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Use WordPress’s built-in Hide control when you need to remove a block from published output or suppress it at selected viewport sizes. Choose Omit from published content for content that must not be delivered to visitors or crawlers. For rules based on login state, roles, dates, URLs, purchases, metadata, cookies, or CRM tags, install the Block Visibility plugin and configure its Visibility panel.
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What block visibility does
Block visibility controls whether a Gutenberg block appears on the front end of a WordPress site. It lets you keep a block in the editor while deciding if and when visitors receive it. Nick Diego’s Block Visibility listing describes the purpose plainly: “Visibility Controls determine whether a block should be visible to users on the front end of your website.”
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There are two fundamentally different operations:
- Omitting a block: WordPress leaves the block in your editing interface but excludes it from the published page output.
- Hiding a block visually: WordPress or a plugin leaves the block in the page code and uses responsive presentation rules to conceal it at selected screen sizes.
That distinction matters. Omission is appropriate when the content should not be sent to a visitor at all. Device-based hiding is a layout tool for responsive design, not a way to protect confidential information.
Choose the right visibility method
| Need | Best-fit method | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Temporarily remove a block from the public page without deleting it | Core WordPress: Hide → Omit from published content | The block remains available in the editor but is excluded from published output. |
| Show different promotional copy on desktop, tablet, or mobile | Core device visibility or a plugin’s screen-size condition | This is a responsive presentation choice. The block can remain in the page source. |
| Show content only to logged-in users, a role, or a particular customer group | Block Visibility plugin | The plugin supplies login, role, user, membership, and commerce conditions. |
| Start or stop a block at a date or repeat it on certain days and times | Block Visibility plugin | Its documented controls include start/end dates and recurring day-of-week and time-of-day rules. |
| Respond to a campaign URL, referrer, cookie, metadata field, purchase, cart, or CRM tag | Block Visibility plugin | These conditions are outside the basic core hide controls. |
| Content built with the Classic Editor, Elementor, or another page builder | Use that editor’s own visibility feature | Block Visibility works with block-editor content and does not control Elementor or other page-builder content. |
Use WordPress core’s Hide control
Core WordPress provides a simple control for blocks in the block editor. The labels and placement can vary slightly by installed WordPress version, so use the wording shown in your editor.
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Hide a block without deleting it
- Open the post or page in the WordPress block editor.
- Select the block you want to suppress. You can click it on the canvas or select it in List View.
- Open the block toolbar’s Options menu. Depending on the editor version, the same command may also be available in the block settings/sidebar or the Command Palette.
- Choose Hide.
- Select Omit from published content if the block should be removed from the page output for every visitor.
- Click Apply, then save or update the post or page.
WordPress records the state and shows a visibility icon for the block in List View. That icon is useful when a page contains several suppressed sections: it tells editors that the block still exists but is not currently being published.
What “Omit from published content” means
Omission happens before the page is delivered. The block is removed from the published content, so ordinary visitors do not receive it, screen readers do not announce it, and search engines cannot index that omitted block. It is therefore the core control to use when a block is obsolete, awaiting approval, or not meant to be public yet.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteOmission is not the same as deleting the block. You can return to the editor, select the block, change its visibility state, and publish it again without rebuilding the content.
Hide a block by device type
- Select the block in the editor.
- Open Options → Hide (or the equivalent Hide control in the sidebar or Command Palette).
- Select the device types on which the block should be hidden: desktop, tablet, mobile, or the available combination in your version.
- Click Apply and update the post or page.
Device hiding is intended for responsive layouts, such as using a compact callout on a phone and a wider version on a desktop. The block remains in the page code and is visually hidden for the selected viewport sizes. Depending on the theme, browser, and assistive technology, hidden content may still be available to screen readers, search engines, or anyone inspecting the source. Do not use this mode for passwords, private offers, personal data, unpublished legal text, or any other sensitive material.
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Restore a hidden block
- Open the post or page in the block editor.
- Use List View to locate the block with the visibility icon.
- Select the block and open its Options → Hide control.
- Clear the omission or device selections, then click Apply.
- Preview the page and update it.
If the block still does not appear, check for a second visibility rule, a reusable block or pattern containing its own hidden state, a template-level condition, or cached page output.
Install and configure the Block Visibility plugin
The plugin is for conditional rules that core WordPress does not provide. Its listing requires the latest WordPress version and a theme that supports the block Editor. Site Editor support for block themes is documented from version 1.4.0. It does not provide functionality for the Classic Editor and does not control Elementor or other page-builder content.
Install it from the dashboard
- Confirm that the site is running a current WordPress release and that the content is built with the block editor.
- In the dashboard, go to Plugins → Add New.
- Search for Block Visibility.
- Install the plugin and click Activate.
- Open the plugin’s settings if you need to review its defaults or available integrations.
