Learning how to use the WordPress block editor is an important part of understanding how to build your website. You have a lot of options for different page builders in WordPress, but the default option is the block editor, also known as Gutenberg. Using the Gutenberg Block Editor takes a little bit of practice to get used to. However, once you understand how it works it will make building your pages and posts very simple, with no coding required!
Here’s what we’ll cover:
- What the WordPress Block Editor Is
- Creating a New Page or Post
- Adding a Title & Text
- Adding Blocks
- Arranging Your Content
- Saving Blocks for Reuse
- Finishing Your Post & Publishing It
What is the WordPress Block Editor?
The block editor, Gutenberg, is the WordPress pages and posts builder. They changed the builder pretty dramatically in 2019, so if you had a WordPress site in the past you may be surprised to see how different it is now! (If you want to use the old WordPress editor, you can install a plugin like ‘Classic Editor.’)
The old editor was text based, so if you wanted to have special elements on your page you needed to know how to write them in HTML and CSS. The new block editor lets you create elements out of blocks. Now all you have to do is drag and drop the blocks where you want them. There are lots of different types of content blocks– text, images, videos, galleries, etc., and you can add even more with plugins. Each block has its own settings that help you control exactly how you want the block to look, so your page is flexible and customized.
The WordPress block editor makes it easy for anyone to build an awesome website (not just developers)!
Step 1: Create a new page or post
To get started, all you need to do to create a new page or post is to click Pages > Add New for a page, or Posts > Add New for a post. That will take you to the block editor so you can start creating your content.
Click Pages > Add New for a page, or Posts > Add New for a post
Step 2: Add a title & text
The first thing you want to do is add a title, just click where it says ‘Add title’ and start typing. You can then hit the tab key to jump down and start typing your first paragraph. You can also click where it says “Type / to choose a new block” and type your content there.
Just click each section and start typing your content
Step 3: Add blocks
When you want to add a new block, click the ‘+’ to open the block library. There’s a search bar at the top of the library if you’re looking for something specific, or you can scroll through all the options.
You can add text, images, buttons, and more. Just click a block and it will be added to your content. It will also give you some easy instructions on how to fill in the block’s content.
Click the + to open the block library
Each block that you add will have its own options and settings. If you add an image block it will prompt you to select the image, if you add a button block it will ask for text on the button, etc.
When you’re editing a block you will see a toolbar above it and a panel on the right-side of the screen. The toolbar has basic settings for that particular block. The right-side panel has more customizeable options for even more control and options.
Customize the block with the settings in the toolbar and right-side panel
Step 4: Arrange your content
One of the best things about the block editor is it makes it very easy to arrange and organize your content. This lets you create unique layouts to bring interest and variety to your posts and pages.
If you want to reorganize you can click and hold the drag button in the toolbar to move the block wherever you want. Another option is to click the up and down buttons in the toolbar to move the block up a space or down a space.
Click and hold the drag button to move the block wherever you want
You can also organize blocks with columns and groups. To add an empty column or group to your post or page, open the library and select the column or group. It will add the block and you can then fill it with other blocks like text or images.
To put blocks you already have into columns or groups, hold the SHIFT key on your keyboard and click the blocks you want. This will let you select multiple blocks at the same time. In the toolbar will be a new button that will put the selected blocks into a column or group.
Add empty columns or groups from the library
Hold SHIFT while selecting multiple existing blocks to group them
Step 5: Save blocks so you can reuse them
If your website is going to have content that you’ll need on multiple pages or posts, you can save your blocks! It’s a handy and efficient way to avoid needing to rebuild similar content over and over.
On a block’s toolbar, click the 3 dots and then select ‘Add to reusable blocks.’ It will ask for a name, hit save, and now you’ll be able to find that block in your block library for whenever you need it. You can even save columns and groups, so whole sections of content can be available and ready-to-go in your library.
On a block’s toolbar, click the 3 dots and then select ‘Add to reusable blocks’ to save the block
Step 6: Finish your post and publish it
One of the last steps of creating a page or post is to look at the post options. You can find those options in the right-side panel of the editor under the ‘Post’ tab.
Note: if the panel is closed or missing, click the gear icon in the top right of the screen to open it.
Under the post’s options you’ll find settings like visibility, publish date, categories, tags, featured image, etc.
You can find post options options in the right-side panel of the editor under the ‘Post’ tab.
When your post if perfected, give it one last review– you can see what your post will look like by clicking the ‘Preview’ button in the top right of the page.
If it all looks good, go ahead and hit that ‘Publish.’ Now your post is live and you can share it with your readers.
Congrats on publishing your first post!
Publish your post to make it available on your website
And that’s it! The WordPress block editor does take a little bit of practice, but once you know your way around it, it’s easy to use, intuitive, and lets you create all the layouts your website could ever need.
The best part? You don’t need to know any coding to make the WordPress block editor do amazing things, so anyone can build a website.
