Category and tag matching rules

Use catalogue context to sharpen automatic suggestions

Co-purchase history can reveal valuable relationships across a catalogue, but some stores want an extra relevance layer before those candidates reach the Cart. The GoScript Smart Cart Recommendations WordPress plugin lets you optionally limit global history-based candidates by category or tag relationships.

These matching rules are a practical way to keep automatic Cart suggestions closer to the type of products a shopper already has in their Cart-while still letting your own order history do the heavy lifting.

Choose the matching rule that suits your store

In the order-history and recommendation-logic settings, you can choose the optional relationship rule for global history-based recommendations:

Same categoryKeep candidates within the category context of the relevant Cart products.

Same tagUse shared product tags as a more focused relevance signal.

Same category or tagAllow either type of catalogue connection when you want a broader relevant pool.

You can also leave the optional matching rule off when shared-order evidence should have room to surface relationships across your wider catalogue.

How the rule fits a multi-product Cart

Smart Cart Recommendations evaluates the relevant Cart products and the available history-based candidates as it builds one final Cart section. When a matching rule is enabled, it narrows the historical candidates using the category or tag relationship you selected before the final results are displayed.

That allows your Cart to benefit from combined co-purchase evidence while keeping automatic suggestions grounded in the catalogue connections you consider commercially useful.

Manual recommendations remain under your direct control

Manual recommendations for an individual product do not need to meet the optional category or tag relationship rule. They are your direct product choices, which makes them ideal for intentional pairings that sit outside your usual catalogue structure.

Matching is not the final eligibility check

Passing a category or tag rule does not guarantee a candidate will appear. Smart Cart Recommendations still removes products already in the Cart, duplicates, unavailable products, hidden products, out-of-stock products, non-purchasable products, and globally excluded products, categories, or tags.

If the matching rule leaves fewer candidates than your selected product count, a configured best-seller or newest-product fallback can fill available space after the smart and manual candidates have been considered.

A practical way to choose

• Start without a category or tag rule when you want to see the full strength of your co-purchase history.
• Choose same category when your catalogue is organised into clear product families.
• Choose same tag when tags represent meaningful attributes, use cases, or collections.
• Choose category or tag when either signal can make a candidate feel appropriate for the Cart.
• Review results with real Cart combinations and refine the rule when your catalogue evolves.