Do you want to know how to create categories and subcategories in WordPress?
In WordPress, your posts can be organized into different categories and tags. You can even create subcategories for further organization. Using categories and subcategories can help your readers find the content they’re most interested in and improve your website’s SEO rankings.
In this article, we’ll show you how to add categories and subcategories in WordPress, step by step.
Understanding Parent and Child Categories in WordPress
Categories are a powerful tool. They’re not just a way to sort your content. They also help you develop a proper site structure that is meaningful and semantic. This is great for your WordPress SEO.
Note: If you’re not clear about the difference between categories and tags, take a look at our guide on categories vs tags. This explains why categories and tags are different, and how to use them correctly.
Now you might be wondering, why and when would someone need to use child categories (subcategories) on their WordPress website?
Let’s say you’re creating a travel blog for different destinations around the world. You might want users to be able to find articles by both country and city.
For example, you might have an article about the best waterparks in the United States. It would make sense to use ‘United States’ as the category for that post.
However, you might also have articles about the best places to eat in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and more. This is where you can use child or subcategories. Then ‘United States’ can become a parent category and the cities can become child categories.
A post filed under a child category doesn’t need to also be filed under the parent category. In our example, we could have left ‘United States’ unchecked and just put the post in the ‘New York City’ category.
If you file a post under the child category but not under the parent category, then your post will appear only on the archive pages of the child category.
Having said that, let’s take a look at how to add both regular categories and child categories in WordPress.
Adding a Category in WordPress
You can easily add a new category in WordPress when writing a post.
First, if the sidebar isn’t showing when you’re editing a post, you’ll need to click on the gear icon on the top right.
Then, in the Post panel on the right-hand side, open up the Categories tab.
You’ll see different categories that you’ve already created.
However, to create a new category, you can simply click the ‘Add New Category’ link.
Once you click the link, two new boxes will appear where you can add your category.
For a regular category, you don’t need to select anything from the Parent Category dropdown.
Once you’ve typed in the name for your category, simply click the ‘Add New Category’ button.
The box for that category will then be automatically checked for your current post. You can uncheck it if you want.
You can also add a new category without editing a post.
Simply go to Posts » Categories and add your new category. This is handy if you want to create all your categories before adding content.
This method also lets you edit the slug (URL) for your categories. You can delete and rename categories and give them a description. See how to add SEO keywords and descriptions in WordPress.
Adding a Child Category (Sub Category) in WordPress
You can add and edit child categories in exactly the same way you added your parent categories.
When you’re editing a post, open the settings panel and scroll down to the Categories tab.
Next, click the ‘Add New Category’ option and type in the name for your child category. Then select the category that you want to use as the parent from the dropdown list.
Similarly, you can also go to Posts » Categories to add child categories.
Just type in the name for your child category and select the parent category from the dropdown menu.
Your child categories can also have their own child categories if you want.
For instance, we might decide to develop a category structure that is used to group multiple types of content together, like this:
Here, News is a category, with the Announcements as child categories.
Categories on the same level within a parent category are sometimes called ‘sibling’ categories. For instance, the Announcements and SEO Tools are sibling categories here.
Categories can only have one parent. You can’t add one sub-category under two different parent categories.
This is meaningful and helps search engines and visitors understand what your page is about. You also get a chance to add keywords to your URL. Keywords help people find content on search engines.
WordPress also allows you to easily change the /category/ prefix of your category URLs. You can even remove it completely if you want.
Simply go to the Settings » Permalinks page from the WordPress admin panel and scroll down to the ‘Category base’ section.
Here you can enter the prefix you would like to use and click on the ‘Save Changes’ button to store your changes.
The ‘category’ prefix in your category URLs doesn’t add any benefit to your SEO.
This is why some website owners prefer to remove the remove the word ‘category’ from their WordPress category archive pages’ URLs. You can easily do this by using the All in One SEO plugin, so your category URLs look like this:
http://example.com/united-states/new-york-city/
Simply go to the Search Appearance menu for AIOSEO and then select the Taxonomies tab. Under the Advanced settings for Categories, you will see the option to remove category base prefix.
Alternatively, you can also use the FV Top Level Categories plugin. Simply install the plugin and it will remove the word ‘category’ from your category archive pages’ URLs.
Important: If you decide to change the category base on an existing WordPress site, then you’ll need to set up redirects to avoid 404 errors for search engine visitors. For more detailed instructions, please follow our guide on how to change the category base prefix in WordPress.
How to Display Categories and Child Categories in WordPress Sidebar
You can add a widget block to your WordPress sidebar or footer to show a list of categories. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Appearance » Widgets.
If you haven’t changed your widgets from the ones that WordPress puts there by default, you should see the Categories widget block already in place. If not, then you can click the ‘+’ button and add a ‘Category’ block to your widget area.
By default, the widget will show all your categories in a flat list, in alphabetical order.
Here’s a preview of how they looked on our test website:
Tip: Categories will only display on the list if you’ve assigned at least 1 published post to them.
You can change it to show the child categories (subcategories) beneath their parent categories if you want. Simply enable the ‘Show hierarchy’ option in the widget settings like this. Don’t forget to click the ‘Update’ button.
On your site, you should now see your parent categories with the child categories nested beneath them.
Aside from the default category widget block, you can also create custom category menu links using the WordPress navigation menu. After that, you can add that menu to your header menu, sidebar, footer, or other menu locations.
