Shweta Pandya

Ever felt like WordPress is splitting up your posts in the wrong spots? Well, you are not alone! As a part of the blogging industry, we all have experienced this issue somewhere in life. The auto excerpt feature on WordPress leaves your content look unfinished missing the reader’s experience of the full blog. Like they say “First impression is the last impression.” If you wish to have full control over how your content should be presented to the readers, then you are at the right place. In this blog, we’ll guide you on how to disable auto excerpt on WordPress, so that only the desired content displays on the front page. This not only leaves a neat impression on your blog but also intrigues users to read more about what you have to say. So, let’s get your WordPress auto excerpt fixed!  What is an Auto Excerpt? Just to get a quick understanding of what auto excerpt is, here’s what you need to know before disabling the feature. You must have noticed that WordPress generates a short preview of your content typically around 55 characters automatically, usually from the beginning of your blog. This is called auto excerpt snippet. It’s like providing a teaser of your content to the website visitors. While it may look helpful to some people, many others find it messy as it cuts off content awkwardly from mid-sentence, which does not look appealing at all. Now Why You Should Disable Auto Excerpt? If you are still not sure whether or not you should disable auto excerpt on WordPress, then here are some of the points that might help you reach a decision: If these three reasons sound good enough to disable this feature, then let’s get started with the actual disabling process. How to Disable Auto Excerpt on WordPress? 4 Effective Ways To Follow! Whether you are new to WordPress or an expert, these methods are easy to follow to turn off auto excerpts on WordPress: Method 1: Disable Auto Excerpt via WordPress Settings For the newbies, stick to this method, as this can be done directly from WordPress settings. You don’t need any technical knowledge in this, just follow the steps given below.  Step 1: Log into Your WordPress Dashboard First, access the WordPress by going to www.yourwebsite.com and logging into the admin panel. com/wp-admin. When logged in, you will be able to manage all the aspects of design on your site, or in other words, customize it. Step 2: Go to Theme Customization Step 3: Disable Auto Excerpts (If Available) Not all themes are equipped with a direct settings that allows users to turn off auto excerpting but some of the modern day themes do. To view full post, there might be options like Content Options or Blog Settings where you can change from excerpts to Full Posts. Congratulations, you have disabled the auto excerpt on your WordPress. In case, you cannot find the disable feature directly on your theme, do not panic, as the next methods come in handy! Method 2: Using a Read More Tag For the purpose of managing your excerpts without touching the code of your theme, the simplest way is to use a Read More tag. Here’s what you need to do: Step 1: Edit Your Post When editing a blog post, position the cursor at the point that you want the post to be cut off and instead of continuing the post, display a ‘read more’ button. Step 2: Insert the Read More Tag This simple trick also helps you to decide on how much of each post you want to display on the homepage since auto excerpt shortens content. Method 3: Disable Auto Excerpts with a Plugin If you’re uncomfortable with code or want a quick fix, a plugin might be your best bet. Step 1: Install the Plugin Out of the many plugins available on WordPress, Advanced Excerpt is specifically designed to give you better control over your post previews. Step 2: Configure the Plugin This method is helpful and fast, requiring no changes with the codes. Also, in case you change your mind, you can simply deactivate the plugin. Method 4: Modify Theme Code (For Advanced Users) This method is ideal for users who can handle some coding in the process of app development. If you don’t want to use a plugin or your theme doesn’t have a drop-down for disabling auto excerpt, then you would have to go into the codes. Step 1: Back Up Your Site Always, make sure you have backed up your site before carrying out any changes. In case something happens to the files or the program, it is always helpful to have a copy of them. Step 2: Go to Theme Editor Step 3: Modify the Code Look for the following line of code: the_excerpt(); Replace it with: the_content(); This will change your WordPress setting from excerpts to display the full content of your posts. Make sure to save the changes.  Once you have changed the code, go to your homepage or blog page to verify the change has been implemented. If all is well, then congratulations, you have successfully turned off auto excerpts! Remove automatic excerpts from single posts only To get rid of the automatic excerpts in WordPress, a single post, you have to make changes in the codes of a theme. To do this, go to Appearance > Theme Editor in your WordPress administration panel. Open the single.php or content-single.php file. Find the line that contains the_excerpt(), and replace it with the_content();. This makes it possible to display the full contents of posts on the respective post page without using excerpts. Click OK to save the changes and eliminate the auto-generation of excerpts for specific posts. Conclusion: Full Control Over Your WordPress Excerpts There you have it! Disabling auto excerpts in WordPress is easier than it seems, and you now have several methods to choose from. Whether you opt for a plugin, use the Read