How to Hide Unnecessary Menu Items From WordPress Admin

Wp Plugins

Do you ever wonder if it was possible to clean up the WordPress admin area for your users?

There are lots of things in the WordPress admin area that your users, authors, or clients don’t need to see or use. Cleaning up the admin area helps to keep them focused on only the options they need, without distracting clutter.

In this article, we will show you how to hide unnecessary items from WordPress admin.

How to hide items from WordPress admin

Why Hide Unnecessary Items for WordPress Admin?

In the WordPress admin area, there are a lot of menus, submenus, options and plugin settings that you can change anytime. Some of these menu items include dashboard widgets, post edit area, plugins, appearance, tools, and more.

However, most of these menus and settings are not used on a daily basis and they end up cluttering the admin area. If you run a multi-author website or have clients visiting the admin area, then it’s a good practice to clean up the WordPress admin panel.

You can only keep menus and options that are useful for your authors and clients, and hide the rest of the submenus.

You may also want to deactivate items based on user roles by creating different admin interfaces for users with different roles and capabilities on your WordPress site.

That said, let’s look at how you can remove and hide unnecessary items from WordPress admin.

Note: This guide is about the admin menu that a registered user on your site sees when they log in. If you’re wanting to customize the navigation menus that all your website visitors see, then you should see our beginner’s guide on navigation menus in WordPress.

Hiding Menu Items from WordPress Admin

The easiest way to hide menus and items from WordPress admin panel is by using the Admin Menu Editor plugin. It’s a free WordPress plugin that lets you change the menu titles, URLs, icons, and more.

You can also hide menu items from the admin area, set user role permissions, and drag and drop menu items to organize your WordPress admin.

First, you’ll need to install and active the Admin Menu Editor plugin. For more details, please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, you can head over to Settings » Menu Editor from your WordPress dashboard. Next, you’ll see all your menu and submenu items under the ‘Admin Menu’ tab.

Rearrange admin menu items

You can simply drag and drop your menu items to rearrange their order. There are also options to remove or add new menu items.

Next, go ahead and click the downwards arrow for any menu item to see more options. You can rename the menu title, change the target page, and more.

Change menu item settings

To hide a menu item for specific user, simply click the ‘Extra capability’ dropdown menu. After that, you can choose the user role who can view the menu item from the given options.

For example, let’s say you want to hide the Media menu and its submenus for all user roles except the administrator. To do that, simply click on the Extra capabilities dropdown menu and choose ‘Administrator’ under Roles.

Choose user role to hide menu item

Once you’re done, go ahead and save your changes.

Now the Media menu item will be visible to only the Administrator role and will be hidden to other user roles.

If someone still tries to access the hidden menu item by typing in the URL, then they’ll see the error message ‘You do not have sufficient permissions to access this admin page.’

Restricted error message

You can now repeat these steps for hiding other menu items and plugins from the WordPress admin menu for different users.

We hope this article helped you hide unnecessary items from WordPress admin area. You may also want to check out our guide on how to get a free SSL certificate in WordPress and the best WooCommerce plugins.

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.

The post How to Hide Unnecessary Menu Items From WordPress Admin first appeared on WPBeginner.

How to Disable Widget Blocks in WordPress (Restore Classic Widgets)

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Do you want to restore the classic widgets editor in WordPress?

The release of WordPress 5.8 removed the classic widgets editor in favor of Gutenberg widget block editor to control your website widget areas.

In this article, we’ll show you how you can disable widget block editor in WordPress, step by step.

How to restore classic widgets (disable widget blocks) in WordPress

Why Restore Classic Widgets in WordPress?

The widget block editor offers a lot of the same functionality as the classic widget editor. Plus, it gives you more control over the appearance of your widgets.

However, if you’ve been using WordPress for a while, then you may be more comfortable using the classic widget editor on your WordPress website.

Or, you enjoy the simplicity of the classic widget editor and want to disable widget blocks, like how some users prefer disabling the block editor.

