As you learn more about WordPress, you may occasionally come across references to the term blogroll.
A blogroll is a list of links pointing to external sites or web pages that display on your sidebar section.
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.”
The Links feature lets you easily add links to a widget-ready theme.
Before WordPress version 3.5 was released, Links were a core feature of the WordPress CMS. After version 3.5, the Links Manager section was removed …
Before …
(WP Links Manager – pre v 3.5)
After …
(The Link Manager – excluded from WordPress after WordPress v3.5)
If you have had an earlier version than v3.5 installed and updated your installation, the Links Manager would be removed, unless you’ve 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 Links Manager section when you log into your WordPress 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 site’s sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Links Manager WordPress Plugin)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Plugin Description
The Link Manager plugin restores the Link Manager, even if you update to a later version of WordPress or remove all of your current links.
Note: All this plugin does is add a single line of code to WordPress to restore the hidden feature. When we last checked, this plugin had not been updated for some time, 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)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Plugin Description
Simple Links recreates the same concept as the built-in WordPress Link Manager while addressing the shortcomings of the deprecated feature.
Installing Link Manager
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
From the WP dashboard area, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins Menu – Add New)
Select the Install Plugins > Search tab, type in “link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Locate the plugin in the results area and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin after it has been installed …
After activation, a ‘Links’ section is added to the WP navigation menu …
(WordPress links menu)
Plugin Setup
Before you start adding links, it’s a good idea to first set up your link categories. This way, you can assign any new links to the link category you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a link category, select Links > Link Categories in the dashboard navigation menu …
(Links – Link Categories)
The ‘Link Categories’ screen will display in your web browser.
Enter the following information:
- Name: Enter the category name.
- Slug: The slug displays in the search-engine friendly URL of the link category name. It must be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description. (Optional)
When finished, click Add New Link Category …
(Link Categories)
Your category details will be added to the table …
(Link Categories screen)
Tip: Blogroll is the default link category name. Unless you specify the category when adding a link, WordPress will assign new links to the default category …
(Default link category name)
You may want to change this to something that will make sense to your blog readers. This not only makes it easier for visitors, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically display under the new category name …
(Change the default ’blogroll’ to something your visitors will understand)
To change the ‘Blogroll’ link name, hover your mouse over the list item and click on Quick Edit …
(Quick Edit)
Change 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), and click on Update Link Category …
(Edit the link category name)
In our example, we’ve replaced the link category ‘Blogroll’ with a more suitable name (e.g. ‘Recommended’).
Let’s now add a link category description. To add a link category description, hover over the link category name and click Edit …
(You can add/edit the category description)
Enter your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ screen and click Update …
(Edit Link Category area)
Repeat the above process and add as many new link categories as your site needs.
After setting up your link categories, you can add new links.
Adding New Links
To create a new link, go to your WP dashboard menu and click on Links > Add New …
(WP Links – Add New)
You will be taken to the ‘Add New Link’ screen …
(Add New Link page)
You can also reach this page by clicking on ’Add New’ in the main Links page …
(Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page is divided into a number of sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Name, Web Address& Description)
Type in the following information:
- Name: What you enter in this field displays as the link category name.
- Slug: The slug appears in the web address of the link category. Use only lowercase letters and do not include spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description in the links section, or as a tool tip when visitors hover over the link name with their mouse. (Optional)
Categories & Target
Select a Category and Target for the new link …
(Add New Link screen – Categories & Target)
In the Categories section, tick 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 how you want your link to open when clicked on:
- _blank means that when a visitor clicks on the link, a new web browser window will open up to display the content for that link. Your visitor will be able to see the link information without leaving your website
- _none means that when a visitor clicks on the link, they will exit your site and a new site or page will load in your web browser window instead.
- _top opens the link 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 …
(Add New Link page – Link Relationship (XFN) fields)
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 Mary Larsson 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 still work. XFN makes the links defined on your site more understandable to some sites 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 what relationship exists 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.
To learn more about XFN, visit the site below:
Advanced
The last section of the Add New Link’ screen allows you to specify Advanced features for your links (some themes will ignore this. You can leave these fields blank unless there’s a good reason to use them) …
(Advanced section)
The Advanced section fields are as follows:
- Image Address: Specify an image to be displayed with the link. To use this feature, add an image URL and make sure that your image is small (around 16×16 like a favicon).
