WordPress Tutorial #7
It’s much easier to add a widget in WordPress than to explain how. (If you’re not sure what a WordPress widget is, check out this explanation, then come back here for the how-to.)
Note: This article was updated on July 8, 2020.
#1. Click on Appearance/Widgets
From your WordPress Dashboard, scroll down the left-hand menu and click Appearance, then Widget.
You’ll see a screen that looks like this.
On the Widgets screen you’ll see a list and brief description of all the available widgets. If you scroll down, you’ll see a section for Inactive Widgets.
Along the right-hand side are all of the available Widgetized Areas.
A widgetized area, as its name implies, is an area where you can place a widget.
The most common widgetized areas are the sidebar and the footer.
#2. Select the Widget You Want to Use
Notice that each of the widgets have a little arrow next to the name.
My current theme offers a sidebar and several other widgetized areas area. I’m going to add an Image widget to the Footer.
Click the arrow to expand the area. Now you’re ready to add your widget.
#3. Add the Widget
Make sure your widget is expanded (see #2 above), then click the location where you want to place it. Click the Add Widget button, and you’ll see it appear on the right at the bottom of the list of widgets for that widgetized area.
The widget will be added at the bottom of the widgetized area, but never fear, you can reposition it.
To reposition it, simply grab it with your mouse and drag it until you see the new box appear, then drop it.
#5. Set Up the Widget
After you add the widget, you may have one more step.
Some widgets require you to fill in some information. In this case, I need to give the widget a title and add the image.
The Title is whatever you want your site visitors to see as a label above the widget. Here I’m just going to use “My Image.”
Then I upload the image — just the way you would upload a Featured Image for a post, and click the Add to Widget button. (Remember to add your Alt Text!)
You can even add a link to the image if you want. When you’re done, click the Save button.
Let’s see how it looks to visitors.
Congratulations, Widget-meister! That’s all there is to it.
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