Deskripsyon
Turn your WordPress post categories into a search powerhouse! This plugin gives you a set of dropdown menus based on parent categories and their sub-categories. Users select one sub-category per parent, and the plugin filters posts matching the selected combination.
Available as:
- Gutenberg Block — “Multi-Category Filter” in the block inserter (new in v4)
- Classic Widget — “Multi-Category Selection” in Appearance > Widgets
- Shortcode —
[mcsw]on any page or post
Features:
- AND / OR category filtering — find posts matching ALL or ANY selected categories
- AJAX chained drilldown — selecting a parent dynamically loads its children
- Pretty permalink URLs (
/categories/3,5/search_type/and/order/title/) - Ordering by title or default
- Configurable blank search behavior
- Exclude specific categories
- Lightweight — no jQuery, no external dependencies
- Pagination support
- Display form above results on category pages (optional)
Sample use case:
Real estate — set up parent categories like “Bedrooms”, “Bathrooms”, “Price Range” with sub-categories beneath them. Users filter listings by selecting from each dropdown.
Upgrading from v3.x:
- PHP sessions have been removed entirely — the URL now carries all state, which means better compatibility with caching plugins, load balancers, and modern hosting
- jQuery has been replaced with vanilla JavaScript
- CSS classes have changed from
wpmcsw/wpmmto BEM-stylemcsw-*classes — update any custom CSS - The old
select-chain.jsin the plugin root has been replaced byjs/select-chain.js
Blocks
Ang plugin na ito ay nagbibigay ng 1 block.
- Multi-Category Filter Filter posts by selecting multiple categories using dropdown menus.
Pag-install
- Upload the plugin folder to
/wp-content/plugins/ - Activate through the Plugins menu
- Create parent categories with sub-categories beneath them
- Add posts and assign them to the sub-categories
As a block:
In the block editor, search for “Multi-Category Filter” and add it.
As a widget:
Go to Appearance > Widgets and add “Multi-Category Selection” to a sidebar.
As a shortcode:
Add [mcsw] to any page or post. Configure the shortcode form settings under Settings > Multiple Category Selection.
AJAX chaining example:
Create a category hierarchy like:
Country
– Australia
– State
– Vic
– NSW
– New Zealand
– State
– Auckland
– Wellington
Enable “AJAX Chaining” in Settings > Multiple Category Selection. Selecting “Australia” will dynamically show the Australian states.
FAQ
-
ANY vs ALL is not working?
-
Click the “Reset” button first to clear the current filter, then try again.
-
The dropdowns aren’t appearing
-
Dropdowns only appear for parent categories that have sub-categories with published posts. Make sure your categories have posts assigned.
-
Can I style the dropdowns?
-
Yes. The form uses
.mcsw-form, each dropdown is in.mcsw-select-wrap, and AJAX-chained results use.mcsw-chained. See the plugin’scss/style.cssfor the full class list.
Mga Review
Mga Contributor at Developer
Ang “Multiple Category Selection Widget” ay open source software. Ang mga sumusunod na tao ay nag-ambag sa plugin na ito.
Mga Contributor
Isalin ang “Multiple Category Selection Widget” sa iyong wika.
Interesado sa development?
Tingnan ang code, i-check ang SVN repository, o mag-subscribe sa development log sa pamamagitan ng RSS.
Changelog
4.0.0
- New: Gutenberg block — “Multi-Category Filter” available in the block editor
- New: Lightweight CSS file with clean BEM-style classes
- Removed: PHP sessions — all search state now carried in URL query parameters
- Removed: jQuery dependency — AJAX chaining rewritten in vanilla JavaScript
- Fixed: AJAX chaining now sends the nonce (was broken since v3.2.0)
- Fixed: Shortcode now returns output instead of echoing (proper shortcode behavior)
- Fixed: Rewrite rules no longer flushed on every page load (only on activation)
- Fixed: AJAX handler uses wp_send_json_success() instead of print/die
- Changed: Admin settings page uses dedicated slug instead of FILE
- Changed: All redirect calls use wp_safe_redirect()
- Changed: Requires WordPress 6.0+
- Security: Tightened input validation with sanitize_key(), absint(), whitelist checks
3.2.0
- PHP 8.x compatibility: replaced create_function() with anonymous function
- Security: ABSPATH guards, nonce verification, input sanitization, output escaping
- Replaced get_bloginfo(‘url’) with home_url()
3.1.6
- Tested in WP 4.3.1
- Updated widget implementation to PHP 5 methodology
3.1.5
- Tested in WP 3.8
- Fixed overriding the navigation menu WP script
3.1.4
- Tested in WP 3.7
- Fixed media library files missing after plugin search
3.1.3
- Tested in WP 3.5.2
- Fixed AND/IN rewrite rules
3.1.1
- Extensive testing on any/all search
- Reverted select box layout
3.1
- Created admin settings page
- Added shortcode [mcsw]
- AJAX on/off toggle
- Form display above results toggle
3.0
- Support for multiple forms on a page
- Shortcode support
- Rewrite rule fixes
2.4
- Rewrite rules only flush on activation
2.3
- Fixed variable checking
- Added title ordering
2.2
- AJAX chained select boxes
2.1
- WordPress 2.8+ widget class with multiple instances
2.0
- Fixed permalink issues
- All-in-one-SEO and WP Smart Sort compatibility
1.0
- First release