- RSS Address: If your theme allows it, the link’s RSS feed will be displayed next to your links.
- Notes: Add notes about the link in this section for your own internal reference.
- Rating: Add a rating score to the link if you would like 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 save your new link …
(Click on Add Link to update your link settings)
Note: If you tick the Keep this link private checkbox, your link will not be visible when links are displayed on your site …
(Make your links private)
Making a link private lets you add a link and then toggle its visibility on and off without deleting it (this is useful if you want a link to display during certain times and hide it afterwards) …
(Making links private toggles their visibility on and off)
To view all your links, go to the WP dashboard navigation menu and select Links > All Links …
(WP Links – All Links)
This brings up the ‘Links’ screen. The table of links displays your links and link information (e.g. URL, link categories, relationship, etc.) …
(Links table)
Tip: To show or hide fields in the Links table, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of the screen …
(Screen Options – Links page)
Enable/disable fields on your table of links by ticking/unticking their check boxes …
(Show/hide links)
Editing Link Information
To modify links in the Link Manager, go to the WP dashboard navigation menu and click on Links > All Links to bring up the links page …
(Links – All Links)
Locate the link to be edited and click on Edit to bring up the link’s details …
(Editing your links)
Change your link details …
(Edit Link page)
After you’re done editing the link, you can:
- Click the Update Link button to save your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to view your link and check that you have set up the link’s URL correctly (your link will open up in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link if you no longer require it …
(Edit Link: Update Link button)
Removing Your Links
To delete links from the Link Manager, go to your WP dashboard menu and click on Links > All Links …
(WP Links – All Links)
This brings up the ‘Links’ screen.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or remove all your links.
To delete links individually, hover your mouse cursor over the link that you want to remove and click on Delete …
(Delete links)
To delete a number of links at once, either click on the checkboxes next to individual links that you would like to delete, or select all links by clicking on the check box next to the ‘Name’ column header …
(Deleting multiple links)
Select Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click Apply to remove your selected links …
(Bulk-deletion of links)
The links will be removed …
(Deleted links notice)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to set up link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, it’s time to make links display on your website or blog.
Links Widget
Installing the Link Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, go to your WP dashboard navigation menu and choose Appearance > Widgets …
(Appearance Menu – Widgets)
This takes you to the ‘Widgets’ screen.
You will notice a ‘Links’ widget in the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
To make the ‘Links’ widget active, drag it to one of your active widget areas and drop it wherever you would like the links section to show up …
(Drag & drop the links widget to add it to a widgetized area)
The Links widget includes various settings. For example, you can specify what information you would like to display about your links and how many links you would like to display on your sidebar menu …
(Link widget - settings)
You can also add multiple link widgets to your sidebar. This allows you to create and feature specific different lists of links throughout your site …
(Add multiple link widgets to your widget bars)
You can create and display a list of items for a specific category …
(Link widget settings – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link rating, Link ID, Link title, 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 should appear on your sidebar, footer or wherever you have placed the links widget in …
(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 help using widgets? We have written a detailed article on adding widgets. If you are interested in learning more here:
Links Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Links Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these with searching, sorting, and filtering features.
Sorting Links Function
You can sort links by hovering your cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and clicking on the black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sort your links)
Finding Links Function
You can find links using the ‘Search Links’ button …
(Finding your links)
Filtering Links
You can filter links by categories …
(Filtering your links by category)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories page. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to search for link categories, or click on the category links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories page)
This brings up a list of all links listed under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by link category)
Additional Link 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 links on your sidebar), then you may want to consider using a plugin that can help you administer links, like Link Library.
Link Library
(Link Library Plugin)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
This plugin gives you the ability to output a list of your link categories with a complete list of links plus descriptions and notes …
(Link Library links. Image sourced from Link Library plugin documentation.)
This useful plugin creates a page on your site containing a list of all of 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 that lets your site users become aware of any additions made to to your link library.
To learn more this plugin, go here:
Congratulations! Now you know how to add external links to WordPress.
We have written a comprehensive article about inserting HTML links into WordPress. Go here to learn more:
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