Do you wish to have to create a collapsible sidebar menu in WordPress?

A collapsible menu can provide your web page guests a very simple approach to get right of entry to a large number of hyperlinks, with out cluttering up your sidebar. It’s highest for enormous web sites, eCommerce shops, or any web site that has a extra advanced structure. 

On this article, we will be able to display you find out how to simply create a collapsible sidebar menu in WordPress.

How to Create a Collapsible Sidebar Menu in WordPress (The Easy Way)

What’s a Collapsible Sidebar Menu (And When to Use One)

Essentially the most user-friendly menus supply simple get right of entry to to the entire hyperlinks that guests want. On the other hand, this can also be difficult for websites that experience plenty of pages, or a extra advanced structure. 

Take into consideration a big eCommerce store that has plenty of product classes and subcategories, reminiscent of Amazon. 

Exhibiting each unmarried product class in a normal menu wouldn’t be a good suggestion. Consumers would most probably want to scroll throughout the menu to seek out the class they’re enthusiastic about. 

That is the place collapsible menus are available in. Those menus prepare their content material in a parent-child courting. If the customer clicks on a guardian merchandise in a collapsible menu, then it is going to enlarge to show all of that guardian’s baby content material. 

The Parent information outlet makes use of a collapsible menu for its cell web site.

An example of a collapsible menu.

Collapsible menus are often referred to as expandable menus. It is because their other sections enlarge when a customer clicks on them. 

Through default, collapsible menus conceal a large number of content material and complexity from guests. That is a lot more user-friendly than scrolling thru a protracted listing of classes and subcategories.

That mentioned, let’s check out how you’ll be able to simply create a collapsible sidebar menu for your WordPress site.

Learn how to Create a Collapsible Sidebar Menu in WordPress

You’ll be able to create a collapsible sidebar menu in WordPress the use of the Bellows Accordion Menu plugin.

Bellows Accordion Menu supplies a to hand shortcode so you’ll be able to position your collapsible menu on any web page, publish, or widget house, together with your sidebar.

A collapsible sidebar menu in WordPress.

First, you’ll want to set up and turn on the plugin. If you want assist, then please see our information on how to install a WordPress plugin

Upon activation, pass to the Look » Menus web page to your WordPress dashboard. 

Creating a menu in the WordPress dashboard.

To begin, sort a reputation in your menu into the ‘Menu Identify’ box. Your web site guests gained’t see the identify because it’s in your personal reference simplest. You’ll be able to then click on at the Create Menu button. 

Subsequent, you’ll be able to make a selection the pages you wish to have so as to add to the collapsible menu. Through default, WordPress presentations your most up-to-date pages simplest. If you wish to see an inventory of your whole web page’s pages, then click on at the View All tab. 

Adding pages to your WordPress menu.

However, you’ll be able to click on on Make a selection All. This will likely upload all your pages to the collapsible menu.

When you’re satisfied together with your variety, click on at the ‘Upload to Menu’ button. You’ll be able to additionally make a choice posts, blog categories, or upload customized hyperlinks. For extra main points, please see our information on how to add a navigation menu in WordPress.

After including all your other webpages to the menu, you’ll be able to transfer them round through dragging and losing them. This will likely exchange the order those pages seem to your collapsible menu. 

Collapsible menus are all about parent-child relationships.

When a customer clicks a guardian merchandise to your collapsible menu, it is going to enlarge to expose the entire baby content material.

To create this courting, merely use drag and drop to organize all your baby pages underneath their guardian.

Subsequent, snatch every baby and drag it a bit to the proper. You’ll be able to then liberate this web page. This will likely indent the thing and switch it into a kid web page. 

Adding posts to the WordPress menu.

Don’t omit to click on the Save Adjustments button while you’re completed.

Now we wish to upload this collapsible menu to the WordPress sidebar. To try this, we’ll use some shortcode that Bellows Accordion creates robotically. 

To snatch the shortcode, pass to Look » Bellows Menu. If it isn’t already decided on, then remember to make a choice the Display All tab.

The collapsible menu shortcode in the WordPress dashboard.

You’ll be able to now click on at the Shortcode field, which must spotlight the entire code. Now, reproduction this code the use of both the Command + c or Ctrl + c keyboard shortcut. 

The next move is pasting this shortcode right into a widget, so head over to Look » Widgets. This will likely show the entire widgetized spaces inside your present theme. The choices you spot might range, however maximum modern WordPress themes characteristic a sidebar.

Configuring the collapsible sidebar menu.

When you’ve discovered the sidebar house, give it a click on. This segment will now enlarge.

So as to add a block, click on at the + icon and get started typing Shortcode. When it seems that, make a choice the Shortcode block. 

How to add a widget to the WordPress sidebar.

Now, merely paste your collapsible menu shortcode into this block. To post your menu, you’ll want to click on at the Replace button on the best of your display. 

Now, while you talk over with your web site you must see a brand new collapsible sidebar menu. 

Example of a working collapsible menu

The Bellows Accordion plugin makes it tremendous simple to customise this default menu. For instance, you could exchange its color scheme to higher replicate your web site’s branding. 

If you wish to tweak the default menu, merely pass to Look » Bellows Menu to your WordPress dashboard. 

This menu has the entire settings you want to customise your collapsible menu. There are a large number of settings to discover. On the other hand, you might wish to get started through going to Primary Configuration » Elementary Configuration.

Configuring the look and feel of your WordPress collapsible sidebar menu.

Right here, you’ll be able to transfer between a number of other menu colours. You’ll be able to additionally make a selection whether or not guests can enlarge more than one submenus immediately the use of the Accordion Folding settings. 

To modify the menu’s alignment and width, click on at the ‘Structure & Place’ tab.

Placing the collapsible menu on the WordPress website.

Should you’d like to preview your adjustments in actual time, then you’ll be able to edit the collapsible sidebar menu within the WordPress Customizer. To try this, head over to Look » Customise

Within the left-hand bar, make a choice Bellows. 

Configuring your collapsible menu in the WordPress Customizer.

Right here, you’ll to find plenty of other settings in your collapsible sidebar. This comprises converting its width, alignment, and the colour of your sidebar menu. 

We are hoping this newsletter helped you discover ways to create a collapsible sidebar menu in WordPress. You’ll be able to additionally undergo our information on how to track your website visitors, and the best push notification software to develop your site visitors. 

Should you favored this newsletter, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You’ll be able to additionally to find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The publish How to Create a Collapsible Sidebar Menu in WordPress (The Easy Way) first gave the impression on WPBeginner.

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