Creating a dropdown list of pages using wp_dropdown_pages in WordPress

The wp_dropdown_pages function in WordPress is a built-in function that generates a dropdown list of pages. It is used for displaying a list of WordPress pages in a dropdown menu format.

This function can be beneficial in various scenarios. For instance, it can be used when creating a navigation menu for a website, where it is necessary to provide a list of all available pages. It can also be used in the WordPress admin area to allow the site administrator to select from a list of pages for certain settings or configurations.

The wp_dropdown_pages function can also be used in theme development. For instance, when creating a custom theme options page, this function can be used to provide a selection of pages for certain theme settings.

The function generates an HTML select element, with each page being represented by an option element within the dropdown. The value of each option is the ID of the corresponding page, and the display text is the title of the page.

It is important to note that the wp_dropdown_pages function does not output the dropdown directly to the browser. Instead, it returns the HTML markup for the dropdown as a string. This allows the developer to store the output in a variable, manipulate it if necessary, and then output it at the appropriate time and place in the code.

Parameters

The wp_dropdown_pages function in WordPress accepts one optional parameter known as $args.

  • $args(arraystring): This is an optional parameter. If not provided, the default value is an empty string (”). The purpose of this parameter is to pass an array or string of arguments that aid in generating a dropdown of pages.

Return Value

The wp_dropdown_pages function returns a string that represents an HTML dropdown list of pages.

If the function does not receive any parameters, it will still execute and return the dropdown list of all available pages.

Examples

How to Display a Dropdown List of All Published Pages

In this example, we use the wp_dropdown_pages function to display a dropdown list of all published pages.

<?php 
$args = array(
 'post_type' => 'page',
 'post_status' => 'publish'
); 
wp_dropdown_pages($args); 
?>

How to Display a Dropdown List of Child Pages

In this example, we are using the wp_dropdown_pages function to display a dropdown list of child pages of a specific parent page. We specify the parent page by its ID in the $args array.

<?php $args = array(
 'child_of' => '10', // Replace with your parent page ID
); 
wp_dropdown_pages($args); 
?>

How to Display a Dropdown List of Pages Excluding Certain Pages

In this example, we use the wp_dropdown_pages function to display a dropdown list of pages, but exclude certain pages from the list. We specify the pages to exclude by their IDs in the $args array.

<?php $args = array(
 'exclude' => '10,20', // Replace with your page IDs to exclude
); 
wp_dropdown_pages($args); 
?>

Conclusion

The wp_dropdown_pages function in WordPress is a tool that displays a dropdown list of WordPress pages. This function is primarily used when creating a navigation menu, allowing users to select from a list of existing pages. It can also be used in theme development for providing an option for users to select a page from a dropdown list in the theme customizer. Hence, wp_dropdown_pages can be a valuable function for enhancing user experience and providing more flexibility in website navigation and customization.

Related WordPress Functions

in WordPress Functions