Faceted Search widget

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated August 11, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Faceted Search widget

    The Faceted Search widget in ServiceNow's Yokohama release enhances search functionality by displaying search results alongside dynamic facet filters. It allows end users to refine and narrow search results within the Service Portal, making it easier to find relevant information such as knowledge articles or specific categories.

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    Facets show only values present in the current search results and update dynamically as users select filters. Users can broaden or change searches by clearing facets or entering new search terms, with previous facet selections cleared upon starting a new search.

    Key Features

    • Dynamic Facet Filters: Facets adjust based on current search results, helping users drill down efficiently.
    • Facet Selection Persistence: When switching source facets, previously selected filters carry over to refine the updated search.
    • Typeahead Search Box: Provides predictive search input, with configurable placeholder text, icon, size, and visibility.
    • Result Limits: Configure maximum results displayed for all sources combined and per individual source.
    • Did You Mean Suggestions: Offers alternative search terms when no results are found.

    Configuration Options

    Service Portal administrators can tailor the widget using instance options, including:

    • Presentation settings such as facet list title, typeahead search box title, icon, color, and font size.
    • Behavioral settings like maximum search results per source or combined, typeahead result limit, and enabling “Did You Mean” suggestions.
    • AI Search integration with customizable placeholder text, applied only if AI Search is enabled in the portal.

    Practical Use for Customers

    This widget empowers ServiceNow customers to offer portal users a robust, user-friendly search experience that helps quickly locate relevant content through interactive and configurable filters. It supports complex filtering scenarios across multiple search sources while maintaining intuitive controls for broadening or refining searches.

    For configuring facets and enabling AI Search, customers should refer to additional documentation or related tasks such as creating facets in AI Search configurations and enabling AI Search features in the portal.

    The Faceted Search widget displays search results and search facets defined for a search source. The Faceted Search widget enables end users to filter search results for a more meaningful result set.

    Using the widget

    You can use facet filters to refine your search in Service Portal. For example, you can view only knowledge article search results by selecting the Knowledge source facet bucket. Or, to filter search results by certain knowledge categories, you can select one or more facets.
    Figure 1. Faceted Search widget
    Faceted Search widget showing "email" search results with available facet filters

    The available facets are dynamic, showing only field values that are included in your current search results. As you select facets, the search narrows and the number of available facets decreases. You can broaden your search by clearing an individual facet selection.

    To see which facets you've selected, view the pills in the Filters panel. If you select a different source facet bucket, your other selected facets are carried over and applied to your modified search.

    You can initiate a new search by entering a new search term in the typeahead search box. After you enter the new search term, the system clears your facet filter selections from the previous search. You can refine your new search by selecting new facet filters.

    For more information on configuring the available facets, see Create a facet in an AI Search application configuration.

    Instance options

    Use the instance options to configure the Faceted Search widget for a portal page.
    Field Description
    Presentation
    Facet List Title Display title for the facet component.
    Typeahead Search - Title Default text in the typeahead search component.
    Typeahead Search - Color Whether the glyph in the typeahead component is filled in.
    Typeahead Search - Glyph Icon that appears in the search field beside the widget. The search icon is the default. To use a different icon, type the name of the icon in the field, for example search-plus. For a list of icons to choose from, open the instance options for the Icon Link widget.
    Typeahead Search - Size Determines the font size and height of the widget. Choose from xs, sm, md, and lg.
    Show Typeahead Search Box Option to show or hide the search box on the portal page.
    Behavior
    Max results for All search Maximum number of results that display for all search sources when viewed together.
    Max results for single search source Maximum number of results that display for a single search source.
    Show Did You Mean Displays suggestions when a search produces no results.
    Typeahead Search - Limit Number of typeahead search results displayed. The default is 15.
    AI Search
    Placeholder

    Text that appears in the search box before the user enters anything. By default, the placeholder text is Search.

    Note:
    This instance option applies only if AI Search is enabled in your portal. For more information on enabling AI Search for Service Portal, see Enable and configure AI Search in Service Portal.