Do you want to add a privacy policy to your WordPress site?
A privacy policy page is a document required by law that discloses the information you collect about visitors on your website. It is recommended to add a privacy policy page to your website whether you are a blogger, freelancer, or business owner.
Now, the problem is most beginners don’t know how to create a legitimate privacy policy and then display it on their website.
In this article, we will show you how to easily add a privacy policy in WordPress.
What Is a Privacy Policy and Do You Need It on Your Website?
All websites collect information about their visitors in different ways.
In many countries (including the United States), websites are required by law to disclose the information they collect about their visitors, and how this information is used.
Here are some of the ways in which a typical WordPress site collects user information:
Other social media platform widgets that track users
Advertising programs like Google Adsense which track users
All websites on the internet should have a privacy policy page. It protects your business from legal issues and also helps build consumer trust.
You also need to add a privacy policy page to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
For those who don’t know, GDPR is a European Union (EU) law that gives its citizens control over their personal data. This law applies to every business (including WordPress blogs) around the world, even if you are not from the EU countries.
For more details, you may read our ultimate guide on GDPR and understand its impact on your WordPress site.
What Should You Include in a Privacy Policy?
The basic requirements for a privacy policy are quite simple. You need to list all the ways you collect or intend to collect user information on your website.
A simple privacy policy page should contain the following information:
Information you collect about users visiting your website.
Methods used to collect information, e.g. cookies and web beacons, sign up, registration, comment forms, etc.
Mention all third-party advertisers collecting user information on your website like Google Adsense.
Include links to the privacy policy of each advertising program you participate in.
How users can block cookies and opt-out of third party advertisements.
Your contact information so that users can reach out if they have questions.
There are many websites on the internet that allow you to automatically generate text for your privacy policy or terms of service pages.
WordPress itself comes with a basic privacy policy generator that you can use.
You can also take a look at WPBeginner’s privacy policy page as a starting point. Simply replace all references to WPBeginner and our parent company with the name of your website or business.
Adding a Privacy Policy Page in WordPress
WordPress makes it easy to generate a privacy policy page for your website. It also gives you a generic privacy policy template to use with instructions on how to add content to it.
First, you need to visit the Settings » Privacy page. You’ll notice that WordPress has already created a Privacy Policy page draft for you.
You can click on the ‘Use this Page’ button to save this page as your privacy policy.
You can also click on the ‘Create’ button to generate a new Privacy Policy page. WordPress will automatically create a new page and open it for you to make changes.
If you are using the default draft, then you need to click on the Edit link to make changes and publish it.
Once you open the privacy policy page for editing, you will see a notification on top with a link to the default WordPress privacy policy page guide.
The content of the privacy policy also contains instructions on how to edit and change each section.
You will notice that it has sections for different ways a WordPress website may collect personal information. For example, it lists comments, login cookies, embeds, and more.
It will also have sections with no information below them, including contact form and analytics.
As for contact forms, you can mention the information you collect and what it is used for.
After thoroughly reviewing the privacy policy page, you can click on the Publish button to save your changes.
Adding a Link to Privacy Policy Page in WordPress
Most websites display a link to their privacy policy page in the footer area of their website. This way the link appears on every page but does not take space in your main navigation menu.
There are multiple ways to do this. Let’s start with the easiest one.
Many WordPress themes come with widget-ready areas in the footer also called the Footer sidebar. You can go to the Appearance » Widgets page to confirm if your theme has a footer widget area.
If your theme has one, then you can use the navigation menu widget to display a list of links to your informational pages including the privacy policy.
First, you will need to create a new custom navigation menu.
Simply visit the Appearance » Menus page to create a new custom menu. You will need to click on the ‘Create a new menu’ link on the top.
After that, you can enter a name for your menu and then click the ‘Create Menu’ button.
Next, you need to select pages from the left column to add to your menu.
After selecting them, simply click on the ‘Add to Menu’ button.
You should notice your selected pages appear under your newly created menu. You can now arrange menu items by clicking and dragging them up or down.
Once you are done, don’t forget to click on the ‘Save Menu’ button to store your changes.
For more help with creating menus, you can see our beginner’s guide on how to create navigational menus in WordPress.
Now go to the Appearance » Widgets page and then click the ‘+’ button to add a ‘Navigation Menu’ widget block.
Next, you can optionally enter a title for your widget.
Then select your menu from the dropdown menu.
Once you’ve made the changes, don’t forget to click the Update button on your widgets page.
You can now visit your website to see the privacy policy links in the footer area of your website.
Manually Add a Link to Privacy Policy Page in WordPress
If your theme does not come with a footer widget area or a footer navigation menu, then you can manually add link to your privacy policy page using HTML code.
You’ll need to edit the footer.php file for your theme. If you haven’t done this before, then take a look at our guide on how to copy/paste code in WordPress.
In your footer.php file, add the following HTML to an appropriate location just before the </body> tag.
Don’t forget to replace the href value with the URL of your privacy policy page. You can now save your changes and preview your site to see the link in action.
That’s all! You have successfully added a privacy policy page to your WordPress site.
We hope this article helped you learn how to add a privacy policy in WordPress. You may also want to see our step-by-step WordPress SEO guide for beginners.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
Creating a New Post in WordPress Using The Default Editor
In December 2018, WordPress introduced a new modern block-based editor also known as Gutenberg. It is clean and simple, but don’t let the looks deceive you.
Behind its clean interface, there are tons of powerful features neatly tucked away. We’ll explain all of them and help you unlock its true potential.
Adding Title and Content Blocks
The WordPress block editor comes with a clean writing interface. At the top, you will enter your post’s title.
To add content, you need to add a block. There are multiple add block buttons on the screen that you can click to select and add a block.
If you don’t want to use a mouse to click on the button, then you can use a keyboard shortcut by typing / to search and add a block.
All content elements are wrapped in a block. WordPress comes with blocks for all the common content items including paragraphs, columns, images, galleries, embeds, shortcodes, widgets, and more.
Some WordPress plugins may also add their own blocks to add other features like contact forms, SEO, etc (more on this later in the article).
Adding Images, Videos, & Other Media
You can add images by simply adding the image block and then upload or select the image you want to add.
If you want to text and image next to each other, then you can use the ‘Media & Text’ block. This block helps you wrap text around the image in WordPress.
WordPress editor also comes with a Gallery block that you can use to display images in rows and columns with a grid layout.
Simply add the Gallery block and then upload or select the images from your WordPress media library.
While the gallery block is powerful, you may need other advanced gallery features like albums, image sorting, etc. In that case, we recommend using one of these WordPress gallery plugins.
Want to embed a video in your content? No problem.
The default WordPress editor comes with embed blocks for all popular providers.
You can also just copy and paste the video URL to a paragraph block, and WordPress will automatically convert it into a video embed block.
While you use the video block to upload videos directly to your website, we recommend against that because it will slow down your website and can even crash your WordPress hosting server.
Instead, we recommend uploading your videos on a service like YouTube or Vimeo, and then embed it in your WordPress posts.
WordPress allows you to sort your posts into categories and tags. These taxonomies help you organize your content into sections and topics.
They also help with SEO and make it easier for your users to find the content they are looking for.
The categories and tags meta boxes are located in the right-hand column, under the Document settings.
Adding Featured Image
A featured image (also known as post thumbnail) is the main article image that represents the content. They’re prominently displayed on your website on single posts, blog archive pages, as well as on the homepage of news, magazine, and blog websites.
Almost all WordPress themes support the featured image functionality. You will find the option to add a featured image to your post in the right column under the Document settings.
Simply click on the ‘Set featured image’ button and then select or upload the image you want to be used as the featured image.
It’s important that you don’t confuse featured images with cover images which is a new feature. See our article on cover image vs featured image for more details.
Adding Excerpts (Article Summary)
Excerpts are the summary of a blog post or article. Most WordPress themes can automatically generate the excerpt from the first few lines of your post.
However, this automatic excerpt may not always be meaningful or catchy. In that case, you may want to manually add an excerpt.
You can do so by adding it in the excerpt box located under the document settings column on the right.
Changing Post URL Slug or Permalink
By default, WordPress uses SEO-friendly URLs for your blog posts. It automatically uses your post’s title as the permalink.
However, some users may want to change it to be more SEO and user-friendly. There are two ways to do that.
You can click on the post title, and you’ll notice the option to change the permalink above the title field. Alternatively, you can change it from the Permalink tab under the document settings column.
Changing Author
If you run a multi-author WordPress site, then you can also change a post’s author and assign it to a different author on your website.
You will find the option to change author under the ‘Status and Visibility’ tab in the right column.
Turn Comments On / Off
WordPress comes with a built-in commenting system that allows users to leave comments on your post. You can turn off comments for individual posts from the Discussion tab under the Document tab.
You’ll also see the option to allow pingbacks and trackbacks. These allow you and other blogs to notify each other when they link to an article.
However, it is mostly used for spam, so we recommend completely disabling pingbacks and trackbacks.
Options Added by WordPress Plugins
Most popular WordPress plugins will also add their own options to the post edit screen. Some will be available as blocks while others will be available as meta boxes.
The default WordPress edit screen is divided into two columns. The left column is where you write content, and the right column has all post settings including publishing options.
Let’s take a look at publishing options in the right column.
1. Save draft link allows you to quickly save changes you made to a WordPress post. The editor will also automatically save your changes as you write.
2. The preview button will open a live preview of your post or page in a new browser tab.
3. Once you are done editing your post, you can click on the Publish button to make your post go live.
4. WordPress gives you a few options to control the visibility of your post. The default option is ‘Public’ but clicking on it will show you options to make a post private or password protected.
5. WordPress also allows you to control when a post is published. The default option is to publish immediately, but you can also schedule your posts to publish later or even select a past date.
6. Checking the box next to ‘Stick to front page’ will make a post sticky or featured. This makes the specific post appear on top of other posts.
7. Pending review option will add a custom status next to your post as ‘Pending review’. This feature is particularly helpful on multi-author blogs where contributors can just save posts and not publish them.
8. If you want to delete a post, then you can click on the ‘Move to trash’ button. WordPress will send the post to the trash. Deleted posts will remain in the trash folder for up to 30 days. After that, they will be deleted permanently.
Edit Screen Options
WordPress allows you to show and hide panels from the edit screen. You can do so by clicking on the three-dot menu at the top-right corner of the screen and then clicking on the ‘Options’ button.
This will bring up a popup where you can check or uncheck the panels.
Other Post Edit Screen Options
There are many other options on the post edit screen. Most of them are related to the appearance of the post edit screen and the editor itself.
Let’s explore them.
When you click on the three-dot menu icon at the top right corner of the screen, you will see options to move block toolbar to the top, spotlight mode, fullscreen mode, switch between visual editor or code editor, manage reusable blocks, and keyboard shortcuts.
Next to it, you will see a button with the gear icon. Clicking on it will show/hide the right document and block settings column.
On the top-left corner of the screen, there are a few more buttons. First, from the right, you will see the block navigation button which allows you to quickly jump to a block in your post.
Next, you will see the information icon. Clicking on it will show you post stats like the number of words, paragraphs, headings, and blocks.
After that, you have Undo and Redo buttons which allow you to undo changes you made to your posts before saving or publishing them.
Finally, you have the add block button which allows you to insert blocks to the post editor.
The default WordPress editor is quite powerful.
We encourage you to explore it on your own when writing blog posts and pay attention to the individual block settings. Each block has different settings, and you’ll discover a lot of neat tricks there.
Creating a New Post in WordPress Using The Classic Editor
The classic editor will be supported until the end of 2021, and we strongly recommend all users to create a plan for switching to the new WordPress editor.
Title and Content Boxes
In the classic editor, title and content boxes are the most noticeable areas on the Add New Post screen (see the screenshot below).
Yours might look slightly different depending on whether you are using the visual or the text editor.
You can switch between visual and a text editor while writing a post, but we do not recommend switching as this could mess up your post’s formatting.
Visual Editor is a beginner-friendly text editor with formatting buttons and a nice visual layout for the content area. On the other hand, the text editor is a plain text editor where you can actually see the HTML or write your own.
The first text area on the top is where you add the post title. If you are using SEO Friendly URL structure, then WordPress will auto-generate the post URL based on your title. You can edit the URL by clicking on the edit button.
The content area is where you will write your post. You can use the formatting options from the toolbar or use one of the many keyboard shortcuts available which will speed up your writing process.
In the footer area of the content editor, WordPress will show you the word count for your post. This is especially useful if you’re writing a guest post or an article that needs to meet a certain number of words.
As you write, WordPress will automatically save a draft of your post. This autosave is stored in your WordPress database temporarily.
As soon as you save your draft or write more content, WordPress cleans up your autosave temporary draft and replaces it with a new one. This process ensures that you do not lose your content due to an internet connection or hardware failure. See our guide on how to undo changes in WordPress with post revisions.
The post editor shows your current draft and autosave status in the footer next to the word count.
Add Images and Media
Between the title and content fields, there is a large Add Media button. You will need to click on it when you want to upload an image or any other media to your WordPress post. This will launch the media uploader in a popup window.
Simply click on the select files button to upload images or any other media to your WordPress site. You can also create image galleries from uploaded files.
The WordPress post edit screen is divided into two columns. The column on your left contains the post title and content editor. On your right-hand side, you have different meta boxes to configure post settings.
The top meta box in this column is labeled Publish. This is where all the publishing options for your posts are managed.
1. Save Draft button stores a draft of the post or page that you are working on. WordPress also auto-saves your posts as you write them.
2. Preview button shows a live preview of your post. You can use it to see how your post will look after publishing.
3. Status allows you to set a status for your post. WordPress automatically handles post status for drafts and published posts. Unless you are using a plugin to add custom statuses, you don’t need to worry about this option.
4. Click on the Edit link next to visibility to expand it. The first option under visibility will allow you to make your post sticky on front-page. Sticky posts in WordPress are like featured content that are displayed on top of all other posts.
6. The third option under visibility is labeled private. This allows you to privately publish a post on your WordPress site. The private posts will be visible to users who have the editing privileges on your site.
7. Click on the edit link next to Publish, and WordPress will display the time and date options. You can use this option to schedule posts or create back dated post in WordPress.
8. Move to trash allows you to delete a WordPress post. Deleted posts live under trash, and you can restore them if you need to for up to 30 days.
9. Finally, the publish button makes your WordPress post public. Remember if you scheduled a post, then it will appear on your site on the scheduled date and time.
Adding Categories and Tags
You can sort your posts into categories and tags. The categories and tags meta boxes usually appear in the right-hand column below publish meta box.
Categories and tags help you organize your content in a meaningful and browsable format.
Not only does it help users easily find your content, but it also boosts your site’s SEO. See our guide on the difference between categories and tags and how to use them to sort your content.
Featured Image (Post Thumbnails)
Most WordPress themes support featured images or post thumbnails for articles. Usually, it is the last box in the right column on your post edit screen.
Simply click on the set featured image link, and it will bring up the media uploader popup. You can select an image from your previous uploads or upload a new image from your computer.
Some of the options on the post edit screen are hidden by default to present a cleaner and simpler editing experience. These options are not commonly used by beginners. However, you may need them later.
Simply click on the Screen Options button on the top right corner of the page. This will show a menu with checkboxes next to option names.
As you can see some of the options will already be checked. For the others, you can display them by clicking on the checkbox next to an option name, and it will appear on your post edit page.
Let’s take a look at some of these options and what they do.
Excerpts
Checking this box adds a meta box below your content editor. You can use this box to add a short summary or excerpt for your post.
Ideally, you should display a summary or excerpt for your posts on your site’s front page and archives. Full content should only be displayed on the post’s single page.
Send Trackbacks option allows you to notify other blog owners that you have linked to their content.
If the other blog owner is running WordPress, then you don’t need to send them trackbacks. Your WordPress site will automatically send them a ping when you publish the post.
