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Editing a page built from a theme template

Most SitePack pages are built in the visual editor, where you drag in text blocks, images and other elements and arrange them freely (see Content Management). Some sites work a little differently: your theme can provide ready-made templates, and a page built on one of those is edited by filling in fields rather than by placing blocks.

This is common on sites that use a custom theme. The theme's designer decides the layout of a template page (a landing page, a product-style page, a homepage, and so on) and exposes the parts you are meant to change as a short list of fields. You fill those in; the theme takes care of how everything looks.

Which editor will I see?

If your page opens into a panel of labelled fields with a Template fields heading, you are editing a template page, and this guide is for you. If it opens into the drag-and-drop builder, you are on a normal page, and Content Management is the guide you want. Standard (non-custom) themes always use the visual editor.

How a page becomes a template page​

Whether a page uses a template is a single choice in its editor:

  • At the top of the page editor there is a Template selector.
  • Choosing Default editor keeps the normal visual builder, with blocks you arrange yourself.
  • Choosing one of the templates your theme provides switches the page to that template. The Template fields panel then appears below, ready to fill in.

The list of templates comes entirely from your theme. If you do not see a Template selector, your theme does not offer templates and every page uses the visual editor.

Alongside the template you set the usual page details: the title, the parent page and slug (its web address), and the status (published, draft, or staging).

Filling in the fields​

The Template fields panel shows one labelled field per thing the theme lets you change. Each field has a type, so you always edit it in the way that fits:

  • Text — a single line, such as a heading or a button label.
  • Text area — a longer piece of text over several lines.
  • List — a set of short text items you add to and remove from, for example a row of bullet points.
  • Image — opens your media library to pick or upload a picture. It uses the same picker, formats and limits as everywhere else, so see Adding images to a page for the allowed types and the 10 MB limit.
  • File — a document or link, such as a downloadable PDF.
  • Colour — a colour picker (with the hex code next to it) for an accent or background the theme lets you set.
  • Font — a choice from the fonts available on your site.
  • Options — a drop-down of preset choices the theme defined for that field.

Your changes are saved with the page. Because the layout itself lives in the theme, you cannot move or restyle the blocks around these fields from here: to change the layout, the theme has to change, which is done by whoever builds your theme.

Publishing, drafts and staging​

A template page is published the same way as any other page. Its status can be:

  • Published — live and visible to visitors.
  • Draft — saved but not shown on your site yet.
  • Staging — finished but held back, typically while a theme update is being reviewed. See Publishing staging pages for how staging pages go live.

A template that is itself still being prepared in a new, not yet released version of your theme is marked (staging) in the selector. A page on such a template stays on staging until that theme version is released, because your live site does not have its layout yet.

Translating a template page​

Template pages translate cleanly, because there is less to translate: only the words you typed into the fields, plus the page details.

  • Text, text area and list fields carry the words visitors read, so they appear in the translation editor for you to translate per language.
  • Colour, image, font and options are part of the design and are shared across every language, so you set them once. (A theme can mark an individual field as translatable if it needs to differ per language, but that is the exception.)
  • The page's slug, title and meta details are translated just like any other page.

Everything else about translating (turning a language on, the editor, keeping translations up to date, auto-translate) works exactly as described in the Translations guide.

Frequently asked questions​

Why does my page have fields instead of the visual editor?​

Because the page uses a template from your theme. The theme sets the layout and lets you change specific parts through fields. Switch the Template selector to Default editor if you want the normal drag-and-drop builder for that page instead.

Can I add or move blocks on a template page?​

No. The layout is fixed by the theme, and you edit only the fields it exposes. Changing the layout means changing the theme itself, which is done by whoever builds your theme. For a fully free layout, use a page on the Default editor.

Where do the available templates come from?​

From your site's theme. Custom themes can provide any number of templates; standard themes provide none and always use the visual editor. If you need a new template, that is a change to the theme.

How do I add an image to a template field?​

Use the Image field's picker, which opens your media library. The allowed formats and size limit are the same everywhere on your site, listed under Adding images to a page.