop older versions (1.4, 1.5 and 1.6) the module is named “Layered navigation block”. Its configuration page is similar with faceted search module, so if you’re using these older versions, this tutorial is still helpful.

What is PrestaShop faceted search?

Faceted search module is one of the default PrestaShop modules. It displays a block with the layered navigation filters on product category page. It allows the customers to define combined criteria to filter category products, giving more details in order to decrease the number of displayed products. This is a great tool for customers who know the details of what they want (color, condition and price range) but are unsure how to find it. 

How to configure PrestaShop faceted search module?

• In your PrestaShop back office go to Modules -> Modules and Services section
• Choose Installed modules and find “Faceted Search” module
• If the module is not installed, you should install it. After installing the module, click "Configure" button

Indexes and caches

To work appropriately, Faceted Search must stay up-to-date with your latest products, product attributes, and all product prices. That’s why it is required to re-index the data. 

• Index all missing prices: only add to the index the prices that were not indexed before.
• Rebuild entire price index: add to the index all the prices, whether they were already indexed before or not.
• Build attribute index: add to the index all the product attributes.

Let’s take a big note here:

You have to update your indexes every time your products’ data changes.

Filter templates

You can use the default Filter template or add a new one. To create a new filter template, select “Add new template”. 

• Set the new filter title into the Template name field
• Choose the categories for which the filter will appear

• You may enable/disable the suitable filters in the Filters section. Faceted search menu will add them to your filter template.

Each filter has respective options. You can select the appropriate style for each filter (Checkbox, Radio button or Drop-down list) or set the limit value of items. 

• When you’re ready, click the Save button.

Configuration

You can set the additional module settings in the Configuration section. 

• Show the number of matching products: you can select to hide filter values when no product is matching or show their number.
• Show products from subcategories: show or hide the products from subcategories.
• Category filter depth: define the category filter depth (0 for no limits, 1 by default).
• Use tax to filter price: enable or disable the tax to the filter price.
• Use rounding to filter price: enable or disable rounding to filter price option.

Click Save button to apply all the changes. And we've finished! Now you can navigate to your front office and check how the navigation filters look.