As you discover more about WordPress, you may occasionally come across something called a blogroll.
WordPress refers to a list of hyperlinks pointing to other sites or web pages that display on your sidebar area as a blogroll.
According to official WordPress documentation …
“The term ‘blogroll’ was originally used because it was a list of links to other blogs, but you can include links to any sites.”
You can manage a link section using the Links menu in your WP Dashboard. These links will display on your website once you add the Links widget.
Prior to the release of WordPress v3.5, Links were a built-in feature of the WordPress CMS. From v.3.5 onwards, the Links Manager section was kept hidden by default in new installations …
Before …
(WP Links Menu – pre v3.5)
After …
(The Links Manager feature – no longer displayed in WordPress after WP version 3.5)
If you have used an earlier version than v.3.5 and upgraded your installation, the Links Manager would have been removed, unless you have previously used it.
How To Add A Link Section To WordPress
You can add a link section to your sidebar menu by creating a custom menu, or use a plugin like the one shown in the tutorial below.
If the Links menu section is not displayed when you log into your WordPress dashboard, you can add it by installing a plugin. In this tutorial, you will learn how to add, edit, delete and manage links on your sidebar using WordPress plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager WordPress Plugin)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description
The Link Manager plugin restores the built-in Links menu on your WordPress dashboard, even if you upgrade WordPress to a later version or remove all of your current links.
Note: All this plugin does is add a single line of code to your installation in order to restore the hidden feature. When we last checked, this plugin had not been updated for a while, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use the Link Manager plugin, then use the one below instead, or contact us for help editing your site’s template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links – WordPress Link Management Plugin)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description
This plugin recreates the same concept as the built-in Link Manager while removing the shortcomings of the deprecated feature.
Plugin Installation
To install the Link Manager plugin on your website or blog, follow the instructions below:
In the WP administration area, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins – Add New)
Click on the Install Plugins > Search tab, type ”link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Locate the plugin in the search results screen and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin after installation …
After activation, a ‘Links’ section will be displayed on your WP sidebar menu screen …
(WordPress links menu)
Plugin Setup
Before you start adding links, we recommend setting up your link categories. This way, when adding a new link, you can assign your link to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a link category, choose Links > Link Categories in the dashboard navigation menu …
(Links Menu – Link Categories)
You will be taken to the ‘Link Categories’ page.
Type in the following information:
- Name: What you enter here is the category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug appears in the URL of the link category. It must be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description.
after entering your information, click the Add New Link Category button to save …
(Link Categories screen)
The new category will display in the list …
(Link Categories)
Tip: The default WordPress link category is called Blogroll . Unless you specify a category for a new link, WordPress automatically assigns new links to the default category …
(Default link category name)
You may want to change this to something that your visitors can relate to. This not only makes it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically display under the new category name …
(Consider changing the default link category name to something your visitors will relate to)
To edit the ‘Blogroll’ link title, hover your mouse over the list item and click on Quick Edit …
(Quick Edit)
Replace both the Name and the Slug with a new category name (remember to keep the slug in lowercase letters and replace all spaces with a hyphen), then click on the Update link Category button …
(Update Link Category)
Replace the link category name ‘Blogroll’ with a more suitable name (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘Resources’ etc).
Let’s create a link category description. To add a link category description, click on Edit under the category name …
(Link category description)
Add your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ screen and click Update done to save your settings …
(Edit Link Category screen)
Repeat the above process to add as many new link categories as your site requires.
Once you have set up your link categories, you can add new links.
Adding Links
To add a new link, click on Links > Add New in your WP dashboard menu …
(Links Menu – Add New)
This takes you to the ‘Add New Link’ screen …
(Add New Link page)
You can also reach this page by clicking on the ‘Add New’ button at the top of the main Links page …
(Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page includes a number of sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Add New Link – Name, Web Addressand Description fields)
Enter information into the following fields:
- Name: Whatever you type here is the category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug is the SEO friendly URL part of the link category. Use lowercase letters only and do not include spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display a link category description. (Optional)
Categories & Target
Select a Category and Target for the link …
(Categories & Target – Add New Link page)
In the Categories section, select one of the link categories you have already set up, or click on the ‘+ Add New Category’ link to create a new category.
Next, select a target frame for your link in the Target section by choosing one of the radio buttons. This lets you specify where you want the link to open when clicked on by visitors:
- _blank means that when a visitor clicks on your link, a separate web browser window will open up to display the information associated with the link.
- _none means that when visitors click on your link, they will leave your site and a new site or page will load in your browser window instead.
- _top opens links at the top level of the frame system if you’re using frames. If you don’t use frames, or if you don’t know what frames are, then just ignore this option.
Link Relationship XFN
This area provides some additional link functionality …
(Link Relationship (XFN))
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN stands for XML Friends Network – lets you define your relationship to the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Tallulah Fields and you link to her blog, you would probably tick co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional. You can leave everything in this section blank and all your links will work just fine. XFN makes your links more understandable to some sites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field lets you specify the ‘rel’ attribute that will be assigned to your link. The rel attribute specifies a relationship between the current document and the linked document. For example, if you don’t want search engines to follow your link, enter nofollow into this field. Separate multiple ‘rel’ keywords with spaces.
