Title: Rankology Ajax Live Search Author: Rankology Published: July 7, 2026 Last modified: July 10, 2026 --- Search plugins ![](https://ps.w.org/rankology-ajax-live-search/assets/banner-772x250.png?rev=3602504) ![](https://ps.w.org/rankology-ajax-live-search/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=3599138) # Rankology Ajax Live Search By [Rankology](https://profiles.wordpress.org/rankology/) [Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/rankology-ajax-live-search.1.0.0.zip) * [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search/#description) * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search/#reviews) * [Installation](https://wordpress.org/plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search/#installation) * [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search/#developers) [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/rankology-ajax-live-search/) ## Description Rankology Ajax Live Search upgrades the native WordPress search experience with fast, modern AJAX results, a dedicated relevance index, and a polished admin workflow. Visitors get instant suggestions as they type; site owners get visibility into what people search for and what they cannot find. Built for production sites, Rankology is suitable for blogs, business websites, membership portals, and WooCommerce stores that need accurate, configurable search without slowing down the front end. #### Search experience * **Live AJAX search** — Results update as visitors type, with configurable debounce and keyboard-friendly navigation. * **Autocomplete suggestions** — Surface popular, recent, and Google-style query suggestions before a full search runs. * **Multiple result layouts** — Vertical dropdown, horizontal grid, polaroid tiles, and isotopic masonry. * **Visual polish** — Thumbnails, keyword highlighting, smart excerpts, and built- in color themes. * **Single-result redirect** — Optionally send visitors straight to the destination when only one match is found. * **Modal and voice search** — Open search in a modal overlay and accept voice input where supported by the browser. * **Responsive UI** — Mobile-friendly search forms and result panels. #### Relevance and performance * **Custom search index** — Dedicated indexing engine with BM25-style relevance scoring and field weights. * **Configurable content scope** — Include posts, pages, products, custom post types, taxonomies, and custom fields. * **File indexing** — Optional extraction of text from attached PDF, DOCX, and TXT files. * **WooCommerce ready** — Search products, show prices, and weight SKU and catalog fields. * **Caching and rate limiting** — Protect the public search endpoint from abuse while keeping responses fast. #### Filters and discovery * **Live filters** — Taxonomy, price range, and custom field filters with AJAX updates. * **Filter builder** — Configure filter panels from the admin without writing code. * **SERP templates** — Customize the on-site search results page experience. #### Search widgets Create unlimited **Search Widgets** — each with its own post types, layout, theme, behavior, and filter settings. * Gutenberg block (`rankajlisrh/search`) * Shortcode: `[rankajlisrh]` * Classic widget * Per-widget shortcodes for precise placement in headers, sidebars, and landing pages #### Analytics and optimization Understand how search performs on your site: * **Overview dashboard** — Top queries, trending terms, and zero-result searches. * **Search logs** — Detailed query history with results count, click tracking, device, and locale. * **Query redirect rules** — Send specific searches to a chosen URL by pattern, role, or language. * **Exports** — Download analytics as CSV or a printable PDF report. * **Scheduled email reports** — Optional periodic analytics summaries sent via WordPress `wp_mail()`. #### Developer tools * **REST API** — Headless and custom integrations under the `rankajlisrh/v1` namespace( search, click tracking, redirects, personalization, and voice parsing). * **WP-CLI commands** — Rebuild and inspect the index from the command line (`wp rankajlisrh index ...`). * **Extensible hooks** — Customize search criteria and response payloads via WordPress filters. * **Multisite aware** — Network-level settings synchronization for WordPress multisite installs. * **Migration tools** — Import settings from Ajax Search Pro and SearchWP. #### Admin A unified **Rankology** menu in wp-admin includes Dashboard, Search Forms, Appearance, Search Engine, Analytics & Logs, Redirect Rules, Filter, SERP Builder, Smart Search, Integration, Tools and Settings — designed for clarity on both small blogs and larger editorial teams. ### Credits #### Bundled libraries * [Composer ClassLoader](https://github.com/composer/composer) — MIT License. Copyright( c) Nils Adermann, Jordi Boggiano. Used for PSR-4 autoloading in `vendor/composer/`. #### WordPress core dependencies (not bundled) * jQuery — Admin and frontend UI interactions. * WordPress packages (`wp-element`, `wp-components`, `wp-i18n`) — Admin dashboard hub UI. #### Optional Composer libraries (not bundled) * [smalot/pdfparser](https://github.com/smalot/pdfparser) — LGPL-3.0. Optional. PDF attachment text extraction. * [phpoffice/phpword](https://github.com/PHPOffice/PHPWord) — LGPL-3.0. Optional. DOCX attachment text extraction. TXT file extraction uses native PHP only. #### Compatible plugins (not bundled) * WooCommerce — Product