Use Settings → Reading to set a WordPress homepage: publish the page you want visitors to see, choose “A static page” and select it under Homepage. Choose a different page for posts if you need a blog, then save the settings. Check the public root address and the blog separately.
Those are the core steps in WordPress’s static front-page instructions. Before changing them, decide which page should introduce the business and where visitors should find articles. A page called Home, a navigation link labelled Home and the page displayed at the domain’s root are three things worth checking individually.
This guide covers the homepage selection and its immediate verification. It does not require a redesign or a theme replacement. Keep wider content, layout and search work on their own task lists so a simple setting change does not become an unplanned website rebuild.
Should the homepage show a page or the latest posts?
WordPress displays the latest posts on the homepage by default. A static front page is a chosen page whose content is edited directly. “Static” describes that selection; it does not mean the page cannot contain interactive elements or other content provided by its theme or plugins.
Choose around the visitor’s first task. A business might want an introduction, a service route and a contact choice at the root address. A publication might prefer the newest articles. Write that intended outcome before touching the settings. This gives the person checking the change a clear result to look for.
If the business needs both, plan a separate blog destination. The Reading Settings reference states that the Home page and Posts page cannot be the same. Give the two pages distinct names in the administration area so the selection is easy to recognise.
| Visitor destination | Selection to record | Public check |
|---|---|---|
| Business introduction at the root | The intended Homepage page | Open the domain without a page slug |
| Article list | A different Posts page, when used | Open the agreed blog address |
| A particular article | Its own post address | Follow an article link from the list |
| Navigation’s Home link | The actual link destination | Confirm it reaches the intended root |
The table is an original verification aid. It separates the settings being changed from the links visitors use. A correct Homepage selection should still be checked through the actual navigation, rather than assuming that a label called Home points to the right place.
How do you select the homepage in Reading Settings?
Start with the intended page. The official instructions describe creating it through Pages → Add New, adding its content and publishing it. If a suitable published page already exists, identify that page before creating another with a similar name. Record its title and address in the change note.
Open Settings → Reading. Under “Your homepage displays”, select “A static page”. In the Homepage dropdown, choose the published page intended for the front of the site. Where a separate article list is required, choose its different page under Posts page. Save the changes before checking the public result.
The WordPress guide also documents a route through Appearance settings where it is available for the theme. It uses Homepage Settings, the homepage and posts-page selections, and Publish. Use the route supported by the actual site; do not assume that every theme presents the same administration controls.
Before leaving the screen, read back the saved selections. Check the page names rather than relying on the order in the dropdown. If the list contains several similar titles, open the intended page in another tab and confirm its identity. This is a proposed second-person or self-check, not an additional WordPress requirement.
Avoid changing other Reading Settings simply because they share the screen. In particular, the number of posts displayed and the search-engine visibility choice answer different questions from the homepage selection. Note any unrelated concern for a separate change instead of bundling it into this one.
Why might the public page differ from the selection?
WordPress’s Reading Settings documentation notes that front-page and post-display plugins may affect how the settings behave. If the saved selection looks correct but the public result differs, record what you expected and what actually appeared. Inspect the theme and relevant plugin configuration before changing several unrelated settings.
Check the exact address being opened. Distinguish the root from an old page slug, an article address and a navigation link pointing somewhere else. Open the agreed public addresses in a separate signed-out browser window and record the final address shown. This helps another person reproduce the observation without depending on the administrator’s open editing session.
Then compare the content being edited with the content displayed. Write down the selected page’s title and the relevant theme or builder view. Ask the responsible maintainer to explain which template or display rule supplies the visible page. Keep that explanation attached to the change record so the next editor knows where to work.
Do not treat a blog-list issue as proof that the Homepage selection failed. The Reading Settings reference documents a separate Posts-page choice and a “Blog pages show at most” setting. A missing article, an unexpected number of entries and the wrong root page are different symptoms. Keep their observations separate while diagnosing them.
What should you verify before handing the change over?
Use this original home-and-blog handover card. It is a proposed acceptance exercise for the named change, with observed results recorded by the person performing it.
Record the starting state. Note the previous Homepage and Posts-page selections and the public destinations they produced. Keep enough detail to recognise the original arrangement if the change needs to be reversed. Confirm who is authorised to make and accept the change.
Confirm the intended destinations. Write the root address beside the business-introduction page, then write the article-list address separately. Ask the content owner to confirm that these are the routes visitors should use. Resolve ambiguity before selecting similarly named pages.
Save and inspect. Apply the agreed selections and open the root, blog list and an individual article. Record the page reached for each check. Follow the navigation links as well as opening the addresses directly, because the visitor normally arrives through the site’s actual links.
Check usable presentation. Inspect the selected homepage on desktop and a phone-sized viewport. Read the opening message, use its primary enquiry route and confirm that the navigation remains usable. Record a layout concern against the relevant page or template; it need not be confused with the routing decision.
Hand over the evidence. Keep the saved selections, checked addresses, observed results and any unresolved display issue together. Name the person who accepts the result. Leave redesign ideas or unrelated search issues on a separate list with an owner rather than silently extending the change.
The Reading Settings reference explains that “Discourage search engines” does not block normal visitors. Do not use that option as a private-review or access-control mechanism. If access restriction is needed, ask the maintainer to arrange an appropriate approach separately from the homepage setting.
For wider page work, see WordPress services and web development. Get started with the intended homepage, the article-list destination and any display behaviour that still needs investigation.
By Spout Team. AI-assisted drafting by Codex using the linked primary WordPress documentation.