Customize search result types in SharePoint Server
APPLIES TO: 
2013 2016 2019 Subscription Edition 
SharePoint in Microsoft 365
Create and configure custom search result types in SharePoint Server so that users can readily distinguish and preview different kinds of items in a list of search results in the classic search experience.
A search result type is a rule that causes distinct kinds of search results to be displayed in different ways. It consists of the following:
One or more characteristics or conditions to compare each search result against, such as the result source or content type of the search result
A display template to use for search results that meet the conditions. The display template controls the way in which all results that meet the conditions appear and behave on a search results page.
The search system has preconfigured result types that it uses by default. You can view them on the Manage Result Types page. For example, a preconfigured result type named Person specifies that if a search result comes from the result source Local People Results, then use the People Item display template to display the result. The People Item display template shows certain user-profile information in the search result and provides links in the hover panel for documents that the person has authored.
As a site collection administrator or site owner, you can use the default result types as starting points for creating custom result types. For example, the pre-configured Microsoft Excel result type specifies the condition that the file extension of the search result is XLS or XLSX. You could copy this result type and customize it so that it also includes the condition that the value of the ContentType managed property is Sales Report. That way, users will readily be able to identify certain Excel search results as sales reports.
You could also customize the default Excel Item display template for this purpose. A display template specifies how to display managed properties of a search result, such as item title, file extension, path, and summary. This helps users to distinguish results easily. The display template also controls how a document or site will appear in the preview pane (also called the hover panel) to the right of the search result. This helps users to know whether a search result will be useful to them before they click the result to open it. For example, the Excel Item display template can display relevant charts, worksheets, and tables from an Excel document in the hover panel and enable users to go directly to those sections in the document. For more information about display templates for search result types, see:
Create and configure a custom search result type
- Go to the Manage Result Types page by doing one of the following:
If you want to create a result type for a site collection:
Ensure that you are an administrator for the site collection.
In the site collection, go to Settings > Site settings, and then in the Site Collection Administration section, click Search Result Types.
If you want to create a result type for a site:
Ensure that you are a site owner for the site.
On the site, go to Settings > Site settings, and then in the Search section, click Result Types.
- To create a result type, do one of the following on the Manage Result Types page:
Click New Result Type.
In the list of existing result types, click the name of a result type, such as Person, and then click Copy so that you can modify the copy to create a new result type.
Tip
When you create a result type, we recommend that you use the copy method, so that the settings in an existing result type can help guide you through the configuration process.
On the Add Result Type page, in the General Information section, in the Give it a name text box, type a name for the new result type.
On the Add Result Type page, in the Conditions section, do the following:
In the Which source should results match? drop-down list, select a result source such as All Sources or Documents.
For any given search result, this condition will be met if the search result is from the result source that you selected from this drop-down list.
(Optional) In the What types of content should match? drop-down list, do the following:
Select a type of content, such as Microsoft Word.
Note
If you do not select a type of content, all results from the result source that you specified (in the Which source should results match? section) will match this result type.
As many times as appropriate, click Add Value and select another type of content.
- (Optional) On the Add Result Type page, expand the Show more conditions section, and then do the following:
In the Which custom properties should match? section, the items in the Select a property drop-down list are retrievable managed properties. Select a property that you want the search system to perform a match on, such as Author.
In the second drop-down list, specify the operator, such as Equals any of.
In the text box, specify the value against which the search system should search for a match.
Separate multiple values with semicolons. Alternatively, as many times as appropriate, click Add Value and type another value in the new text box that appears.
For example, if you select the Author property and you select the operator Equals any of, then if you specify multiple values such as Kara and Silas, the condition will be "author equals Kara or Silas".
To add another property to match, click Add Property.
- On the Add Result Type page, in the Actions section, do the following:
In the What should these results look like? drop-down list, click a display template such as Office Document Item or PDF Item.
Display templates for search results are in the Search folder in the master page gallery for the site collection. The Display template URL box automatically displays the URL of the display template that corresponds to the display template that you selected.
Select the Optimize for frequent use check box if you expect this result type to appear frequently in search results.
See also
Concepts
Result types and display templates that are used to display search results in SharePoint Server