search, prices, SKU weighting, and variation indexing. * WPML — Per-language indexing and search filtering. * Polylang — Per-language indexing and search filtering. * Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) — Custom field indexing and filter UI. * WP Mail Logging — View scheduled analytics email content from the admin. ### Privacy Policy This plugin stores search analytics, index data, and plugin settings in your WordPress database. It does not phone home to Rankology servers. #### Google Suggest API When **Google-style autocomplete** is enabled in **Rank Ajax Live Search Appearance Autocomplete**, the plugin may send partial search terms from your site to Google’s public suggestion service at `https://suggestqueries.google.com/complete/search`. * **What is sent:** The current partial search query and optional language or region parameters. * **When it is sent:** Only while autocomplete is enabled and local suggestion sources do not already fill the suggestion list. * **Why it is sent:** To retrieve Google-style query suggestions for visitors. * **Caching:** Responses are cached locally with WordPress transients to reduce repeat requests. * **Third-party policy:** Review [Google’s Privacy Policy](https://policies.google.com/privacy) for how Google handles data sent to its services. #### AI provider integrations (optional) When Smart Search AI features are enabled and an API key is configured, the plugin may send request data to your selected provider (OpenAI, Google Gemini, or Anthropic Claude) to generate summaries, query understanding, or related AI-assisted search output. * **What may be sent:** Search query text and limited content context required to generate a response (for example, titles and excerpts for summary generation). * **When it is sent:** Only when AI features are enabled and a remote provider is selected in plugin settings. * **Why it is sent:** To return AI-generated search enhancements configured by the site owner. * **Caching:** AI responses may be cached locally (WordPress transients) when response caching is enabled. * **Third-party policies:** [OpenAI Privacy Policy](https://openai.com/policies/privacy-policy), [Google Privacy Policy](https://policies.google.com/privacy), [Anthropic Privacy Policy](https://www.anthropic.com/privacy). #### Email reports If you enable scheduled analytics email reports, message content is sent through your WordPress site’s configured mail transport (`wp_mail()`). Rankology does not provide or operate that mail service. #### Voice search When voice search is used in supported browsers, speech recognition is handled by the visitor’s browser. Rankology does not record or transmit audio to its own servers. ## Screenshots [⌊Rankology Overview dashboard with index status and quick actions.⌉⌊Rankology Overview dashboard with index status and quick actions.⌉[ Rankology Overview dashboard with index status and quick actions. [⌊Live AJAX search results with thumbnails and keyword highlighting.⌉⌊Live AJAX search results with thumbnails and keyword highlighting.⌉[ Live AJAX search results with thumbnails and keyword highlighting. [⌊Search Configuration — design, indexing, filters, and autocomplete settings.⌉⌊ Search Configuration — design, indexing, filters, and autocomplete settings.⌉[ Search Configuration — design, indexing, filters, and autocomplete settings. [⌊Search Widget editor with layout, theme, and relevance options.⌉⌊Search Widget editor with layout, theme, and relevance options.⌉[ Search Widget editor with layout, theme, and relevance options. [⌊Analytics & Search Logs with top queries, trends, and detailed log table.⌉⌊Analytics& Search Logs with top queries, trends, and detailed log table.⌉[ Analytics & Search Logs with top queries, trends, and detailed log table. [⌊Query Redirect Rules management screen.⌉⌊Query Redirect Rules management screen .⌉[ Query Redirect Rules management screen. [[ [[ ## Blocks This plugin provides 1 block. * Rankology Live Search ## Installation #### Automatic installation 1. In your WordPress admin, go to **Plugins Add New**. 2. Search for **Rankology Ajax Live Search**. 3. Click **Install Now**, then **Activate**. #### Manual installation 1. Upload the `rankajlisrh` folder to `/wp-content/plugins/`. 2. Activate the plugin through the **Plugins** screen in WordPress. 3. Go to **Rank Ajax Live Search Appearance** to review global search settings. 4. Go to **Rank Ajax Live Search Search Forms** to create your first search widget, or add the block/shortcode to a page. #### After activation 1. Visit **Rank Ajax Live Search Search Engine Indexing** and run an initial index build if one is not started automatically. 2. Place a search widget using the Gutenberg block, `[rankajlisrh]` shortcode, or classic widget. 