That being said, let’s take a look at how to restore the classic widget editor in WordPress. Simply use the quick links below to jump straight to the method you want to use.

Method 1. Restore Classic Widgets by Using a WordPress Plugin

The easiest way to restore the classic widget editor is by using the Classic Widgets plugin. This plugin is developed and maintained by the WordPress core team.

First thing you need to do is install and activate the plugin. For more details, see our beginner’s guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, your WordPress blog will go back to the classic widget editor. There are no settings for you to configure.

Now, you can navigate to Widgets » Add New in your WordPress admin panel to go to the widget dashboard.

Go to classic widget area

To add new widgets, simply drag a widget to an available widget area.

Then, you can customize the widget settings. Make sure you click the ‘Save’ button to save your widget.

Add new classic widget

If you want to use widget blocks at any point in the future, then simply deactivate the plugin.

You can also disable Gutenberg and keep the classic editor on pages and posts as well. For more details, see our guide on how to disable Gutenberg and keep the classic editor in WordPress.

Method 2. Restore Classic Widgets by Adding Code to WordPress

Another way to disable widgets blocks is by adding code to WordPress. If you haven’t done this before, then see our beginner’s guide on how to copy and paste code in WordPress.

Next, you need to add the following code snippet to your functions.php file, in a site-specific plugin, or by using a code snippets plugin

function example_theme_support() {
    remove_theme_support( 'widgets-block-editor' );
}
add_action( 'after_setup_theme', 'example_theme_support' );

The code snippet above simply disables the Gutenberg block editor in your widget area. However, it keeps the block editor in your pages and posts.

Now, when you go to Widgets » Add New you can add widgets using the classic editor.

Go to classic widget area

We hope this article helped you learn how to disable widget blocks and restore classic widgets in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to easily create a custom WordPress theme and our expert picks of the must have WordPress plugins for business websites.

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.

The post How to Disable Widget Blocks in WordPress (Restore Classic Widgets) first appeared on WPBeginner.

How to Add Google Maps in WordPress (The RIGHT Way)

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Do you want to show Google Maps on your WordPress website?

If you’re running a local business, then displaying Google Maps on your site can help users easily find your location. It can also help improve your site’s search engine visibility so you can attract more website visitors.

In this article, we will show you how to add Google Maps in WordPress.

Add Google Maps in WordPress

Why Add Google Maps in WordPress?

Did you know that Google Maps is the most popular navigational app on all platforms?

If you have an office or physical store address, then adding Google Maps to your WordPress website makes it easy for users to quickly locate your physical stores, restaurants, or retail outlets. This helps you attract more customers and generate more business.

Not only that, but embedding Google Maps can also improve your WordPress SEO. According to Google, 46% of all searches are local. Adding Google Maps to WordPress can boost your local SEO and improve your visibility in local searches.

Now there are two ways to embed Google maps in WordPress, and we will show you both of them.

The benefit of the second method is that it follows all local SEO best practices, so if you use it, then Google will start to include your location on Google Maps. It will also display your business information like name, logo, address, phone number, open hours, and more in local search results.

Below are the quick links that you can use to go to the section you prefer:

That being said, let’s see how you can add Google Maps to WordPress.

How to Add Google Maps in WordPress without Plugin

If you just want to quickly embed Google maps in a WordPress post or page, then you can use the default iFrame method.

Simply go to the Google Maps website and type in any street address in the search area.

Find location in Google Maps and Click Share to Embed

Next, you need to click the Share icon and it will show a popup with the option to either Send a location link or Embed a map. You need to select the Embed a map option.

Copy Google Maps HTML Embed Code

After that simply copy the HTML code for Google maps, and then open the page where you want to embed the map. Inside the block editor, you need to add a Custom HTML block.

Select Custom HTML block in WordPress

Now you can simply paste the embed code you copied from Google maps, and then update or publish the page to preview the changes.

