WooCommerce doesn’t include a built-in way to directly edit your search results page, which can make customization feel confusing at first.

That’s because search results are controlled by your WordPress theme, along with WooCommerce templates and hooks. As a result, making changes often requires code customization, a compatible page builder, or a dedicated search plugin.

Which Parts of the Search Page Typically Need Customization?

When editing the search page, here are the areas that typically matter most:

• Search results layout and structure so products are easy to scan and browse
• Product information shown in results, such as images, prices, ratings, and attributes
• Search relevance and ordering so the most useful products appear first
• Filtering and sorting options to help shoppers narrow down results
• No-results messaging to keep users engaged when nothing matches
• Performance so search stays fast on larger product catalogs
• Mobile usability so search works smoothly on phones and tablets

Assessing Your Options When Editing the WooCommerce Search Page

You typically have three options when editing the WooCommerce search page:

• code customization
• compatible page builder
• search plugin

Let's look at the pros and cons of each option:

Code Customization

Customizing the search page through code usually involves modifying your theme’s search.php file, creating WooCommerce template overrides, or adding custom functions to adjust queries and results.

While this gives you full control, it also creates several drawbacks:

• Compatibility problems are common. Theme-level changes can conflict with WooCommerce updates, other plugins, or future theme updates.
• Performance can suffer if search queries are customized poorly, especially on larger product catalogs.
• Maintenance becomes an ongoing burden. Any custom code needs to be tested and updated over time, which adds overhead for stores that want a stable, low-maintenance setup.

For most store owners, code customization is simply not worth the risk.

Compatible Page Builder

Using a compatible page builder like Breakdance is a much easier way to edit the WooCommerce search page, especially if your main goal is to improve appearance and layout.

For example, you can visually control layouts, spacing, and product presentation without writing code.

However, page builders do not typically provide control over search indexing, relevance, query logic, or performance.

Search Plugin

For most WooCommerce store owners, using a dedicated search plugin is the most practical and effective way to edit and improve the search page.

Unlike code customization or page builders, search plugins are specifically designed to control how search appears and works. This gives you much deeper control over the entire search experience, from queries to results to performance.

One of the biggest advantages is control over what gets searched and how results are ranked. Many search plugins let you include custom fields, product attributes, SKUs, and more, while also allowing you to adjust relevance so the most useful products appear first.

They also typically help optimize performance, keeping search fast even on large product catalogs. This is something that’s difficult to achieve with custom code or page builders alone.

Finally, they handle ongoing maintenance for you. A well-supported plugin will stay compatible with new versions of WooCommerce and WordPress, reducing the risk of breakage over time.

Elevated Product Search for WooCommerce

Elevated Product Search for WooCommerce provides an excellent example of the benefits of using a search plugin.

To start, it allows users to search across multiple product fields, including product and short descriptions, SKUs, attributes, categories, tags, and custom fields.

It handles typos, plurals, synonyms, and multiple languages.

It also delivers rich, real-time search results as users type, with responses appearing in as little as 0.15 seconds:

For store owners, this plugin also provides complete control over search results, including live previews as you configure them:

It also optimizes performance, avoids compatibility issues, and supports a mobile-friendly search experience—all without the store owner lifting a finger.

Final Thoughts

Editing the search page and search process is a common goal for many WooCommerce store owners. For most of these owners, the best approach is to find a good product search plugin.

Our plugin recommendation is Elevated Product Search for WooCommerce, mainly because it provides everything a store owner needs without the bloat of older search plugins.

However, it’s not the only WooCommerce search solution available. For a broader comparison, check out our guide to the 5 Best WooCommerce Product Search Plugins.