How to Edit Your WordPress Website Content Yourself (Text, Images, Menus)

On this page

1. First: know how your pages were built
2. Editing text
3. Replacing images
4. Updating menus
5. Headers and footers
6. Adding a blog post
7. SEO titles and descriptions
8. Do it safely
9. Change not showing?
10. When to ask for help

One of WordPress's biggest advantages is that you can update your own website without calling a developer for every small change. Here's how to handle the most common updates safely.

First: know how your pages were built

Open a page in the dashboard (Pages → All Pages → Edit). If you see an "Edit with Elementor" button, the page uses Elementor. Otherwise it probably uses the WordPress block editor. Your developer can tell you which tools were used.

Editing text

• Block editor: click on the text and type, then click Update
• Elementor: click "Edit with Elementor", click the text widget, edit in the left panel or directly on the page, then click Update

Replacing images

1. Prepare the image: right size, compressed, sensible file name; see preparing photos for your website
2. Click the image block or widget and choose to replace it
3. Upload the new image and add descriptive alt text
4. Update the page

Updating menus

Go to Appearance → Menus (or the Site Editor's navigation on block themes). Add pages, drag to reorder and save.

Headers and footers

Headers and footers are usually shared across the whole site. They may be edited in Elementor → Templates → Theme Builder, the theme customiser (Appearance → Customize) or the Site Editor. Changes apply to every page.

Adding a blog post

Posts → Add New. Add a title, write the content with headings, add a featured image and category, then publish. See writing blog posts that rank.

SEO titles and descriptions

If the site uses an SEO plugin, scroll below the editor to set the page title and description; see meta titles and descriptions.

Do it safely

• Use an Editor account for content work instead of an Administrator account; see user roles
• Use revisions to go back if you make a mistake
• Avoid changing layouts and global styles unless you're confident
• Don't install plugins or edit code to make content changes

Change not showing?

Clear the cache; see WordPress changes not showing.

When to ask for help

New page layouts, design changes, features and anything involving code are better done by a developer. A maintenance plan often includes time for these.