Build an AI Search Index for Your WordPress Site

You need to build an AI search index before ExactFind can answer questions. The index is a set of short summaries of your content, which the AI uses to work out which articles fit a question.

Before you start

Add your API key under ExactFind > Settings > Basic.
With ExactFind Knowledge, choose your custom post types and any documents first.
Exclude anything you don't want included. Do this first, so you don't pay to summarise it.

Build the index

Go to ExactFind > Index.
Check the numbers under Build. They show how many items are in scope, how many are new or changed, and a rough cost on your indexing model.
If the build could take your input or output tokens past a monthly limit, a warning shows above the button. Answers stop when any limit is reached, so raise the limit first if you need to.
Click Build index. A box asks you to confirm the items, the model, the tokens and the rough cost. If there's nothing to index, it doesn't ask.
Keep the page open. It counts down as each item finishes, then reloads.

Build section showing items in scope and the estimated cost, with the Build index button

Build section during a build, showing the items left countdown

How long it takes

Allow a few seconds per item. In our testing, about 28 articles took two minutes. If you close the page, the build carries on in the background using WP-Cron, but that can be slow on a quiet site. Reopen the page to finish it faster.

What it costs

The top of the Index page shows the tokens you've used this month, against your limits. Open Usage by model to see which model used them.

The estimate is a guide only. It uses the indexing model you've selected, and it names that model. The first build costs the most, because every item is new.

Prices are refreshed weekly, and the page shows the date they were last checked. If it can't get current prices, it uses the ones built into the plugin. No cost shows for an OpenAI-compatible service, because its prices aren't known.

Rebuilding later

Click Build index again after you change your content. Only new and changed items are processed, so later builds are quick and cheap. Your edited entries are kept, and removed entries stay out.

ExactFind doesn't rebuild by itself. When indexed content changes, the Dashboard and ExactFind screens show a notice with a link to the Index page. It clears once you rebuild, or when there's nothing to index.