Google Maps iFrame Embed Code in Block Editor

This method works for quickly embedding Google maps, but it doesn’t give you maximum SEO benefits.

If you’re a small business, restaurant, or online store with either a single or multiple physical location, then we recommend using the next solution to maximize your Local SEO rankings because it uses proper open graph data to help you rank higher in Google.

How to Add Google Maps to WordPress with Local SEO Plugin

The best way to add Google Maps and optimize your site for local SEO is by using All in One SEO (AIOSEO).

It’s the best SEO plugin for WordPress because it helps you get higher SEO rankings without editing code or hiring a developer. Over 3 million professionals use AIOSEO to improve their search engine rankings.

AIOSEO

For this tutorial, we’ll be using the AIOSEO Pro version because it includes the Local SEO feature and other powerful optimization options. There is also a free version of AIOSEO that you can use to get started optimizing your site for search engines.

First, you’ll need to install and activate the AIOSEO plugin in WordPress. For more details, please see our tutorial on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, the plugin will launch the setup wizard. You can click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button to configure the plugin. If you need help, then please refer to our guide on how to properly set up All in One SEO in WordPress.

AIOSEO setup wizard

Next, you can head over to All in One SEO » Local SEO from your WordPress dashboard.

Then click the ‘Activate Local SEO’ button to get started configuring the local settings.

Activate local SEO

Once the Local SEO addon for WordPress is activated, you can add a single location or multiple locations in AIOSEO and display them on Google Maps. We’ll show you how to add both to your website.

Adding a Single Location

To add your locations, business information, open hours, and more, first you need to go to the ‘Location’ tab under All in One SEO » Local SEO.

If you have a single physical location, then keep the ‘Multiple Locations’ option set to No.

Location tab under local SEO

After that, scroll down to the ‘Maps’ section to pin your exact location.

Simply enter your address in the ‘Enter a query’ field and Google Maps will show your location.

Pin your store location

Once you’ve entered your location, don’t forget to click the Save Changes button.

Adding Multiple Locations

If you have more than one physical location, then you’ll need to enable the ‘Multiple Locations’ setting under the ‘Location’ tab in Local SEO.

Enable multiple locations

After that, a new Locations menu will appear in your WordPress admin panel.

Go ahead and navigate to Locations and then click the ‘Add New’ button.

Add a new location

Once you’re in the WordPress editor, scroll down to the ‘Map’ section.

Here you can enter your address in the ‘Enter a query’ field.

Add multiple map locations

After entering your location on the map and adding location information, go ahead and click the ‘Publish’ button.

You can now repeat this step and add as many locations as you want for your business.

Once you’re finished adding your locations, you can go to the ‘Maps’ tab back in the All in One SEO » Local SEO menu.

Here you will have to enter a Google Maps API key.

Enter Google maps API key

Now, let’s see how to create an API key for Google Maps.

Creating a Google Maps API Key

To start, you’ll need to visit the Google Maps Platform website and click the ‘Get Started’ button.

Google maps platform

After signing in with your Google account, you’ll need to set up a billing account.

Google Maps Platform has pay-as-you-go pricing, and they offer the first $300 of monthly usage for free for all users. For most websites, that will easily cover a simple map embed like the one we’re creating in this tutorial.

Don’t worry, they will not charge you any fees unless you manually upgrade to a paid account.

To get started, go ahead and click the ‘Create Billing Account’ button.

Create a billing account

Next, you can select your country and choose what best describes your organization from the dropdown menu.

Once you’ve selected this information, click the checkbox for Terms of Service and then click the ‘Continue’ button.

Enter personal details for billing account

On the next screen, you’ll need to enter your phone number for verification and click the ‘Send Code’ button.

Enter mobile number

After verifying the code, the next thing to do is enter your business name, payment method details, and billing address.

Once you’ve entered these details, click the ‘Start my Free Trial’ button.