After activation, edit a post or page in the block editor. Select a block and open the Visibility panel. Create the block’s content first, choose the conditions, and save the post or page. The plugin’s controls are primarily server-side, so a block that fails its rule is normally not rendered. Its screen-size control is the exception: that option uses CSS and therefore has the same exposure limitations as other device-based hiding.
Create a conditional rule
- Open the post or page containing the block.
- Select the target block.
- In the block settings, open the Visibility panel.
- Choose the condition type, such as login state, role, date, URL parameter, or product.
- Set the value or values for that condition.
- Choose whether the block should be shown or hidden when the condition matches, using the plugin’s available logic controls.
- Preview the page as the relevant visitor type and save or update the post.
Use a short, testable rule first. If a block disappears unexpectedly, temporarily remove additional conditions and add them back one at a time. This isolates whether the problem is the condition itself or the interaction between several conditions.
Conditions available in Block Visibility
The official listing documents a broad set of controls. The exact fields shown depend on the selected condition and on the integrations active on the site.
| Condition family | Examples of what it can target | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Date and time | Start date, end date, recurring day of week, time of day | Limited-time announcements, event registration windows, or rotating notices. |
| Authentication | Logged-in or logged-out state | A dashboard link for members or a sign-in prompt for guests. |
| Roles and users | WordPress roles, individual users, custom membership roles, customers, members | Role-specific instructions, staff notices, or member-only benefits. |
| Screen size | Desktop, tablet, or mobile viewport | Responsive layout variants. This is the CSS-based exception to the plugin’s primarily server-side behavior. |
| URL and context | URL query strings, location, post context, referral source | Campaign-specific banners, landing-page messages, or referrer-aware calls to action. |
| Site and user data | Post metadata, user metadata, cookies | Personalized notices driven by stored fields or a visitor’s cookie state. |
| WooCommerce | Products, cart contents, purchase history | Cross-sells, cart reminders, or instructions for customers who bought a particular product. |
| Advanced Custom Fields | ACF field values | Displaying a block when an editor-set field has a particular value. |
| Easy Digital Downloads | Downloads, cart contents, purchase history | Digital-product messaging based on a visitor’s download or purchase state. |
| WP Fusion | CRM tags | Showing content to contacts with a particular marketing or membership tag. |
Practical visibility recipes
Show a block only to logged-in users
Create the block normally, then select it and open Visibility. Choose the login-state condition and set it to show for logged-in visitors (or hide for logged-out visitors, depending on the control presented). Save the page and test in a private browser window while logged out, then in a separate session while logged in.
For a more precise audience, use the User Role control instead of a general login test. The role selector can target standard WordPress roles as well as custom membership roles, customers, members, logged-in users, or logged-out visitors. Test with an account that has exactly the intended role; an administrator account may pass several conditions that an ordinary customer will not.
Schedule a promotion
Add the promotional block and choose a start and end date in the Visibility panel. For a recurring promotion, use the day-of-week and time-of-day controls rather than entering a new date range each week. Check the site’s timezone and the end boundary, then preview the page around the transition. A campaign ending at midnight can behave differently from one ending at the final minute of a business day if the site and your local computer use different timezones.
Show a campaign block for a URL parameter
Create the campaign variant as its own block. In Visibility, select the URL query-string condition and enter the parameter and value used by the campaign link. Keep the parameter name consistent with the links you distribute. Test the exact URL, a URL with an unrelated parameter, and the page without any query string so you know which visitors see the block.
Target customers by product, cart, or purchase history
With the relevant commerce integration available, select the product, cart-content, or purchase-history condition. This can be used for a post-purchase setup guide, a reminder for an abandoned cart, or a message shown only after a particular item has been bought. Test both an account with the qualifying purchase and an account without it. Also test a logged-out cart if the store permits guest checkout, because cart and purchase conditions can behave differently for identified and anonymous shoppers.
Use post, user, or ACF metadata
Metadata rules are useful when editors need a field-driven switch instead of editing visibility settings repeatedly. Define the field and its expected value, select that value in the rule, and verify that the block changes when the metadata changes. If an ACF field is involved, confirm that the field is saved on the same post or user object the rule reads.
Personalize with cookies, referrers, or CRM tags
Cookie and referral conditions can tailor a message to a visitor’s journey, while WP Fusion tag conditions can align a block with CRM segmentation. Document the source of each value, because a typo in a cookie name, referrer, or tag will look like a visibility failure. Avoid putting sensitive information directly into a cookie or URL merely to drive a display rule.
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Privacy, accessibility, and search-engine implications
Use omission or a server-side conditional rule when the content must not be delivered. A block that is omitted from published content is absent for visitors, screen readers, and search engines. A Block Visibility rule that fails server-side is likewise not rendered, according to the plugin’s documented behavior.
Viewport rules are different. Core device hiding and the plugin’s screen-size control rely on visual or CSS presentation. The underlying markup can remain available to assistive technology, crawlers, browser tools, or anyone who retrieves the page source. Search engines may therefore discover text that is hidden on one device. Never treat a mobile-only or desktop-only rule as authentication, authorization, embargo protection, or a substitute for a members-only page.
