Supported Data Types for Search and Sorting Rules
You can use product attributes for searching, giving you considerable flexibility in how products are identified.
- Queryable Attributes
Attributes that can be searched for in Business Manager. Queryable attributes are usually attributes that you expect to use to identify a range of products to work on. For example, if you want to be able to identify products to put on sale by color or size, you must make them queryable attributes.
- Searchable Attributes
Attributes that are indexed and a customer can use them to search in the storefront. For example, if you want customers to be able to search by brand and model number, you must make them searchable attributes.
- Sorting Rule Attributes
Attributes used in sorting rules are used to sort search results, however they are not necessarily searchable. For example, you might want to sort by profit margin or availability, but not let customers search based on these attributes.
Allowed Data Types for Searchable and Sorting Attributes
While most attributes can be included in both searchable and sorting attributes, sometimes the data types are treated differently. Dynamic attributes that are used in sorting rules support fewer data types than other attributes used in sorting rules. Because the value of a dynamic attribute is calculated from the values of two or more underlying attributes, the data types must be boolean or numeric.
| Data Type | Allowed as Dynamic Attributes | Allowed In Sorting Rules | Allowed In Searchable Attributes | Sort and Search Treated Differently? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| String | N | Y | Y | |
| Enum of String | N | Y | Y | |
| Date + Time | N | Y | N | |
| Image | N | N | N | |
| HTML | N | N | N | |
| Boolean | N | Y | N | Y |
| Quantity | N | N | N | |
| Text | N | N | Y | Y |
| Integer | Y | Y | Y | |
| Number | Y | Y | Y | |
| Date | N | Y | N | Y |
| N | N | N | ||
| Password | N | N | N | |
| Set of String | N | N | Y | Y |
| Set of Integer | N | N | Y | Y |
| Set of Number | N | N | Y | Y |
| Enum of Integer | N | Y | N | Y |