WordPress 6.9 marks the second and remaining main launch of the platform in 2025. Following the mid-April launch of WordPress 6.8, this replace brings a variety of enhancements that profit web site house owners, designers, builders, and on a regular basis customers alike. Whereas there’s no single standout characteristic, this launch is filled with practical enhancements that intention to boost creativity, efficiency, and workflows.
As anticipated, WordPress 6.9 delivers quite a lot of smaller – however significant – enhancements. From upgraded instruments for builders to a smoother modifying expertise for web site house owners, these adjustments are designed to assist extra versatile site-building and sooner workflows.
Nevertheless, not like previous main variations, WordPress 6.9 doesn’t launch with a brand new default theme. As an alternative, the following theme, Twenty Twenty-Six, is scheduled for launch in 2026. Whereas we wait, this replace nonetheless units the stage for a way WordPress is evolving out of the field.
Hold studying for my full breakdown of what’s modified, what’s improved, and how one can benefit from the brand new options in WordPress 6.9.
What are the brand new blocks in WordPress 6.9?
Every of the brand new blocks in WordPress 6.9 is constructed that will help you streamline workflows, current data extra clearly, and create higher person experiences – proper from the editor.
Accordion block
The Accordion block makes it straightforward to create collapsible sections, serving to customers set up content material in a clear and interactive method.
The Accordion block is made up of three parts:
- Accordion Merchandise – the guardian block of accordion content material
- Accordion Heading – the place you sort the clickable title or query
- Accordion Panel – the place you may add every other blocks
To make use of an Accordion block, add it like every other block from the editor. You’ll see two fields: the Accordion Heading, the place you sort the title or query, and the Accordion Panel, the place you insert content material.
One standout characteristic is the flexibleness so as to add any sort of block contained in the Accordion Panel. For instance, you may create a two-column structure with a paragraph and a picture. This lets you transcend plain textual content – including visible components to shock and have interaction your web site guests.
Phrases Question block
WordPress 6.9 introduces a robust new characteristic: the flexibility to dynamically show the title, put up rely, and description for weblog posts grouped by class, tag, or any customized WordPress taxonomy.
On this instance, I’ve three classes: Feminine, Male, and Uncategorized. I’ve configured the block to point out the variety of posts in every class (the rely) and show the outline for any class that features one – on this case, “Feminine.”
As I start, the block prompts me to decide on one among two variations to show my phrases question. These may be adjusted or expanded even after the block is inserted.
I set my taxonomy to Class from the dropdown within the block’s settings panel.
On the entrance finish, the guests will see a listing displaying the class title, variety of posts, and class description — all up to date dynamically based mostly on the content material.
Time to Learn and Phrase Depend blocks
Many trendy web sites show estimated studying occasions to assist readers know what to anticipate. WordPress now helps this natively with the brand new Time to Learn block.
This block can also be transformable right into a Phrase Depend block utilizing a toggle, supplying you with two metric choices.
Each options may be displayed independently – you may select to point out solely the studying time, or solely the phrase rely. Another choice is so as to add each blocks to point out each metrics – all of it is determined by your content material technique.
Math block
WordPress now makes it straightforward to show complicated math formulation utilizing the brand new Math block. This characteristic helps each standalone mathematical expressions and inline math notation inside common textual content.
To make use of it, merely add the Math block and enter your components within the offered textual content area. The block renders your equation cleanly, making it excellent for instructional content material, technical tutorials, or any content material involving calculations.
What are the brand new block options in WordPress 6.9?
There are a great variety of new and improved blocks coming with WordPress 6.9. A few of these blocks had been underneath improvement for fairly a while, by no means making it right into a remaining launch till now.
Collaborate with block Notes
With the introduction of the Notes characteristic, we get our first take a look at what editorial collaboration in WordPress will appear like. This marks the start of Part 3 – Collaboration of the Gutenberg Mission, bringing asynchronous commenting capabilities straight into the block editor.
The Notes characteristic permits directors and editors to depart threaded feedback – known as Notes – on any block, just like how feedback work in Google Docs. These Notes are seen to your entire editorial workforce, permitting collaborators to answer to or act on suggestions straight inside the editor.
Right here, I begin by including a word to the primary paragraph utilizing the choice menu for the paragraph as proven within the checklist view.
As soon as chosen, the right-hand sidebar updates, permitting you to put in writing your remark. For instance, you would possibly depart a message like “Change font to Georgia,” which the editorial workforce can then evaluation and implement. Any word may be edited or deleted at any time.
If I choose the picture block, the toolbar shows Gravatar icons of workforce members who’ve left feedback. Clicking these icons opens the Notes sidebar, revealing threaded discussions associated to the chosen block.
Even when the web page accommodates a number of Notes, the sidebar focuses solely on those associated to the presently chosen block – as an example, the picture block on this instance.
The Notes characteristic is accessible for pages, posts, and customized put up varieties. Staff members will obtain e mail notifications when a Word is added. Notifications may be turned off through Settings → Dialogue by deselecting “Anybody posts a word.”
Disguise blocks from view
One of the vital requested options through the years is lastly right here – the flexibility to cover particular person blocks from displaying on the entrance finish of a WordPress web site. This addition is especially helpful when experimenting with layouts, testing content material, or collaborating with others.
You possibly can conceal any block utilizing both the toolbar or the Record View. On this instance, I’m utilizing the Record View to cover the picture.
As soon as hidden, the block will show an eye icon with a slash subsequent to it within the Record View, indicating it’s now not seen on the dwell web site.
After hiding a block, you would possibly wonder if it leaves a noticeable hole on the entrance finish. To examine, preview or view the web page dwell. Hidden blocks don’t depart seen empty areas – the content material is solely faraway from view.
To make the block seen once more, you may both click on the eye icon within the toolbar or choose Present from the block’s choices within the Record View.
This preliminary launch introduces the core hiding performance, however future updates could embody superior choices like:
- Conditional logic for block show based mostly on display dimension or person system
- Date-based visibility for scheduled content material
This new characteristic opens up extra versatile workflows and content material experiments, proper from the block editor.
Stretchy textual content blocks
WordPress 6.9 introduces new companion blocks for Headings and Paragraphs, making it simpler to create textual content that adjusts seamlessly throughout totally different display sizes.
On this instance, I’m beginning with a daily Heading after which changing it to a Stretchy Heading block. To do that:
- Begin with a regular Heading block.
- Remodel it right into a Stretchy Heading utilizing the block choices.
This model robotically resizes to suit the container, making certain optimum readability on all units.
Word that when utilizing stretchy textual content, the choice to manually set font dimension is eliminated. Font scaling is dealt with robotically to keep up responsiveness.
New HTML ingredient for the Button block
Within the Superior settings of the Button block, you now have the choice to make use of a ingredient as a substitute of the default (anchor) tag.
This enhancement addresses a typical accessibility difficulty – utilizing a button as if it had been a hyperlink. When incorrectly applied, it might confuse display readers and disrupt the person expertise for these counting on assistive applied sciences.
By selecting the proper ingredient for the meant interplay, WordPress helps guarantee extra accessible and semantically correct web sites.
What different adjustments are coming in WordPress 6.9?
WordPress hasn’t simply added new blocks – it additionally launched considerate enhancements to current ones, making them much more versatile and user-friendly. These refined but impactful updates enhance how customers design, set up, and work together with content material throughout their websites.
Create draft pages straight from the Navigation block
WordPress 6.9 introduces a handy new characteristic: the flexibility to create a draft web page straight from the Navigation block. That is particularly useful while you’re constructing a web site construction and wish to embody hyperlinks to pages that don’t but exist.
To make use of this characteristic, choose the Plus (+) button, and select the Create web page possibility within the Navigation drop-down menu.
A pop-up will seem so as to add the web page title. There’s additionally an choice to publish the web page instantly, however I at all times want to depart it as a draft to keep away from publishing a clean or incomplete web page.
When you create the web page, WordPress provides a draft hyperlink to your navigation menu. You possibly can then navigate to the Pages part in your WordPress dashboard to open the draft and start including content material.
Simply bear in mind – as a result of the web page remains to be in draft standing, it received’t seem in your web site’s navigation for guests till it’s revealed.
Higher accessibility for the Command Palette
Beforehand restricted to dam themes, the Command Palette is now out there for traditional themes as effectively – and can be utilized from wherever inside the WordPress Admin.
Simply press Cmd+Okay on macOS or Ctrl+Okay on Home windows to open the Command Palette. From there, you may rapidly navigate the dashboard, seek for settings, and even provoke actions like creating a brand new web page or put up.
For customers who depend on keyboard shortcuts, this expanded performance introduces highly effective new methods to hurry up workflows and cut back clicks.
If you happen to’re unsure what the Command Palette can do, sort in any letter to view a listing of accessible instructions beginning with that character.
Advantageous-tune block entry in containers
Excellent for design groups and sample creation, the brand new Allowed Blocks characteristic enables you to management which blocks can be found inside particular container blocks – similar to Group, Column, or Cowl blocks.
To entry this setting:
- Choose a container block.
- Click on the Superior part in the suitable sidebar and choose Handle allowed blocks.
- Deselect any blocks you wish to prohibit from use inside that container.
That is particularly helpful for design consistency throughout reusable templates or team-based web site builds.
Notable adjustments for builders
Listed below are a number of the adjustments coming to WordPress which are underneath the hood and never one thing web site builders are more likely to see within the person interface.
Talents API
WordPress 6.9 introduces the Talents API, a standardized method for WordPress, themes, and plugins to declare what they will do. Somewhat than counting on customized strategies, builders can now converse the identical “language” – creating extra constant, safe, and scalable experiences, particularly when integrating with AI instruments or constructing collaborative options.
Extra API and developer-focused enhancements
Right here’s a fast take a look at different technical enhancements designed to increase developer capabilities:
- Interactivity API – now helps Fetch Precedence: low, providing higher management over when scripts load.
- Block Bindings API – provides a brand new filter for figuring out which block attributes may be dynamically sure. This is applicable to each core and customized blocks.
- Environment friendly script enqueueing – WordPress 6.9 eliminated legacy assist code for Web Explorer conditional scripts and types.
Wrap up
WordPress 6.9 isn’t simply one other routine replace – it marks a strategic step ahead within the platform’s evolution. This launch balances sensible enhancements for on a regular basis customers with sturdy instruments for builders, making it a big milestone within the broader Gutenberg roadmap.
I discovered that WordPress 6.9 delivers significant enhancements throughout three main areas:
- New blocks unlocked – Lengthy-requested blocks like Accordion, Math, Time to Learn, and Phrases Question are lastly out there, increasing what you are able to do visually and functionally – with out counting on third-party plugins.
- Smarter, extra succesful current blocks – Present blocks haven’t been left behind. From responsive textual content dealing with with Stretchy Headings to new visibility controls and dynamic navigation enhancements, WordPress continues refining the core modifying expertise.
- Developer-centric enhancements – Behind the scenes, WordPress 6.9 introduces a number of highly effective APIs – just like the Talents API, Interactivity API, and improved script dealing with – that streamline improvement, improve efficiency, and assist scalable, future-proof structure.
Maybe most significantly, this launch alerts the official begin of Part 3: Collaboration. With foundational options like Notes now in place, WordPress is making ready for real-time collaboration, a transformative shift that may make co-editing workflows smoother and extra intuitive.
Replace your WordPress web site to WordPress 6.9 now to expertise these new options!
Bud Kraus has been working with WordPress as an in-class and on-line teacher, web site developer, and content material creator for over 14 years. He’s a very reformed internet designer who now not constructing WP websites and has shifted his give attention to creating WordPress content material for WordPress Companies. To him, it’s simply one other method to train and have enjoyable working with purchasers he loves and admires. Regardless of the venture, Bud works with purchasers the best way they wish to work and never the opposite method round. Working as a content material creator Bud creates WordPress supplies as instructional articles or tutorial movies for WordPress firms.
Observe him on LinkedIn