Enter business name and payment details

Next, you’ll be asked a series of 4 questions about your organization and how you’ll use the Google Maps Platform.

Google Maps will ask about your primary goal for using the platform, which industry you’re in, select a use case, and your company size.

After answering these questions, go ahead and click the ‘Submit’ button.

Answer few questions for google maps

You’ll now see a popup with your Google Maps API key.

You can copy and save this key in a text file for future use.

Copy the API key

Now that you’ve created a Google Maps API key, you’ll need to head back to your WordPress dashboard to enter it in AIOSEO Local SEO settings.

Configuring Google Maps Settings in WordPress

You can now go back to All in One SEO » Local SEO from your WordPress dashboard and then navigate to the ‘Maps’ tab.

Go ahead and enter the Google Maps API Key in the ‘API Key’ field. You’ll see a preview of the map in AIOSEO as soon as you add the key.

Add API key and see map preview

Next, you can scroll down to edit the map settings.

AIOSEO lets you display Google Maps using a Gutenberg block, shortcode, widget, or PHP code. It also lets you choose different map styles and add a custom marker to your map.

Edit map settings

Don’t forget to click the ‘Save Changes’ button when you’re done.

Displaying Google Maps in WordPress

Next, you can add Google Maps to any WordPress post or page. To start, simply edit or add a new page on your website.

Once you’re in the block editor, click the ‘+’ button at the top and add the ‘AIOSEO Local – Map’ block anywhere on the page.

Add local maps block

After that, your Google Map will be added to the page.

AIOSEO also lets you edit the map settings from the options on your right. For instance, you can show labels and icons, add a custom marker, and edit the map’s width and height.

Edit your map in WordPress

If you have multiple locations, then you can select which location to highlight by choosing from the options given in the menu on your right.

Simply click on the ‘Location’ dropdown menu and select your preferred location to display on your website.

Choose which location to display

Once you’re satisfied with your settings, go ahead and publish the page.

Now you can visit your website to see Google Maps in action.

Preview your map

You can also add Google Maps to your site’s widget section, like the sidebar or footer.

To start, head over to Appearance » Widgets from your WordPress admin panel. Next, click the ‘+’ button and add the ‘AIOSEO Local – Map’ widget block where you’d like to display your location.

Add maps widget

After that, you can edit the widget settings.

For example, you could add a title, change the width and height of the map, choose which location to display if you have multiple locations, and edit the label.

Edit map widget settings

That’s it!

Now when you update your website you’ll see Google Maps in your widgets area.

Maps preview in widget area

We hope this article helped you learn how to add Google Maps to your WordPress site. You can also check out our guide on the best WordPress plugins for small business, and our expert pick of the best identity theft protection service for entrepreneurs.

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.

The post How to Add Google Maps in WordPress (The RIGHT Way) first appeared on WPBeginner.

How to Add Tooltips in Your WordPress Posts and Pages

Wp Plugins

Do you want to add tooltips in your WordPress posts and pages?

Tooltips are additional pieces of information that show when your mouse hovers over certain words. It’s a helpful way to clarify your content.

In this article, we’ll show you how to add WordPress tooltips in your posts and pages.

Add tooltips to your WordPress posts and pages

Why Display Tooltips in Your WordPress Posts and Pages?

Tooltips display useful information in small boxes that pop up when you hover over an area on your WordPress site. They’re a great way to add clarity to your content.

You can use tooltips to add definitions of difficult words, highlight important facts, and reveal the sources of your information. Like footnotes, they can improve user experience and help build trust with your visitors.

However, tooltips should never be used for essential information. Your post should contain everything your readers need even if they don’t read the tooltip, just in case they don’t see them. You should also make sure you do not overuse tooltips, or they can become a distraction to your website visitors.

That being said, let’s look at how you can add tooltips to your WordPress posts and pages.