3. Optional: enable search logging under analytics settings and review **Rank Ajax Live Search Analytics & Logs**. ## FAQ ### Does Rankology work with WooCommerce? Yes. Rankology can include WooCommerce products in search results, display product prices where appropriate, and apply relevance weighting to SKU and product fields when WooCommerce is active. ### Does this replace the default WordPress search? Rankology does not remove WordPress core search automatically. You place the Rankology search bar where you want it — via block, shortcode, or widget — and can customize the on-site search results template for a complete replacement experience. ### How do I add search to my theme header? Create a Search Widget in **Rank Ajax Live Search Search Forms**, copy its shortcode, and paste it into your header template, a block theme header pattern, or a hook- friendly location. You can also use the **Rankology Search** Gutenberg block in the site editor. ### What is a Search Widget? A Search Widget is an independent search configuration. Each widget can target different post types, use a different layout or theme, enable its own filters, and override relevance weights — useful when a shop search and a blog search need different behavior. ### Will Rankology slow down my site? Rankology is built for performance. Search queries use a dedicated index and cached responses where appropriate, and the public endpoint includes rate limiting. Initial indexing runs in the background and can be managed from the admin or WP-CLI. ### Can I see what visitors search for? Yes. Enable search analytics and visit **Rank Ajax Live Search Analytics & Logs** for top queries, trending terms, zero-result searches, and individual log entries. Data can be exported for reporting. ### What are query redirect rules? Redirect rules let you send specific search queries (exact or pattern-based) to a custom URL — for campaigns, synonyms, or steering users to the right landing page. Rules can be scoped by user role and language where configured. ### Is there a REST API? Yes. Rankology exposes REST endpoints under `rankajlisrh/v1` for search, click tracking, and redirect management — suitable for headless WordPress and custom front ends. ### Does Rankology work on multisite? Yes. Network-aware settings synchronization is available for WordPress multisite installations. ### Do I need extra libraries for PDF or DOCX indexing? Yes, if you want file content indexing beyond plain TXT files. Install `smalot/pdfparser` for PDF support and `phpoffice/phpword` for DOCX support via Composer on your server. Rankology detects them automatically when available. They are not bundled with the plugin. ### Does Rankology bundle React or other JavaScript frameworks? No. The admin dashboard hub uses WordPress core packages (`wp-element`, `wp-components`,` wp-i18n`). Frontend scripts are custom and depend on jQuery, which WordPress provides. ### Does Rankology send data to external services? When **Google-style autocomplete** is enabled, partial search terms are sent to Google’s public suggest API (`suggestqueries.google.com`) to retrieve suggestion phrases. Responses are cached locally with WordPress transients. All other search, indexing, and analytics data stays on your WordPress site unless you configure email reports through your own mail server via `wp_mail()`. ## Reviews There are no reviews for this plugin. ## Contributors & Developers “Rankology Ajax Live Search” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin. Contributors * [ Rankology ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/rankology/) [Translate “Rankology Ajax Live Search” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search) ### Interested in development? [Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/rankology-ajax-live-search/), check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/rankology-ajax-live-search/), or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/rankology-ajax-live-search/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/rankology-ajax-live-search/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss). ## Changelog #### 1.0.0 * Initial public release. * Live AJAX search with autocomplete, multiple layouts, themes, and responsive UI. * Custom search index with BM25 relevance scoring, field weights, and optional PDF/DOCX/TXT extraction. * Search Widgets (custom post type) with Gutenberg block, shortcode, and classic widget support. * Advanced live filters: taxonomy, price range, custom fields, and visual filter builder. * WooCommerce product search with price display and SKU weighting. * Analytics & Search Logs: top queries, trending terms, zero-result tracking, click logging, CSV/PDF export, and email reports. * Query redirect rules with admin UI and REST API. * REST API, rate limiting, transient caching, modal search, and voice search. * WP-CLI index commands, multisite network settings sync, and legacy plugin migration tools. ## Meta * Version **1.0.0** * Last updated **2 weeks ago** * Active installations **Fewer than 10** * WordPress version ** 6.2 or higher ** * Tested up to **7.0.2** * PHP version ** 8.1 or higher ** * Tags * [ajax search](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/ajax-search/)[analytics](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/analytics/) [live search](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/live-search/)[search](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/search/) [woocommerce](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/woocommerce/) * [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/rankology-ajax-live-search/advanced/) ## Ratings No reviews have been submitted yet. [Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/rankology-ajax-live-search/reviews/#new-post) [See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/rankology-ajax-live-search/reviews/) ## Contributors * [ Rankology ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/rankology/) ## Support Got something to say? Need help? [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/rankology-ajax-live-search/)