Do you want to create a custom single post template in WordPress?

Custom single post templates allow you to use different layouts for your individual blog posts. Many WordPress themes come with a few different page templates, and you can also create your own if needed.

In this article, we’ll show you how to easily create custom single post templates in WordPress. We’ll share multiple methods, so you can choose one that works best for your needs.

When Do You Need a Custom Single Post Template?

Sometimes you may want a different look and feel for certain posts on your WordPress website. For instance, you may want to use a different layout for featured articles or stories in a particular category.

This is where you need a custom single post template in WordPress.

By default, WordPress uses the single post template based on the WordPress template hierarchy. All themes come with a single.php template, and this is used by default for all of your single posts.

Some themes may also include additional templates or layout choices that you can use.

It is very much like creating a custom page template. Most WordPress themes also come with page templates that you can use while editing a post or page in WordPress.

let’s take a look at how to easily create custom single post templates in WordPress. We’ll show you multiple methods, so you can use the one that works best for you.

How to Create Custom Single Post Templates in WordPress

Creating Single Post Templates Using the Block Editor

This method does not really create a post template and is limited in flexibility. However, it is the easiest way to save your own single post layouts and then reuse them.

The default WordPress block editor comes with a built-in feature that allows you to save and reuse blocks. One such reusable block is the group block.

The group block allows you to put several blocks and entire post layouts into one group. You can then save this group block and reuse it in your other posts.

Let’s take a look at how to use the group block to save your custom post templates.

First, you need to create a new post in WordPress. After that, simply add a group block to the content area.

Now you can start adding blocks into the group block to create a single post layout for your WordPress blog.

You can add any blocks you want including columns, media and text, cover images, and more.

Once you are satisfied with the layout you have created, you need to take your mouse up and select the group block.

Simply click on the three-dot menu icon and then select the ‘Add to Reusable blocks’ option.

Next, you need to provide a name for the reusable block and then click on the Save button. WordPress will now save your reusable block including all the blocks inside the group block.

You can then edit any existing post on your website or create a new one. On the post edit screen, simply click on the add new block button and look for your saved block under the ‘Reusable’ tab.

Add the block to your post and WordPress will load your entire group block with all the blocks and settings as you saved them.

This method allows you to save your custom layouts. However, it does not allow you to change how your theme handles single posts.

If you would like greater flexibility, then continue reading the next step.

Using Theme Settings to Create Custom Single Post Layouts

Many popular WordPress themes come with built-in settings to customize the appearance of your single post template.

If your theme supports these settings, then you’ll be able to find them on the post edit screen. The options available may change depending on the theme you are using.

For instance, the Astra theme offers customization options when editing a single post. Using these options, you can change sidebars, hide headers, title, menus, and more.

On the other hand, many of the top WordPress themes come with ready-to-use templates that you can use.

If your theme includes single post templates, then you will find them under the ‘Template’ or ‘Post Attributes’ panel while editing a post.

These templates are complete layouts that you can use with no configuration required.

Manually Creating Custom Single Post Templates With Code

This method is a bit advanced as it requires you to edit theme files, copy and paste code, and optionally add custom CSS. If you haven’t done this before, then check out our tutorial on how to copy and paste code in WordPress.

First, you need to open a plain text editor on your computer like Notepad and paste the following code inside it:

<?php
/*
 * Template Name: Featured Article
 * Template Post Type: post, page, product
 */
  
 get_header();  ?>

This code defines a new template called ‘Featured Article’ and makes it available for post, page, and product post types.

You should save this file as wpb-single-post.php on your desktop. Next, you need to add the template to your WordPress site. To do that, you need to use an FTP client to upload the file to your current theme folder.

Now you can log in to your WordPress admin area and create or edit a post. Scroll down a little on the post edit screen, and you will notice a new ‘Template’ panel or ‘Post Attributes’ meta box with an option to select the template.

You will see your ‘Featured Article’ custom template listed there.

Right now your template is essentially empty so selecting it will simply display a white screen.

Let’s fix this.

The easiest way to do that is by copying the code from your theme’s single.php file and using it as a starting point. You’ll have to open the single.php file and then copy everything after the get_header() line.

Next, you need to paste this code at the end of your wpb-single-post.php file. Now you can save this file and upload it back to your server.

