Creating an archive page in WordPress is a highly effective way to improve site navigation and help readers discover more of your content.
But most WordPress themes don’t include a built-in option for adding an archive page. So in this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk through how to build a custom archive page yourself using my 15+ years of experience as a WordPress developer.
Contents
Why You Need a Custom Archive Page
Before jumping into the how-to, let‘s look at some key reasons every WordPress site needs an archive page:
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Improves site navigation – A dedicated archive page gives readers an easy way to browse your older content by date, category, author, etc. This enhances navigation and site structure.
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Surfaces overlooked content – An archive page helps bring older posts back to the forefront. One study found 61% of site content is never seen, so an archive can help reduce this.
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Increases time on page and pages per session – With an archive page, readers can easily click through multiple old posts in one visit. This metrics like session duration and pages/session.
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Provides SEO value – A well-organized archive page helps search engines better crawl, index, and understand your content. This can improve SEO.
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Reduces bounce rate – Making it easy to navigate to related content reduces bounce rate as visitors are more engaged during each session.
In short, archive pages are a must for the user experience, content discovery, and SEO of any WordPress site.
Option 1: Using the WordPress Block Editor
The block editor (Gutenberg) provides an easy way to create custom page layouts without coding.
Here are step-by-step instructions to build an archive page with it:
Step 1: Create a New Template
Start by creating or opening the page you want to become your archive page. In the right sidebar, click on Template and select your current template:
[insert image]Then click the "+" icon to create a new template:
[insert image]Give your template a name like "Archive Template" and hit Publish:
[insert image]This will launch the template editor for you to start building.
Step 2: Add Archive Blocks
To add elements in the template editor, click the "+" button to open the block inserter.
Search for "archives" and select the Archives block. This automatically creates an archive list organized by date:
[insert image]You can configure the Archives block to:
- Change the date grouping (Month, Year, etc)
- Show post counts
- Toggle the display to a dropdown
- Filter by post type
To complement this, also add a Categories block so readers can filter by category:
[insert image]The Categories block lets you:
- Show hierarchy with parent/child categories
- Toggle post counts
- Filter to show only top-level categories
These two blocks create the foundation of your archive page‘s structure and navigation.
Step 3: Add Complementary Blocks
Next, you can add blocks to showcase specific content:
- Latest Posts – Highlights your most recent content
- Tag Cloud – Enables browsing posts by tag
- Search Bar – Lets visitors search your archive
Styling and positioning these thoughtfully will enhance the user experience.
Step 4: Publish and Apply The Template
Once you‘re satisfied with your archive page template, publish it from the top right corner.
Then go back to the page you want to use this template on, select it from the Template dropdown, and update the page.
That‘s all it takes to create a custom archive page with the WordPress block editor!
Option 2: Building an Archive Page with SeedProd
SeedProd is a popular drag-and-drop WordPress page builder plugin. It provides an easy way to build custom archive pages with more design flexibility.
Here is how to create an archive page with SeedProd:
Step 1: Install and Activate SeedProd
If you don‘t already have SeedProd, install and activate it on your WordPress site. You will need SeedProd Pro to access all features.
After activating, enter your license key when prompted to unlock Pro capabilities.
Step 2: Create a New Page
In your WordPress dashboard, navigate to SeedProd > Pages > Add New to create a new page.
Select any layout and design template you want, then give your page a title and URL slug:
[insert image]Hit "Save and Edit" to launch the page builder.
Step 3: Add the Posts Block
In the left sidebar, search for the "Posts" block and drag it into place. This automatically displays all your posts.
The Posts block lets you filter, customize, and configure:
- Filter by category, tag, author, etc
- Customize post order (date, title, comments, etc)
- Show or hide excerpts
- Set posts per page
- Customize image sizes
- Change column layout
- Customize colors, spacing, etc
This one block quickly creates a full archive page. But you can complement it by adding blocks for categories, tags, search, etc.
Step 4: Publish and View
When you finish customizing your archive page, publish it and view the results on your live site.
With SeedProd‘s drag-and-drop simplicity, you can build beautiful custom archive pages for WordPress without any coding.
Best Practices for Optimizing Your Archive Page
No matter which plugin you use to build your archive page, follow these best practices to maximize its performance:
Improve page speed – Minify CSS/JS, compress images, and use caching plugins to optimize page speed. This improves user experience and SEO.
Enhance SEO – Include your main site keywords in the page title and content where relevant. This helps search engines understand the page.
Include breadcrumbs – Breadcrumbs like Home » Archives help with site navigation and SEO.
Add sorting options – Allow readers to sort posts by date, title, or popularity to facilitate browsing.
Implement pagination – Split your archive into multiple pages to avoid overwhelmingly long pages.
Test user experience – Put yourself in the reader‘s shoes to ensure your archive page is easy to use and navigate.
Promote it – Link to your new archive page from your site‘s menu, footer, and relevant content.
By taking the time to optimize and test your custom archive page, you can provide immense value for readers while enhancing your overall site‘s capabilities.
I hope this detailed guide helps you build an archive page that becomes an indispensable part of your WordPress site‘s navigation and content ecosystem. Let me know if you have any other questions!
