1. Requirements and installation
Adobe lists two supported platforms: Adobe Commerce on Cloud and Adobe Commerce on-premises, each from version 2.4.4. Magento Open Source is not on that list. Adobe describes Live Search as a SaaS service that is included in your Adobe Commerce license.
Live Search is installed with Composer as magento/live-search. OpenSearch and Live Search cannot both be enabled on the same Commerce instance. As of Live Search 3.0.2, the Catalog Service extension is bundled with the installation. After installation, Adobe Commerce begins sharing search and catalogue data with Adobe's SaaS services.
- Confirm that cron jobs and indexers are running.
- Run composer require magento/live-search --no-update, then composer update magento/live-search --with-dependencies.
- On a new instance, disable the OpenSearch and Elasticsearch modules and run bin/magento setup:upgrade. On an existing store, Adobe describes disabling the Live Search storefront modules first, so your current search stays active while the catalogue syncs.
- Configure the API keys, sync the catalogue and test the connection.
2. Search as you type, typos and facets
Live Search shows suggested products with a thumbnail in a popover while shoppers type, starting at two characters. Adobe notes that the number of characters is not configurable.
Typos are handled in two steps. Live Search first runs a search without typo tolerance. Only if that finds nothing does it run a fuzzy search with a maximum edit distance of 1 per word: one inserted, deleted or replaced character, plus swapped neighbouring letters such as teh for the. A query that already finds some products without typo tolerance does not get the fuzzy step.
Facets are filterable attributes shown to shoppers. Within a facet, shoppers can select several options. By default you can configure up to 100 facets, and a facet returns at most 100 values. Synonyms (up to 200 per store view) and merchandising rules to boost or bury products are managed in the Admin.
What to test
A word with two wrong letters, such as "speekr" for "speaker", goes beyond an edit distance of 1. Test such queries with your own catalogue before deciding.
3. Documented limits
Adobe publishes a list of boundaries and limits and asks merchants to review it before implementing Live Search. For content search, bring-your-own-algorithm or attribute-based merchandising, Adobe itself suggests considering a third-party search solution.
- No search in CMS pages and blocks: only products from the Commerce database are indexed.
- The Advanced Search module is disabled and its footer link removed when Live Search is installed.
- No native search term redirects; Adobe points to Fastly or a custom configuration.
- Tier pricing is not supported in the search field and the product listing widget.
- Words in a multi-word query are treated as separate search terms; Adobe recommends synonyms for multi-word queries.
- Stock status and date attributes are not supported as facets.
- At most 10,000 results can be paginated and 100 results returned per page.
- The search adapter is deprecated as of Live Search 4.0.0 and only receives security updates; the product listing page widget is the supported solution.
4. Alternatives, including for Magento Open Source
On Magento Open Source, Live Search is not an option, so the choice is between the native OpenSearch catalogue search and an extension or hosted search. Our comparison of Magento search extensions covers the common options and their prices.
Grumeria connects to Magento with a product feed and a small widget. For Magento 2 the feed can come straight from your store's public product data via https://grumeria.com/api/magento-feed?shop=your-shop.com, or from a feed extension (CSV, XML or Google Shopping). You can check your feed for free first, without installing anything.
Frequently asked questions
Is Adobe Live Search available for Magento Open Source?
Adobe lists Adobe Commerce on Cloud and Adobe Commerce on-premises, each from 2.4.4, as supported platforms. Magento Open Source is not listed.
Does Magento Live Search cost extra?
Adobe describes Live Search as a SaaS service that is included in your Adobe Commerce license.
Can I use Live Search and OpenSearch together?
No. According to Adobe, OpenSearch and Live Search cannot both be enabled on the same Commerce instance. When installing on an existing store, your current search keeps running while the catalogue syncs.
How does Live Search handle typos?
It first searches without typo tolerance. Only if nothing is found does it run a fuzzy search with a maximum edit distance of 1 per word, including swapped neighbouring letters.