¶ Items sort - rules in the panel and per category
Item sorting in Hummerce decides the order in which the customer sees products on a category list and in search results. Store staff define sorting rules on their own in the panel - without editing search engine configuration files and without a developer - and can choose a different default sort order for each category.
As of Hummerce version 2.28 (sorting rules in the panel, together with the current search mechanism), updated 2026-10-16. Default sorting set separately for each category and automatic item popularity calculation - since version 2.27.
¶ Benefits and use cases
- Store staff manage sorting rules on their own in the panel (Configuration -> Items sort) - name, direction and visibility of a rule - without a request to a developer and without restarting the search engine.
- A default sort order can be set separately for each category (e.g. a new-arrivals category sorted by date added, a clearance category sorted by price) - the customer immediately sees what matters most in that category.
- The sort direction and the places a rule is available in (categories, search results) are set independently for each rule.
- Changing the rules doesn't require rebuilding the search index or any store downtime.
- The store calculates item popularity from orders on its own, so sorting "by popularity" needs no hand-kept ranking, and selected items can additionally be boosted with a manual modifier.
- A sorting rule is an entry on the Configuration -> Items sort list: Symbol, Name (separately for each language), Sort direction (ascending/descending), Used in categories (yes/no), Used in search results (yes/no) and Sort by - the property the rule sorts by.
- The order of rules in the store's selection list is set by dragging, after switching to reorder mode with the Set order button.
- The standard rules shipped with the store (relevance, order set manually in the category, name A-Z/Z-A, price ascending/descending) and their availability in categories and search results are described in Search and filters.
- A rule sorts by one of the fields sent to the search engine (e.g. price, name, date added). The field must already be on the list of fields sent to the search engine - if the property isn't there, adding a new rule requires development work.
- In the category edit view, the Default sort in category field lets you choose the rule the store uses to sort items in that category when the customer hasn't picked a different one manually, and set a sort direction independent of the direction saved on the rule itself.
- In the sort selector on the storefront, the customer doesn't see a separate entry for this setting - it is shown labeled as Default.
- The other rules (e.g. by name, by price) remain available for the customer to choose regardless of the default sort set for the category.
The store automatically calculates the popularity of every item and offers it as a sorting criterion.
- Where popularity comes from - it is the number of orders from the last 90 days that contain the item. Canceled orders are not counted. An item ordered several times within one order counts once.
- Calculation period - 90 days by default. The period is changed in the panel under Configuration -> Settings, group Item popularity, field Calculation period (a number of days, e.g. 30).
- How often it is recalculated - once a day, at night (by default at 0:10), by the scheduled task Popularity calculation visible in Status -> Tasks (see Scheduled tasks). Popularity therefore doesn't change in real time during the day.
- Which items are counted - by default items that are not deleted, are visible and can be bought. These rules are changed with the Item criteria field in the same settings group.
- Items with variants - the popularity of an article is the sum of the popularity of its variants (e.g. sizes). The Sum subitems values in article option is on by default.
- Manual modifier - in the item edit view, on the Promotion tab, the Popularity - modifier field lets you push an item up the list (a positive number) or down (a negative number). The modifier value is added to the automatically calculated popularity. Next to it, the Popularity field shows the value calculated by the store - it is generated automatically and not edited by hand.
- Where it works - popularity is sent to the search engine, so sorting by it works like the other rules: on category lists and in search results, depending on the Used in categories and Used in search results settings of the rule. In the store the sort option is by default called Most popular.
- A sorting rule by popularity - the standard list of rules (relevance, order in category, name, price) doesn't include it. It is added like any other rule in Configuration -> Items sort; if the popularity property isn't yet sent to the search engine, this requires implementation work (see Implementation).
- Switching on - popularity calculation is on by default (the Active setting in the Item popularity group).
The store setting Propagate changes in category filters to subcategories (Configuration -> Settings, Web store navigation group) also affects sorting: when it is on, a sorting change in a parent category can carry over together with the filters to subcategories; when it is off, every category keeps its own settings independently of the parent category.
- Sorting rules configured on your own in the panel (without editing search engine configuration files) - since version 2.28, together with the current search mechanism (see Search and filters).
- Default sorting set separately for each category - since version 2.27.
- Automatic item popularity calculation from orders and the manual popularity modifier - since version 2.27.
- The Apache SOLR search engine - rules sort by fields sent to the search index, see Search and filters.
- Categories - the default sort is set when editing the category, see Categories.
