I’m experiencing an issue with faceted filtering behavior on a product listing page and I’d like guidance on how to properly implement dependent (cascading) filters.
Expected behavior (reference example)
On Apple’s website, when a user selects a filter such as Product Type, all other filters (for example Compatibility) dynamically update:
Only options that are valid for the selected Product Type remain enabled.
Filter options that have no matching products are disabled or hidden.
This prevents users from selecting incompatible filter combinations.
Current behavior in my BigCommerce store
In my BigCommerce store:
Filters work independently.
When a user selects a filter (e.g. Brand or Product Type), the other filters do not update.
Filter options remain selectable even if they would return zero results.
This causes confusion and allows invalid filter combinations.
What I’m trying to achieve
I need the filters to behave as dependent / cascading filters, where:
Selecting one facet updates the available values of the other facets.
Facet values are dynamically enabled/disabled based on the current product result set.
The behavior matches modern UX standards like Apple’s product filtering.
My questions
Does BigCommerce natively support dependent (cascading) faceted filters?
If not, is there an official or recommended approach using:
Stencil theme customization?
Storefront API / GraphQL?
Search or faceted search configuration?
Are there any limitations in BigCommerce’s faceted search engine that prevent this behavior?
I’ve attached screenshots comparing Apple’s filtering behavior vs. my BigCommerce store for clarity.
Thanks in advance for your help.
I’m experiencing an issue with faceted filtering behavior on a product listing page and I’d like guidance on how to properly implement dependent (cascading) filters.
Expected behavior (reference example)
On Apple’s website, when a user selects a filter such as Product Type, all other filters (for example Compatibility) dynamically update:
Only options that are valid for the selected Product Type remain enabled.
Filter options that have no matching products are disabled or hidden.
This prevents users from selecting incompatible filter combinations.
Current behavior in my BigCommerce store
In my BigCommerce store:
Filters work independently.
When a user selects a filter (e.g. Brand or Product Type), the other filters do not update.
Filter options remain selectable even if they would return zero results.
This causes confusion and allows invalid filter combinations.
What I’m trying to achieve
I need the filters to behave as dependent / cascading filters, where:
Selecting one facet updates the available values of the other facets.
Facet values are dynamically enabled/disabled based on the current product result set.
The behavior matches modern UX standards like Apple’s product filtering.
My questions
Does BigCommerce natively support dependent (cascading) faceted filters?
If not, is there an official or recommended approach using:
Stencil theme customization?
Storefront API / GraphQL?
Search or faceted search configuration?
Are there any limitations in BigCommerce’s faceted search engine that prevent this behavior?
I’ve attached screenshots comparing Apple’s filtering behavior vs. my BigCommerce store for clarity.
Thanks in advance for your help.