Problem Statement
Currently, Discourse does not allow strict category visibility based on group membership, leading to issues:
- Users can see unrelated categories in search results, the category dropdown, and suggested topics.
- Muted categories still appear in search and suggested topics, making muting ineffective for true category separation.
- If categories are made private (restricted to groups), Google cannot index them, which hurts SEO.
Proposed Solution
Introduce a new category permission option:
“Hidden Until Group Join” → Users will not see this category in search, category lists, or suggested topics unless they are in a required group.
Content Remains Publicly Indexable → Google can still index these pages for SEO, but users inside Discourse must join the related group to see them.
Expected Behavior
| Scenario | Current Discourse Behavior | Requested Behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Google Indexing | Blocks content if category is group-restricted | Allows indexing while restricting view inside Discourse |
| Discourse Search | Shows results from muted/unjoined categories | Hides results from categories the user has not joined |
| Category Dropdown | Shows all categories with “See” permissions | Shows only categories related to joined groups |
| Suggested Topics | Shows topics from muted/unjoined categories | Excludes topics from categories the user has not joined |
Benefits
Better user experience – Users only see relevant categories
More control – Admins can enforce category access based on rules
SEO-friendly – Content remains publicly discoverable on Google
Final Thoughts & Why This Matters
Discourse is a powerful platform for building engaged communities, but for larger forums with structured access rules, the current category visibility settings can create challenges. This simple improvement would provide better user experience, improved content organization, and stronger SEO performance—without disrupting existing functionality.
By adding an optional “Hidden Until Group Join” setting and a way to index restricted categories for SEO, Discourse can give admins greater flexibility while maintaining its core principles of open discussion and accessibility.
We truly appreciate the ongoing improvements to Discourse and hope this feature can be considered to enhance the platform for all community types. Thank you for your time and consideration! 