Module
Content Display

Smart Content Filter

AJAX-powered Joomla article filtering with beautiful, flexible content cards.

  • Zero B/C pluginRuns without the B/C pluginRuns on Joomla 5 and 6 without the Behaviour - Backward Compatibility plugin, so you can keep it switched off.
  • Joomla 4, 5 & 6Tested and supported on Joomla 4, 5 and 6.
Try live demo Documentation
  • 5.0See the reviews
  • v1.6.2· Updated today
  • 3.5K+downloads
  • PHP 8.1+
  • Instant accessReady to install right after checkout
  • One-click updatesNew releases install from the Joomla administrator
  • Lifetime optionPay once and keep future releases
  • 30-day guaranteeFull refund if it is not the right fit

Features

What can Smart Content Filter do for you?

Sixteen feature areas, one install package for Joomla 4, 5 and 6.

  • No Page Refresh

    AJAX Article Filtering

    • Instant Category SwitchingDisplay standard Joomla articles with Tabs, Pills, or a Dropdown category filter. Visitors switch categories without leaving the page.
    • Powered by com_ajaxCards load through Joomla's Ajax endpoint using each module instance's saved settings for categories, limits, filters, and styling.
    • Native Joomla ContentUses articles, categories, tags, featured state, images, publish dates, access levels, and language rules: no custom content table required.

  • Catalogue-Ready Filtering

    Tag Pills & Multi-Select

    • Tag Filter StyleShow tags as a Dropdown or clickable Pills: ideal when tools or resources belong to several themes at once.
    • Single or MultipleVisitors pick one tag or several. Match any selected tag (OR) or require every selected tag (AND).
    • Search & SortCombine tags with title search, intro search, or both (text above the Read more break), plus sorting by newest, oldest, title, featured first, or manual ordering.
    • Control Sort ChoicesLimit the Sort dropdown to the options your visitors need, such as Newest and Oldest only.

  • Flexible Filter UI

    Category Tabs, Pills & Subcategories

    • TabsClassic underline tab bar with a highlighted active category.
    • PillsSeparate filled chip buttons for a modern filter look.
    • Single or MultipleVisitors pick one category or several, matching the tag filter pattern. Subcategory drill-down stays available in Single mode.
    • Switch It OffSet Enable Category Filter to No for tag-led catalogues: the category filter disappears while search, tags, and sorting stay in place.

  • Progressive Loading

    Load More & Shareable URLs

    • Load More or Infinite ScrollAppend the next batch of cards with a button or load automatically near the bottom of the list.
    • Shareable Filter URLsCategory (including multi-select), search, tag or multi-tag, custom fields, author, date, sort, view mode, and load-more page are stored in the URL so filtered views can be bookmarked and shared.
    • Default and Locked FiltersOptional default category, tag, and custom field values apply on first load. Lock them when a page should stay prefiltered.
    • Live Results CountShows Showing X of Y that updates after every filter, search, sort, or load-more action.
    • RSS Feed LinkOptional RSS and Atom discovery links on the catalogue page, like Category Blog Integration, without a Category Blog menu item.
    • Article Link CheckContent Source reports whether Joomla can build short links to your articles, names the menu item it routes through, and explains how to fix categories that produce /component/content/article/... links.

  • Publishing-Grade Layouts

    Six Layout Presets

    • Grid, News Portal & MagazineStandard responsive grid, full-width lead story layouts, and magazine-style featured leads with supporting cards.
    • List, Masonry & CarouselRow-based list view, masonry flow, or a horizontally scrollable card strip.
    • Lead Story & OverlaysChoose first or featured lead articles with automatic title-on-image overlays for News Portal and Magazine presets.

  • Visitor Choice

    Grid / List View Toggle

    • Icon ToggleOptional grid and list icon buttons in the top-right corner of the module.
    • Remembered PreferenceThe visitor's choice is saved in a per-module cookie and restored from the URL when shareable state is enabled.
    • AJAX-Synced LayoutSwitching views refreshes card markup server-side so list and grid layouts stay correct after filtering.

  • Content-Rich Layout

    Rich Article Cards

    • Images, Meta & IntroIntro, full, or custom-field images with Cover or Contain fit, category, dates, author, tags, hits, reading time, featured badge, Plain text or Safe HTML intros, custom fields, and read more.
    • Share & LightboxOptional share buttons for X, Facebook, and LinkedIn plus an image lightbox with article link.
    • JSON-LD SchemaOptional structured data output for better search engine understanding of listed articles.

