How to Manage Categories in WordPress

Categories help organise your WordPress posts into broad topics, improving both navigation and SEO. This guide explains how to create, edit, delete, and manage categories in the latest version of WordPress.

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1. Access the Categories Page

1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
2. Click Posts in the left-hand menu.
3. Select Categories.

This page shows all existing categories and a form for creating new ones.

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2. Create a New Category

On the left side of the Categories screen, fill out the form:

• Name: The category title (e.g., “News”, “Tutorials”).
• Slug: The URL-friendly version of the name (optional).
• Parent Category: Used to create category hierarchies (optional).
• Description: Optional text shown by some themes.

When finished, click:

Add New Category

Your new category now appears in the list on the right.

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3. Editing Category Details

You can edit a category in two ways:

A) Quick Edit

1. Hover over the category name.
2. Click Quick Edit.

You can modify:

• Name
• Slug

Click Update Category to save.

B) Full Edit

1. Hover over a category.
2. Click Edit.

This opens the full category editor where you can modify all fields, including description and hierarchy.

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4. Deleting a Category

To delete a category:

1. Hover over the category name.
2. Click Delete.

WordPress will reassign posts from the deleted category to the default category (usually “Uncategorized”) unless you choose another default category via:

Settings → Writing → Default Post Category

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5. Assigning Categories to Posts

You can assign or change categories when editing a post:

1. Open the post in the Block Editor.
2. In the Settings sidebar, open the Categories tab.
3. Tick the categories you want to assign.

You can assign multiple categories to a single post if needed.

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6. Best Practices for Categories

• Use categories for broad topics; use tags for specific topics.
• Avoid creating too many categories — keep it organised.
• Use category hierarchies to group related topics.
• Choose descriptive names for better SEO.
• Update the default post category to something meaningful.

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