Looking for an easy way to duplicate a page or post in WordPress?
There are a few reasons why you might want to duplicate a page in WordPress. If you’re making a website, then copying your pages can help you get online faster.
Or, maybe your existing site has high-performing pages that could be tweaked to serve many purposes.
If you have a landing page layout that works, why not use it for other products too?
The easiest way to duplicate a post or page is via a simple, free WordPress plugin. And in this post, we’ll show you exactly how to use this free plugin to duplicate content on WordPress.
Ready to learn how? Let’s go!
How to duplicate a page in WordPress with the Duplicate Post plugin
Setting up a one-click process to duplicate WordPress pages and posts for free requires the free Duplicate Post plugin. You can download it directly from the WordPress plugin directory.
👉 If you need any help with installing a plugin, check out our handy guide
Once you’ve installed and activated the plugin, go to the Pages or Posts area in your WordPress dashboard.
Whether you’re working with pages or posts, the Duplicate Post plugin adds three links below each title by default:
- Clone
- New Draft
- Rewrite & Republish
Clicking any of these links will create a copy of the page with some subtle differences:
- Clone: duplicates your WordPress page or post without opening the editor for the cloned piece of content.
- New Draft: duplicates the content and opens the editor so that you can get right to work.
- Rewrite & Republish: the best option for updating content. It creates a copy of the live version of your content that you can work on for edits. Once you’re finished with the edits, you can republish to the original URL to overwrite the existing content with a single click.
We cover how these three options work in more detail later in the post.
However, in some cases, you might want to copy all the meta-data, or maybe you’d like to restrict the users who have access. Fortunately, you can do all of this (and more) via Duplicate Post’s settings.
Configure the settings if needed
Most people will be totally fine with the default Duplicate Post settings. However, if you want more control, you can adjust how the plugin works by going to Settings → Duplicate Post.
Let’s go through the different settings options…
What to copy
What to copy is the first of three tabs and it controls what content you will copy when you duplicate a page or post in WordPress.
You’ll find a range of straightforward options that are perfect for making backups of your content or creating a template for repeated use.
Further down the page, you will have the option to add title prefixes or suffixes to your duplicated content.
Furthermore, you can choose to exclude meta-fields as well as categories, tags, and menus.
Who can copy
By default, only the Administrator and Editor user roles will have permission to create duplicate posts.
You can extend the ability to most user roles, but it is important to remember that users are not restricted to duplicating their own posts or pages.
However, you can choose to restrict the content that can be copied. If you have blocks or custom post types, then you will also find them in the permissions menu.
Display options
You can also restrict the availability of New Draft, Clone, or Rewrite & Republish through the Display → Show these links setting.
Show links in will give you the option to change where the links appear when they are available. The default options are Post list, Edit screen, and Admin bar.
Post List will add duplicate page links after the standard WordPress actions links.
You can also select Edit screen if you would like to create duplicated pages right from the editor.
Finally, you can enjoy one-click bulk copying directly from the Bulk actions menu.
You can also choose where the copied post or page will appear in your lists.
The best option is After the title in the Post list which places the duplicated post directly beneath the original.
By selecting the column in the Post list option the plugin will create a new field that links to the original post.
Finally, you can choose to have a link to the original post appear in a metabox in the Edit screen.
Explaining the three options to duplicate a page in WordPress
Earlier, we briefly covered the three default duplication options that the plugin gives you. Now, let’s go through how all three work in more detail:
- Clone
- New draft
- Rewrite and republish
Clone
Clicking on Clone will duplicate a WordPress page or post but will not open the post for editing.
You’ll stay on the post or page list, but you’ll see a new entry.
When you’re ready to edit the duplicated page, click on Edit as you would any other page.
New draft
If you plan to start working immediately, then click New draft to copy the content and open the new page in the editor.
You’ll see that everything is copied according to your preferences. This means layouts, images, buttons, and text. The title on the page will also have any suffixes or prefixes you have set.
Rewrite & Republish
If you’re duplicating a piece of content to update existing content rather than to publish a new piece of content, then try Rewrite & Republish. This a really useful method when you have those large updates that can’t be completed in one go.
Click on the Rewrite & Republish link on the page or in the page list to get started.
You have created a copy of the original page which you can edit and save without making changes public.
Now you can take your time updating pages and posts without a risky copy and paste procedure. When you’re ready to publish click Republish.
This is a nifty trick! Before your post goes live, you get an opportunity to compare it to the live post. This side-by-side comparison is a great way to get peace of mind before making any big changes.
Once you’ve confirmed your great work you can return to the editor and the republish box.
When you hit republish, the rewritten content is published over the old content. The URL will remain the same (so you don’t lose any SEO value) and the plugin will delete the draft of the duplicate version to keep your dashboard tidy and help you avoid accidentally publishing duplicate content.
Conclusion on how to duplicate a page in WordPress
If you’re running a busy blog or you have sales pages that have proven to work, duplicating a page in WordPress is a great way to improve your workflow.
When you’re working multiple components from code through layouts to text it helps to have a risk-free option in your arsenal. With the Duplicate Post plugin, you can create perfect copies of your existing content with the simplicity of a single click. You might want to check one of our previous articles in case you are looking for a way to clone your entire WordPress website.
Do you have any questions about duplicating a post or page in WordPress? Ask away in the comments below!
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