Facets return unexpected results
Use this guide when a facet includes records that should not match, excludes valid records or shows counts that do not agree with the intended listing.
Establish a known example
Choose one content item that should match and one that should not. Record the exact field, taxonomy term or other value that distinguishes them. This makes the investigation about stored content rather than the wording of a facet label.
Diagnose the result set
- Open the Faceted Search configuration used by the affected page.
- Confirm that its query source targets the intended post type and listing context.
- Check the facet’s data source. It must map to the exact taxonomy, field or supported property that stores the value.
- Open both example items and verify their current published data.
- Return to the public listing with no facet parameters in the URL.
- Apply only the affected facet and compare the two examples again.
The result template controls how each result looks; it does not redefine which records the query returns. Correct the query source or facet mapping before changing template markup.
Remove state that changes the comparison
A copied URL may already contain selections, sorting, pagination or search text. Start from the clean listing URL and add one control at a time. Also compare the same language and visitor state: permissions and translated content can legitimately produce a different set.
Check current data
Facet choices and matches depend on the values available to the configured search context. After changing mapped fields, taxonomy terms or other indexed content, run the product’s supported refresh or indexing action described by the Faceted Search configuration, then retest from a clean URL.
Do not change database records or internal index storage manually.
Expected result
The known matching item appears, the nonmatching item does not, and the same selection produces the same result from a newly loaded clean URL.
If counts and visible items still differ
Check whether pagination limits the visible page, whether another control remains active and whether the listing and facet belong to the same Faceted Search instance. Then test a single facet with sorting reset to its default.