How to Create a Dropdown Menu in WordPress
It is easy to create a dropdown menu in WordPress. This is a menu that shows a list of links when a mouse is put over it. The best thing is that WordPress comes with a built-in menu management system that enables you to add navigation menus to your website. The dropdown menu works best for large websites. They solve the issue of limited space by showing menu links by showing the menu only when a user places the mouse over them. With that being said, how can you create your own dropdown menu?
Choose a theme that has dropdown menu support
The first step is to select a WordPress theme that supports dropdown menus. How you create a dropdown menu in WordPress will depend on the WordPress theme you install. While almost all themes support the dropdown menus, there are themes that lack proper menu support. You need to test a theme first to ensure it has the support. Demos will give insight into how the dropdown theme appears on a theme.
Popular WordPress themes that support dropdown menus include the following:
- Astra
- StudioPress themes
- OceanWP
- Ultra
- Divi
Create the navigation menu
You need to setup a navigation menu for you to create a dropdown menu in WordPress. To do this you need to go to Appearance>>Menus and the click on ‘Create a New Menu’. You have to provide the name of the navigation menu so that you can find the menu easily from the admin area. When you click on ‘Create Menu’ an empty menu will be created. You can then add the top links to the navigation menu. Simply select the pages you would like to add to the menu and they will appear on the menu after you click on ‘Add to menu’.
Add Sub items to the menu
These are items that appear inside your dropdown menu. It is possible to add them under existing items. Select the items you wish to add and click on ‘Add to menu’. The items will appear in the right column. The links will appear as regular items. To change them into sub-items you need to drag and drop them under your preferred parent item. Click ‘save’ when you are done.
Publish the dropdown menu
Last but not least, once you create a dropdown menu in WordPress you have to publish them. When editing items they will appear immediately after you add them. However, for a new dropdown menu you have to select a location to display them. Your installed theme will define where you place the menus. The option on where to display the themes can be found under ‘Menu Settings’. Choose an option from the ‘Display location’ settings then click ‘save menu’. You are done.