--- title: "Search Bar Widget Settings Overview" url: https://theplusaddons.com/docs/search-bar-widget-settings-overview/ date: 2023-09-13 modified: 2026-09-28 lang: en author: "Aditya Sharma" description: "The Plus Addons for Elementor's Search Bar widget adds a live search box that queries posts or taxonomy terms and displays matching results inline on the page. It supports both..." image: https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Search-Bar-Widget_-Settings-Overview-1024x536.jpg word_count: 333 --- # Search Bar Widget Settings Overview ## - The Plus Addons for Elementor's Search Bar widget searches posts or taxonomy terms and shows matching results inline on the page. - AJAX Search switches between standard page-refresh search and live search with Load More, Lazy Load, or Pagination result loading. - The Search Bar widget is a Pro widget in The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, and Elementor (free) must be installed and active before it is enabled in The Plus Addons > Widgets. The Plus Addons for Elementor's Search Bar widget adds a live search box that queries posts or taxonomy terms and displays matching results inline on the page. It supports both a standard (page-refresh) search and a fully AJAX-driven search with load-more, lazy-load or pagination result loading. ***Requirement - This widget is a part of The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, make sure it's installed & activated to enjoy all its powers.*** [LIVE WIDGET LINK](https://theplusaddons.com/elementor-builder/ajax-search-bar/?utm_source=tpae&utm_medium=docs&utm_campaign=text) ## Before You Start - **Prerequisite:** [Elementor](https://wordpress.org/plugins/elementor/) (free) installed and active.- **Edition:** Search Bar is a **Pro** widget - it requires The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro to be installed and active.- **Widget to enable:** go to **The Plus Addons > Widgets**, search for **Search Bar** and turn its toggle on. ## How to Activate the Widget Go to **The Plus Addons > Widgets**, search for **Search Bar** and turn on its toggle. ## Key Features - **Source** - search either **Post** types (any registered post type, including WooCommerce products) or **Taxonomy** terms.- **AJAX Search** - a master toggle that switches between Standard Search (full/word match) and Load More/Lazy Load/Pagination result loading.- **Results Area** - configurable columns, visibility switches (title, content, thumbnail, WooCommerce price, short description, total count) and result-area linking.- **Keyword Suggestions** - an optional most-searched-terms list below the box. ## Steps Add the Search Bar widget to the page. ### Source Set **Source** to **Post** (then choose one or more post types in **Select Type**) or **Taxonomy** (then choose the taxonomy in **Select Taxonomy**). ![Source control set to Post, with Select Type listing post types](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/search-bar-source-type.webp) ### Results Area Configure **Posts Per Page**, the responsive **Column** counts, and which fields (title, content, thumbnail, price, short description, total count) show on each result. ![Results Area section with visibility switches](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/search-bar-results-area.webp) ### AJAX Search Turn on **AJAX Search** to search live without a page refresh, and to expose the **Load More/Lazy Load** section's loading-behaviour options. ![AJAX Search switcher](https://theplusaddons.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/search-bar-ajax-toggle.webp) ## Settings Overview | Setting | What it does | Default | | ------- | ------------ | ------- | | Source | Post or Taxonomy - what the search box searches. | - | | AJAX Search | Live AJAX search vs. standard page-refresh search. | Off | | Posts Per Page | How many results show per page/load. | - | ## Related Docs - [How to Add Search Bar for Posts in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/add-search-bar-for-posts-in-elementor/)- [How to Add Ajax Search for WooCommerce Products in Elementor?](https://theplusaddons.com/docs/add-ajax-search-for-woocommerce-products-in-elementor/) ## Frequently Asked Questions **Q: How do I customize a search bar in WordPress with Elementor?** A: The Search Bar widget in The Plus Addons for Elementor gives you the main controls that matter: what gets searched, how results load, and which fields appear in the results area. It can search Post types or Taxonomy terms, and it supports both standard page-refresh search and AJAX search. That makes it useful when you want a live search box that shows matching results inline instead of sending people to a separate results page. **Q: Why is my Elementor search bar widget not working?** A: A common blocker is activation. The Search Bar is a Pro widget, so The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro has to be installed and active, and the widget toggle must be turned on under The Plus Addons > Widgets. Elementor itself also needs to be installed and active. If the widget is still missing, the first thing to check is whether Search Bar was enabled in the widgets list before trying to place it on the page. **Q: Can I use the Elementor search bar for WooCommerce products?** A: The Source setting supports Post types, including any registered post type, which explicitly includes WooCommerce products. That means the same Search Bar widget can be pointed at product content instead of only blog posts. For product-heavy sites, pairing that with AJAX Search can make product lookup feel much faster because results appear live without a page refresh. **Q: Should I use standard search or AJAX search for my WordPress search bar?** A: Standard search is the safer choice when you want classic full or word matching with a normal page refresh. AJAX Search is better when you want live results and loading behavior like Load More, Lazy Load, or Pagination. The Plus Addons for Elementor, The Plus Addons, Plus Addons for Elementor, POSIMYTH exposes both modes in one widget, so the decision is mostly about speed of feedback versus the simplicity of a traditional search flow. **Q: How do I show taxonomy terms in an Elementor search bar?** A: Set Source to Taxonomy and then choose the taxonomy in Select Taxonomy. That changes the widget from searching content items to searching term data, which is useful when your site structure depends on categories or other taxonomies rather than just posts. The same widget can switch between Post and Taxonomy sources, so you do not need a separate search component for each use case. **Q: What settings matter most for Elementor search bar results layout?** A: Posts Per Page and the responsive Column counts are the main layout controls, because they decide how dense the result grid feels on different screens. The Results Area also lets you choose which fields show up, including title, content, thumbnail, WooCommerce price, short description, and total count. If you want cleaner scans on mobile or tighter product browsing on desktop, those visibility switches matter more than most people expect.