Users & Search

User suggestions, friends, groups, and search across users and messages

📄️ Search

Comprehensive search across users, friends, and message content. User search can be disabled via the `disableUsersSearch` plugin setting. Results are separated into friend matches and non-friend matches. Message search returns thread IDs with match counts (limited to 10 results). The response includes full thread and user data for rendering search results.

📄️ Get user suggestions

Returns suggested users for starting new conversations. Prioritizes friends (up to 12), then falls back to other users. Respects friends-only and followers-only messaging modes. Can be overridden via the `better_messages_predefined_suggestions_user_ids` filter. Administrators bypass friends-only restrictions.

📄️ Get conversation suggestions

Returns user suggestions for the new conversation screen with optional search filtering. When a threadId is provided, excludes users already participating in that thread. Respects the `disableUsersSearch` setting. Returns up to 50 user profiles (configurable via filter). AI bots are hidden from suggestions in E2E encrypted thread contexts.

📄️ Get users list

Returns a page of the members the Users widget lists, excluding the current user, following the widget's settings: display mode (all members, by role or hand-picked), sort order and search. The route also answers GET with the same parameters.

📄️ Get friends list

Returns the current user's friends list. This endpoint is entirely filter-driven — the default returns an empty array. BuddyPress, BuddyBoss, and other social plugins hook into the `better_messages_get_friends` filter to provide actual friend data.

📄️ Get groups

Returns groups the current user belongs to. Like getFriends, this endpoint is filter-driven — the default returns an empty array. BuddyPress, PeepSo, and other group plugins hook into the `better_messages_get_groups` filter to provide group data.