- Orders - item popularity is calculated from orders placed in the store (excluding canceled ones); the recalculation runs as a scheduled task, see Scheduled tasks.
- The property a new rule should sort by must already be added to the list of fields sent to the search engine.
- Works after the update - the standard sorting rules (price, name, relevance, order in category) are ready to use, and store staff set the category's default sort in the panel. Item popularity calculation from orders and the manual modifier in the item edit view are on by default - store staff can change the calculation period in the panel.
- Requires implementation - a new rule sorting by a property that isn't yet on the search engine's field list, including a rule "by popularity" if the popularity property isn't yet sent to the search engine.
- Minimum estimated time:
- choosing a category's default sort, changing the order and direction of existing rules, changing the popularity calculation period and setting manual popularity modifiers by the store - 0 h,
- a new sorting rule by a property already available on the search engine's field list (e.g. a rule by popularity, once popularity is already in the search engine) - from 1 h,
- a new sorting rule by a property not yet on the list (adding a field to the search engine) - from 3 h.
- The time for a specific implementation depends on its scope - we quote it individually.
- What the time depends on: whether the needed property is already sent to the search engine, the number of categories to configure, the number of store languages.
- A new sorting criterion outside the list of available fields requires development work (adding a field to the search index) - it cannot be added on your own in the panel.
- Popularity is calculated from the number of orders in the chosen period, not from the number of units or sales value, and is recalculated once a day - fresh orders affect the order only after the nightly recalculation and the search index update.
- The popularity calculation period is one for the whole store - you cannot set a different period for a selected category.
- Default category sorting is one setting per category - you cannot set different default sort orders for different views of the same category.
- The "Propagate changes in category filters to subcategories" setting affects filters and sorting at the same time - these two behaviors cannot be separated.
- We do not verify the task for legal compliance (e.g. licenses of supplied materials, GDPR, store terms and conditions).
- Adding a new property to the list of sorting criteria on your own, without development work.
- A separate default category sort per store view.
Can store staff add a new sorting rule on their own?
Partly. The name, direction and visibility of a rule (categories/search) are set on your own in the panel, but sorting by a completely new property that isn't yet on the search engine's field list requires development work.
Does the store calculate on its own which items are the most popular?
Yes. Once a day the store counts the orders from the last 90 days (excluding canceled ones) and gives every item a popularity - the number of orders it appeared in. The period can be changed in the panel.
Can I manually boost a chosen item in sorting by popularity?
Yes. In the item edit view, on the Promotion tab, the Popularity - modifier field adds the number you enter to the popularity calculated by the store. A negative number pushes the item down the list.
Does sorting by popularity work in search and in categories?
Yes, if the sorting rule has Used in categories and Used in search results switched on. Popularity is sent to the search engine, so both lists use the same data.
Can each category have a different default sort?
Yes. The category edit view lets you choose the rule and direction that apply when the customer hasn't changed the sorting manually.
Does changing a sorting rule require rebuilding the search index?
No. Sorting rules are configured independently of the index - the change applies immediately to new queries.
How long does it take to add a new sorting rule?
From 1 h if it sorts by a property already sent to the search engine; from 3 h if that property first needs to be added to the search index.
Does sorting work the same way in categories and in search results?
Not always - every rule has a separate visibility setting ("Used in categories" and "Used in search results"), so it may be available in only one of these places.
Want to see how item sorting could work in your store? Book a free demo (in Polish).
- Configuration -> Items sort - the rule list (Symbol, Name, Used in categories, Used in search results, Sort direction, Sort by), adding, editing, reordering (Set order).
- Category edit view - the Default sort in category field and its sort direction.
- Configuration -> Settings, Item popularity group - Active, Calculation period (days, 90 by default), Item criteria, Sum subitems values in article.
- Item edit view, Promotion tab - Popularity (generated automatically) and Popularity - modifier.
- Status -> Tasks - the Popularity calculation task (by default once a day, at 0:10).
- Configuration -> Settings, Web store navigation group - Propagate changes in category filters to subcategories.
¶ REST API and MCP
Sorting rules and a category's default sort are not available to read or change through the REST API or MCP. The list of items with a given sorting criterion, on the store's data, is fetched through the REST API and MCP - see Search and filters.
The label of the popularity sort option in the store (msg.popularity.sort - "Most popular"), the label of the sort selector in the store (msg.filters.title - "Sort by:") and the remaining search messages - see Search and filters. The names of the sorting rules themselves are translated when editing the rule, in each store language.