Difference between Categories & Tags
Categories and tags are both taxonomies in WordPress that are used to organize your blog posts. However, they have different purposes and should be used in different ways.
Categories are used to group your posts into broad categories. For example, you might have categories for “recipes,” “travel,” and “lifestyle.” Categories can be hierarchical, meaning that you can create subcategories within categories. This can be helpful for organizing large amounts of content.
Tags are used to add more specific labels to your posts. For example, you might tag a recipe post with the tags “vegetarian,” “gluten-free,” and “easy.” Tags are not hierarchical and can be used multiple times on the same post.
In general, you should use categories to broadly group your posts and tags to add more specific labels. For example, you might have a category for “recipes” and then use tags to identify different types of recipes, such as “vegetarian,” “gluten-free,” and “easy.”
Example
Here is an example of how you might use categories and tags on a blog about food:
- Category: Recipes
- Subcategory: Vegetarian
- Subcategory: Gluten-Free
- Subcategory: Easy
- Tag: Vegan
- Tag: Paleo
- Tag: Mediterranean
This would allow you to organize your recipes into different categories and subcategories, and then use tags to add more specific labels. This would make it easier for visitors to find the recipes they are looking for.
Another Example
- Categories:
- Technology: This category could include posts about new technology, reviews of tech products, and tutorials on how to use technology.
- Business: This category could include posts about business news, tips for entrepreneurs, and interviews with successful business people.
- Personal: This category could include posts about the author’s personal life, thoughts, and experiences.
- Tags:
- New: This tag could be used to mark posts that are new or recently updated.
- Review: This tag could be used to mark posts that are reviews of products or services.
- Tutorial: This tag could be used to mark posts that are tutorials on how to do something.
Tips & Tricks
Here are some additional tips for using categories and tags:
- Use descriptive names. When creating categories and tags, be sure to use descriptive names that will help visitors find the content they are looking for.
- Use relevant tags. When adding tags to your posts, be sure to use tags that are relevant to the content of the post. This will help visitors find your posts when they are searching for specific information.
- Don’t overuse tags. It is important not to overuse tags. Too many tags can make your blog posts look cluttered and can make it difficult for visitors to find the content they are looking for.
Conclusion
Categories and tags are a powerful way to organize your blog posts and make them more accessible to visitors. By using them effectively, you can help visitors find the content they are looking for and improve the overall usability of your blog.
Further Readings
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_(metadata)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category
- Our other blogs on WordPress topic
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