What is: Screen Options?

If you log into your WordPress administration screen, you’ll see a black toolbar running across the top. On the righthand side of your screen immediately underneath the toolbar, you’ll see a white button entitled “Screen Options.” Clicking on this button will open up a small square containing various checkboxes that allow you to modify what you see on your administration screen. These are the screen options.

Exactly which screen options you can choose from depends on the version of WordPress that you’re running and your user role, which defines what you have the ability to change in WordPress.

After clicking on “Screen Options,” you may see options like “Likes and Shares,” “Tags”, “Featured Image,” and “Discussion” in a section entitled “Boxes.” You may also see a Layout section that lets you choose between one or two columns. Additionally, there may be a section called “Additional settings” that allows you to tweak other, miscellaneous screen settings.

Note: You cannot change, delete, or add the options that appear under “Screen Options.” All you can do is adjust the options that you’re given.

Once you’ve made any modifications to your Screen Options, click on the “Screen Options” box again to collapse it. This will let you immediately see the results of the Screen Options settings that you’ve chosen. If you want to make further modifications, simply click on the “Screen Options” box again.