You can learn more about XFN by visiting this site:
Advanced
The last section of the Add New Link’ page allows you to specify Advanced features for your links (You can leave the fields in this section empty unless there’s a good reason to use them) …
(Advanced link settings – Add New Link)
The Advanced link settings section includes the following:
- Image Address: Specify an image to be displayed with the link. Add the image URL and make sure that the image is small (around 16×16 like a favicon).
- RSS Address: If your theme allows it, the RSS feed associated with the link can display next to your links.
- Notes: Add notes about the link in this section for your own internal reference.
- Rating: You can add a rating score to the link if you would like to sort links by rating (see the ‘Links’ widget section below).
Type in your information into the above fields or just leave this section blank.
When you have finished adding information about your link, click on Add Link to save your new link …
(Click on the Add Link button to update your link settings)
Note: If you select Keep this link private, your link will not be visible when links are displayed on your site …
(Private link checkbox)
Making a link private lets you toggle its visibility on and off without deleting it (this is useful if you want to use seasonal links) …
(Making links private toggles their visibility on and off)
To see all the links you have added to the Link Manager, select Links > All Links in the main navigation menu …
(Links Menu – All Links)
This brings up the ‘Links’ screen in your browser. The table of links displays your links and link information (e.g. URL, categories, visibility, etc.) …
(Links table)
Tip: To view or hide fields in the list of links, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of the screen …
(List of links – Screen Options)
Enable/disable fields on your table of links by ticking/unticking their checkboxes …
(List of links – Hide or display screen options)
How To Edit Links
To edit a link, click on Links > All Links in the main navigation menu to bring up the links page …
(Links – All Links)
Locate the item you want to edit and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link details …
(Editing link information)
Make the changes you want to the link …
(Edit Link screen)
After you’re done editing your link, you can:
- Click on Update Link to save and update your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to view your link and check that you have set up its URL correctly (your link will open in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link if you no longer require it …
(Update Link button)
Deleting Your Links
To remove links, go to your WP admin menu and select Links > All Links …
(Links Menu – All Links)
This brings up the ‘Links’ table in your web browser.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or delete all links.
To delete links individually, hover over the link that you want to remove from the link table and click on Delete …
(Deleting links)
To delete a number of links at once, either tick the check boxes next to individual links that you would like to be removed, or select all links by clicking on the main check box next to the ‘Name’ column header at the top of the list …
(Delete multiple links)
Choose Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ drop menu, and click the Apply button to remove your selected links …
(Bulk-deletion of links)
Your selected links will be removed …
(Deleted links notice)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to configure link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, it’s time to display links on your website or blog.
Using The Links Widget
Installing the Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ page.
To access and configure your Link widgets, go to your WP dashboard menu and choose Appearance > Widgets …
(Appearance – Widgets)
The ‘Widgets’ page will display in your web browser.
You will notice that a ‘Links’ widget has been added to the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
Drag the ‘Links’ widget to one of the widget sections and drop it wherever you want the links section to show up …
(Adding a links widget to a widgetized menu using drag & drop)
The Links widget includes various settings. For example, you can specify what information you would like to show about your links and how many links you would like to display on your sidebar …
(Link widget settings)
You can add as many link widgets to your sidebars and footers as you want. This lets you add and feature a number of link categories throughout your site …
(You can add a number of link widgets to your widget bars)
Display a list of links for a specific category …
(Link widget settings – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link rating, Link title, Link ID, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sort by options)
After setting up your Links widget, click Save to update your settings. A links should become visible on your sidebar, footer or any widgetized area you have added the links widget to …
(An example of how links can be displayed on a sidebar)
As the above example shows, you can display specific links to your site visitors (e.g. a list for a specific link category only), and add multiple lists of links to your sidebar menu.
Need more help using widgets? We have written a detailed article about configuring widgets. Go here to learn more:
Links Manager – Additional Information
If you have loads of links, the Links Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these with sort, filter, and search features.
Sorting Links Function
You can sort links by hovering your mouse cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and clicking on the little triangle displayed next to the column title …
(You can sort your links)
Searching Links Function
Type a search term into the search field and click the Search Links button to search for links …
(Search links)
Filter Your Links
You can filter links by link categories …
(Filter your links by category)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories page. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to find link categories, or click on the links in the ‘Links’ column …
(searching and filtering links in the Link Categories screen)
This brings up a list of all links listed under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by link category)
Links – Additional Options
If you plan to use links extensively on your website, or if you intend to add a ‘Links’ page to your site (i.e. not just add a links section to your sidebar), then you may want to look at using a plugin that can help you administer your links.
Link Library
(Link Library Plugin)
Plugin URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
Link Library gives you the ability to publish a list of all your link categories and a complete list of all your links together with descriptions and notes …
(List of links created with Link library. Image: Link Library plugin site.)
Link Library can be used to create a page on your web site that contains a list of all of the link categories in your Links section, and all links defined for these categories. Additionally, you can select a sub-set of categories to display or not display, show only one category at a time, display a search box and find results based on visitor queries, display a form to accept user submissions that can be moderated by a site administrator, and even generate an RSS feed for your links so that your site users can become aware of any additions made to to your link library.
Go here to learn more this plugin:
Congratulations! Now you know how to how to add a blogroll and manage links to external sites in WordPress.
We have written a detailed article about how to easily add hyperlinks into your WordPress posts & pages. Go here to learn more:
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