How to Add Tooltips in Your WordPress Posts and Pages

The first thing you need to do is install and activate the WordPress Tooltips plugin. To learn more, see our step by step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Once the plugin is activated, there are several ways to add tooltips to your posts and pages. The first is to automatically add tooltips to certain keywords.

Adding Tooltips to Keywords Automatically

All you have to do is navigate to Tooltips » Add New to create a new tooltip. You need to start by adding a title.

This title is a keyword, and the tooltip will be automatically be displayed everywhere the keyword appears in your posts and pages. This can save you a lot of time, since you don’t need to add the tooltip in multiple locations throughout your website.

If you would like other words to also display the tooltip, then you can enter them in the synonyms section on the right of the screen. If you enter multiple synonyms, then they should be separated by the pipe symbol |.

Add a New Tooltip

Now, in the content section, add your tooltip. A tooltip might be only a few words long, or it could be several paragraphs of rich content with images and other media. However, keep in mind that you are writing content for a tooltip, not a full post, so keep it as brief as possible so it’s easily readable on any screen.

Once you’ve finished, you should click the ‘Publish’ button on the right of the screen. Now tooltips will be automatically displayed on your posts and pages wherever the tooltip’s title and synonyms are found.

Preview of Tooltip Automatically Added to a Keyword

Adding Tooltips Using Shortcode

Another way to add tooltips is to add a shortcode to the content of your posts and pages. This method is suitable for shorter tooltips, or when you want to display the tooltip just once instead of on every matching keyword on your website.

If you’re new to shortcodes, then you can learn more in our beginner’s guide on how to add a shortcode in WordPress.

To add your tooltip shortcode, first you need to create or edit the post or page where you wish to add the tooltip. Then you should add this shortcode where you wish the tooltip to be displayed:

[tooltips keyword="YOURKEYWORD" content="YOURTOOLTIPCONTENT"]

Simply replace YOURKEYWORD with the word or phrase you want to add the tooltip to, and replace YOURTOOLTIPCONTENT with the text you want to add to the tooltip. Be sure to leave the quotes in the shortcode so that it works properly.

Adding a Tooltip Using Shortcode

You can preview the page to see the tooltip in action.

This is how it appears on our demo site.

Preview Tooltip Added Using Shortcode

Building a Glossary From Your Tooltips

Each tooltip is a description of a keyword, similar to what you would find in a dictionary or glossary. As you go on adding tooltips, it is as if you are building a basic glossary.

This is why the WordPress Tooltips plugin allows you to display a glossary of tooltips on your website. Simply add the [glossary] shortcode to the post or page where you want the glossary to appear.

Adding the Glossary Shortcode

After you have published the post or page, you can visit your website to see the glossary.

This is how it appears on our demo site. It includes the tooltips we added to the plugin’s tooltips list, but not the tooltips we created using shortcode.

Preview of Tooltip Glossary

If you want to customize the glossary, then you can do so from the Tooltips » Glossary Settings menu in your WordPress dashboard. Here you will find a number of options you can tweak on how the glossary will be displayed and what will be included.

Tooltip Glossary Settings

For example, you can choose whether or not to display images in the glossary, and you can list the ID of any tooltips you don’t want to include.

We hope this tutorial helped you learn how to add tooltips to your WordPress posts and pages. You may also want to see our guide on how to create an email newsletter, or our expert comparison of the best free website hosting.

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.

The post How to Add Tooltips in Your WordPress Posts and Pages first appeared on WPBeginner.

How to Change the WooCommerce Shop Page Title (Quick & Easy)

Set Up Woocommerce

Do you want to change the shop page title in WooCommerce?

By default, your main shop page is simply called ‘Shop’. You may want to change the default title to be more descriptive and engaging, and better reflect your brand.

In this article, we’ll show you how to change the WooCommerce shop page title easily.

How to change the WooCommerce shop page title (quick & easy)

Why Change the Shop Page Title in WooCommerce?

When you install WooCommerce, it will automatically create pages like your shop page, account page, checkout page, and more.

