How to disable default search in WordPress using PHP

Having a search function on WordPress sites with limited ages or one-page navigation sites is not helpful for the users. This article shows you how to use a short PHP function to disable the default search function.

Disabling search in WordPress

Follow the steps below to edit your Theme setting file to manually disable search in WordPress:

1. Log in to your WordPress site with an administrator account.
2. On the Dashboard in the left sidebar, click Appearance, and then click Theme Editor:

   

3. On the Theme Editor , select the Theme you want to edit from the dropdown:
   

   

4. The files for this selected theme are listed on the right column under Theme Files. Click on the file named “functions.php”:
   

   

    

   function disable_search( $query, $error = true ) {
   if ( is_search() ) {
   
   $query->is_search = false;
   
   $query->query_vars[s] = false;
   
   $query->query[s] = false;
   
   // to error
   
   if ( $error == true )
   
   $query->is_404 = true;
   
   }
   
   }
   
   add_action( 'parse_query', 'disable_search' );
   
   add_filter( 'get_search_form', create_function( '$a', "return null;" ) );

    

5. Insert the following code to the end of functions.php file and click Update File Button to save the changes: