How sorting works

Every time SmartSort AI sorts a collection, it ranks the products in that collection, then moves them into the new order in Shopify. This article explains both steps, so you can predict exactly where a product will land.

The order, top to bottom

SmartSort AI places each product in one group (a “band”), in this order:

1. Featured products — the products you pin to the collection, in the order you choose. See Featured products.
2. New arrivals — products that are still new (and, if you choose, products that just came back in stock). See New arrivals and out-of-stock products.
3. Pushed up — products with one of your “push to top” tags, then products matching a “push to top” rule.
4. Everything else — ranked by your sort order.
5. Pushed down — products with one of your “push to bottom” tags, then products matching a “push to bottom” rule.
6. Out of stock — products that can’t be bought right now, if out-of-stock handling is on.

A product only ever belongs to one band, checked in this order: featured, then out of stock, then new, then “push to top” tags and rules, then “push to bottom” tags and rules. So a sold-out new arrival goes to the bottom, and a product with both a “push to top” and a “push to bottom” tag goes up.

Note: Featured products always lead, even when they’re sold out. SmartSort AI’s recommendations warn you when that happens.

Inside each band

Products within a band are ranked by:

1. The band’s sort order. Normally that’s your main sort order (for example Number of sales – high to low). New arrivals and out-of-stock products can use a different one.
2. The secondary sort, for products that tie on the first one — for example two products that sold the same amount.
3. Their current position, for products that still tie. Products that don’t need to move stay where they are.

Tag groups follow the order of your tag list: products with the first tag come before products with the second tag, and so on. Rule groups follow the order of your rules.

The sort orders reference lists every sort order and the data it uses.

Applying the order in Shopify

When SmartSort AI turns on for a collection, it remembers the collection’s current Shopify sort order (for example Best selling) and switches it to Manual. Then, at every sort:

1. It reads the collection’s live order from Shopify, so products added or removed since the last sort are taken into account.
2. It calculates the new order.
3. It works out the fewest moves that turn the current order into the new one and sends only those to Shopify. If three products changed places, three products move — even in a collection of 50,000.
4. It records the sort (what triggered it, how many products moved, the order before and after) in the collection’s history.

If nothing needs to change, nothing is sent and the sort is recorded as unchanged.

Between sorts

Shopify adds products that join a manual collection at the end. They move to their ranked position at the next sort — or within a couple of minutes if you use real-time re-sorting. See Schedules and real-time sorting.

You can still drag products in your Shopify admin, but SmartSort AI replaces that order at the next sort. To keep a product in a fixed spot at the top, make it a featured product instead.

What your shoppers see

Your theme shows the collection in its sort order by default, so shoppers see SmartSort AI’s order. If a shopper picks another option from your theme’s Sort by menu (such as Price, low to high), Shopify uses that order for them instead.