By default, the shop page title will be ‘Shop’, but you can change this to anything you want, like ‘Boutique’ or ‘Store’ or something more detailed and descriptive. Overall, this can help create a better shopping experience and help build trust with your visitors.

Customizing your shop page title can also help your WooCommerce search engine optimization. Google and other search engines look at the words used in page titles to determine how to rank them in search results. If your shop page title is more descriptive, it can help you get more traffic to your online store.

With that said, let’s show you how to easily change the WooCommerce shop page title. Simply use the quick links below to jump straight to the method you want to use.

Method 1: Changing the WooCommerce Shop Page Title with Built-in WordPress Settings

The easiest and most beginner friendly way to change the shop page title in your online store is by using the built-in settings.

To change the title of your shop page, simply go to Pages » All Pages. You’ll need to find the page that says ‘Shop – Shop Page’ and then hover over it and click the ‘Edit’ button.

Go to all pages and open shop page

From here, you can enter a new page title at the top of the page.

Make sure to click the ‘Update’ button to save your changes.

Add new shop page title

Now, you can visit your shop page, and you’ll see your new shop page title live.

Changing your shop page title this way will update your breadcrumbs and navigation menu too.

Shop page new title example

Method 2: Changing the WooCommerce Shop Page Title by Adding Code to WordPress

Some WooCommerce themes might not give you the option to change your shop page title.

To do this, you’ll need to add code to WordPress. If you haven’t done this before, then see our guide on how to copy and paste code in WordPress.

Then, you can add the following code snippet to your functions.php file, in a site-specific plugin, or by using a code snippets plugin

add_filter( 'woocommerce_page_title', 'new_woocommerce_page_title');
 
function new_woocommerce_page_title( $page_title ) {
 
  if( $page_title == 'Shop' ) {
 
    return "New Shop Title";
 
  }
 
}

Make sure you replace the ‘New Shop Title’ with your own shop page title in the snippet above.

Now, you can visit your online shop page to see your new title live. You’ll notice this method doesn’t change the shop page URL or WooCommerce breadcrumbs, but only changes the title on the page itself.

Shop page title example with code

Method 3: Changing the WooCommerce Shop Page SEO Title with a WordPress Plugin

Another way to change your WooCommerce shop page title is by changing the shop title that shows up in the search engines, which is called the SEO title or title tag.

This can be a great way to get more traffic and target more relevant keywords related to your online store.

The easiest way to do this is by using the AIOSEO plugin. It’s the best WordPress SEO plugin in the market used by over 3 million websites. 

AIOSEO

You can use the plugin easily optimize your SEO title to improve your search engine rankings.

For more details on setting up the plugin, see our guide on how to setup All in One SEO for WordPress correctly.

After that, you can easily change your shop page SEO title by opening up your shop page and scrolling down to the ‘AIOSEO Settings’ box beneath the page editor.

You can use smart tags to automatically generate the shop page title, or enter a custom title instead.

AIOSEO shop page title

If you want to fully customize the title and page design of your WooCommerce shop page, then we recommend using SeedProd.

It’s a drag & drop design builder that lets you customize every Aspect of your WooCommerce store.

SeedProd WooCommerce Design Builder

We hope this article helped you learn how to change the WooCommerce shop page title. You may also want to see our expert pick of the best WooCommerce plugins and best WooCommerce hosting for creating a successful online store.

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.

The post How to Change the WooCommerce Shop Page Title (Quick & Easy) first appeared on WPBeginner.

How to Fix ‘Comments Are Closed’ in WordPress (Beginner’s Guide)

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Are you seeing the ‘Comments are closed’ message on your WordPress posts?

This message is displayed when comments have been disabled on a post. However, some users report seeing the message unexpectedly.

In this article, we’ll show you how to fix ‘Comments are closed’ in WordPress.

