Noun The ability to change the order of items.
Distinct from filtering, where only items having specific properties are shown. Sorting shows all items ordered according to certain criteria, such as alphabetical, chronological, price, or popularity (e.g. number of views).
Often the ability to toggle the reverse order for a specific sort order is helpful. While the ability for users to apply cascading sort orders (first sort by price, then alphabetically) may serve some use cases, this is a feature for more advanced users. Generally, the system will provide a secondary sort order applied automatically when multiple items have the same primary sort characteristic.
Contrast with: Filtering