How to Add a “Page Two” for Products in WooCommerce: A Beginner’s Guide
Are you selling tons of awesome products on your WooCommerce store? Congratulations! But if your product catalog is overflowing, customers might struggle to find what they need if everything is crammed onto a single page. That’s where pagination – adding a “Page Two” (and beyond!) – becomes crucial. This simple addition dramatically improves user experience and boosts your SEO.
This guide will walk you through adding product pagination to your WooCommerce site, even if you’re a complete coding newbie.
Why You Need Product Pagination
Imagine a massive bookstore with all its books piled haphazardly in one room. Finding a specific title would be a nightmare! Similarly, a long, single page of products in WooCommerce overwhelms visitors. Pagination neatly organizes your products into manageable pages, offering several key benefits:
- Improved User Experience: Customers can easily navigate your product catalog.
- Faster Loading Speeds: Smaller page sizes mean faster loading times, improving SEO and user satisfaction. Google loves fast-loading websites!
- Better Organization: Clear pagination makes your store appear more professional and organized.
- Enhanced SEO: Organized content is easier for search engines to crawl and index.
- Shop Page Settings: Go to WooCommerce > Settings > Products > Display. Ensure “Products per page” is set to a number that makes sense for your theme and product quantity. A higher number means fewer pages, but potentially slower loading times. Experiment to find the sweet spot. (Example: 24 products per page)
- Theme Compatibility: Some themes might override WooCommerce’s default pagination. Check your theme’s documentation or contact the theme developer if you’re encountering issues.
- Search for “WooCommerce Pagination” in your WordPress plugin directory.
- Choose a plugin with good reviews and a large user base. Popular plugins often have better support and compatibility.
Method 1: WooCommerce’s Built-in Pagination (The Easiest Way!)
WooCommerce usually handles pagination automatically. If you’re seeing only one page of products despite having more, check these settings:
If you’ve already adjusted the “Products per page” setting and still only see one page, then move to Method 2.
Method 2: Using a Plugin (For More Control)
If you need more fine-grained control over pagination or your theme’s default isn’t working, a plugin can be a lifesaver. Several plugins offer advanced pagination options. Here’s what to look for:
Once you’ve installed and activated a pagination plugin, follow its instructions. Most plugins offer intuitive interfaces to customize your pagination’s appearance and functionality. No coding required!
Method 3: Customizing with Code (For Advanced Users Only!)
This method requires comfortable coding in PHP. Proceed with caution, as incorrect code can break your website. Always back up your site before making code changes.
This example shows how to modify the `woocommerce_pagination` function, although this is often unnecessary thanks to the built-in functionality and plugin options.
function custom_woocommerce_pagination() { global $wp_query;
if ( $wp_query->max_num_pages <= 1 ) {
return;
}
echo ‘
echo paginate_links( array(
‘base’ => str_replace( 999999999, ‘%#%’, esc_url( get_pagenum_link( 999999999 ) ) ),
‘total’ => $wp_query->max_num_pages,
‘current’ => max( 1, get_query_var( ‘paged’ ) ),
‘format’ => ‘?paged=%#%’,
‘show_all’ => false,
‘type’ => ‘plain’,
‘end_size’ => 2,
‘mid_size’ => 1,
‘prev_next’ => true,
‘prev_text’ => __( ‘« Previous’, ‘text-domain’ ),
‘next_text’ => __( ‘Next »’, ‘text-domain’ ),
‘add_args’ => false,
‘add_fragment’ => ”
) );
echo ‘
‘;
}
remove_action( ‘woocommerce_after_shop_loop’, ‘woocommerce_pagination’, 10 );
add_action( ‘woocommerce_after_shop_loop’, ‘custom_woocommerce_pagination’, 10 );
Remember to replace `’text-domain’` with your theme’s text domain. This is a basic example, and you might need to adjust it based on your theme’s structure.
By following these steps, you can easily add “Page Two” and subsequent pages to your WooCommerce product catalog, significantly improving your store’s usability and SEO. Choose the method that best fits your skill level and needs. Remember to always test your changes thoroughly!