How to Fix 'Comments Are Closed' in WordPress (Beginner's Guide)

What Is the ‘Comments Are Closed’ in WordPress Error?

The comment area of your WordPress blog allows your website visitors to give feedback, ask questions, offer their own point of view on the topic, and respond to other comments.

Comments are disabled on all WordPress pages by default, and you won’t see the ‘Comments are Closed’ message on pages. However, you can still follow the steps below to open comments on your pages as well as posts.

For blog posts, you can disable comments on specific posts or on your entire WordPress website. For example, you may wish to disable comments on an announcement post.

When you disable comments on a post that has at least one comment, you will see the message ‘Comments are closed.’ This explains to your visitors that even though there are comments on the post, no further comments can be left.

The 'Comments are closed' Message

If you disable comments on a post that has no comments, then you won’t see the ‘Comments are closed’ message. WordPress will simply not display the comment form.

Perhaps you’re seeing the ‘Comments are closed’ message on your website unexpectedly. While WordPress is easy to use, some error messages can be hard to troubleshoot for beginners. That’s why we put together a list of the 50 most common WordPress errors and how to fix them.

This message is most likely being shown because of a WordPress setting that’s not configured correctly. That’s because WordPress has comments settings in multiple areas, which can make it hard for beginners to find the right settings to fix the problem.

In this post, we’ll walk you through all the settings you should check in order to reopen the comments on your blog posts.

With that being said, let’s look at how to fix ‘Comments are closed’ in WordPress.

Enable Comments on Future Posts

Comments are often closed on a WordPress site because at some time in the past a setting was checked was that disables comments on new posts by default.

You can check this setting by navigating to Settings » Discussion. Here you’ll find a set of checkboxes that control how comments are handled on new posts.

Enable Comments for Future Posts from Settings » Discussion

The first setting to look at is ‘Allow people to post comments on new articles’. This box should be checked so that the default setting for future posts is to allow comments.

Next, look at ‘Automatically close comments on articles older than XX days’. This setting is useful if you don’t want users to be able to comment on older posts. However, if you want to allow comments on all posts, then you should make sure this box is unchecked.

Once you’re happy with the discussion settings, make sure you click the ‘Save Changes’ button at the bottom of the screen to store the settings.

This will make sure comments are open on all new posts you create. But it will not enable them on posts that have already been created.

That’s what we’ll do in the next step.

Enable Comments on a Specific Post

This method will show you how to enable comments on existing posts one at a time. However, if you wish to enable comments on many posts, then you should follow the ‘Enable Comments in Bulk’ method that we cover below.

If you use the block editor on your WordPress site, then you need to scroll down the settings pane on the right of the screen until you come to the Discussion panel.

Now you should click on ‘Discussion’ to expand the options, and then make sure the ‘Allow comments’ box is checked.

Allow Comments on a Post or Page

Once you click the Update button at the top of the screen to save the setting, comments will be enabled for this post.

You should repeat these steps to enable comments on other blog posts. You can also follow the same process to enable comments on WordPress pages.

How to Display the Discussions Panel if It Is Hidden

While the Discussions panel is displayed by default, it may be hidden on your website. If you can’t find it, then you will need to click the Options icon at the top right of the screen. This icon looks like 3 vertical dots.

Post Preferences

You then need to click on ‘Preferences’ and navigate to the ‘Panels’ tab. Once there, you can toggle the ‘Discussions’ switch on so that the panel is displayed.

Toggle the Discussions Panel On

Enable Comments on a Specific Post (Classic Editor)

If you are using the classic editor, then the steps for enabling comments on a post are a little different. Here, the Discussion meta box is hidden by default. To display it, you will need to click on ‘Screen Options‘ at the top right of the screen.

Edit the Post and Click Screen Options

Next, you should check the Discussion box under ‘Screen elements’. After that, simply click ‘Screen Options’ again to return to your post.

Make Sure the Discussions Screen Element is Checked

You can now scroll down to the bottom of your post where you will find the Discussion meta box. You should make sure the ‘Allow comments’ box is checked.

