Description
This plugin disables the new Gutenberg Editor (aka Block Editor) and replaces it with the Classic Editor. You can disable Gutenberg completely, or selectively disable for posts, pages, roles, post types, and theme templates. Plus you can hide the Gutenberg nag, menu item, and more!
The all-in-one, COMPLETE solution for handling Gutenberg.
Hide ALL traces of Gutenberg and replace with Classic Editor.
Restores original Edit Post screen (TinyMCE, meta boxes, etc.).
The Disable Gutenberg plugin restores the classic (original) WordPress editor and the “Edit Post” screen. So you can continue using plugins and theme functions that extend the Classic Editor. Supports awesome features like Meta Boxes, Quicktags, Custom Fields, and everything else the Classic Editor can do.
Does not “expire” in 2022! 🙂
Easy to Use
Just activate and done! The default plugin settings are configured to hide all traces of the Gutenberg Block Editor, and fully restore the original Classic Editor. Further options for customizing when/where Gutenberg is enabled are available in the plugin settings.
NEW! Disable Block Widgets and restore Classic Widgets 🙂
Options
- Disable Gutenberg completely (all post types)
- Disable Gutenberg for any post type
- Disable Gutenberg for any user role
- Disable Gutenberg for any theme template
- Disable Gutenberg for any post/page IDs
- Disable Gutenberg admin notice (nag)
- Option to restore Classic Widgets
- Option to hide the plugin menu item
- Option to hide the Gutenberg plugin menu item (settings link)
- Adds “Classic Editor” link to each post on the Posts screen
- Adds item to the WP sidebar menu: “Add New (Classic)”
- Option to enable Custom Fi... [truncated]
Installation
Installing the plugin
- Upload the plugin to your blog and activate
- Configure the plugin settings as desired
- Enable theme switcher via settings or shortcode
More info on installing WP plugins
Settings
Out of the box, Disable Gutenberg makes your WordPress 100% Gutenberg-free. If you visit the settings page, you will see that the “Complete Disable” option is enabled, and so is the “Disable Nag” option. This is all that is required to disable Gutenberg (and the nag) sitewide.
Now, if you want to customize things and, say, only disable Gutenberg on specific post types, you can uncheck that first “Complete Disable” option. When you uncheck the box, more options will be displayed. So you can choose exactly where Gutenberg should be disabled.
Whitelist
In some cases, you may want to disable Gutenberg everywhere, but enable only on certain posts. To do this, set the “Complete Disable” option to enabled. Then visit the “Whitelist” settings to specify which posts always should open in the Block Editor.
Important
Do not use Disable Gutenberg with other plugins (like the Classic Editor plugin) that also disable or replace Gutenberg. Why? Because it may cause loading of redundant scripts, which may in turn lead to unexpected/untested results.
Hide Menu Option
Disable Gutenberg provides a setting to disable the plugin’s menu item. This is useful if you don’t want your clients to get curious and start fiddling around.
If you enable the option to hide the plugin’s menu item, you will need to access the plugin settings page directly. It is located at:
/wp-admin/options-general.php?page=disable-gutenberg
So if WordPress is installed at this URL:
https://example.com/
..then you would access the plugin settings at:
https://example.com/wp-admin/options-general.php?page=disable-gutenberg
Or, if WordPress is installed in a subdirectory, for example:
https://example.com/wordpress/
..then you would access the plugin settings at:
https://example.com/wordpress/wp-admin/options-general.php?page=disable-gutenberg
So if you hide the plugin’s menu item, you always can access the settings directly.
More Tools
The settings include a “More Tools” link. Clicking it toggles open some advanced options:
- Classic Widgets – Restores Classic Widgets
- Disable Nag – Disables “Try Gutenberg” nag
- Enable Frontend – Enables frontend block stylesheet
- Whitelist Options – Displays the whitelist settings
- Plugin Menu Item – Hides the Disable Gutenberg menu item
- Gutenberg Menu Item – Hides the Gutenberg plugin menu item (for WP less than 5.0)
- Display Edit Links – Displays “Add New (Classic)” menu links and Classic/Block edit links
- ACF Support – Enables the Custom Fields Meta Box (ACF plugin disables by default)
- Reset Options – Restores the default plugin options
If there are any questions about these items or anything else, feel free to contact me directly or post in the WP Support Forums.
Uninstalling
This plugin cleans up after itself. All plugin settings will be removed from your database when the plugin is uninstalled via the Plugins screen.
Going Further
For developers wanting to customize further, check out:
Show Support
I strive to make this free plugin the very best possible. To show support, please take a moment to leave a 5-star review at WordPress.org. Your generous feedback helps to further growth and development of Disable Gutenberg. Thank you!
wp plugin install disable-gutenberg --activateFrequently Asked Questions
Yes. When Gutenberg is active, the plugin disables it (depending on your selected options) and replaces with the Classic Editor. Otherwise, if Gutenberg is not active, the plugin does nothing. So it’s totally fine to install before Gutenberg is added to WP core, so it will be ready when the time comes.
Classic Editor plugin enables you to disable Gutenberg across the board, and replace it with the Classic Editor. The Disable Gutenberg plugin does the exact same thing, in the exact same way, BUT it also provides more granular control over when and where Gutenberg is replaced with the Classic Editor. Disable Gutenberg plugin makes it easy to replace Gutenberg everywhere, OR you can choose to replace only for specific post ty... [truncated]
Changelog
Thank you to everyone for using Disable Gutenberg and for all the awesome 5-star reviews!
If you have any feedback or suggestions to make this plugin the absolute best it can be, and/or would like to help with development, please reach me via the contact form at Plugin Planet.
3.2.3 (2025/03/24)
- Removes
load_i18n()function - Adds uninstall option
disable-gutenberg-dismiss-notice - Generates new language template
- Tests on WordPress 6.8
Full changelog @ https://plugin-planet.com/wp/changelog/disable-gutenberg.txt
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