Trackback feature is misused by spammers so much that many site owners simply disable them. We have an article on dealing with trackback spam in WordPress.
Custom Fields
This option will display a user interface for custom fields below your post editor. You can use it to manually enter custom information in your posts. See our WordPress custom fields 101 guide for beginners to learn more.
Discussion
While comments are a great way to engage your audience, sometimes you may not want to have comments on a specific post or a page.
The discussion option displays a meta box below the post editor to turn on/off comments and pingbacks for your post.
Since pages are supposed to be like static pages, most users want to turn off comments on them. You can do so by editing each page, or you can see this tutorial to turn off/disable comments on WordPress pages.
Once your WordPress site gets some reputation, you will start getting an increase of comment spam. Instead of turning off comments, you may want to try these tips and tools to combat comment spam in WordPress.
Slug
A slug is a cleaner title that can be used in URLs.
http://example.com/2015/07/this-is-post-slug
WordPress automatically generates a post slug and displays it as the post URL just below the post title. You can edit the URL slug by clicking on the edit link below the post title.
You can also enable the slug option from the Screen Options and edit your post slug there.
Author
WordPress will automatically assign you as the post author when you create a post.
However, sometimes you may want to show another user on your WordPress site as the author. Enabling the author checkbox allows you to do that from the post edit screen.
Bonus Tips for Creating Better Blog Posts
The reason why WordPress is the most popular blogging platform is because it comes with a great set of tools right out of the box to help you create new content.
However, there are many other tools and tips that you can use to improve your blog content.
The first tip we offer to everyone who’s just starting a blog is consistency. Make sure that you regularly publish blog posts. You can plan an editorial calendar and then stick to it.
We recommend starting with 1 – 2 posts a week and then gradually increasing your pace.
Often new users struggle with finding post ideas for their blog. Here is a massive list of blog post ideas that you can use to get started.
You’ll also need to learn how to promote your posts and keep track of things. Our team has picked the best content marketing tools that will help you grow your blog.
Lastly, you can optimize your website for search engines like Google. This is where AIOSEO comes in handy, as it helps with search engine optimization (SEO) without any technical knowledge. You can rank for different keywords and drive organic traffic to your blog.
Often users ask us what’s the difference between posts vs pages, and which one is better for SEO? The simple answer is that it depends. Posts are timely content organized in a reverse chronological order which is why they’re called blog posts.
Pages on the other hand are static content such as your about page, contact page, etc. The process of adding a new post or page in WordPress is exactly the same.
We hope this article helped you learn how to add a new post in WordPress like a pro. You may also want to see our essential WordPress SEO guide for and the best email marketing services for small businesses.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
Do you want to add a background image to your WordPress site?
Background images can make your website look more engaging and vibrant.
In this article, we will show you how to easily add a background image to your WordPress site.
Why Add a WordPress Background Image?
Adding an image to your WordPress website can make it more attractive to visitors. You can quickly grab users’ attention and engage them with your content.
It also allows you to personalize your website design according to your brand. For example, you can upload subtle photos of your products or brand mascot in the background.
However, we do suggest selecting background images that are not distracting or make it hard to read the content on your WordPress blog. A background should enhance the user experience and help deliver your message to visitors.
It’s also important to choose a background image that’s mobile friendly and won’t impact your website speed. Otherwise, it will hurt your WordPress SEO.
That said, let’s look at different ways you can add a WordPress background image. We’ll cover multiple methods including the use of the WordPress theme customizer, full site editor, a plugin, theme builder, and more.
Simply click a link below to jump ahead to your preferred section:
Method 1. Add a Background Image Using Your WordPress Theme Customizer
Most popular WordPress themes come with custom background support. This feature allows you to easily set a background image, and we recommend this method if your theme supports it.
However, if your customizer menu option is missing, then your theme may have full site editing enabled. In the next section, we’ll cover how to use the full site editor to change your background image.
To use the Customizer, you need to visit the Appearance » Customize page in your WordPress admin. This will launch the WordPress theme customizer where you can change different theme settings while viewing a live preview of your website.
An important thing to remember is that the options you see will vary based on the WordPress theme you’re using. For this tutorial, we are using the Astra theme.
If you’re using a different theme, then you may need to look up that theme’s documentation or contact the theme developer to find out how to add a background image if you can’t find it in the customizer.
In the Astra theme’s customizer options, you need to click on ‘Global’ in the panel to the left.
After that, you’ll see different Global options to customize your Astra theme.
Go ahead and click into the ‘Colors’ section.
Here, you can change the theme colors, including the background color. You can also customize your links, body text, headings, borders, and more.
To add a background image, scroll down to the ‘Surface Color’ section. Then you can click on the ‘Site Background’ option and switch to the ‘Image’ tab.
After that, simply click the ‘Select Background Image’ button.
This will bring up the WordPress media library, where you can upload an image from your computer or select one you have previously uploaded.
After you have chosen the image for your background, you need to click on the ‘Select’ button.
This will close the media popup, and you will see a preview of your selected background image in the theme customizer.
Don’t forget to click on the ‘Publish’ button at the top to store your settings.
That’s all. You have successfully added a background image to your WordPress site. Go ahead and visit your website to see it in action.
Method 2. Add a Custom Background Image Using Full Site Editor
If you’re using a block-based WordPress theme, then you can add a custom background image using the full site editor (FSE).
The full site editor allows you to edit your website design using blocks. It is just like editing a blog post or page using the WordPress block editor.
For this tutorial, we’ll use the default Twenty Twenty-Two theme. To launch the full site editor, simply go to Appearance » Editor from your WordPress dashboard.
Once you’re in the full site editor, you’ll need to add a Cover block to your template to upload a background image.
Simply click the ‘+’ sign at the top and add a Cover block.
Go ahead and click ‘Upload’ or ‘Media Library’ button in the Cover block to add a background image to the block.
This will open the WordPress media uploader popup.
You can choose an image that you’d like to use as the website background.
When you have chosen the image, simply click on the ‘Select’ button.
Once the image is added to the Cover block, the next step is to set it as the background of the page.
To do so, click on the List View icon at the top (icon with 3 dashes) to open an outline view of theme elements, such as the site header and footer.
After that, simply drag and drop all the template elements under the Cover block in the list view.
When they are all under there, the Cover block’s image will show up as the site’s background.
After that, you can adjust the background image by clicking into the Cover block and selecting the gear icon in the top right corner of the screen. This opens the Block settings panel.
You will find options to make the image a fixed background, repeated background, adjust its overlay, edit the color, and more.
When you’re done, don’t forget to click the ‘Save’ button.
That’s it! You’ve successfully added a background image using the full site editor.
Method 3. Add Background Image Using WordPress Theme Builder
Another way you can add custom background images to your website is by using a WordPress theme builder like SeedProd.
It is the best WordPress landing page plugin and website builder. You get drag and drop functionality to easily customize your website design without touching a single line of code.
For this tutorial, we’ll use the SeedProd Pro version because it includes the theme builder. There is also a SeedProd Lite version that you can try for free.
First, you’ll need to install and activate the SeedProd plugin. If you need help, then please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Once the plugin is active, you’ll see the SeedProd welcome screen in your WordPress dashboard. Next, simply enter your license key and click the ‘Verify Key’ button. You can find the license key in your SeedProd account area.
Next, you’ll need to head to SeedProd » Theme Builder in your WordPress admin panel.
Go ahead and click the ‘Themes’ button at the top.
SeedProd will now offer multiple theme templates to choose from.
You can hover over any template that you’d like to use and click on it. Let’s use the ‘Starter’ theme template for this tutorial.
From here, SeedProd will generate different templates such as the homepage, single post, single page, sidebar, header, and more.
To add a background image that appears on the entire website and on all the theme templates, go ahead and click the ‘Edit Design’ option under Global CSS.
On the next screen, you’ll see global CSS settings you can change.
Simply click on the ‘Background’ option.
After that, you’ll see the Background Image options.
Go ahead and click the ‘Use Your Own Image’ button to upload your picture or click the ‘Use a Stock Image’ button to search for a stock image to use as your website background.
Once you’ve added a background image, the SeedProd builder will display a live preview.
The plugin also offers options to change the Background Position. You can choose whether you’d like to use the full screen cover, put it on repeat, and more.
Plus, you can edit how dark the background image should be by moving the ‘Dim Background’ slider. The higher the score, the darker the image will be.
When you’re done editing the background image, simply click the ‘Save’ button at the top and close the Global CSS Settings.
If you want to add a custom background image for different parts of your website, then you can edit those individual theme templates in SeedProd.
This plugin will let you set a different background for any post, page, category, and more. Plus, they will automatically be full-screen and adjust themselves for mobile devices.
Upon activation, you need to visit Appearance » Fullscreen BG Image to configure the plugin settings.
You will be asked to add your license key. You can get this information from the email you received after buying the plugin or from your account on the plugin’s website.
Next, you need to click on the ‘Save Options’ button to activate your key. You are now ready to start adding background images to your WordPress site.
Go ahead and click on the ‘Add New Image’ button on the plugin’s settings page.
You should now see the background image upload screen.
Click on the ‘Choose Image’ button to upload or select an image. As soon as you select the image, you will be able to see a live preview of the image on your screen.
Next, you need to provide a name for this image. This name is just for you, so you can type anything here. Finally, you need to select where you want to use this as the background page.
Once you have chosen whether it will be the background for the whole site, for posts, categories, archives, or elsewhere, don’t forget to save your changes.
You can add as many images as you want to different areas of your site by visiting the Appearance » Fullscreen BG Image page and repeating this process.
If you set more than one image to be used globally or for posts, pages, and categories, then the plugin will automatically start displaying background images as a slideshow.
You can adjust the time it takes for an image to fade out and the time after which a new background image starts to fade in the plugin Settings.
The time you enter here is in milliseconds. 1 second is 1000 milliseconds. If you want a background image to fade out after 20 seconds, then you will need to enter 20000.
Don’t forget to click on the ‘Save Options’ button to store your changes.
Background Images for Posts, Pages, and Categories
Full Screen Background Pro also allows you to set background images for single posts, pages, categories, tags, and more.
Just edit the post/page where you want to display a different background image. On the post edit screen, you will notice the new ‘Full Screen Background Image’ box below the post editor.
To use a background image for categories, posts, and pages, you need to visit the Appearance » Fullscreen BG Image page and then click on the ‘Add New Image’ button.
After uploading your image, you can select a category, posts, pages, archives, and other options from the ‘Choose the context on which to display this image’ dropdown menu.
Let’s say you want to show a background image for category pages. For this, simply select ‘Category’ from the dropdown menu.
