How to Make Airtable Show Only Matching Records When You Search

If you’ve used an Airtable base before, you might have noticed something about the search bar. It just highlights the matching results, while all the other records remain visible.

This can be confusing, especially when you're working with a large dataset and only want to focus on relevant results.

But there’s a better way.

Let me show you how to set up a proper search filter, so you only see the records that match what you type.

Airtable has a feature called Interfaces, which lets you create custom views of your data. These views are more focused and improve the search experience.

Here’s how to set it up:

• Open the base you want to work with.

• Click on Interfaces in the top menu (next to “Automations”).

• Click the + button to create a new Interface. Choose a layout. The List layout works well for this.

• Select the table you want to display records from.

• In the top right corner of the Interface, you'll see a magnifying glass input (the search bar).

• Now, when you type in the search bar, the list of records will automatically filter to show only the matching entries, just like you’d expect.

Try it out and you’ll see how much easier it is to work with your Airtable base.