  • Design Controls

    Deep Card Styling

    • Card Appearance PresetsDefault, Outlined, Flat, and Compact styles with distinct borders, backgrounds, and shadows.
    • Borders, Padding & ShadowsControl card radius, border width and colour, body padding, resting shadow, hover shadow, and hover lift.
    • Image Hover EffectsZoom, Brighten, Grayscale, or None, plus Image Fit Cover or Contain for photographs vs logos, accent colour, dark theme, UI corners, and responsive column counts.

  • Better Interaction

    Sticky Toolbar & UX Polish

    • Sticky Filter ToolbarKeeps filters, category tabs, results count, and the Load more bar visible while scrolling through long result sets.
    • Polished ControlsSearch with icon, clearer sort select, and a compact Reset control that stay consistent even when templates style form fields aggressively.
    • Skeleton LoadingPlaceholder cards animate while Ajax requests are in progress. Filter transitions fade the grid smoothly on update.

  • Highlight Important Articles

    Featured Content Support

    • Featured FilteringShow all articles, hide featured articles, or show only featured articles.
    • Featured Badge & Lead ModeOptional featured badge on cards and lead story mode that prioritises the first featured article in portal layouts.
    • Featured-First SortingVisitors can sort with featured articles first while keeping the module generic for blogs, news, portfolios, and catalogues.

  • Scoped Per Module

    Multiple Instances

    • Independent Module IDsEach instance sends its own module_id to the Ajax endpoint with separate categories, limits, filters, and styles.
    • Scoped DOM & URL StateJavaScript state and URL parameters (scf_{id}_*) are namespaced per instance so multiple modules can run on one page.
    • Instance-Specific StylingCSS variables and custom CSS apply per wrapper for differently styled filters on the same page.

  • Developer Friendly

    Advanced Custom CSS

    • Custom CSS FieldAdd extra CSS from the Advanced settings without editing module files.
    • {module} PlaceholderUse {module} as a placeholder for the current wrapper selector, for example {module} .scf-card { padding: 1.5rem; }.
    • Optional CSS DisableTurn off the bundled module CSS when your template should handle the full design.

  • Inclusive UX

    Accessibility & Live Regions

    • Live Status UpdatesLoading messages, errors, and result counts use aria-live regions so screen readers announce Ajax changes.
    • Keyboard-Friendly ControlsCategory tabs include tab roles and selected states. Buttons are used for reset, load more, and view toggle actions.
    • Semantic HeadingsChoose H2, H3, H4, or H5 for card titles to match your page outline.

  • Joomla 5 & 6 Ready

    Modern Joomla Architecture

    • Namespaced Module StructureService provider, dispatcher, helper classes, template layout, language files, and versioned assets.
    • WebAssetManager AssetsCSS and JavaScript register through Joomla's WebAssetManager with automatic cache-busting.
    • Vanilla JavaScriptLightweight browser APIs: no jQuery dependency.

  • Broad Content Coverage

    Generic Content Use Cases

    • One Module, Many SitesBlogs, news rooms, portfolios, product showcases, tag-led tool catalogues, directories, documentation hubs, and case studies.
    • Exclude & RefineExclude categories or article IDs. Filter by Current Language limits articles and the tag list to the active page language. Include or exclude tags when you need a fixed subset.
    • Custom Fields Extend CardsDisplay and filter structured metadata without making the extension niche-specific.

  • One Module, Every Language

    Multilingual Content Filtering

    • Filter by Current LanguageShow only articles for the active site language so Spanish and English catalogues stay separate without duplicate modules.
    • Language-aware TagsTag pills and dropdowns follow the page language too, so visitors never see the other language's tags in the filter list.
    • Built for Multilingual JoomlaWorks with standard article and tag language settings: ideal for bilingual blogs, tool directories, and news sites.

Changelog

What's new

9 releases since version 1.5.0. Updates install from the Joomla admin with a valid licence.

    • Download Key support on the update site (dlid).

Show 3 older releases

Docs & setup

Get up and running fast

Written guides for installing and configuring Smart Content Filter, from first setup to the options that matter.

  • Installation stepsOne install zip for Joomla 4, 5 and 6, installed from System, Install, Extensions.
  • Configuration optionsThe settings in the guide, from first setup to the options that matter.
  • Practical usage tipsShort examples you can adapt to your site.
Open documentation Ask a question

Pricing

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Compatible with
Joomla 4 Joomla 5 Joomla 6
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