Fast, modern live search powered by REST API — with AI-powered Related Posts Engine, slash commands, SEO-aware, ACF, Woo, and custom UI presets.

Hao Nguyen

Deliver an ultra-responsive search experience to your visitors — no page reloads, no jQuery, no lag. Init Live Search is a modern, lightweight, and fully accessible live search solution for WordPress — now with tag-aware matching, SEO metadata support, ACF integration, WooCommerce product filters, and customizable UI presets.
It replaces the default <code><input name="s"></code> with a clean, intuitive search modal powered entirely by the WordPress REST API. Everything loads in real-time — with zero disruption to browsing flow.
Perfect for content-heavy blogs, WooCommerce stores, or even headless sites. Every interaction is fast, fluid, and designed to work across devices.
It also brings AI-powered related posts and an advanced keyword generator — giving your visitors smarter ways to discover content.
This plugin is part of the <a href="https://en.inithtml.com/init-plugin-suite-minimalist-powerful-and-free-wordpress-plugins/" rel="nofollow ugc">Init Plugin Suite</a> — a collection of minimalist, fast, and developer-focused tools for WordPress.
GitHub repository: <a href="https://github.com/brokensmile2103/init-live-search" rel="nofollow ugc">https://github.com/brokensmile2103/init-live-search</a>
<h3>What’s New in Version 1.8.x</h3>
<ul>
<li>
AI-Powered Related Posts: brand new <code>[init_live_search_related_ai]</code> shortcode
<ul>
<li>Uses multi-signal scoring (tags, series, title bigrams, same_keyword via ACF, category, views, comments, freshness) </li>
<li>Shares templates with <code>[init_live_search_related_posts]</code> (no extra styling needed) </li>
<li>Fully filterable via new developer hooks: <code>ai_candidates</code>, <code>ai_signals</code>, <code>ai_weights</code>, <code>ai_score</code></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Advanced Keyword Generator: upgraded algorithm for admin keyword suggestions
<ul>
<li>Replaced TF-IDF with BM25 term weighting </li>
<li>Added NPMI and Log-Likelihood Ratio (Dunning) for collocation strength </li>
<li>Focused on bigram-only for higher-quality keywords </li>
<li>Unicode-safe, locale-aware stop words, and soft fallback mode</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Developer Filters Expansion
<ul>
<li>New filters added for AI related posts and keyword signals </li>
<li>Complete list now includes over 20 filters (<code>*_fallback</code>, <code>*_post_ids</code>, <code>*_results</code>, <code>*_weights</code>, <code>*_commands</code>, etc.) </li>
<li>Developers can hook into candidate pools, signal scores, and schema output with fine-grained control</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Performance Optimizations
<ul>
<li>Smarter candidate pooling for related posts (recent + context-based) </li>
<li>Pre-cached scoring loop for AI signals to minimize queries </li>
<li>Safer regex handling in keyword processing to avoid PCRE errors </li>
<li>Reduced memory footprint in bigram statistics without sacrificing accuracy</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Backward Compatible Enhancements
<ul>
<li><code>[init_live_search_related_posts]</code> and <code>[init_live_search_related_ai]</code> now share the same rendering pipeline </li>
<li>Existing templates, schema, and CSS continue to work without modification </li>
<li>Auto insert related posts still works and can be switched to AI mode via shortcode override</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Features</h3>
Packed with everything a modern live search needs — and more:
<ul>
<li>Live search via REST API (no admin-ajax, no jQuery)</li>
<li>Smart tag-aware search mode (title + tag match)</li>
<li>SEO metadata support: Yoast, Rank Math, AIOSEO, SEOPress, TSF</li>
