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For a compact date archive, add WordPress’s Archives block and turn on its dropdown display. To show a trimmed list of selected posts, use a Query Loop with a minimal Post Template. If you want to change archive pages across a block-theme site, edit the relevant archive template in the Site Editor.
Choose the kind of archive you need
| Your goal | Use | What to configure |
|---|---|---|
| Replace a long list of dates with a compact control | Archives block | Enable dropdown display; choose year, month, week, or day grouping. |
| Show a selected set of posts | Query Loop | Choose the content type, filters, ordering, layout, and items per page. |
| Change category, tag, author, or date archive pages site-wide | Archive template in the Site Editor | Adjust the Query Loop and Post Template; add an Archive Title. |
The Archives block is specifically for date archives, while a Query Loop gives you control over which posts appear and what each repeated item contains. Available Query Loop controls can vary with the active theme, plugins, and post type.
Make a compact date archive dropdown
Use the Archives block when visitors need to browse posts by publication date. WordPress documentation describes it as a way to display a date archive of posts: Archives block.
- Edit the page or template where you want date navigation.
- Insert the Archives block.
- In the block settings, enable Display as dropdown.
- Choose whether to group entries by year, month, week, or day.
- Optionally enable Show label and Show post count. The label option is available with dropdown display.
If the editor exposes typography, color, spacing, or border controls for the block, adjust them to fit the surrounding design. Which styling controls appear depends on the active theme and editor.
Build a compact list of selected posts
For a curated or filtered post list, use a Query Loop. Its Post Template controls the repeated structure, so the most effective way to keep the archive compact is to include only the information readers need to choose a post.
- Insert a Query Loop block and select a pattern or start with a blank layout.
- Set Query Type to Custom to access additional query controls, such as post type, ordering, display options, and filters.
- Apply a category or tag filter if the list should include only a particular topic.
- Edit the nested Post Template. A title and date may be enough; add an excerpt, image, category, or other block only when it helps visitors identify a post.
- Set Items per Page to the number that suits the page. Use offset or maximum pages only when those controls match the intended result.
- If more results should be available, add a Pagination block inside the Query Loop.
Query Loop layouts can be lists or grids. If visitors should open a post by clicking its title or featured image, check that the relevant nested block has its link setting enabled. For further details on query controls, see the Query Loop block documentation; pagination options are covered in the Pagination block documentation.
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Change archive pages across a block theme
If the goal is to alter category, tag, author, or date archive pages throughout the site, edit the relevant archive template in the Site Editor, if your active theme supports that workflow. Add an Archive Title block so visitors can tell which archive they are viewing, then adjust the template’s Query Loop and Post Template to control the results and their presentation.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsThe Archive Title block is intended for archive pages and does not display on ordinary pages. See WordPress’s Archive Title block documentation. A Categories block can display category terms and is often nested inside a Query Loop when customizing the loop’s appearance; its settings are documented on the Categories block page.
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Check the result before publishing
- For date navigation, confirm the dropdown groups dates at the level visitors need and that any label or count is useful.
- For a post list, verify that the filter and ordering produce the intended posts, and that the Post Template contains no unnecessary details.
- If there are more results than fit on the first page, confirm that pagination is inside the Query Loop and offers a clear way to continue.
- Preview the page or template. Theme and editor differences can affect which settings are available and how the blocks appear.
WordPress’s Query Loop documentation was updated September 5, 2026, and its Archives block documentation July 23, 2026. The steps above describe those documented block features; the exact template-editing route depends on the site’s theme and editor setup.
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