However, this will look exactly the same as your current single post template. You can now start making changes to your custom single post template.

You can add your own custom CSS classes, remove sidebars, create a full width template, or anything you want.

Creating Custom Single Post Templates by Category

Would you like to use a custom single post template based on categories? For example, you can give posts in the travel category a different layout to posts in the photography category.

First, you need to add this code to your theme’s functions.php file or a code snippets plugin.

/*
* Define a constant path to our single template folder
*/
define(SINGLE_PATH, TEMPLATEPATH . '/single');
 
/**
* Filter the single_template with our custom function
*/
add_filter('single_template', 'my_single_template');
 
/**
* Single template function which will choose our template
*/
function my_single_template($single) {
global $wp_query, $post;
 
/**
* Checks for single template by category
* Check by category slug and ID
*/
foreach((array)get_the_category() as $cat) :
 
if(file_exists(SINGLE_PATH . '/single-cat-' . $cat->slug . '.php'))
return SINGLE_PATH . '/single-cat-' . $cat->slug . '.php';
 
elseif(file_exists(SINGLE_PATH . '/single-cat-' . $cat->term_id . '.php'))
return SINGLE_PATH . '/single-cat-' . $cat->term_id . '.php';
 
endforeach;
}

This code first checks to see if WordPress is requesting a single post. If it is, then it tells WordPress to look for the template in the /single/ folder of your WordPress theme.

Now you need to add template files defined by this code.

Connect to your WordPress hosting using an FTP client or File Manager in cPanel and go to /wp-content/themes/your-theme-folder/.

Inside your current theme folder, you need to create a new folder called ‘single’. Next, you need to open this folder and create a new file inside it. Go ahead and name this file single-cat-{category-slug}. Replace {category-slug} with your actual category slug.

For example, if you have a category called ‘News’, then you will create single-cat-news.php file. If you have a category called ‘Travel Tips’, then create a template single-cat-travel-tips.php, and so on.

Now, these template files will be totally empty. As a starting point, you can copy the contents of your single.php file from your theme folder and paste them inside each of these templates. After that, you’ll need to edit these templates to make your desired changes.

Once you’re done, you can go to your website and view a post. It will use the template that you have created for the category where this post is filed.

Now let’s suppose you have a post filed in two categories News and Travel Tips. WordPress will automatically show the template for ‘News’ because it appears first in alphabetical order.

On the other hand, if you filed a post in a category and didn’t create a template for that category, then WordPress will fall back to the default single.php template of your theme.

Creating Custom Single Post Templates for Specific Authors

Let’s suppose you want posts written by a specific author to look different on your website. You can do that using code by following the same technique we showed for categories.

First, you need to add this code to your theme’s functions.php file or a code snippets plugin.

/**
* Define a constant path to our single template folder
*/
define(SINGLE_PATH, TEMPLATEPATH . '/single');
 
/**
* Filter the single_template with our custom function
*/
add_filter('single_template', 'my_single_author_template');
 
/**
* Single template function which will choose our template
*/
function my_single_author_template($single) {
global $wp_query, $post;
 
/**
* Checks for single template by author
* Check by user nicename and ID
*/
$curauth = get_userdata($wp_query->post->post_author);
 
if(file_exists(SINGLE_PATH . '/single-author-' . $curauth->user_nicename . '.php'))
return SINGLE_PATH . '/single-author-' . $curauth->user_nicename . '.php';
 
elseif(file_exists(SINGLE_PATH . '/single-author-' . $curauth->ID . '.php'))
return SINGLE_PATH . '/single-author-' . $curauth->ID . '.php';
 
}

Next, you should connect to your website using FTP or cPanel file manager in cPanel and then go to /wp-content/themes/your-theme-folder/. If you haven’t already created a folder called /single/ inside it, then go ahead and create it now.

Inside this folder, you need to create a template using the author’s username in the template name. For example, single-author-jamejohnny.php.

This template will be empty, so you can copy and paste the contents of your theme’s single.php template and use it as a starting point.

You can now visit your website to view a post created by a specific author. It will use the template you created.

We hope this article helped you learn how to create custom single post templates in WordPress.  If you have any issue on this, you can use our comment session or join our delegate on Facebook to solve any issues related to WordPress and subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials.