It has been about a year now since WordPress introduced the new Gutenberg “block editor.” Although my impression is that the block editor is nice for building websites, it is not very user friendly for someone who just wants to put up a blog post.
I’ve seen some articles and WordPress support posts online about how you can disable the Gutenberg Editor (aka block editor) in order to use the classic editor “plugin.” However, I have a “premium” plan, and I know lots of bloggers who use the “personal” or even the free plans. When I look at the plugins area of my WordPress dashboard, I see that you have to have the more expensive “business” plan, which is three times more expensive than my “premium” plan, to be able to use plugins. Maybe the problem is also because my blog is hosted by WordPress instead of another website host? All I know is, I don’t see a place to disable Gutenberg in my settings and I can’t install the “Classic Editor” plugin, either. Hence the background for today’s problem-solving post.
Now, maybe everyone else already knows how to access the “Classic Editor” in WordPress, making my post both unnecessary and possibly a little pathetic. But until I stumbled upon it while editing an earlier post, I didn’t know I still could use the classic editor. So just in case you’re suffering through with the block editor, here is my own workaround to bypass the block editor and write all my blog posts using the “Classic Editor.”
You can click on the images below to enlarge them. I screenshot the whole screen to provide the overall context, but then the details are too small to see well.
First, there appears to be no way around starting your post with the block editor. If you know how to start out your posts from the get-go with the classic editor, I’d love to know your secret! In the meantime, I start with the block editor default, write my title, and then save my draft.
Then, I open a new tab in my internet browser and type in my WordPress blog’s URL plus “/wp-admin/edit.php.” Or to make that a little more clear, to get to my old-school dashboard I type in:
katherinewikoff.wordpress.com/wp-admin/edit.php
Once in the old dashboard, you’ll see a list of your published and draft posts. If you hover your cursor arrow just under your current draft post, you’ll see a “Classic Editor” option appear under your post’s title.
Click on “Classic Editor” and . . . HELLO, OLD FRIEND! ❤
From here you can write your blog post as if the WordPress block editor never happened!
It would be so nice if WordPress could put a “Classic Editor” button right on the main interface to make it easier for bloggers who just want to put up a simple blog post and don’t care about all the bells and whistles (and aggravations) of the block editor.
But at least for now WordPress has kept the Classic Editor as an option if you’re willing to do the extra work of finding it.
Very helpful post, Katherine. I’m with you on love for the Classic Editor. My process is a little different and it’s good to know that your workaround is an option…for the next time WP decides to improve the software. 😊 Best, Babsje
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Oh my goodness, this is so helpful! I have also been wishing for a Classic Editor button and your instructions make it very easy. Thank you!
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I’m so glad to know you have also been wishing for a Classic Editor button. I was starting to think I was the only one. Thank you, Melinda!
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Melinda, after I replied earlier I remembered seeing something in the news about wildfires in British Columbia. I think they are well away from where you are, but I still wanted to ask if you are okay and your friends and family?
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Thank you for asking–there are three (contained, thankfully) wildfires within about 150 km away from us in Prince George. Unfortunately however there are about 200 wildfires burning in British Columbia right now, and the worst thing is one entire town, Lytton (about 8 hours away from me) basically burned down to the ground within minutes a few days ago. I feel so terrible for all those poor people–they had almost no time to evacuate, and within minutes, their homes and town are just gone.
Part of this is because we just had a “heat dome” that caused temps of over 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) over most of the province, including up north where I am. It was terrifyingly hot! I was worried for my elderly parents and relatives in Vancouver, where it was almost as hot. Most of us don’t have air conditioning because the temps just never go that high–usually we are around 23 C (73 F) on a normal summer day. One day during the heat dome it reached 36 C (97 F) INSIDE our house. It was so bad.
I hope that you are safe from heat domes and wildfires where you are!
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That heat sounds absolutely brutal. Having your house hit 97 degrees INSIDE is insane! Knowing there are 200 fires is really frightening, too—both for the sheer number and for the speed at which they can move, like the one that destroyed Lytton. Scary! I hope temperatures will drop soon and you get relief. Rain would be especially good to (hopefully) extinguish those fires. Sending positive thoughts your way, hoping everyone stays safe!❤️
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Katherine you are my HERO. I had an alternative work-around in place for months but cloning existing posts to update body copy and add new media resulted in ok text but sizing issues on photos. All of the tech support I found online says to add a plugin but as you point out WP requires a business account. I refuse to pay for restoring functionality a vendor took away. Whatever happened to backwards compatibility? I revisited tour blog post and it works PERFECTLY. Many thanks. Babsje. Humming more Chicago tunes. 😊
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Babsje, thanks so much for letting me know it worked for you! ❤️ (🎵)
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You’re welcome. My alt approach rendered graphics in a less-than-optimal size. Have a lovely weekend! 😊 😊 😊
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