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Core controls compared with conditional plugins
| Comparison point | WordPress core | Block Visibility | Responsive Visibility |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic block state | Hide a block by omitting it from published content or by device type. | Provides conditional visibility controls in the block editor. | Provides additional conditional controls alongside responsive rules. |
| Server-side behavior | Omission removes the block; device hiding is presentation-oriented. | Controls are primarily server-side; screen-size control uses CSS. | Its documented responsive options use CSS/media-query rules. |
| Conditions | Basic omission and viewport choices. | Dates, recurring schedules, login state, roles, users, URLs, context, referrers, metadata, cookies, commerce, ACF, digital downloads, and CRM tags. | CSS/media-query device rules plus login, role, user, post, post-type, page-type, URL-parameter, and shortcode conditions. |
| Logic | Not a general condition builder. | Choose the condition controls presented for the selected integration. | Supports All/Any logic for its documented conditions. |
| Editor scope | Block-editor content. | Block editor; Site Editor support is documented from version 1.4.0 for block themes. | Use its documented block-editor conditions and verify compatibility with the installed version. |
| Privacy posture | Omission is suitable for removing output; device hiding is not private. | Server-side rules avoid rendering when they fail; screen-size rules remain presentation-only. | CSS-based responsive rules should not be used for sensitive information. |
When comparing a visibility plugin, evaluate server-side omission separately from CSS hiding, then check the conditions and integrations your site actually needs. A plugin with many options is not automatically better if your requirement is only a simple, editor-visible omission.
WordPress version and theme considerations
The WordPress 7.0 development note describes viewport visibility rules for desktop, tablet, and mobile, with Hide/Show controls exposed in the block toolbar, List View, and Command Palette. It also describes additional rule types as planned rather than universally available. Because these controls can change between releases, verify the labels and behavior in the WordPress version installed on the site before writing internal documentation or training editors.
For the Block Visibility plugin, confirm all of the following before building a workflow:
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- The active theme supports the block Editor.
- Block themes use a plugin version that supports the Site Editor; support is documented from version 1.4.0.
- The content is a block, not a Classic Editor field or an Elementor/other page-builder element.
- Commerce, ACF, Easy Digital Downloads, or WP Fusion integrations are installed and storing the data the rule will read.
Troubleshoot a block that will not appear
The block is omitted in every preview
- Reopen Options → Hide and clear Omit from published content.
- Check List View for the visibility icon on the block or a parent group.
- Inspect the plugin’s Visibility panel for an enabled rule that hides the block for your current user.
- Preview while logged out and logged in; a login or role condition may be working as configured.
- Clear page, object, or reverse-proxy caches after changing the rule.
The block appears on the wrong device
- Check which viewport the editor and browser are actually using; a narrow desktop window can trigger a breakpoint intended for mobile.
- Review both the core device state and any plugin screen-size condition. Two independent rules can conflict.
- Inspect the theme’s responsive CSS and breakpoint definitions.
- Test a real phone or tablet as well as a resized desktop browser, because browser emulation does not reproduce every device behavior.
A scheduled block starts or ends at the wrong time
- Check the WordPress site timezone rather than relying on your computer’s timezone.
- Confirm the start and end boundaries and whether the rule is recurring.
- Test just before and just after the boundary with a fresh session.
- Purge cached HTML if the old state continues to be served.
A role, product, or metadata condition fails
- Verify the test account’s exact role; an administrator may not represent a customer or member.
- Confirm the product, cart, purchase, field, tag, or metadata value is saved and associated with the expected user or post.
- Check that the required integration is active and that its data is available before the page renders.
- Temporarily reduce the rule to one condition, test it, and then add other conditions back individually.
A publishing checklist
- Decide whether the requirement is omission, responsive presentation, or audience-based conditional rendering.
- Use core controls for straightforward block omission or device layout changes.
- Use Block Visibility for schedules, roles, URL campaigns, metadata, cookies, commerce, digital downloads, ACF fields, or CRM tags.
- Keep sensitive information out of CSS-hidden blocks.
- Test every relevant visitor state: logged out, logged in, each target role, qualifying and non-qualifying customers, and any campaign URL.
- Test desktop, tablet, and mobile when a viewport condition is involved.
- Check the published page after clearing caches, not only the editor canvas.
- Record the purpose, condition, timezone, and owner of time-limited rules so another editor can safely change or remove them.
Bottom line for choosing a visibility rule
For a block that should not be delivered, select Hide → Omit from published content. For a desktop/tablet/mobile layout variation, use device visibility and treat it only as presentation. For scheduled campaigns, logged-in audiences, roles, URLs, metadata, cookies, purchases, or CRM-driven personalization, configure the Block Visibility plugin and test each condition against a real visitor state. Always verify compatibility with the installed WordPress version, theme, and editor before relying on a rule in production.
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