As you continue to learn more about the benefits of using WordPress, you may occasionally come across something called a blogroll.
In WordPress terminology, a list of hyperlinks displayed on your sidebar section is sometimes referred to 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 add a blogroll using the Links menu in your WP Dashboard. These links will display on your blog once you add the Links widget.
Prior to the release of v3.5, Links were a visible feature of the WordPress CMS. From version 3.5 onwards, the Link Manager section was removed …
Before …
(The Links Manager feature was part of the WordPress dashboard menu until the release of WP v.3.5)
After …
(The Link Manager feature – excluded from the WordPress menu after WordPress v 3.5)
If you’ve used an earlier version of WordPress than 3.5 and upgraded your installation, then the Link 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 you can’t see the Link Manager section when you log into your WP admin area you will need to install a plugin. This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to add, edit, delete and manage links on your sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager WordPress Plugin)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Plugin Description
This plugin restores the Links Manager, even if you update to a later version of WordPress or remove all of your existing links.
Note: All this plugin does is add a single line of template 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 this plugin, then use the one below instead, or contact us for help editing your template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links Plugin)
Plugin Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description Of Plugin
This plugin attempts to recreate the same concept as the built-in Link Manager while addressing the shortcomings of the deprecated functionality.
Installing Link Manager
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
In your WordPress admin menu, go to Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins Menu – Add New)
Select the Install Plugins > Search tab, type in “link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Find the plugin in the search results area and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin after installation …
After activation, a ‘Links’ section will show up on the dashboard menu screen …
(Links management menu)
Plugin Configuration
We recommend setting up your link categories first before adding links. This way, when you create a new link, you can assign the link to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a link category, go to your WP admin menu and click on Links > Link Categories …
(WP Links Menu – Link Categories)
The ‘Link Categories’ page will load in your web browser.
Type in information into the following fields:
- Name: Enter the category name here.
- Slug: The slug shows up in the URL of the link category name. It must all be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description.
Click the Add New Link Category button …
(Link Categories area)
The category details will display in the table …
(Link Categories area)
Tip: The default WordPress link category is called Blogroll . Unless you specify the category for a link, WordPress automatically assigns new links to the default category …
(Default link category name)
You may want to change this to something that will make sense to your readers. This will not only make it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically be assigned to the new category name …
(Change the default ’blogroll’ to something better suited to your business)
To change the ‘Blogroll’ link title, hover your mouse over the category name and click on Quick Edit …
(Edit the default link category)
Change both the Name and the Slug with a new category name, and click on Update Link Category …
(Edit the link category)
In our example, the link category name ‘Blogroll’ has been replaced with a more suitable category name (e.g. ‘Recommended’).
Let’s now add a description for this link category. To add a link category description, hover over the item name and click Edit …
(You can add/edit your category description)
Enter your link category description field and click Update …
(Edit Link Category page)
Repeat the above process and add as many new link categories as your site needs.
Once you have set up your link categories, you can add new links.
Adding New Links
To create a new link, choose Links > Add New in your WP navigation menu …
(Links Menu – Add New)
The ‘Add New Link’ page will display in your web browser …
(Add New Link page)
You can also access this screen by clicking on ’Add New’ in the main Links screen …
(Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page is divided into a number of sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
The first section is where you enter details about your link …
(Name, Web Address, Description – Add New Link page)
Enter information into the following sections:
- Name: What you type here is the category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug shows up in the search-engine friendly URL of the link category name. Only use lower case letters and do not include spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description.
Categories & Target
After typing in your link details, select a Category and Target for your link …
(Add New Link page – Categories & Target section)
In the Categories section, select a link category you’ve already set up, or click on ’+ Add New Category’ to add a new category.
Also, select a target frame for your link in the Target section by choosing one of the radio buttons. This lets you specify how your link should open when clicked on by visitors:
- _blank means that when visitors click on the link, a new window will open up in their web browser to display the information for that link. This allows your visitors to see the information without leaving your site
- _none means that when visitors click on the link, they will exit your site and a new website 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. Ignore this option if you don’t use frames, or if you don’t know what frames are.
Link Relationship XFN
This section provides some additional link functionality …
(Link Relationship (XFN) – Add New Link)
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN (XML Friends Network) allows you to define your relationship with the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Muhammad Anderson and you link to his blog, you would probably check co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional for WordPress links. You can leave everything in this section blank and your links will work just fine. XFN makes your links more understandable to some websites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field specifies the ‘rel’ attribute that will be assigned to your link. The rel attribute defines the 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’ attributes with spaces.
