Datasource exclusion filters let you prevent specific products or product tags from appearing in any Rebuy widget connected to that data source. Common use cases include hiding gift cards, donation products, shipping protection items, or any product you don't want surfaced in recommendations.
Note: Exclusion filters work at the product level, not the variant level. If you exclude a product, all of its variants are excluded regardless of which variant you select.
How to Set Up a Datasource Exclusion Filter
Open your data source editor and locate the Add Exclusion Filter button.
You can exclude products in two ways:
By specific product Set the first dropdown to Specific Products, then search for and select the products you want to exclude. The search field supports variant-level selection, though the exclusion applies to the entire product.
By tag Set the first dropdown to Tag, then enter the tag name exactly as it appears in Shopify. You can enter a comma-separated list to exclude multiple tags at once.
You can add as many exclusion filters per data source as needed.
Troubleshooting Data Source Exclusion Filters
Verify the product tag in Shopify is spelled exactly as entered in the exclusion filter.
Test widget configurations to ensure exclusion rules function as intended.
Adjust rules for unique requirements of individual widgets.
If the product tags were newly created and the widget is not filtering those tagged products out, trigger a manual product sync to update product data in Rebuy. Use the Sync Product Data, Store Data, and Clear Cache guide for step-by-step instructions.
The exclude_rebuy Tag: Sitewide Exclusion Alternative
The exclude_rebuy tag is a Shopify-level alternative to datasource exclusion filters. Adding this tag directly to a product in your Shopify admin tells Rebuy to stop surfacing that product across all widgets sitewide that use Data Source endpoints. It also removes the product from Rebuy Smart Search quick view and results pages.
To use it, add the tag exclude_rebuy directly to the product in your Shopify admin product settings. For full setup steps, see Hide Products From Being Recommended.
Important: The exclude_rebuy tag does not apply to Widget's using the data source Recently Viewed endpoint, as that is based on a customer's own browsing history. It also has no effect if a product is hand-picked in a specific product return rule or pulled in through a collection, tag rule.
For exclusions that need to work across ALL data source configurations, see the How to apply Data Source Exclusion Filters section outlined in this article.
Which Exclusion Method Should I Use?
Rebuy offers two ways to exclude products from recommendations: datasource exclusion filters and the exclude_rebuy Shopify tag. Datasource filters are configured inside Rebuy and work with any endpoint type. The exclude_rebuy tag is applied directly in Shopify but only works with AI-powered endpoints. Use the table below to choose the right approach for your setup.
Situation | Recommended approach |
Exclude a product from one specific widget | Datasource exclusion filter |
Exclude a product from AI-powered recommendation/default endpoints sitewide (except Recently Viewed endpoint) |
|
Using data source rules that Return collections, tags or hand-picked products | Datasource exclusion filter only |
Tip: You can also use the exclude_rebuy tag directly as a tag-based exclusion filter inside your data source settings. Set the first dropdown to Tag and enter exclude_rebuy as the tag value.