How to Add a New Page in WordPress, Step by Step

You have started offering a new service, or someone has asked for a proper delivery information page, and the site needs somewhere to put it. Making the page is quick. The parts people skip are the ones that cause trouble later: an address like /new-page-2/, a page that exists but is linked from nowhere, or a draft published by accident with placeholder text still in it.

The walkthrough below shows how to add a new page in WordPress from start to finish: creating it, giving it a sensible address, choosing its template and parent, getting it into your menu, and a short checklist to run before it goes live.

Settle these before the editor is open

A minute of thought here saves renaming and redirecting later.

1. Is it really a page? Permanent content such as a service, your terms or a contact page is a page. A dated update or article is a post. If you are unsure, our explainer on choosing between a page and a post sets out the difference.
2. Where does it sit? Decide whether it is a top-level page or belongs under an existing one, such as a new service under Services. This affects its address and where it goes in the menu.
3. What will its address be? Short, lower case, words separated by hyphens, describing the page: /kitchen-repairs/ rather than /our-new-and-improved-kitchen-repair-service-2026/. Changing an address after the page is live means setting up a redirect, so it is worth choosing well now.

How to add a new page in WordPress

1. In the dashboard, go to Pages → Add Page. Older versions call it Add New Page or simply Add New. You can also use + New → Page in the admin bar along the top.
2. Some block themes show a window offering ready-made page layouts. Pick one if it is close to what you want, or close the window to start from a blank page.
3. Click “Add title” at the top of the canvas and type the page’s name. This becomes the main heading on most themes, and WordPress uses it to suggest the address.
4. Click below the title and start adding content. Type for paragraphs, and use the blue + or type / to add headings, images, buttons and other blocks.
5. Click Save draft early and often while you work. Nothing is visible to the public until you publish.

If the editor itself is new to you, our walkthrough of the block editor explains the toolbar, the sidebar and how blocks fit together.

Set the page’s address (the slug)

When you save the draft, WordPress turns your title into an address. “Kitchen Repairs and Fitting” becomes /kitchen-repairs-and-fitting/. To shorten it:

1. If the right-hand sidebar is closed, open it with the Settings button, then pick its Page tab.
2. Click the URL or Link row near the top. Its exact name varies a little between versions.
3. Edit the slug field, then click outside it. The full address preview updates as you type.

If WordPress adds -2 to the end of your slug, another page or media item already uses that address. That item is often an old draft or something in the trash. Find it, delete or rename it, then come back and fix the new slug.

Choose a template and a parent

Template

In the same Page tab there is usually a Template row. It decides the page’s overall layout: with or without a sidebar, full width, or a blank canvas for landing pages, depending on what your theme offers. Most new pages should use the default. If you need something different, our post on page templates and full-width layouts explains the options.

Parent page

The Parent row (inside Page Attributes on some versions) places your page under another one. Choose Services as the parent of Kitchen Repairs and the address becomes /services/kitchen-repairs/. Leave it empty for a top-level page. A parent does not add the page to your menu by itself. It only shapes the address and the page list.

WordPress also keeps an Order number for each page, which a few page lists and menus use for sorting. Most sites can leave it at zero.

Get the page into your menu

A new page is not linked from anywhere until you link it. How you add it to the menu depends on your theme.

• Block themes, such as the recent default Twenty themes: go to Appearance → Editor, open Navigation, select your menu, and add the page with the + button.
• Classic themes: go to Appearance → Menus, tick the page in the Pages box on the left, click Add to Menu, drag it into place, and click Save Menu. If the menu has “Automatically add new top-level pages to this menu” ticked, top-level pages appear there on their own, which can surprise you.

Menus have more options than this, including dropdowns and custom links. Our guide to creating a menu in WordPress covers them. Not every page needs to be in the main menu. A delivery page might be linked from the footer and from product pages instead. What matters is that people can reach it.

A checklist before you press Publish

Run through this with the draft open. It takes a few minutes and catches most of the embarrassing mistakes.

• Title and slug are spelled correctly and describe the page.
• No placeholder text is left over from a layout pattern, such as “Lorem ipsum” or “Add your heading here”.
• Headings step down properly. Your title already acts as the top heading, so sections inside begin at Heading 2.
• Every image has alt text describing it, unless it is purely decorative.
• Links and buttons go where they should. Click each one in Preview, including phone numbers and email addresses.
• Prices, hours and contact details match the rest of your site and your Google listing.
• The SEO title and description are set, if you use an SEO plugin. Our post on writing the SEO title and meta description explains what to put there.
• It looks right on a phone. Preview the draft at mobile width before anyone else sees it.
• The page is linked from the menu or from at least one related page.

When everything is ticked, click Publish, then Publish again in the confirmation panel. Visit the live page in a private browser window to see it as a visitor would.

If you published too early

Do not delete the page. Open it, change its status back to Draft in the Page tab of the sidebar (older versions have a “Switch to draft” button), and save. The page disappears from public view while you finish it, and the address is kept for when you republish. If the address has already been shared, publishing again later is fine.

Every other routine job an owner handles has its own walkthrough, listed in our beginner’s guide to running WordPress.

Frequently asked questions

Should each service get its own page, or one long Services page?

Give a service its own page when you have enough to say about it: what it includes, who it suits, how it works and what it costs. Small related jobs can share one page with a heading each. A separate page for every minor task tends to leave you with thin pages that say very little.

Can I make a new page that only some people can see?

Yes. In the Page tab, change visibility to Private, which shows the page only to logged-in administrators and editors, or to Password protected, which asks visitors for a password you set. Neither is strong security for sensitive files, but both work for drafts you want reviewed or simple members-only notes.

Why does my new page show the wrong layout or a sidebar?

The page is using a template you did not expect, often the theme default. Check the Template row in the Page tab of the sidebar and pick the layout you want. Some themes also have per-page layout options lower down the sidebar or under the editor.

Should a new page appear in Google straight away?

Not usually. Search engines find new pages through links and your sitemap, and it can take some time. Linking the page from your menu or an existing page helps. Check also that your SEO plugin has not set the page to noindex.

Building a whole set of pages at once is a bigger job than adding one. Our WordPress support service can do the layout and the pre-publish checks, working from your own text and photos.

Next in this series: The WordPress Columns Block: Widths, Mobile and Options