PrestaShop
The best search engine
for PrestaShop
Replace PrestaShop's native search with Google Vertex AI Search for Retail. Integration in 2 minutes, no module to install.
PrestaShop
Replace PrestaShop's native search with Google Vertex AI Search for Retail. Integration in 2 minutes, no module to install.
PrestaShop includes a basic search, but its limitations become quickly visible as your catalog grows.
Native search can't find products when the user makes a typo. "trousers" vs "trousrs": empty result.
Exact keyword matching ignores synonyms and variations. "sports shoes" won't find "running trainers".
The Stats section lists top searches, but you can't promote a product on a given query, nor act on failed searches beyond rewriting product titles.
Knowing what the built-in engine does, and where it stops, tells you whether tuning it is enough or whether you need to replace it.
PrestaShop does not query your product tables directly when a visitor searches. It maintains its own index in the ps_search_word and ps_search_index tables, built by splitting product fields into words. That index is rebuilt from Shop Parameters > Search, either fully or by adding only the missing products, and it needs to be refreshed after a catalog import.
Three settings drive the results your customers see:
The Stats section also includes a best searches report listing the terms visitors typed and how many results each returned. It is enough to spot the worst offenders, not to act on them at scale.
The engine matches words. It has no notion of what a product is, so "waterproof jacket" and "rain coat" remain unrelated unless someone writes the alias. It never learns: the ranking on day one is the ranking a year later, whatever your customers clicked or bought in between. And it runs on the same MySQL database as the rest of the store, so a traffic spike degrades browsing and search at the same time.
Adjust field weights, add aliases, enable fuzzy search, rebuild the index. Free, done in an afternoon, and worth doing before anything else. The ceiling is low: still no semantics, no learning, no merchandising.
A module replaces the native search from inside PrestaShop. It ties you to your PrestaShop version, has to be revalidated at every upgrade, and most modules still query the same database as your store.
A script tag connects the store to a search engine hosted elsewhere. Nothing depends on your PrestaShop version or theme internals, and the search load leaves your server entirely. This is how Vectail works.
No module to install, no updates to manage. A simple script tag in your PrestaShop theme is all it takes.
Sign up at app.vectail.com, connect your Google Merchant Center account. Vectail automatically imports your product catalog.
Add the following tag to the header.tpl file of your theme, before the </head> tag:
<script src="https://cdn.vectail.com/vectail.js" data-client-id="YOUR_CLIENT_ID"></script>
Option B - Via Google Tag Manager (GTM)
If you already use GTM on your store, this is the fastest method - no source code access required. Create a Custom HTML tag, paste the script below, set the trigger to All Pages and publish.
<script> (function() { var s = document.createElement('script'); s.src = 'https://cdn.vectail.com/vectail.js'; s.setAttribute('data-client-id', 'YOUR_CLIENT_ID'); document.head.appendChild(s); })(); </script>
Doofinder is the historical reference on PrestaShop. Here's an honest comparison.
| Criterion | Doofinder PrestaShop | Vectail |
|---|---|---|
| Search technology | Proprietary engine | Google Vertex AI Search |
| Integration | PrestaShop module to install | Script tag, 2 minutes |
| Version compatibility | Module-supported versions only | All versions (universal script) |
| Starting price | Free limited, then paid | From €29/month, public pricing |
| Free trial | 30 days | 14 days, no credit card |
| Searchandising | Yes | Yes |
| Data hosting | Spain (EU) | GCP Europe (EU) |
No. Vectail is loaded through a script tag, either in your theme's header.tpl or as a Custom HTML tag in Google Tag Manager. There is no module to install, no override to maintain, and nothing to revalidate when you upgrade PrestaShop.
Any version whose theme can include a script tag, which covers 1.6, 1.7 and the 8.x branch. Nothing in Vectail depends on PrestaShop internals, so a major upgrade of your store does not affect the search.
No. Vectail builds its own index from your Google Merchant Center feed, not from the ps_search_index tables. The native search stays in place untouched, but visitors no longer go through it once the widget is bound to your search bar.
Yes. The widget attaches to the search input already present in your theme through CSS selectors you configure, so the search bar keeps its position and styling. If your theme uses an unusual markup, you set the selector yourself in the dashboard.
Plans start at €29/month, with a 14-day free trial and no credit card required. The one prerequisite is a Google Merchant Center feed for your catalog, which most PrestaShop stores already maintain for Google Shopping.
14-day trial, no credit card. Integration in 2 minutes, results visible from day one.