How to Reorder Pages in WordPress: 5 Methods Tested on 7.1

You can reorder pages in WordPress by giving each page an Order number, dragging items in a menu, or using a drag-and-drop plugin. Most sites need only one of these, and the right one depends on how your menu is built.

We tested every method in October 2026 on a WordPress 7.1.3 test site. It ran the Twenty Twenty-Five block theme, the Twenty Twenty-One classic theme and Simple Page Ordering 2.8.1.

This guide explains the one rule behind page order and walks through five methods in order of effort. It ends with fixes for a page order that refuses to change and six short answers. If you are still building your site, our guide to creating a WordPress site from scratch covers the full setup first.

How WordPress Decides the Page Order

The WordPress page order comes from one number. Every page carries an Order number that WordPress stores as menu_order, and new pages start at 0. Page lists show the lowest number first, and pages that share a number sort alphabetically by title.

The Order number sorts lists of pages, such as the Pages screen and the Page List block. The WordPress developer reference calls this sort option Order by Page Order, and pages use it through the Order field. It does not touch a menu you built by hand, which is one reason a change can seem to do nothing.

A fresh site lists every page in alphabetical order until you change a number.

On our test site every page had Order 0. That made the Pages screen sort them from A to Z and put Home fourth. Order also works inside each parent. A subpage numbered 10 under Services appeared before a subpage numbered 20.

Method 1: Reorder Pages in WordPress With the Order Number

You can reorder pages in WordPress with the built-in Order number and no plugin is needed. Set it in Quick Edit on the Pages screen or in the editor. Lower numbers come first. Home might be 10 and About 20.

Quick Edit is the faster route to change page order in WordPress when you have several pages to number. Follow these steps:

1. Open the Pages screen: Go to Pages > All Pages.
2. Open Quick Edit: Hover over a page title and click Quick Edit.
3. Type an Order number: The Order box sits under the Parent menu. Type 10 for the page that should come first.
   
4. Save the change: Click Update and repeat with 20, 30 and so on for the other pages.
5. Check the list: The Pages screen and the Page List block now follow your numbers.
   

Number pages in tens so a new page can slot in later. A page numbered 25 lands between 20 and 30, and you never renumber the rest.

The block editor sets the same number, but WordPress 7.1.3 moved the control. Older guides, including earlier versions of this one, point to a Page Attributes panel.

On 7.1.3 the Page tab has no such panel, and Order lives in the page actions menu instead. Older WordPress versions can differ.

Open the page in the editor and follow these steps:

1. Open the Page tab: Click Settings in the top bar of the editor and stay on the Page tab.
2. Open the actions menu: Click the three dots next to the page name and choose Order.
   
3. Save the number: Type a number and click Save. WordPress shows “Order updated” and stores the number straight away.
   

Method 2: Rearrange Pages in WordPress With a Classic Menu

Classic themes such as Twenty Twenty-One build their menu in Appearance > Menus. You rearrange pages in WordPress menus there by dragging items and saving the menu. The WordPress menu order is independent of the Order number on each page.

The drag-and-drop flow takes three steps:

1. Open Menus: Go to Appearance > Menus and choose the menu you want to change.
2. Drag an item: Grab a page under Menu structure and drop it where it should sit. WordPress prints a short reminder above the list to drag the items into the order you prefer.
   
3. Save the menu: Click Save Menu.

On our test site Contact had Order 60, yet it moved to the front of the menu after we dragged it and saved. The menu ignored the page’s Order number completely.

Block themes such as Twenty Twenty-Five do not list Menus under Appearance. On our test site that submenu held Themes, Editor and Fonts only. Block theme owners use the next method.

Method 3: Reorder Pages in a Block Theme Navigation

Block themes keep the menu in a Navigation block that starts as a Page List. That list follows the Order number from Method 1. Once you click Edit and turn it into individual links, you reorder them by dragging in List View.

If you keep the Page List, Method 1 already changed your header. On our test site the header menu listed Home, About, Services, Pricing, Blog and Contact after we numbered the pages 10 to 60.

Edit the links when you want a menu order that differs from the Order numbers.

According to the Page List block documentation, a new Navigation block starts with a Page List. Choosing Edit converts it into individual Page Link blocks. The Page List keeps adding new pages by itself, while edited links do not.

Follow these steps to edit the links:

1. Open the Navigation editor: Go to Appearance > Editor, choose Navigation and open your menu.
2. Select the Page List: Open List View, expand Navigation and click Page List.
3. Click Edit: A warning says that new pages will no longer be added automatically. Confirm with Edit.
   
4. Drag items in List View: Drag a page up or down the list and click Save.
   

After the conversion, a page’s Order number no longer moves it. We gave Blog Order 1 and the front-end menu stayed exactly as we had dragged it.