The plugin also offers an option to restrict the background image to specific categories, posts, and pages.
For example, if you want to add a custom background image for specific categories, then simply enter the category names under the ‘Select the Categories to restrict images to’ field.
Don’t forget to save your image to store your settings.
You’ve now successfully added a background image for specific posts, pages, and categories.
Method 5. Add Background Images Using CSS Hero
CSS Hero is a WordPress plugin that allows you to make any changes to your theme without touching a single line of code.
You can add background images quickly in a few simple steps. First, you need to install and activate CSS Hero. For more details, please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Once you’ve done that, it’s time to start customizing your website. Now open up your homepage in your browser. You’ll see the ‘Customize with CSS Hero’ link in your admin bar.
After you click that link, you’ll see the CSS Hero options open up. Hover your mouse over the area you want to add an image to.
When you click the selected area, you can see the ‘Background’ option in the left sidebar.
Go ahead and click ‘Background’ to see the settings for adding an image.
From there, you can click on ‘Image.’ Now, you can choose an image from Unsplash or upload your own to create your background.
When you click on the image you want, you’ll see the ‘Apply Image’ button. Then you can choose what size you want your image to be. You can choose the large version so it will stretch across the page.
Hit ‘Save and Publish’ at the bottom to save the background image for your site.
Method 6. Add Custom Background Images Anywhere in WordPress Using CSS Code
By default, WordPress adds several CSS classes to different HTML elements throughout your WordPress site. You can easily add custom background images to individual posts, categories, authors, and other pages using these WordPress generated CSS classes.
For example, If you have a category on your website called TV, then WordPress will automatically add these CSS classes to the body tag when someone views the TV category page.
Don’t forget to replace the background image URL and the category class with ones from your own site.
You can also add custom backgrounds to individual posts and pages. WordPress adds a CSS class with the post or page ID in the body tag. You can use the same CSS code, just replace .category-tv with the post-specific CSS class.
Are you trying to figure out how much does it cost to start a membership site?
There are many different factors that will affect the cost of your membership website. You’ll need to break them down into all the different essentials to keep your budget under control.
In this article, we’ll show you how much does it cost to start a membership site.
How to Calculate the Cost of a Membership Website?
To calculate the cost of a membership website, you’ll need to break down your spending into components.
This includes choosing the right platform, subscription addon, payment processor, and other tools / services that you’ll need. All of them depend on your business requirements, budget, and growth strategy.
To keep this article focused, we will break down our membership site cost analysis into the following major expenses:
There are several great membership platforms that you can use to build a membership website. Three major players in the industry are MemberPress (WordPress), Shopify, and Teachable.
Shopify and Teachable are SaaS (Software as a Service) platforms. They offer an easier setup initially, but they have limited flexibility and higher costs. More importantly, they charge you based on transactions which will take away a big chunk of your revenue over time.
This is why we recommend using MemberPress, which is the best membership site plugin on the market. They allow you sell unlimited memberships with no extra transaction fees.
It runs on top of WordPress, which is already the best website builder in the world used by over 43% of all websites on the internet.
Plus, you get full control over your membership site with the flexibility to choose your own payment service, integrations, and add any feature that you want.
This lets you control the cost of your membership website and adjust it as your business grows. In the long run, you would be able to make a sustainable business while saving a ton of money.
MemberPress has built-in features to sell online courses, digital subscriptions, and even physical memberships like associations.
Business owners using MemberPress are projected to earn over $600 million in 2021.
Membership Website Hosting and Setup Costs
Just like any other type of website, you’ll need a domain name and web hosting account to start a membership website.
Typically, a domain name costs around $16.99 per year and web hosting plans start at $7.99 per month (paid annually).
This is not cheap, considering that you’ll need to spend money on other components as well.
Luckily, the team at Bluehost have agreed to offer WPBeginner readers a generous 60% discount on hosting with a free domain name + SSL certificate which you’ll need in order to accept payments. Basically, you can get started for as low as $2.75 per month.
Bluehost is one of the best web hosting companies in the world and an officially recommended WordPress hosting service.
Alternative options: If you are looking for an alternative, then SiteGround is another excellent option. For more options, see our expert pick of the best WordPress hosting companies.
Next, you’ll need to get a MemberPress license which starts at $179 / year for a single site license.
This gives you all the features you need such as unlimited members, no transaction fees, ability to accept payments online, subscription management, email automation, easy course builder, marketing integrations, and more.
After you download MemberPress, you can go ahead and follow our step-by-step instructions on how to make a membership website in WordPress.
Estimated costs of hosting and setup:
Domain and web hosting: Starting from $2.75 per month – $25 per month MemberPress: $179 – $479 (depending on your licensing plan)
Payment Processing Costs for Membership Website
The recurring revenue model is what makes membership websites a lucrative online business idea.
MemberPress supports both Stripe and PayPal payment gateways that you can use to accept credit cards. You can also use Authorize.Net as a payment method with their Pro plan.
While MemberPress doesn’t charge any additional transactional fee, these payment service providers (merchant banks) do have a payment processing fee, and this is controlled by Visa, MasterCard, Amex, and other credit card companies.
You will have to pay these fees no matter which membership platform you use.
For example, PayPal may charge 2.90% of the transaction amount and a fixed rate of $0.30 USD for domestic transactions. It may also charge an additional 1.50% for international transactions.
