As we’ve covered before, to understand what a WordPress widget is, you shouldn’t look further than your phone. Currently, almost all phones have some predefined widgets on the main screen. For example, the clock, or the weather widget. On your phone, the widgets are (relatively) small pieces of code that add a specific functionality.
In WordPress, we also use widgets. They are small pieces of code, with a predefined function. They could be a holder for links, or code snippets.
Depending on the WordPress theme that you are using, you might have different widgets and widget areas. The widget areas are the containers where the widgets could be added.
What is more, some plugins that add a specific function to your website are adding a widget to which you ought to find a place. Most if not all WordPress themes do have designated widget areas in the footer and the widgets. Yet, there are some with more unusual places.
Some of the legacy WordPress widgets are:
- Categories
- Tag cloud
- Search
With the introduction of the Gutenberg Builder a few years ago, we were introduced to many new widgets. Currently, you can create pretty much whatever you want, as far as you know what you are doing.
To add or edit widgets to your website, you need to go to Appearance -> Widgets. Once there, you can easily drag and drop the widgets you want to add or remove.
