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Build a Code Free Website with WordPress
Build a Code Free Website with WordPress
Creating Menus and Widgets
Now that we've imported our Starter Template, we need to configure navigation menus and add widgets to improve the user experience.
Understanding Menus in Astra
When we imported our Starter Template, WordPress automatically created a pre-configured navigation menu. This means your site already has a menu with links to essential pages, such as Home, About, Services, and Contact.
However, menus are flexible — you can:
Edit existing ones;
Create new menus;
Assign them to different locations such as the header, footer, or sidebar.
Menus can include:
Pages: these are pages already created in your WordPress site, such as "Home," "About," and "Contact". (You must create pages in the Pages section before adding them to a menu);
Blog Categories: organize blog posts by topic, allowing visitors to browse related content;
Custom Links: direct visitors to external websites or specific sections of your site.
Note
Astra provides flexible menu location options, such as the Primary Menu (header), Footer Menu, and Off-Canvas Menu.
Since our Starter Template already comes with a menu, let's learn how to modify it.
To edit an existing menu:
- Go to Appearance → Menus;
- In the Select a menu to edit dropdown, choose the Primary Menu;
- Click Select to open the menu settings.
Here, you can:
- Add new pages;
- Remove unwanted links;
- Drag and drop menu items to reorder them;
- Click Save Menu to apply the changes.
Your site's navigation will now reflect the updated menu structure.
Let's say we want to add a secondary navigation menu in the footer.
To create a new menu:
- Go to Appearance → Menus;
- Click Create a New Menu, name it Footer Menu, and click Create Menu;
- Click Add Items to include links such as:
- Privacy Policy;
- Terms & Conditions;
- Contact Page.
- Select Footer Menu as the display location;
- Click Save Menu.
Tip: the Footer Menu will now appear in the footer of your website, allowing visitors to access important pages easily.
Widgets are small content blocks that add extra functionality to different parts of your site, such as the sidebar or footer.
Common widget types include:
- Search Bar: helps visitors find content easily;
- Recent Posts: displays the latest blog articles;
- Categories: organizes content by topic.
To add widgets:
- Go to Appearance → Widgets;
- Select a widget area (e.g., Sidebar, Footer);
- Click the + (Add Block) button;
- Click Browse all to see all available widget options;
- Click on a widget to add it to the selected area;
- Click on the widget block to customize its settings;
- For example, if you added a Social Icons block, you can rearrange, add, or remove social media platforms.
- Click Update to apply changes.
Tip: widgets in Astra work just like the blocks we've previously explored, meaning you can customize them, move them, or delete them as needed.
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