Similarly, Stripe would charge $2.9%, a $0.30 USD fixed rate fee, and an additional 1% for international transactions.
The benefit of MemberPress is that you don’t pay them any transaction fees for using the platform. Also your payment processing costs only gets lower as your business grows because Stripe offers lower rates for higher processing volumes.
Whereas other providers like Teachable charge you an additional 5% transaction fee for using their platform on top of the fee you pay for payment processing services.
Estimated costs of payment processing:
PayPal: 2.90% + 0.30 fixed rate. Additional 1.50% on international transactions. Stripe: 2.90% + 0.30 fixed rate. Additional 1% on international transactions.
Design Costs for a Membership Website
Next, you need to choose a design for your membership website. Luckily, there are hundreds of free and paid website templates that work beautifully with MemberPress.
However, you’ll want to stand out from the crowd with a stunning design that looks professional and well polished.
Not only will it create a good impression of your brand, but it’ll also help your customers easily navigate your website. This results in higher engagement and sales.
There are three design options you can choose from based on your budget. We’ll discuss them in low to high pricing order:
Free WordPress themes
Premium WordPress themes
Custom WordPress themes
Free WordPress themes:
Free WordPress themes come with the obvious benefit of saving money, but they often include limited support and customization options compared to paid or premium WordPress themes.
Premium WordPress themes:
Premium or paid WordPress themes come with a price tag, but include more customization options and priority support from developers.
Pricing for premium WordPress themes usually starts at $30 USD per year. Here are some of the most popular membership website themes:
Divi – One of the most versatile WordPress themes suitable to make any kind of website including membership sites.
Astra – Astra is a popular multipurpose WordPress theme that works beautifully with membership sites. It comes with dozens of starter website templates and a 1-click setup.
Ocean WP – Another flexible WordPress theme that comes with powerful customization options.
MonsterInsights – Connect your membership site to Google Analytics and see how users find and use your website. This helps you learn how to bring more users and make more sales.
WP Mail SMTP – Emails are crucial for running a membership website. WP Mail SMTP fixes WordPress email deliverability by issue by properly sending emails using an SMTP server.
Marketing and SEO
All in One SEO – Easily optimize your membership website SEO to get more free traffic from search engines.
PushEngage – Easily send push notifications to your users on mobile as well as desktop. It helps increase website traffic, improve conversions, and grow your business.
OptinMonster – helps you improve conversion rates by converting website visitors into subscribers and paying customers.
Bonus Tools
SeedProd – An intuitive drag and drop page builder that allows you to quickly create custom landing pages and design layouts.
Uncanny Automator – Create automated workflows to manage your membership website. This helps you save time and create better user experience for your customers.
RafflePress – Easily run giveaways and contests for your members to boost engagement and grow your traffic.
Need even more features? Here are some of the must have WordPress plugins that you may want to check out. Many of them are free or have a free version.
Estimated costs of addons and extensions:
Free to Unlimited.
We recommend starting out with free versions of plugins whenever possible. This keeps your costs down and you can choose to buy premium plugins later as your business grows.
Premium Tools and Addons for a Growth Membership Site
We recommend all users to start with shared hosting and use free plugins and theme to keep the costs down. This saves you money and allows you to focus on growing your business.
Once your business starts growing, then you can choose to invest some money on extra features and premium tools. Following are a few additional features that you can later add to your website when you can justify the cost.
Live Chat Support – Live chat software helps you convert more users into paying members. We recommend using LiveChat which is the best customer service platform on the market. (Cost: Starting from $16 per agent per month)
Business Phone Service – A business phone number allows you to easily manage business calls using one number. We recommend using Nextiva, which is the best phone company for small businesses. (Cost: $18.95 per month)
Note: All of these additional services are not necessary to build a membership website. You can choose to add them to your site as your business grows.
Total Cost of Building a Membership Website
Now that we have covered the main areas of spending, let’s take a look at the total cost to build a membership website.
Keep in mind that your costs would increase as your business grows or you are able to invest more into it. We have broken down the cost range into three categories.
Starter Membership Website (Recommended): $212 per year or $17.66 per month (Shared hosting $2.75 / month, MemberPress $179 / year, free plugins and theme).
Growth Membership Website: $300 – $1000 (WordPress hosting upgrade $4.99/mo, MemberPress Pro $299/yr, paid plugins and marketing services).
For enterprise level membership websites the costs could go higher. They can choose dedicated hosting server, custom design, and hire developers to write custom WordPress plugins.
The best part about using MemberPress to build your membership website is that you are in charge of controlling the cost.
This means you don’t pay for anything that you don’t need right away, and you can still build a powerful membership website.
Tips on Keeping The Costs Down on Your Membership Site
Building a membership website with WordPress and MemberPress allows you to choose how you spend money on your membership website.
We recommend all users to start small and scale their website as their business grows.
Now many users compare their website with already established websites in their industry. This isn’t a fair comparison as those businesses have been around longer and already have a revenue stream to justify spending more money.
As a starter membership community you don’t need flashy premium features right off the gate.
You can start with a shared hosting plan on Bluehost which gives you a free domain + SSL. Then, you can purchase MemberPress Basic license plan and start building your membership website.
For essential features, you can rely on free WordPress plugins and theme. You would be surprised with what you can do using only the free plugins.
As your business takes off, you can start investing on premium features. Even then, you can find excellent WordPress deals and coupons to get discounts on all the top tools and services.
