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Search Everything

By Sovrn

Site Structure & Navigation / Tags & Classification

Reviewed by Omar Dabbas

Trusted WordPress expert with 20+ years of experience evaluating plugins for the WP ecosystem.

Search Everything Review - In-Depth Analysis

Search Everything enhances WordPress' default search functionality. It allows searching through pages, excerpts, attachments, and more.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

7.12/10

User Rating

4.1/5 (based on 86+ reviews)

Active Installations

10,000+

Update Frequency

Outstanding It is calculated using the weighted average of same category plugins.

Security Score

9.4 / 10 (Critical Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

Search Everything improves WordPress default search functionality without modifying any of the template pages. You can configure it to search pages, excerpts, attachments, drafts, comments, tags, and custom fields (metadata) and you can specify your own search highlight style. It also offers the ability to exclude specific pages and posts. It does not search password-protected content.

Search Everything plugin now includes a writing helper called Research Everything that lets you search for your posts and link to them while writing. You can also enable Power Search to research posts from the wider web.

Better WordPress search in three steps: Activate, Configure options, Search!

Search Everything increases the ability of the default WordPress Search, options include: Search Highlighting, Search Every Page, Search Every Tag, Search Custom Taxonomies, Search Every Category, Search non-password protected pages only, Search Every Comment, Search only approved comments, Search Every Draft, Search Every Excerpt, Search Every Attachment, Search Every Custom Field, Exclude Posts from search, Exclude Categories from search.

Comparing to Alternatives

Search Everything is a plugin designed to enhance WordPress search capabilities, but it faces competition from several actively maintained alternatives that offer more modern features and better compatibility.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Simple to use and configure for basic search enhancements
Previously supported searching custom post types and metadata
Lightweight with minimal setup required
Free to use with no paid tiers
Integrates with default WordPress search functionality

Weaknesses

Plugin has been abandoned with no recent updates or support
Known critical security vulnerabilities in past versions
Compatibility issues with modern WordPress versions and plugins like WooCommerce
Reported to cause fatal errors and break other plugins

User Sentiment Analysis

With a majority of ratings being positive, users initially appreciated the plugin's functionality; however, a significant minority report critical issues, reflecting a divided user experience largely due to abandonment and compatibility problems.

Positive highlights

'Two Words: Break Everything' - Paul Scollon (5★) highlights the plugin's impact but in a negative context, indicating it affects other plugins.
'Throws a fatal error when adding a new post with WP 5.3' - Chad Reitsma (5★) notes a workaround to continue usage despite errors.
Users appreciated the plugin's ability to make custom content searchable before abandonment.

Common complaints

Plugin is abandoned with no ongoing support or development
Breaks WooCommerce order search functionality
No longer works with recent WordPress updates
Causes critical errors and breaks site search functions
Deprecated functions lead to plugin failure

Weaknesses

High security risk score with multiple critical vulnerabilities historically
Lack of updates leaves plugin incompatible with modern WordPress versions
Reported to cause fatal errors and conflicts with other plugins

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Users looking for a simple search enhancement on older WordPress installations who do not require ongoing support or compatibility with the latest plugins.

Not ideal for

Anyone running a modern WordPress site needing reliable, secure, and actively supported search functionality, especially those using WooCommerce or other complex plugins.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers basic search enhancements including searching custom post types and metadata without any cost.

Final Verdict

Search Everything once provided valuable search enhancements but has been abandoned and is no longer maintained, leading to compatibility and security issues. Users report critical errors and broken functionality, especially with WooCommerce and recent WordPress versions. Given its high security risk score and lack of updates, it is not recommended for active sites.

There are several well-maintained alternatives available that offer better security, ongoing support, and advanced features. Users seeking reliable search improvements should consider these options instead of Search Everything to ensure site stability and security.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free Search Everything plugin.

Search Everything

Search Highlight

Category Search

Screenshots

FAQ

Installation Instructions:

Download the plugin and unzip it.
Put the ‘search-everything’ directory into your wp-content/plugins/ directory.
Go to the Plugins page in your WordPress Administration area and click ‘Activate’ next to Search Everything.
Go to the Settings > Search Everything and configure it.
That’s it. Enjoy searching.