The moment you log in to WordPress, the first screen you see is the Dashboard. It is the control room of your website, where you manage content, design, plugins, users and settings from one place.
Every task you do as a site owner starts here, so it is worth knowing your way around. In this guide, I will walk you through its main parts.
How to open the WordPress dashboard
By default, you can reach the dashboard by adding /wp-admin/ to your site address, for example example.com/wp-admin/. If you are not logged in, WordPress shows the login screen first and then takes you straight to the dashboard.
Main parts of the dashboard
- Admin menu: The sidebar on the left with Posts, Media, Pages, Comments, Appearance, Plugins, Users, Tools and Settings.
- Toolbar: The thin bar at the top with quick links to your site, the New menu and your profile.
- Dashboard widgets: Boxes on the home screen such as At a Glance, Activity, Quick Draft, Site Health Status, and WordPress Events and News.
Think of it like the dashboard of a car. You don't press every button daily, but each one has a job.
How to customize the dashboard screen
- First, go to Dashboard → Home.
- Now, click the Screen Options tab at the top right corner.
- Next, tick or untick the boxes to show or hide each widget.
- Finally, drag the widgets by their title bars to arrange them the way you like.
You can also pick a different admin color scheme from Users → Profile.
What you see in the dashboard depends on your user role. For example, a Subscriber only sees the Dashboard and Profile screens, while an Administrator sees everything.
For a deeper tour, our lesson on the WordPress dashboard covers each screen in detail. Is your admin area loading slowly? Here is how to fix a slow WordPress dashboard.
The dashboard is the one place where you run your entire WordPress site. That's it for today. Have a question about any screen? Leave it in the comment box below.