How to Hide Categories in WordPress WooCommerce: A Complete Guide
Hiding product categories in WooCommerce can be beneficial for several reasons. Perhaps you’re reorganizing your store, temporarily removing a category, or want to create a more streamlined user experience. Whatever your reason, this guide will walk you through several effective methods to hide WooCommerce categories without losing access to your products. We’ll cover both simple methods for beginners and more advanced techniques for experienced users.
Introduction: Why Hide WooCommerce Categories?
Before diving into the methods, let’s understand why you might want to hide categories in the first place. Common reasons include:
- Rebranding or Restructuring: If you’re changing your store’s structure, hiding outdated categories prevents confusion for your customers.
- Seasonal Products: Temporarily hiding categories for seasonal items keeps your shop focused on current offerings.
- Out-of-Stock Items: Hiding a category with completely out-of-stock items improves the shopping experience.
- Internal Organization: Hiding categories might be a part of internal management to keep things tidy.
- Improved User Experience: A cluttered store can overwhelm customers. Hiding less relevant categories can improve navigation.
- Advantages: Easy to implement, no coding required.
- Disadvantages: Requires installing and configuring a plugin, which might add a small overhead.
- Advantages: Simple and effective for hiding the visual aspect.
- Disadvantages: Doesn’t remove the category from the database; only hides its display.
Main Part: Methods to Hide WooCommerce Categories
There are several ways to hide WooCommerce categories, ranging from simple plugin use to custom code. Let’s explore the most effective options:
#### 1. Using a Plugin: The Easiest Method
The simplest way is using a plugin like WooCommerce Product Table or similar plugins designed for managing product display and filtering. These often have built-in options to show/hide categories directly within their settings. This method requires no coding knowledge and is generally the recommended approach for beginners.
#### 2. Hiding Categories Using Custom CSS (Beginner-Friendly Code):
This method uses custom CSS to hide the category links from the frontend. It’s a good option if you’re comfortable adding code snippets but don’t want to delve into PHP functions. You’ll need to add custom CSS to your theme’s stylesheet or via a plugin that allows custom CSS addition. This method Read more about How To Change The Transaction Receiver In Woocommerce affects only the display; the categories still exist in your backend.
Here’s an example (replace `.category-slug` with the actual slug of the category you want to hide):
.category-slug {
display: none;
}
#### 3. Advanced Method: Removing Categories from the Shop Page (PHP):
This approach involves manipulating the WooCommerce query to exclude specific categories. This is more advanced and requires editing your theme’s `functions.php` file or creating a custom plugin. Proceed with caution as incorrect code can break your website. Always back up your files before making changes.
This example code snippet can be added to your `functions.php` file. Replace `’category-slug-1’`, `’category-slug-2’` with the actual slugs of the categories you want to exclude:
function exclude_categories_from_shop( $query ) { if ( is_shop() && $query->is_main_query() ) { $query->set( 'category__not_in', array( 'category-slug-1', 'category-slug-2' ) ); } } add_action( 'pre_get_posts', 'exclude_categories_from_shop' );
- Advantages: Completely removes the categories from the shop page query.
- Disadvantages: Requires PHP coding knowledge and carries a risk if implemented incorrectly. Always back up your files before implementing this method.
Conclusion: Choosing the Right Method
The best method for hiding your WooCommerce categories depends on your technical skills and comfort level. Using a plugin offers the easiest and safest approach for beginners. Custom CSS is a good middle ground for those familiar with adding code snippets. Finally, manipulating the WooCommerce query offers complete control but requires advanced PHP skills and should only be attempted by experienced users. Remember to always back up your website before making any code changes. Choose the method that best suits your needs and abilities, and don’t hesitate to seek professional help if you’re unsure.
