Lesson 05: Categories, Tags, and Taxonomies
Objectives
- Understand how WordPress organizes content with categories and tags
- Know the difference between categories and tags and when to use each
- Create and manage categories and tags
- Understand what taxonomies are
What Are Taxonomies?
A taxonomy is a way to group and classify content. WordPress has two built-in taxonomies for posts:
- Categories — broad groupings (like chapters in a book)
- Tags — specific descriptors (like index entries in a book)
Categories vs Tags
| Feature | Categories | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Broad grouping/classification | Specific topics/keywords |
| Required? | Yes — every post must have at least one | No — completely optional |
| Hierarchy | Yes — can have parent/child categories | No — flat structure only |
| Typical count per post | 1-3 | 3-10 |
| Default | "Uncategorized" if none selected | None |
| Best for | Site structure and navigation | Content discovery and search |
Analogy
Think of a bookstore:
- Categories = the sections: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Science, History
- Tags = descriptive labels: bestseller, award-winner, new release, paperback
Planning Your Categories
Before creating categories, plan them based on your site's content:
Good Category Structure (for a business blog):
- Company News
- Industry Insights
- Tips & Tutorials
- Case Studies
- Product Updates
Rules for Good Categories:
- Keep them broad — 5-10 categories is ideal for most sites
- Make them clear — a visitor should know what they'll find in each
- Keep them balanced — avoid having 50 posts in one category and 2 in another
- Use hierarchy sparingly — one level of sub-categories is usually enough
Bad Category Examples:
- Too specific: "Blog post about our Monday meeting" (this should be a tag)
- Too vague: "Stuff" or "Other"
- Too many: 30+ categories with 1-2 posts each
Managing Categories
Creating Categories
Method 1: From the Categories page
- Go to Posts → Categories
- Fill in:
- Name: The display name (e.g., "Company News")
- Slug: The URL-friendly version (auto-generated, e.g.,
company-news) - Parent Category: Select if this is a sub-category
- Description: Optional — some themes display this
- Click "Add New Category"
Method 2: While editing a post
- In the post editor, find Categories in the right sidebar
- Click "Add New Category"
- Type the name and click "Add New Category"
Editing Categories
- Go to Posts → Categories
- Hover over a category and click "Edit" or "Quick Edit"
- You can change the name, slug, parent, and description
Deleting Categories
- Go to Posts → Categories
- Hover over a category and click "Delete"
- Posts in that category will be moved to the default category ("Uncategorized")
Setting the Default Category
- Go to Settings → Writing
- Change "Default Post Category" to your preferred category
- Rename "Uncategorized" to something better (like "General")
Managing Tags
Creating Tags
Method 1: From the Tags page
- Go to Posts → Tags
- Fill in:
- Name: The display name
- Slug: URL-friendly version (auto-generated)
- Description: Optional
- Click "Add New Tag"
Method 2: While editing a post
- In the post editor, find Tags in the right sidebar
- Type tag names separated by commas
- Press Enter to add them
Tag Best Practices
- Use lowercase for consistency
- Use existing tags when possible (check what you've already created)
- Don't create tags you'll only use once
- Tags should be useful for visitors searching your content
- 3-5 tags per post is a good target
How Categories and Tags Affect Your Site
Archive Pages
WordPress automatically creates archive pages for each category and tag:
yoursite.com/category/company-news/— shows all posts in "Company News"yoursite.com/tag/wordpress/— shows all posts tagged "wordpress"
These pages are styled by your theme and can be customized later with Elementor.
Navigation
Categories are commonly used in:
- Main navigation menus
- Sidebar widgets
- Footer links
- Blog page filters
SEO Impact
- Categories create a content hierarchy that search engines understand
- Tags help with internal linking and content discovery
- Don't create too many of either — it creates thin archive pages that hurt SEO
Practical Example
Let's say you're building a site for a web design agency:
Categories:
Web Design
├── UI Design
├── UX Design
Digital Marketing
├── SEO
├── Social Media
Case Studies
Company News
Tags (used across categories):
wordpress, elementor, responsive-design, e-commerce,
small-business, redesign, mobile-first, branding,
analytics, conversion-rate
Example Post:
- Title: "5 Responsive Design Tips for Small Business Websites"
- Category: Web Design → UI Design
- Tags: responsive-design, small-business, mobile-first
Understanding Taxonomies (Deeper)
Categories and tags are both examples of taxonomies — systems for classifying content. WordPress core provides two:
| Taxonomy | Type | Applied To |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Hierarchical | Posts |
| Tag | Non-hierarchical (flat) | Posts |
Note: Pages don't have categories or tags by default. If you need to organize pages, you'll use menus and page hierarchy (parent/child).
Some plugins and themes add custom taxonomies. For example:
- WooCommerce adds "Product Categories" and "Product Tags" (separate from regular post categories/tags)
- A portfolio plugin might add "Portfolio Categories"
- A real estate plugin might add "Property Type" and "Location"
You don't need to worry about custom taxonomies now — just know they exist.
Exercises
Rename "Uncategorized": Go to Posts → Categories, edit "Uncategorized", and rename it to "General".
Create a category structure: Create 4-5 categories that would make sense for a business blog. Create at least one with a sub-category (child category).
Set the default category: Go to Settings → Writing and change the default category from "Uncategorized" to "General".
Create posts with categories and tags: Create 3 posts, each in a different category, with 3-5 relevant tags each.
View archive pages: After creating posts, visit the category archive page by going to
http://learning-wordpress.local/category/your-category-slug/. See how WordPress automatically groups posts.Check the Tags page: Go to Posts → Tags to see all the tags you've created. Notice how it shows the count of posts using each tag.
Key Takeaways
- Categories are broad groups (required, hierarchical) — think "sections"
- Tags are specific descriptors (optional, flat) — think "keywords"
- Every post needs at least one category; tags are optional
- Plan your categories before you start creating content
- Don't over-create — 5-10 categories and a modest number of tags is ideal
- WordPress creates automatic archive pages for each category and tag
- Rename "Uncategorized" to something meaningful like "General"
Next Lesson: Lesson 06 - The Media Library