Saved Search A Step-by-Step Guide

Saved searches in NetSuite are powerful tools for extracting specific data from your system. This detailed guide ensures you don’t miss any steps while setting up your search.


1. Accessing Saved Searches

To create a Saved Search in NetSuite, go to Reports > Saved Searches > All Saved Searches > New.

Navigating to the NetSuite Saved Search option

After clicking the New Saved Search tab, you’ll see a list of available Saved Search types.

For this example, we’ll create a Saved Search to display items and the related Bill and Purchase Order. We’ll select the ‘Item’ type for this Saved Search.

2. Selecting Type

choosing Search Objectives for netsuite saved search

Note: The page title here, “Saved Item Search,” matches the “Item” search type we selected. If you choose a different search type, the page title will change accordingly.

3. Naming Your Saved Search

Start by entering a search title. For this example, we’ll use “My Item Saved Search.”

NetSuite will automatically assign an ID to your saved search if you don’t create one, but it’s recommended to manually assign an ID for easy recognition.

Note: A best practice when creating an ID in NetSuite is to start it with an underscore, as NetSuite will automatically add a standard prefix (e.g., “customsearch”) to any ID you create. For example, if you set the ID as “_my_item_saved_search,” the full ID will be “customsearch_my_item_saved_search.”

If you want the Saved Search to be available to all users, check the ‘Public’ checkbox. To display the search as a list (e.g., in a portlet on your dashboard), check the ‘Available as List View’ checkbox.

Naming NetSuite Saved Search

4. Define the Criteria for the Saved Item Search

Criteria are all the rules you set to filter your data, ensuring that only the information you want is returned. For example, if you run an Item Saved Search without setting criteria, it will return all items in NetSuite. To avoid this, you’ll set filters to narrow down the results based on specific conditions.

Define the Type in Criteria

The first step is to define the type of item you want the saved search to return. On the Criteria tab, under the Filter subtab, you’ll find an option for Type.

Note: This filter is different from the Saved Search Type (“Item”) you initially selected. The Saved Search Type defines what type of record (item) you’re querying, while the Type filter allows you to restrict the search further based on specific item types (e.g., inventory item, non-inventory item, service item).

display netsuite saved search criteria

5. Specify the Display Criteria

Now, to filter down items that are shown on your website, for example, go to Display in Website (a checkbox field), and set it to “Yes.” This will filter the search to return only those items that are visible on the website. If you want to combine multiple conditions, you can use expressions (AND, OR) to create complex filter rules.

setting saved search

Apply Filters to Customize NetSuite Saved search Results

6. Load the Results

Once you’ve set your criteria, it’s time to move to the Results tab, where you can define the columns to display in your saved search results. This is where you configure what data to show.

  1. Under the Columns subtab, you will see fields you can choose to display in your report.
  2. Begin by selecting fields such as Name, Display Name, Description, and Display in Website. These will be the key pieces of information you’ll want in the results.
  3. You can adjust the order of columns by dragging them into the desired position.

Load the netsuite saved search Results

Below is Result of Saved Search:

Load the netsuite saved search Results

7. Sort Results by Display Name in Descending Order

If you want to change how the results are sorted, go to the Results tab and select the Display Name field for sorting instead of Item Name.

  • To sort in descending order, simply select the Descending option in the sort options next to the Display Name column.
  • This will show the items grouped and listed based on their display name, starting with the last alphabetically.
sorting the saved search results

8. Use Formulas for Advanced Logic

The formula feature allows you to use SQL logic for more powerful searches. Here’s how to use it:

  • In the Results tab, select Formula (Text), Formula (Numeric), or Formula (Date) depending on the type of data you want to manipulate.

saved search Formulas for Advanced Logic

  • You can also use SQL CASE WHEN statements, similar to Excel formulas, to perform conditional checks and display different values based on the result.

You can explore more formulas and examples using SuiteAnswers, which contains detailed examples of SQL syntax and advanced formula configurations.

9. Run and Save the Search

Once your search is configured with the necessary criteria, display settings, formulas, and drill-downs, click Save to save the search.

  • You can run the saved search directly to see how the data displays.
  • The saved search will now return results based on your specified filters and formulas.

Save and run netsuite saved search result

10. Exporting the NetSuite Saved Search Results

After running the saved search, you can export the data for further manipulation:

  • Click on the Export icon to export the results to Excel, CSV, or PDF formats.
  • This can be useful if you want to analyze the data outside of NetSuite or share it with other stakeholders.

Export the netsuite saved search Results

How to add Saved search to NetSuite Dashboard:

1. Go to Your Dashboard -> Personalize It:

  • Navigate to the dashboard where you want the Saved Search.
  • Click on Personalize Dashboard (usually at the top right).

2. Add Custom Search Portlet:

  • In the Personalize Dashboard panel, look under Standard Content.
  • Drag the Custom Search option and drop it onto your dashboard.

3. Set Up the Search:

  • In the Custom Search portlet, click Set Up.
  • Select your saved search from the dropdown list.
  • Enter a title for your Custom Search portlet in the Custom Portlet Title field (optional).

4. Configure Results & Behavior:

  • Set the Results Size to decide how many results to display.
  • Choose the Drill Down behavior to specify whether to open results in the portlet or a new page.

5. Enable Inline Editing (Optional):

  • If Inline Editing is enabled, check Allow Inline Editing if you want users to edit records directly in the portlet.

6. Save Your Changes:

  • Once you’re happy with the setup, click Save to apply your changes.