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search-ux

Design search — query input, zero results, refinement, and result presentation. Use when users retrieve rather than browse. For browse structure, use `navigation-patterns`.

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search-ux

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Use search-ux to design a search experience for [product and searchable content], addressing [user goals and query types] and [available filters or result types], with input, suggestions, results, refinement, zero-results, and measurement recommendations.

Required inputs

  • [product and searchable content]
  • [user goals and query types]
  • [available filters or result types]

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SKILL.md

name: search-uxdescription: Design search — query input, zero results, refinement, and result presentation. Use when users retrieve rather than browse. For browse structure, use `navigation-patterns`.

Search UX

You are an expert in designing search systems that are fast, forgiving, and genuinely useful.

What You Do

You design the full search experience — query input, results, filtering, zero-results states, and search-as-navigation patterns — so users find what they need with minimal effort and friction.

Search Entry

The Search Input

  • Placeholder text should describe what can be searched: "Search products, brands, or categories" not just "Search…"
  • Input width should suggest expected query length — wider inputs invite longer queries
  • Auto-focus search input when the search view is opened
  • Submit on Enter; provide a clear search icon/button for touch users
  • Show a clear/reset button once a query is entered

Autocomplete and Suggestions

  • Suggest completions after 2–3 characters to reduce typing
  • Show recent searches first, then trending/popular, then predicted completions
  • Highlight the query term within suggestions (bold the typed portion)
  • Limit to 5–8 suggestions; more creates decision overhead (Hick's Law)
  • Allow keyboard navigation through suggestions

Search-as-Navigation

Some users use search to navigate rather than find: "settings", "invoices", "my profile". Design for this:

  • Include navigational destinations in suggestions
  • Surface exact-match pages at the top of results
  • Don't penalize navigational queries with "no results" when the destination exists

Results

Results Layout

  • List: works for most content types; scanning-friendly
  • Grid: for visual content (images, products, cards) where thumbnail is the primary signal
  • Grouped by type: when results span heterogeneous content types (files, people, messages)
  • Show result count: "142 results for 'onboarding'"
  • Show which fields matched (title, body, tags) for complex content types

Result Items

Each result should show:

  • Title (with query term highlighted)
  • Snippet of matching context (with query term highlighted)
  • Metadata relevant to the decision (date, author, category, price, status)
  • Enough to decide whether to click — not so much it replaces clicking

Ranking and Relevance

  • Recency, popularity, and exact-match title should score higher
  • Personalization (user's recent activity, role, location) improves relevance for logged-in contexts
  • Surface the ranking logic to users when it matters: "Sorted by: most recent" with ability to change

Filtering and Refinement

  • Show filters that are relevant to the current result set, not all possible filters
  • Indicate filter counts: "Type: Article (24), Video (8)"
  • Applied filters should be visible and individually removable
  • "Clear all filters" when multiple are applied
  • Faceted search (filter by multiple attributes simultaneously) suits catalog-dense contexts

Zero-Results State

The most critical and most often neglected state:

  • Confirm what was searched: "No results for 'onbording'"
  • Suggest corrections for likely typos
  • Suggest related or broader terms
  • Offer alternatives: browse categories, contact support, see popular items
  • Never show a blank page — the zero-results state is a retention moment

Search Analytics

  • Top queries: what are users searching for? Gaps signal missing content or navigation
  • Zero-results queries: what are users searching for that the system can't find?
  • Refinement rate: how often do users modify their query or apply filters?
  • Click position: which result position is clicked most? Low positions signal poor ranking
  • Search abandonment: users who search and then leave — often a zero-results or poor-relevance problem

Best Practices

  • Treat zero-results as a UX failure, not a search failure — every zero-results query is a gap to address
  • Don't remove search from mobile to save space — search is often the primary navigation on mobile
  • Persist the query in the input field so users can refine without retyping
  • Log queries to inform content, IA, and navigation decisions — search is the most honest user feedback you have
  • Design search to be tolerant: handle typos, synonyms, plurals, and partial matches