Make Sure Allow Comments Is Checked

After you click the Update button to save the setting, comments will be enabled for this post.

Enable Comments on Posts in Bulk

If you need to enable comments on multiple posts, then you can update them in bulk. To do that, navigate to the Posts » All Posts page where you will find a list of all of your posts.

You need to select the posts that have comments disabled by clicking the checkbox next to each post.

After that, you should choose ‘Edit’ from the Bulk Actions dropdown box and then click the ‘Apply’ button. This will open the bulk edit screen.

Edit Multiple Posts at Once With Bulk Actions

Here you need to click the ‘Comments’ drop down menu and then select ‘Allow’.

Don’t forget to click the ‘Update’ button to change the setting for all selected posts.

Allow Comments for Multiple Posts at Once

How to Select All Posts At Once

If you want to enable comments for every post on your website at once, then following the steps above would take a lot of time if you have hundreds of blog posts on your site.

To do it faster, there are a few extra steps you should take. First, you will need to make sure that all posts are displayed on a single page.

You can see a count of all the posts on your website under the ‘Posts’ title at the top of the screen. If you have 20 posts or less, then they are already displayed on one page. If you have more than 20 posts, then you will have to increase the number of items per page.

To do that, you should click ‘Screen Options’ at the top of the page. Then, under Pagination, find the ‘Number of items per page’ setting. Here you will need to type a number larger than the total number of posts on your site.

Ensure All Your Posts Are Displayed on a Single Page

For example, if you have 65 posts on your website, then you could type the number 70.

After that, you need to click the ‘Apply’ button and all of your posts will be displayed on one page. You can now click ‘Screen Options again to hide the settings.

You can now select every post on your site by simply clicking the checkbox next to ‘Title’.

Click the Checkbox Next to Title to Select All Posts

To enable comments on all of these posts, you should click ‘Bulk Actions’ then ‘Edit’, and follow the steps we covered earlier in this section to change the Comments setting to ‘Allow’.

Note: We don’t recommend trying to update hundreds of blog posts at once if you have slow web hosting, since your site may time out or freeze up before completing all the updates.

Check for Incompatible Themes or Plugins

If you have tried all of the steps above and comments are still disabled on your site, then it may be because of an incompatibility with your theme or one of your plugins.

Sometimes poorly coded WordPress themes may wrongly display the ‘Comments are closed’ message even when comments are open.

To check if your theme is the problem, you should navigate to Appearance » Themes and temporarily activate some other theme.

Enable a Different Theme to See if the Issue Is Resolved

If the ‘Comments are closed’ message is now fixed, then your theme is the problem. You can ask the theme developer to fix the issue. For more details, see our guide on how to properly ask for WordPress support and get it.

Alternatively, if you’re an advanced user, then you can try to fix the issue yourself. You need to refer to our guide on how to disable comments in WordPress, and then follow the instructions under ‘Remove “Comments Are Closed” in WordPress’.

If you think a plugin may be causing the issue, then you can head over to Plugins » Installed Plugins and make sure you haven’t installed a plugin designed to disable comments, such as Disable Comments. If you have, then simply disable that plugin and test to see if comments are now working.

If comments are still closed, then you need to test for incompatible plugins. You’ll need to temporarily deactivate one plugin at a time by clicking its ‘Deactivate’ link.

Deactivate Plugins One at a Time to See if the Issue Is Resolved

Now test to see if comments are enabled on your site. If they are still not working, then this plugin is not the problem. Simply click its ‘Enable’ link and move on to the next plugin.

We hope this tutorial helped you learn how to fix ‘Comments are closed’ in WordPress. You may also want to learn how to increase your blog traffic, or check out our list of the best social media plugins for WordPress.

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The post How to Fix ‘Comments Are Closed’ in WordPress (Beginner’s Guide) first appeared on WPBeginner.