Method 4: Drag and Drop With Simple Page Ordering

Simple Page Ordering adds drag and drop to the Pages screen. After you activate it, you drag a row to a new spot and the plugin saves the new Order numbers for you. It is free and lives in the WordPress.org directory.

The plugin listing shows more than 100,000 active installations and a tested-up-to version of 7.1.3 as of October 2026. It also says only users who can edit others’ pages, meaning editors and administrators, can reorder content. Follow these steps:

1. Install the plugin: Go to Plugins > Add Plugin and search for Simple Page Ordering. Install and activate it.
2. Open the Pages screen: Go to Pages > All Pages.
3. Drag a row: Hold a row, move it to its new position and release the mouse button.
   

On our test site, dragging Pricing between Home and About rewrote the numbers. Home became 1 and Pricing 2, while About stayed at 20. The plugin writes the same Order numbers that Method 1 uses.

The plugin’s own FAQ says it only changes the stored order and nothing on the front end. A menu you built by hand stays as it is. Pair the plugin with Method 2 or Method 3 when you need both.

Method 5: Set the Order With WP-CLI or Code

Developers can set the Order number with WP-CLI or the wp_update_post function, and display pages in that order with a WP_Query call. Both routes use the same menu_order value that Methods 1 to 4 write. This suits bulk changes and custom templates.

This WP-CLI command sets the Order for one page, and you can repeat it for each page ID:

wp post update 35 --menu_order=10

A custom template that builds its own page list can sort by title or date instead of Order. The WP_Query reference lists menu_order for the orderby parameter, and adding title as a fallback keeps equal numbers stable. This code returned Home, About, Services, Pricing, Blog and Contact on our test site:

$pages = new WP_Query( array(
	'post_type'      => 'page',
	'post_parent'    => 0,
	'orderby'        => 'menu_order title',
	'order'          => 'ASC',
	'posts_per_page' => 20,
	'no_found_rows'  => true,
) );

if ( $pages->have_posts() ) {
	echo '<ul>';
	while ( $pages->have_posts() ) {
		$pages->the_post();
		printf(
			'<li><a href="%s">%s</a></li>',
			esc_url( get_permalink() ),
			esc_html( get_the_title() )
		);
	}
	echo '</ul>';
	wp_reset_postdata();
}

The older wp_list_pages function also listed our pages by Order without extra arguments. Its reference page names a different default sort. Set the sort yourself:

wp_list_pages( array(
	'title_li'    => '',
	'sort_column' => 'menu_order, post_title',
) );

Add this code to a child theme so a theme update does not erase it. If you would rather not edit templates, our WordPress development services team can set up the ordering for you.

How to Reorder Subpages in WordPress

Subpages follow the same Order rule as top-level pages, but only among pages that share a parent. Give each subpage its own number and WordPress lists them in that order under the parent. Their numbers never compete with top-level pages.

Quick Edit handles both the parent and the number. Follow these steps:

1. Open Quick Edit on the subpage: Hover over the subpage on the Pages screen and click Quick Edit.
2. Check the parent and the number: Confirm the Parent menu shows the right page and type an Order number. Web Design gets 10 and Branding gets 20 in our example.
   
3. Save and compare: Click Update on each subpage. The Pages screen lists the subpages under their parent in Order sequence.
   

On our test site Web Design listed before Branding, even though B comes before W in the alphabet. The Page List block in the header showed the same sequence.

Why Your Page Order Is Not Changing

A page order that refuses to change usually means the list you are looking at ignores the Order number. Menus built by hand, edited Navigation links and custom queries all keep their own order. Check which list you edited before you renumber anything.

These are the causes we reproduced or confirmed in the documentation:

• Hand-built classic menu: Menu order comes from Appearance > Menus. Contact stayed first in our menu even though its Order was 60.
• Edited Navigation links: After you click Edit on a Page List, the links ignore Order numbers.
• Subpages: Order sorts pages that share a parent. A subpage stays under its parent.
• Custom template queries: The WP_Query reference says orderby defaults to date. A query must ask for menu_order.
• Equal numbers: Pages that share a number fall back to alphabetical order. A block of zeros looks like an A to Z list.

A page you would rather keep out of the menu is a different job. Our guide to hiding a page in WordPress covers it.

Which Method Fits Your Site

Pick the method that matches how your menu is built. Block themes with a Page List follow the Order number, classic themes follow their menu, and edited Navigation links follow List View. A plugin helps most when you have many pages to move.

Your setup	Method	What you edit
Block theme with a Page List menu	Method 1	Order number
Classic theme menu	Method 2	Appearance > Menus
Block theme with edited links	Method 3	List View
Many pages to move	Method 4	Drag and drop
Custom template or bulk change	Method 5	menu_order

Conclusion

You can reorder pages in WordPress in a few minutes once you know which list you are editing. Use the Order number for page lists, the menu editor for classic menus and List View for block theme links.

Number pages in tens and check the front end after each change. If you are adding pages as you go, read how to add pages in WordPress first.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)