When someone visits your WordPress site, they are allowed to perform different types of tasks. While some users may have full control over your site, others are only able to do certain tasks such as creating posts and editing content. In this article, we define what is WordPress user role and how it affects people’s interactions with your website.
WordPress user roles define what a logged-in user can do on a WordPress website. A user refers to someone who have registered on your WordPress website. They can log in using a username and passwords. This is different from a visitor who is only viewing your site and is not a registered user.
The owner of the WordPress site is a registered user with all the permissions. You can add other people or approve those who register with their own login credentials. You can also decide who can write guests post on your blog, access exclusive content on your membership site, or help with troubleshooting WordPress errors.
User roles are a set of capabilities that a user can and cannot do on your WordPress website. Generally, every WordPress user role is capable of everything that a less powerful role can. An editor can do everything authors do while authors are allowed to do everything contributors can.
To see the default user roles in WordPress, go to the Users page in the dashboard. From there, you can see the 5 default user roles in the “Role” dropdown menu:
The WordPress site administrator is the most powerful role. They have complete control over the WordPress backend, including adding new posts and editing or deleting posts by any users. They can also install, edit, and delete themes, plugins, and widgets.
When you create a WordPress website for the first time, you are automatically given the WordPress user role of administrator. Being the admin means that you decide who gets access to the website and define what they can and cannot do. You can create other users, change information about existing users, reassign roles, change their passwords, and even remove them.
The WordPress role of an editor has full control of the content sections of the website. This includes adding, editing, publishing, and developing posts. They also edit, moderate, and delete comments. However, the editor does not have access to change the site settings, add/edit users, or install themes and plugins.
The author role on WordPress is to write, edit, and publish their own posts. Unlike the editor, they author cannot modify posts by other users. They are only allowed to add or delete their own posts. They are also not allowed to moderate, delete or approve comments although they can view them. They have no access to the WordPress site settings, themes or plugins.
The role of the contributor is to add and edit new posts on your WordPress site. However, they cannot publish the posts or upload files like documents or images to the posts. They also have no access to the website settings, themes, or plugins.
The Subscriber WordPress user roles has the highest number of users, but the least permissions. They are only allowed to log in to your WordPress site, change their password, and update their user profiles. Other than that, they cannot do anything else, including accessing the WordPress admin area or writing posts. However, the role particularly useful for an online store, membership site, and other types of sites that require user to register and log in.
In some situations, you may need to define custom WordPress user roles beyond the default ones. For this, you will need a user role editor plugin, such as Members. The plugin comes with additional user roles customization options such as adding or removing capabilities or including specific functions to a role. For instance, you may want to allow authors to directly publish posts on your WordPress site.
For some websites, you may want to allow certain user roles access to restricted content. For instance, you may want to create a membership site in which only paying members have access to premium content like courses and videos. With a WordPress membership plugin like MemberPress, you can achieve this and more. The plugin contains a powerful set of features that makes it easy to set up a membership site and define roles for different users.
Creating and managing user roles in WordPress ought to be straightforward. However, it becomes more complex with each new user added to the list. At WpDepend, we provide comprehensive WordPress management system, including defining and managing user roles, making it easier for you to set up and run a successful WordPress website. If you are looking for reliable WordPress support and maintenance services, get in touch with us today.
A seasoned technology writer and marketing consultant with over a decade of experience helping businesses grow online. I specialize in content marketing, SEO, web design, and e-commerce development. I am enthusiastic about using cutting-edge technology to acquire high-quality traffic, generate leads, and increase sales for my clients.