<li>ACF field matching and customizable filters</li>
<li>Synonym expansion with fallback scoring logic</li>
<li>Slash commands: <code>/recent</code>, <code>/popular</code>, <code>/tag</code>, <code>/id</code>, <code>/sku</code>, <code>/price</code>, <code>/coupon</code>, etc.</li>
<li>WooCommerce support: search by product, SKU, brand, attribute, variation, coupon</li>
<li>Clean modal UI with keyboard navigation (<code>↑ ↓ Enter Esc</code>)</li>
<li>Optional voice input (SpeechRecognition)</li>
<li>Tooltip Quick Search (select text to trigger)</li>
<li>Favorites system via heart icon or <code>/fav</code> commands</li>
<li>Infinite scroll and smart category filter (no extra API)</li>
<li>Deep linking: <code>?modal=search&term=...</code></li>
<li>New <code>[init_live_search]</code> shortcode: insert input or icon anywhere</li>
<li>UI presets: default, fullscreen, topbar — with full CSS override</li>
<li>Local caching + analytics (CSV export, no personal data)</li>
<li>Developer-ready: custom slash commands, REST filters, JS hooks</li>
</ul>
<h3>Dark Mode Support</h3>
Enable dark mode for the modal by either:
<ol>
<li>
Adding the dark class:
document.querySelector(‘#ils-modal’)?.classList.add(‘dark’);
</li>
<li>
Or using a global config:
window.InitPluginSuiteLiveSearchConfig = { theme: ‘dark’ };
</li>
</ol>
Options: <code>dark</code>, <code>light</code>, <code>auto</code>
<h3>Admin Settings</h3>
<ul>
<li>Choose post types to include in search </li>
<li>Configure modal triggers (input focus, triple click, Ctrl+/) </li>
<li>Enable slash commands (e.g. /recent, /tag, /id) </li>
<li>Enable support for <code>+</code> and <code>-</code> keyword operators (must-have, must-not-have) </li>
<li>Set default slash command to run on modal open (only if slash is enabled) </li>
<li>Set debounce time and max results </li>
<li>Choose search mode (title-only, tag-aware, full content) </li>
<li>Define custom ACF fields to include in search (optional) </li>
<li>Enable Search in SEO Metadata (Yoast, Rank Math, etc.) </li>
<li>Toggle excerpt display below each result (1-line contextual snippet) </li>
<li>Toggle fallback logic (bigram/trim) </li>
<li>Enable synonym expansion and manage synonym mappings (JSON editor) </li>
<li>Enable Search Analytics to log queries (no personal data stored) </li>
<li>Set max words for tooltip search </li>
<li>Enable voice input (SpeechRecognition API) </li>
<li>Enable result caching (localStorage) </li>
<li>Choose frontend UI style (default, fullscreen, or topbar) </li>
<li>Allow theme override via <code>init-live-search/style.css</code> </li>
<li>Automatically insert related posts after content or comments (optional)</li>
<li>Option to disable all built-in CSS completely </li>
<li>Add default UTM parameter to result links </li>
<li>Define or auto-generate keyword suggestions</li>
</ul>
<h3>Keyboard Shortcuts</h3>
<ul>
<li>Arrow Up / Down — navigate between results</li>
<li>Arrow Right — add selected result to favorites (if not already added)</li>
<li>Arrow Left — remove selected result from favorites</li>
<li>Enter — open selected result or submit</li>
<li>Escape — close modal and reset state</li>
<li>Slash (/) — start a command instantly (e.g., <code>/recent</code>, <code>/id 123</code>)</li>
</ul>
<h3>Developer Reference: Shortcodes, Filters, and Hooks</h3>
<h3>Shortcodes</h3>
<code>[init_live_search]</code> 
Display a search icon or input anywhere that opens the Init Live Search modal.
Attributes: 
– <code>type</code>: <code>icon</code> (default) or <code>input</code> – choose between a clickable icon or a search box 
– <code>placeholder</code>: (optional) text inside the input if <code>type="input"</code> 
– <code>label</code>: (optional) adds a label next to the icon if <code>type="icon"</code> 
– <code>class</code>: (optional) add custom classes like <code>dark</code>, <code>my-style</code>, etc. 
