Post Relation Search

Upgrades Voxel's "Post relation" search filter into a much more capable filter: type-to-search, opt-in multi-select with ANY/ALL matching, live result counts, dropdown ordering, scope, and per-widget curation.

Updated in 1.7.4

This function received a major upgrade. Existing filters keep their exact behavior — a searchable single-select dropdown — until you turn on the new options per filter in the post type editor.

Overview

Out of the box, Voxel's relation filter is a scroll-only, single-select list. With this function enabled, every relation filter gains AJAX type-to-search, and the post type editor gains new per-filter options for multi-select, matching behavior, ordering, live counts, and scope.

Key Features

• Type-to-search — AJAX search across post titles (and user display names for profiles)
• Multi-select — let users pick several related posts, shown as removable chips
• ANY / ALL matching — results relate to at least one selected post, or to every one
• Adaptive counts — each option shows how many results it would return under the current search; empty options hide
• Dropdown ordering — title A→Z / Z→A, newest, or oldest
• Scope — offer any published post, or only the current user's own posts
• Per-widget curation — per search form, hide specific posts or restrict the list to specific posts
• "Load more" pagination for long lists

Setup Instructions

Step 1: Enable the Function

1. Navigate to Voxel Toolkit → Functions and enable Post Relation Search
2. Type-to-search activates immediately on all existing relation filters — nothing else changes

Step 2: Turn On the New Options (per filter)

1. Go to Voxel → Post Types → your post type → Filtering
2. Open (or add) a Post relation filter
3. Configure the new options:

Option	Description	Default
Allow selecting multiple posts?	Turns the filter into a multi-select with chips	Off
Multiple selections match	ANY of the selected posts, or ALL of them	Any
Order dropdown posts by	Title A→Z / Z→A, newest, oldest	Title
Enable adaptive display?	Live result counts per option; zero-result options hide	Off
Scope	Any author's posts, or only the current user's	Any
Placeholder	Text shown in the empty filter	—

Per-Widget Options (Elementor)

Each Search Form widget's relation filter also offers:

Option	Description
Hide specific posts	Comma-separated post IDs excluded from this dropdown
Restrict to specific posts	The dropdown lists only these IDs
Show selected chips	Show removable chips for selections inside the popup

Use Cases

Large Directories

Thousands of related posts stay usable — type a few letters instead of scrolling.

Multi-Venue Event Search

"Show events at any of these three venues" — or with ALL matching, posts related to every selected item.

Dashboards

Scope set to "current user" turns the filter into "filter by my own listings."

Curated Landing Pages

Restrict a page's filter to a handpicked set of featured partners.

Troubleshooting

Search returns nothing

• The typeahead uses a MySQL FULLTEXT index on post titles; Voxel normally creates it. If an admin notice reports a missing index, re-run Voxel's database setup
• MySQL fulltext search needs at least 3-4 characters

Multi-select isn't available

• Enable Allow selecting multiple posts? on the filter itself in the post type editor — it's off by default so existing filters don't change

Adaptive counts don't update

• Adaptive display is per filter — enable it in the filter's options
• Counts refresh after each search change; give slow hosts a moment

Options missing from the dropdown

• Check the widget's Restrict to specific posts / Hide specific posts settings
• With adaptive display on, options with zero results under the current search are hidden by design