Oh, how time flies. It seems it was yesterday when WordPress released its 6.2 version. Today, however, we are already exploring v.6.3, and it’s better than anything so far. This is the second major WordPress release of 2023. It features several significant updates, enhancements, fixes and, best of all, new features. This dedication to perfection is what makes WordPress the biggest player in the website-building and CMS markets.

This time around, WordPress has outdone itself with 170+ performance updates. However, the main focus of this release was, without a doubt, the site editor.

So, let’s dive deep into all the new and exciting things one can find in WordPress 6.3.

Site Editor as a central console

WordPress has gone far and beyond to create one stellar experience for designers, creators, and builders. The epitome of this vision is their refined Site Editor, which now brings templates, content, and patterns together.

New Navigation

Once you enter the dashboard, click on appearance and continue to Editor. The layout was introduced first in 6.2, but in 6.3, WordPress perfected the User Experience. Instead of “Templates” and “Template Parts”, now you have “Navigation”, “Styles”, “Pages”, “Templates” and “Patterns”.

If you know precisely what you’re looking for, you can call it up by using the search button at the top. If you were a fan of the Template Parts, don’t worry; they didn’t vanish. They were moved under “Patterns”.

Pattern Management is way better.

Being in the main menu, one can easily guess that WordPress has significantly improved its pattern management experience. Along with the template parts, inside the “Patterns”, you will also find “Synced” and “unsynced” patterns. Synced patterns are what we used to call reusable blocks. They can be found under “My Patterns”.

Naturally, just like the reusable blocks, these can be used across multiple pages. So, be careful when making changes there. Thankfully, WordPress color-coded synced patterns, so you can easily spot when you’re working inside something that will mess up your entire website.

Theme styles inside the Site Editor

While in previous versions, the styles button was stuck in the top right corner, now you can reach the different styles in the main editor menu as well. Though the change is not that significant for those familiar with WordPress, for newbies, such change can make a whole lot of difference. Now, users will see the available styles in the site editor menu, but if they want to edit their style, they will still get the same old sidebar on the right hand side.

There is a cool new addition there as well – the revision history. Through it, you can check older versions of your work and get back to a better style if you don’t like what you’ve accomplished.

Manage navigation on the Site Editor

This is another minor change for those familiar with WordPress but a huge game-changer for beginners. Allowing editing navigation from a centralized panel like the site editor will give beginners the peace of mind that they won’t have to look around to manage one of the most essential elements of their website. Previously, we had to add a navigation block, which, admittedly, was not that complex. Still, if you are a complete beginner, creating, editing and managing menus by clicking on the Navigation tab in the Site Editor will be a huge relief.

If you want to rearrange existing menu items, all you need to do is move them up and down. Creating and editing your menus is just as easy. Naturally, editing the menu will affect your entire website, so be careful when handling it.

Distraction-free mode is now in the Site Editor

The destination-free mode was introduced in v.6.2, but alas, it was available only outside the site editor. Due to the enormous success of this feature, however, WordPress added it in the Site Editor as well. All you need to do is go to the three dots next to the style button in the top right corner and click on “Distract free”. To exit this feature, just click Ctrl+Shift+\.

New Command Palette Tool

Keyboard shortcuts have always been a great way to increase your productivity while working on any program. WordPress recognized this long ago, and there are a bunch of keyboard shortcuts already operational within the website builder. Still, WordPress 6.3 went a step further. It created a command palette tool.

Press Ctrl+K (or Command+K if you are using a Mac) when inside a post or a page. A search bar will pop up where you can find a bunch of new useful shortcuts, from creating a new post or page to navigating to the site editor.

Third-party developers can also add their own commands since the command palette tool has an API.

The Block Editor is getting bigger

Two brand new blocks are now available in the 6.3 Block Editor. Though not that impressive at first sight, both block types will streamline the content creators’ work.

The Details Block

This block is invaluable in creating a stunning website. In practice, all FAQ, Trivia and “more info” sections are done using this precise block. Detail Blocks will show a headline, and if the user wants to learn more, they need to click and reveal the rest of the content.

As a bonus, you can add almost any block type in the hidden part, so this includes images, media or any other block. So, for example, if sensitive imagery is unsuitable for all audiences, you may hide it behind such a block, and if the user is interested, they can see the content at their own discretion.

Footer Notes Block

Creating a well-researched article or blog post requires citing all sorts of resources. While most often, this is done via a link to the source, you are sometimes using offline sources that one can not simply link to. In such cases, creating a footnote section is mandatory. Thankfully, now, WordPress has gone the extra step to give content creators the Footnotes block. This automates the process of creating footnotes and saves a lot of time for all writers.

Image block update

Images are the cornerstone of any website’s success. Unsurprisingly, WordPress has been working hard to accommodate its users’ needs. The tech giant improves its image block in every new release, and they are getting closer to perfection. Still, there is a bit more work to do.

For now, in 6.3, the image block will finally allow us to put an aspect ratio for our image.

In the settings bar, you will find the Aspect ratio, where you can use the image’s original ratio, make it square, portrait, 4:3, and a few other options. This will allow you to be more consistent with your images throughout your website. For example, all your blog post images can be precisely the same ratio and size. All you need to do is select a ratio and add a width (1200, for instance).

It’s a minor upgrade but will save you some time trying to fix your images through online photo editors or Photoshop.

Improvements all around

While the new tools and blocks are awesome, we can’t forget that WordPress spent a great deal of time working to perfect their user experience. One of the small changes that makes a whole lot of difference is the Top Toolbar improvement. In previous versions, the toolbar remained inside the working block even when you sent it to the top. Now, when you click the Top Toolbar option, the toolbar will get up beside the main menu. While not a huge difference, it seems much more elegant and smooth.

WordPress also took some advice from developers and upgraded the Padding and Margin Tool. Until now, when padding and margins were unlinked, they spread far and wide. The tool became hard to use. With the new tool, this problem is fixed, and now the padding and margins tool is well-contained.

The Cover block has also received some attention in WordPress 6.3. Much like with the Group Block, with the new version, users can choose a Layout for the Cover block as well. Moreover, the developers put some new design options in the settings panel.

In our opinion, some tweaks were not as successful, and we expect WP to revert them in the following update. The link control tool’s new features are one such example.

Link Control Enhancement

Link control is what we use to create inbound links. These links lead to other internal or external pages. In previous versions of WP, this was a straightforward tool where you attach a link to a specific anchor text. WordPress 6.3 enhanced this tool to include some questionable features.

The most impressive one is creating a page directly from the link control popup. We are not entirely sure why anyone would use this. Creating a page takes a lot of time and effort, and doing a brand new page because of a link seems a bit far-fetched.

For those who prefer to open their links in a new tab or window, WP moved the button under Advanced Settings.

Overall

The new WordPress design is genuinely impressive, and it shows that the developers at WP headquarters worked tirelessly to bring us improved user experience and performance. The site editor is definitely going in the right direction, and in a few versions from now, it will undoubtedly become a leader among website builders. Naturally, you need more than a fantastic website builder to have one astounding website. You need one outstanding hosting service provider. Naturally, you can always turn to HostArmada for a solution to your problem. We offer lightning-fast, tightly secured and highly reliable hosting service, which can complement the fast and secure build of WordPress 6.3. So, don’t hesitate to check out our offers and get your website on the net today.