diff --git a/src/utils/usedataList.js b/src/utils/usedataList.js
index e24495e883013c..2318f6e1e68987 100644
--- a/src/utils/usedataList.js
+++ b/src/utils/usedataList.js
@@ -1,44 +1,63 @@
 import * as JsSearch from "js-search";
-import { useState, useEffect } from "react";
+import { useState, useEffect, useRef } from "react";
 const useDataList = (
   data,
   setSearchQuery,
   searchQuery,
   paramsIndex,
-  paramSearch
+  paramSearch,
 ) => {
   const [dataList, setDataList] = useState(data);
-  const [search, setSearch] = useState([]);
   const [searchResults, setSearchResults] = useState([]);
-  const [isLoading, setIsLoading] = useState(true);
   const queryResults = searchQuery ? searchResults : dataList;
-  useEffect(() => {
-    rebuildIndex();
-  }, [dataList]);
+
+  // The TF-IDF index is the expensive part of a search (it walks and
+  // tokenizes every document up front) - built lazily on the first real
+  // keystroke instead of eagerly on mount, since most renders of this hook
+  // (embedded previews, limited-count sections, visitors who never search)
+  // never need it at all. Invalidated whenever the underlying dataset
+  // changes so a stale index is never served.
+  const searchIndexRef = useRef(null);
 
   useEffect(() => {
-    rebuildIndex();
-  }, []);
+    searchIndexRef.current = null;
+    // An active query's results were built from the old dataList - recompute
+    // them against the new one immediately instead of waiting for the next
+    // keystroke, otherwise queryResults keeps showing stale matches.
+    if (searchQuery) {
+      setSearchResults(getSearchIndex().search(searchQuery));
+    } else {
+      setSearchResults([]);
+    }
+  }, [dataList]);
 
-  const rebuildIndex = () => {
-    const dataToSearch = new JsSearch.Search(paramSearch);
-    dataToSearch.indexStrategy = new JsSearch.PrefixIndexStrategy();
-    dataToSearch.sanitizer = new JsSearch.LowerCaseSanitizer();
-    dataToSearch.searchIndex = new JsSearch.TfIdfSearchIndex(paramSearch);
-    dataToSearch.addIndex(paramsIndex);
-    dataToSearch.addIndex("body");
-    dataToSearch.addDocuments(dataList);
-    setSearch(dataToSearch);
-    setIsLoading(false);
+  const getSearchIndex = () => {
+    if (!searchIndexRef.current) {
+      const dataToSearch = new JsSearch.Search(paramSearch);
+      dataToSearch.indexStrategy = new JsSearch.PrefixIndexStrategy();
+      dataToSearch.sanitizer = new JsSearch.LowerCaseSanitizer();
+      dataToSearch.searchIndex = new JsSearch.TfIdfSearchIndex(paramSearch);
+      dataToSearch.addIndex(paramsIndex);
+      dataToSearch.addIndex("body");
+      dataToSearch.addDocuments(dataList);
+      searchIndexRef.current = dataToSearch;
+    }
+    return searchIndexRef.current;
   };
 
   const searchData = (e) => {
-    const queryResult = search.search(e.target.value);
-    setSearchQuery(e.target.value.trim());
-    setSearchResults(queryResult);
+    const trimmedQuery = e.target.value.trim();
+    setSearchQuery(trimmedQuery);
+    // A blank query has nothing to search - skip it so an empty keystroke
+    // (or clearing the field) never forces the lazy index to build.
+    if (!trimmedQuery) {
+      setSearchResults([]);
+      return;
+    }
+    setSearchResults(getSearchIndex().search(trimmedQuery));
   };
 
-  return { queryResults, searchData, setDataList,dataList };
+  return { queryResults, searchData, setDataList, dataList };
 };
 
 export default useDataList;