Drag the Search Field widget onto your pages and visitors can type a word to find every page on your website that contains it. Results can drop down under the box, open in a box over the page, or show on a results page that you make with the Search Results widget. It works on EverWeb + Hosting and on other web hosts, because the search runs in your visitor's browser and doesn't need PHP.
Add the search box
- Open your Master Page, so the box appears on every page. See Put the same header, menu and footer on every page with a Master Page. (You can also add it to one page only.)
- Click the Widgets tab at the top right, find Search Field, and drag it where you want the box.
- Go to Inspector > Widget Settings. In Search Results, choose how results appear:
- Drop Down Menu (the default): a list under the box.
- Popup Window: a box over the page.
- One Of My Pages: a separate results page (see below).
- Style it: Place Holder is the grey text in the empty box ("Search Website"). Under Button Appearance, set Style to Caption for a button with words, or Icon for a magnifying glass. Change colours and Select Font... to match your design.
- Choose the Language for messages such as "Nothing found".
- Publish, then test the box on your website.
Show results on their own page (optional)
- Make a new page, for example "Search Results". In Inspector > Page Settings, untick Include page in navigation menu and Include in Site Search.
- Drag the Search Results widget onto that page. Put nothing else on it, and don't put this widget on your Master Page. On a Centered Layout page, keep it in the content area below the header: choose Window > Show Layout to see the section lines.
- Select your Search Field widget, set Search Results to One Of My Pages, and choose your page in Search Results Page. EverWeb only accepts a page that has a Search Results widget on it.
- On the results page, set Content to Scrollable (results scroll inside the box) or Adjust To Content Height (the box grows), and choose whether to Show Number of Results and Show Page Link.
What gets searched
- Every page with Include in Site Search ticked in Inspector > Page Settings. It's ticked for new pages. Blog posts are included too.
- The page's title, name, description, keywords and the text on the page.
- Not words inside pictures, PDFs or videos, or content shown from another website, such as a booking calendar.
- Visitors need to type at least 3 letters. Very common words, such as "the" and "and", are ignored.
- Each result shows the page title and a short summary from the page's text. Tick Use Page Description Text for Summary to show the page's description instead.
- The search list is updated each time you publish.
Untick Include in Site Search for pages you don't want found, such as a thank-you page or members-only and password-protected pages. Otherwise their text can show up in search results.
Common problems
| What you see | Why, and what to do |
|---|---|
| The box shows but you can't type in it or click it | Another object, often the navigation menu or a Container, sits on top of it. Select the Search Field, tick Always On Top in Inspector > Metrics, and move it so it doesn't overlap the menu |
| The results cover your page's text, or the box disappears | The Search Results widget is on the same page as the box, or on your Master Page. Keep it only on its own results page |
| Your page isn't offered in Search Results Page | That page doesn't have a Search Results widget yet. Add it first |
| A new page isn't found | Check Include in Site Search on that page, then publish. Still missing? Choose File > Publish Entire Site, and test in a private browser window |
| Results look incomplete in Preview | Test on your published website, which has the full search list |
| You need filters, such as size or price menus | The Search Field is a single word search. It can't filter products |
Video guides: Adding a search bar and The Search Results widget.