– <code>stroke_width</code>: (optional) set the stroke width for the search icon (default: <code>1</code>) 
– <code>radius</code>: (optional) override the border radius of the input form (default: <code>9999px</code> from CSS; only applied if value differs)
<code>[init_live_search_related_posts]</code> 
Display a list of related posts (static HTML) based on post title or keyword, optimized for SEO and fully themable.
Attributes: 
– <code>id</code>: (optional) the post ID to find related posts for (defaults to current post) 
– <code>count</code>: (optional) number of posts to display (default: <code>5</code>) 
– <code>keyword</code>: (optional) override the keyword used for finding related posts 
– <code>template</code>: (optional) layout template to use — <code>default</code>, <code>grid</code>, <code>classic</code>, <code>compact</code>, <code>thumbright</code> 
– <code>css</code>: <code>1</code> (default) or <code>0</code> – disable default CSS if you want to fully style it yourself 
– <code>schema</code>: <code>1</code> (default) or <code>0</code> – disable JSON-LD <code>ItemList</code> output for SEO schema
<code>[init_live_search_related_ai]</code> 
Display a list of AI-powered related posts using multi-signal scoring (tags, series, title bigrams, same_keyword via ACF, category, views, comments, freshness). 
Uses the same templates as <code>[init_live_search_related_posts]</code>, so no extra styling is required.
Attributes: 
– <code>id</code>: (optional) the post ID to find related posts for (defaults to current post) 
– <code>count</code>: (optional) number of posts to display (default: <code>5</code>) 
– <code>post_type</code>: (optional) restrict results to one or more post types (default: <code>post</code>) 
– <code>template</code>: (optional) layout template to use — <code>default</code>, <code>grid</code>, <code>classic</code>, <code>compact</code>, <code>thumbright</code> 
– <code>css</code>: <code>1</code> (default) or <code>0</code> – disable default CSS if you want to fully style it yourself 
– <code>schema</code>: <code>1</code> (default) or <code>0</code> – disable JSON-LD <code>ItemList</code> output for SEO schema
<h3>Filters for Developers</h3>
Init Live Search includes many filters to help developers customize behavior and output at various stages of the search flow.
Full documentation (with code samples & advanced usage): <a href="https://en.inithtml.com/wordpress/using-filters-in-init-live-search/" rel="nofollow ugc">Using Filters in Init Live Search</a>
Popular filters
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_enable_fallback</code> 
Enable or disable fallback logic when few results are found.
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_post_ids</code> 
Customize the array of post IDs returned from the query.
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_result_item</code> 
Modify each result item before it’s sent in the response.
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_results</code> 
Filter the final array of results before being returned.
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_query_args</code> 
Modify WP_Query arguments for different commands.
<code>init_plugin_suite_live_search_ai_weights</code> 
Adjust AI scoring weights for related posts.
(…and more in the full docs)
<h3>REST API Endpoints</h3>
Fully documented, lightweight, and API-first endpoints. Ideal for headless or decoupled builds. 
All endpoints are under namespace: <code>initlise/v1</code>
Full documentation (with examples & parameters): <a href="https://en.inithtml.com/wordpress/list-of-rest-api-endpoints-in-init-live-search/" rel="nofollow ugc">REST API Endpoints in Init Live Search</a>
Popular endpoints
<code>/search?term=example</code> 
Standard search query (uses plugin settings like post types, search mode, fallback…).
<code>/id/{id}</code> 
Fetch a post by ID (returns permalink).
<code>/recent</code> 
Fetch the most recent posts.
<code>/tax?taxonomy=category&term=slug-or-id</code> 
Fetch posts by taxonomy (category, tag, or custom).
<code>/related?title=page-title&exclude=ID</code> 
Fetch posts related to the current page title.
<code>/product?...</code> 
Fetch WooCommerce products with flexible query parameters.
(…and more in the full docs)
<h3>License</h3>
This plugin is licensed under the GPLv2 or later. 
You are free to use, modify, and distribute it under the same license.

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