How to Add a Search Bar to WordPress Menu (Step by Step)
by default you can only add the WordPress search widget to widget-ready areas such as the sidebar. Luckily, there are many different WordPress search plugins that let you add the search bar to different areas on your site including navigation menus.
With that said, let’s see how to add a search bar to your WordPress navigation menu.
Adding a Search Bar to WordPress Navigation Menu
The easiest way to add a search bar to your website’s navigation bar, is by using SearchWP Modal Search Form. This free plugin is easy to use, looks great with any theme, and won’t negatively impact your site’s performance.
The first thing you need to do is to install and activate the SearchWP Modal Search Form plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Upon activation, you need to add the search bar to your WordPress menu. Simply go to Appearance » Menus and then make sure you select the Primary menu in the ‘Select menu to edit’ dropdown.
Make Sure the Primary Menu Is Selected
After that, click on the ‘Select’ button.
Next, click on the SearchWP Modal Search Forms box towards the left of the screen.
The SearchWP native search template
You can see the plugin has automatically added a ‘Native WordPress’ search template. Go ahead and check the ‘Native WordPress’ box.
Then, click on the ‘Add to menu’ button.
Adding a search bar to the WordPress navigation menu
WordPress will now add a new ‘Native WordPress’ item to the menu.
To configure this item, give it a click. To start, it’s a good idea to change the navigation label to ‘Search’ so visitors know this is a search field.
To make this change, simply type ‘Search’ into the ‘Navigation Label’ field.
Adding a Search label to the WordPress navigation menu
After that, click on the ‘Save Menu’ button to save your changes. Now, if you visit your WordPress blog, you’ll see a new Search bar in the navigation menu.
SearchWP will automatically style the search to suit your WordPress theme, as you can see in the following images
we asked google bard
WordPress search in menu
There are two main ways to add a search bar to your WordPress menu:
Using the WordPress widget panel: This is the simplest and quickest method for adding a search bar when you have a widget area in the header.
Go to Appearance > Widgets from your WordPress dashboard.
Look for the widget named Search.
Click on the widget and then drag and drop it to the widget area where you want the search bar to appear.
Click the Save button to save your changes.
Using a plugin: There are many plugins available that can add a search bar to your WordPress menu. Some popular plugins include:
Ivory Search
SearchWP
Relevanssi
To use a plugin to add a search bar to your WordPress menu, simply install and activate the plugin, and then follow the plugin’s instructions.
Once you have added a search bar to your WordPress menu, you can customize it to match your theme and preferences. For example, you can change the navigation label, the placeholder text, and the search results page.
Here are some tips for using the WordPress search bar effectively:
Make sure that the search bar is prominently displayed in your menu.
Use a clear and concise navigation label for the search bar.
Use a placeholder text that tells visitors what to search for.
Make sure that the search results page is relevant and easy to use.
Here are some additional tips for using the WordPress search bar with plugins:
If you are using a plugin to add a search bar to your WordPress menu, make sure that the plugin is compatible with your theme and other plugins.
Take advantage of the plugin’s customization options to match the search bar to your theme and preferences.
Test the search bar regularly to make sure that it is working properly.