To learn more about XFN, visit the site below:
Advanced
The last section lets you enter Advanced features for your links (some themes will ignore this. You can leave these fields empty unless you have a reason to use them) …
(Add New Link – Advanced fields)
The Advanced section fields include the following:
- Image Address: Specify an image to be displayed with the link. To use this feature, add the URL of where the image is located 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 will be displayed next to the links.
- Notes: This section lets you add notes for your own internal reference.
- Rating: Add a rating score to the link if you want to sort links by rating (see the ‘Links’ widget section below).
Enter information in the above fields or just leave this section blank.
When you are done adding your new link information, click on Add Link to update your link settings …
(Click on the Add Link button to save your new link)
Note: If you tick 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 add a link and then toggle its visibility on or off without deleting it (this is useful if you would like the link to display during certain times and hide it after it’s no longer required) …
(Toggle link visibility on and off)
To see all your links, select Links > All Links in the navigation menu …
(Links – All Links)
The ‘Links’ page will display in your web browser. The list of links displays all of your links and link information (e.g. URL, categories, visibility, etc.) …
(Links screen)
Tip: To show or hide information in the Links table, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab at the top of your screen …
(List of links – Screen Options)
Enable/disable fields on your Links table by selecting/deselecting their checkboxes …
(Links table – Show/hide screen options)
How To Edit Your Link Information
To modify links, go to your WP admin menu and select Links > All Links to bring up the links page …
(WP Links – All Links)
Select the item you want to edit and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link details …
(Editing your links)
Change the link …
(Edit Link page)
After editing your link, you can:
- Click on Update Link to save your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to see your link and check that you have set up its URL correctly (the link will open up in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link from your table …
(Edit Link: Update Link button)
Deleting Your Links
To remove links from the Link Manager, go to your WP navigation menu and choose Links > All Links …
(Links – All Links)
The ‘Links’ table will display in your browser.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links, or remove all links.
To delete links individually, hover your cursor over the link title that you want to remove from the link table and click on Delete …
(Delete your links)
To delete multiple links, either click on the checkbox next to each item that you would like removed, or select all links by clicking on the main checkbox next to the ‘Name’ column header at the top of the list …
(Delete multiple links)
Select Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click the Apply button to delete your selected links …
(Links: bulk-delete function)
Your links will be deleted …
(Link deletion message)
Using The Plugin
Now that you know how to configure link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, let’s show you how to make links display on your website or blog.
Using The Links Widget
Installing the Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, select Appearance > Widgets in the admin menu …
(Appearance – Widgets)
This brings up the ‘Widgets’ screen in your browser.
You will notice a ‘Links’ widget in the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
Drag the ‘Links’ widget to one of the active widget sections and drop it wherever you want the links to display …
(Add a links widget to a widgetized area)
The Links widget includes various settings. For example, you can specify what information you would like displayed about your links and how many links you would like to display on your sidebar …
(Link widget options)
You can also add multiple link widgets to your sidebar. This lets you add and display link lists on your site …
(Add multiple link widgets to your sidebar)
Display a list of items for a specific category …
(Link widget settings – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link title, Link rating, Link ID, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sort by options)
Once you are done setting up the links widget, click the Save button to update your settings. Your link section will display on your website’s sidebar menu …
(An example of how links can be displayed on your site’s 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 on widgets. Go here to learn more about this:
Link Manager – Additional Information
If you have added many links, the Link Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these with filtering, sorting, and searching functions.
Sort Your Links
To sort links, hover your cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and click on the black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sort links function)
Searching Links Function
Type a search term into the search field and click the Search Links button to search for links …
(Searching your links)
Filter Links Function
You can filter links by link categories …
(Filtering links by categories)
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 page)
This brings up a list of all links grouped under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Links – Additional Options
If you plan to add lots of links to your site, or if you intend to add a page containing a list of links 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 links, like Link Library.
Link Library
(Link Library)
Plugin URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
Link Library gives you the ability to output a list of your link categories with a complete list of links together with descriptions and notes …
(List of links created with Link library. Image source: Link Library plugin site.)
This plugin creates a page on your website containing all the link categories in your Links section, and all links listed in these categories. 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 of your link collection so that your site users can become aware of any additions made to to your link library.
Go here for more details about this powerful plugin:
Congratulations! Now you know how to how to add a blogroll and manage links in WordPress.
We have written a detailed article about how to insert hyperlinks into WordPress posts. For more details, go here:
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