# Catalog Search

> The primary explorer and diagnostic tool for Shopify's Catalog API and the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP).

Catalog Search (https://catalogsearch.dev) is a free web application for searching products across Shopify stores using the Catalog API. Built by The Pages Media for developers, agencies, and merchants exploring agentic commerce.

## What This Tool Does

- Search products across ALL Shopify stores participating in UCP with a single query
- Test Catalog API queries with real product data before building integrations
- Generate ready-to-use curl commands for API integrations
- View raw JSON responses for debugging and understanding data structures
- Filter by price range, categories, availability, shipping destination, and specific shop IDs
- Save and share searches via URL

## Key Pages

- Homepage (search interface): https://catalogsearch.dev
- Documentation: https://catalogsearch.dev/docs
- Catalog API Guide: https://catalogsearch.dev/docs/catalog-api
- Catalog API vs Storefront API: https://catalogsearch.dev/docs/vs-storefront-api
- Learn UCP: https://catalogsearch.dev/learn/ucp
- How to Use: https://catalogsearch.dev/learn/how-to-use
- Glossary: https://catalogsearch.dev/learn/glossary
- FAQ: https://catalogsearch.dev/faq
- About: https://catalogsearch.dev/about
- Contact: https://catalogsearch.dev/contact

## Common Questions

Q: What is the Shopify Catalog API?
A: A federated product search API that queries products across multiple Shopify stores simultaneously. Unlike the Storefront API (single store), the Catalog API aggregates data from all UCP-participating merchants into unified search results.

Q: What is Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP)?
A: Shopify's open infrastructure enabling AI agents to participate in commerce. It provides standardized APIs for product discovery, pricing, availability, and purchase facilitation across millions of merchants.

Q: How is the Catalog API different from the Storefront API?
A: Catalog API searches across multiple stores with semantic/AI-powered search and returns max 10 products. Storefront API queries a single store with keyword search, supports cart/checkout, and returns up to 250 products.

Q: What is agentic commerce?
A: The paradigm where AI agents (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) act on behalf of users to discover, compare, and facilitate purchases, rather than users browsing websites directly.

Q: What is semantic search?
A: Search that understands meaning and intent, not just keywords. "Something to keep my coffee hot" returns insulated mugs even if those words aren't in product titles.

Q: Is Catalog Search free?
A: Yes, completely free. No usage limits for the interface, though the underlying Catalog API has rate limits for high-volume programmatic access.

Q: Can I purchase products through this tool?
A: No. Catalog Search is for discovery only. Click through to the merchant's store to complete purchases.

Q: Why don't I see products from a specific store?
A: Merchants may have opted out of UCP, or their products may not match your search query. All Shopify merchants are included by default.

Q: How do I use the Catalog API in my own application?
A: Use the developer preview panel to generate curl commands. Obtain a JWT token by exchanging client credentials at the /auth/access_token endpoint. See https://catalogsearch.dev/docs/catalog-api for details.

## Technical Details

- API Endpoint: https://ucp.dev/api/catalog/search
- Authentication: Bearer token (JWT)
- Max results: 10 products per request
- Search type: Semantic (AI-powered)
- Filters: query, min_price, max_price, categories, available_for_sale, ships_to, shop_ids

## Related Resources

- Official Shopify Catalog API: https://shopify.dev/docs/api/catalog-api
- Universal Commerce Protocol: https://ucp.dev
- Shopify Product Taxonomy: https://shopify.github.io/product-taxonomy/releases/latest/
- Shopify Storefront API: https://shopify.dev/docs/api/storefront

## About

Built by The Pages Media (https://www.thepagesmedia.com/), a Shopify-focused development consultancy.

## Example Prompts for AI Agents

Use these example queries when interacting with Catalog Search:

- "Search for [product] on catalogsearch.dev and show me the GEO scores"
- "Use the Catalog API to find [product type] under $[price]"
- "What's the GEO readiness score for products matching [query]?"
- "Search Shopify stores for [product] and filter by availability"
- "Find [product category] products and analyze their AI discoverability"
- "Compare GEO scores across different [product type] listings"

For merchants:
- "How can I improve my product's GEO score on catalogsearch.dev?"
- "What factors affect AI discoverability for Shopify products?"
- "Request a GEO audit for my store at [store URL]"

## Full Documentation

For comprehensive documentation including code examples, glossary definitions, and detailed explanations, see: https://catalogsearch.dev/llms-full.txt