WordPress 7.1 is cleaning up navigation in the Post and Site Editors. If you have ever clicked the “W” logo in the top-left corner hoping to go back, only to land somewhere unexpected, this change is for you.
What’s changing
Three things move in WordPress 7.1:
- A real back button. The “W” logo used to double as a back button, which confused a lot of people since a logo doesn’t look like a way to leave the page. It’s now replaced by a chevron (an arrow icon) that always takes you back to the previous screen.
- The toolbar shows by default. The toolbar now appears in the editor the same way it does everywhere else in wp-admin, so the editing screen looks and behaves like the rest of your dashboard.
- Your site icon gets its own spot. If you’ve set a site icon, it now shows up in the toolbar and always opens the site menu when clicked.
The goal, according to the WordPress core team’s announcement, is that each icon does one job everywhere in the admin: the W logo opens the About page, the site icon opens the site menu, and the chevron goes back. Your site title also stays visible while you’re editing, including on the canvas itself.
What you need to do
Nothing. This ships as the new default in WordPress 7.1 and works automatically once you update.
If you liked the cleaner look without a toolbar, turn on Distraction Free mode inside the editor. It hides the toolbar the same way it always has, so you can still get a toolbar-free writing view whenever you want it.
If you build plugins or custom toolbars
Plugin developers should note that toolbar items can now appear in the Site Editor, which wasn’t previously guaranteed. If your plugin adds custom toolbar nodes and you don’t want them showing up in the block editor screens, check for the block editor or site editor screen before registering them.
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