WordPress Custom Post Types are what we call all the content types you might want to create for a site that are distinct from Posts and Pages. Here on WPShout, we’ve got one called Quick Guides, that’s what you’re reading now. New Custom Post Types (or CPTs) in WordPress are useful because your content probably fits into many conceptual categories, and Posts and Pages aren’t all of them.
There are lots of different ways to create custom content types in WordPress. We’ve got a full article on that topic: Why and How To Use Custom Post Types in WordPress. This quick guide is about how you can create a new one without writing a lick of code. I’m using my go-to method for this: the Pods plugin.
I love Pods for quick building of a single site where I’m not writing much code. It’s a quick way to create the post types I need without worrying about PHP. Pods is also a pretty unobtrusive (no nag banners, etc) plugin that works super well. Here’s a video showing it off:
And for the text-preferers in the audience:
How to Create Custom Content Types in WordPress with the Pods Plugin
- Install and Activate the “Pods” plugin from the “Plugins > Add New” screen.
- In the left side of your admin area: click on “Pods Admin > Add New”.
- Here you’ll go with the “Create New” option, as we’re not (currently) modifying Posts or Pages, but creating a new post type. (For me, that post type will be “Portfolio Items”.
- On the “Add New Pod” screen, you’ll select “Custom Post Types” as “Content Type” and then you’ll add the “Singular” and “Plural” labels. For me, those are “Portfolio Item” and “Portfolio Items”. Click “Next Step”.
- With that you should be good. If you need to tweak the item, you have access to just about every option you want here. Superstitiously you may want to click “Save Pod” off in the right even if you don’t change anything, but your Post Type will show before that.
