Wasting $103K on Manual Searches? Build Custom Filters in Odoo 18

Sales manager opens Odoo product list—2,400 products. Needs to find "Products under $50 with stock < 10 units, grouped by category." Manual approach: Scroll, click product, check price, check stock, note category. Takes 47 minutes to compile list for reordering meeting. Does this 3 times weekly = 2.4 hours. Developer says: "Add custom filter." Quote: $1,200. Business rejects (too expensive for "just a filter"). Keeps scrolling 47 minutes, 3 times weekly. Annual waste: 124 hours × $67/hour = $8,308.

Your search UX disaster: Default Odoo search shows all 2,400 records (overwhelming). Users manually scroll looking for specific data. Common searches repeated daily (e.g., "My open orders", "Overdue invoices", "Low stock products"). No saved filters—re-enter criteria every time. Grouping unavailable—can't organize by category/salesperson/status. Search by name only (can't search by custom fields). Meeting prep takes 47 minutes scrolling (should take 30 seconds with proper filters). Reports delayed (waiting for data compilation).

Cost: Manual scrolling = 47 min × 3 weekly × 52 × $67/hour = $8,308/year (sales manager). Repeated searches = 23 users × 8 searches daily × 1.2 min each × 252 days × $67/hour = $52,147/year. Delayed decisions (waiting for data) = 8 critical decisions delayed avg 2.7 days = $43,200 opportunity cost. Developer quotes rejected = $1,200 × 8 filter requests = $9,600 (could've solved problem). User frustration = decreased productivity, increased errors (wrong product selected from long list).

Odoo 18 Search Views/Filters/Grouping fix this: Define custom search fields in XML (search by any field). Create predefined filters (one-click: "Low Stock", "My Orders", "Overdue"). Add grouping options ("Group by Category", "Group by Salesperson"). Filters saved—users don't re-enter. Complex conditions possible (price < $50 AND stock < 10). Takes 15 minutes to configure vs $1,200 quote. Here's how to build search views so you stop losing $103K annually to manual data hunting.

What Search Views/Filters/Grouping Do

Search Views: Define which fields users can search (name, email, custom fields). Filters: Predefined conditions (one-click: show inactive, overdue, mine). Grouping: Organize records by field (category, status, salesperson).

Step 1: Define Search View (Basic)

Search view specifies which fields users can search.

Create Search View XML

    
        product.product.search
        product.product
        
            
                
                
                
                
                
                
            
        
    

How Users Search

1. User clicks search bar in list view
2. Dropdown shows: "Search Product Name, Internal Reference, Barcode, Category..."
3. User selects field (e.g., "Category")
4. Types value (e.g., "Electronics")
5. Odoo instantly filters list to matching records

Step 2: Add Predefined Filters

Filters = one-click conditions. Users don't type—just click filter name.

Basic Filters

Advanced Filter Examples

Domain Syntax Reference

Step 3: Add Grouping Options

Grouping organizes records into collapsible categories.

Common Grouping Use Cases

• Group by Salesperson: Track individual performance (who sold what)
• Group by Status: Organize workflows (Pending, In Progress, Done)
• Group by Category: Product organization (Electronics, Clothing, etc.)
• Group by Region: Geographic analysis (customers by state/country)
• Group by Date: Time-based analysis (orders by month/year)

Step 4: Complete Example (Products)

Full search view with fields, filters, and grouping for product management.

    
        product.product.search.custom
        product.product
        
            
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                    
                
            
        
    

Step 5: Register View in __manifest__.py

{
    'name': 'Custom Search Views',
    'version': '18.0.1.0.0',
    'depends': ['base', 'product', 'stock'],
    'data': [
        'views/product_views.xml',
    ],
}

Step 6: Test Search View

1. Update module: -u module_name
2. Go to Products list view
3. Test searchable fields:
   • Click search bar
   • See custom fields in dropdown
   • Type value, verify filtering works
4. Test filters:
   • Click Filters dropdown
   • See custom filters listed
   • Click filter, verify records filtered
   • Try combining multiple filters
5. Test grouping:
   • Click Group By dropdown
   • Select grouping option (e.g., "Category")
   • Verify records grouped with expand/collapse
   • Try multiple groupings simultaneously

Advanced Techniques

1. Default Filters (Auto-Applied)

    Products
    product.product
    tree,form
    
    
    {'search_default_filter_to_sell': 1}

search_default_filter_name: 1 auto-applies filter when view opens.

2. Date Range Filters

3. Custom Search with Filter Domain

Real-World Impact

Best Practices