WordPress 7.0 Beta 1 is ready for download and testing! This beta release is intended for testing and development only. Please do not install, run, or test this version of WordPress on production or mission-critical websites. Instead, use a test environment or local site to explore the new features.
How to Test WordPress 7.0 Beta 1
You can test WordPress 7.0 Beta 1 in any of the following ways:
| Plugin | Install and activate the WordPress Beta Tester plugin on a WordPress install. (Select the “Bleeding edge” channel and “Beta/RC Only” stream.) |
| Direct Download | Download the Beta 1 version (zip) and install it on a WordPress website. |
| Command Line | Use this WP-CLI command: wp core update --version=7.0-beta1 |
| WordPress Playground | Use a 7.0 Beta 1 WordPress Playground instance to test the software directly in your browser. No setup required – just click and go! |
The scheduled final release date for WordPress 7.0 is April 9, 2026. The full release schedule can be found here. Your help testing Beta and RC versions is vital to making this release as stable and powerful as possible. Thank you to everyone who contributes by testing!
How important is your testing?
Testing for issues is a critical part of developing any software, and it’s a meaningful way for anyone to contribute – whether or not you have experience. Details on what to test in WordPress 7.0 are available here.
If you encounter an issue, please share it in the Alpha/Beta area of the support forums. If you are comfortable submitting a reproducible bug report, you can do so via WordPress Trac. You can also check your issue against this list of known bugs.
Curious about testing releases in general and how to get started? Follow along with the testing initiatives in Make Core and join the #core-test channel on Making WordPress Slack. WordPress 7.0 will include new features that were previously only available in the Gutenberg plugin. Learn more about Gutenberg updates since WordPress 6.9 in the What’s New in Gutenberg posts for versions 22.0, 22.1, 22.2, 22.3, 22.4, 22.5 & 22.6.
What’s new in WordPress 7.0?
WordPress 7.0 boasts numerous upgrades in the editing and admin experience, delivering enhanced real time collaboration, refined customizability, new dashboard styles, and an expanded developer toolbox for people who create, design, and build with WordPress every day.
Working as a team just got easier with the ability for multiple users to edit together in real time, while visual revisions allow a visual comparison between page versions, adding agility to the creation and review process. Working with patterns has been simplified, making layout updates and content changes more intuitive, while view transitions smoothly move you from screen to screen as you click.
New and improved blocks and design features in 7.0 make sites more customizable, with video embed backgrounds in the Cover block, a responsive-enabled Grid block, and new Icons, Breadcrumbs and Heading blocks. An updated Navigation block makes menu changes easier and more reliable in fewer steps. Responsive, mobile-friendly controls in 7.0 allow you to hide or reveal blocks based on screen size, while client-side media handling speeds up media processing. The Font Library screen for managing installed fonts is now enabled for all themes, so site editors are always able to browse, install, and organize fonts.
For developers, it’s now easier to build modern experiences while staying aligned with Core principles. The new WP AI Client in WordPress 7.0 brings a layer into Core that allows leveraging of AI models from any provider within the WordPress framework. This means plugins and themes can tap into any AI model to expound on its endless options. 7.0 offers even more versatility with the Client Side Abilities API that introduces a standardized way to register and run “abilities” in the browser, supporting richer, more consistent workflows. Additionally, 7.0 introduces PHP-only block registration with auto-generated inspector controls, adding a new dimension to block creation, while Block Bindings updates for pattern overrides expands support to custom dynamic blocks, giving block creators more options.
Needless to say, this release offers a wide range of flexibility to creators, teams and developers, while bringing a visual refresh to the admin experience you know and love with a fresh default style.
Work together in real time
Building on the momentum started in WordPress 6.9, the ability for teams to create and edit together is more refined and robust in 7.0. With this version of WordPress multiple users can edit and collaborate on the same post or page in real time, with data syncing and stabilized notes for smoother teamwork and a more streamlined editing and review process.
- Real Time Collaboration: Teams can now edit posts and pages together live from multiple locations, with offline editing and data syncing enabled, and a new default HTTP polling sync provider with options for plugins or hosts to include websocket support. With this collaborative content creation workflow, teams can brainstorm more effectively and boost productivity. For the beta period, real-time collaboration is opt-in in order to get broader feedback and testing.
- Notes: 7.0 introduces real time syncing of notes that helps facilitate collaboration, a keyboard shortcut for new notes, and a series of quality-focused fixes that bring more stability to the Notes feature.
A Refined Admin Experience
WordPress 7.0 gives the wp-admin experience a boost with a fresh default color scheme, and a cleaner, more modern looking dashboard, while keeping the interface familiar. The upgraded dashboard enhances the editing experience with new visual revision comparisons, and smooth transitioning between screens.
- Visual Revisions: Working with revisions is even better in 7.0 with the added ability to make visual comparisons to revision versions within the editor.
- View transitions: Cross-document view transitions in the dashboard offer visual continuity with seamless movement from screen to screen.
Customizing content with ease
Creators have more flexibility in 7.0 with new tools for content and design, enhanced editing controls, and attention to mobile friendliness.
- Responsive Editing Mode: Block visibility is now more responsive and mobile-friendly, with the ability for blocks to be displayed or hidden based on screen size.
- Pattern Editing and contentOnly interactivity: WordPress 7.0 introduces pattern-level editing modes, a tree view for buttons and list blocks, and the ability to opt out of the default content only mode. The new Spotlight mode helps you isolate content in patterns and notes, while the Isolated Editor mode can be used for editing symbols and reusable pieces like synced patterns, template parts, or navigation.
- Block supports and design tools: 7.0 includes text line indent support, text column support, aspect ratios for wide and full images, dimension width and height support, and dimension presets, tools and controls.
New blocks and design options at your fingertips
7.0 delivers a series of new and improved blocks and block features, a streamlined navigation workflow, and more versatile design options like video embeds as section backgrounds.
- Navigation Block: Navigation workflow is now more intuitive and clear, with improved editing and presentation. 7.0 introduces customizable navigation overlays as template parts, including mobile version overlays that can be hidden or revealed based on custom breakpoint settings.
- Heading Block: Heading levels are now available as block variations, giving more control over page hierarchy and design.
- New blocks: 7.0 makes building pages more diverse with new Breadcrumbs and Icons blocks.
- Cover block embedded videos: Video embeds can now be used as a background in the cover block, opening up opportunities for sleeker and more creative designs.
- The Grid block is now responsive-enabled allowing grid-based layouts to adapt more smoothly across screen sizes.
- The Gallery block now has lightbox support that lets the user click through and view each gallery image.
Developer’s toolbox
Working with WordPress on the backend is now more robust for developers, with new and enhanced API features that support flexibility and lay a foundation for future advancements. The Client Side Abilities API provides a client-side registry for WordPress capabilities that allows you to tap into new and innovative website options. WordPress 7.0 offers even more by introducing the Web Client AI API to Core, enabling access to generative AI models in one central interface.
- Web Client AI API: The new AI client and API acts as a command center for accessing and communicating with generative AI models, with providers remaining external to WordPress Core, and Abilities API integration.
- Abilities and Workflows API: With the new client side abilities package users have access to new and hybrid abilities, filter and search functionality for abilities, and an improved command palette and UI.
- Blocks and patterns created on the server: WordPress 7.0 boasts the ability for PHP-only blocks and patterns to be generated server-side and auto-registered with the Block API.
- DataForm: Introducing a new details layout, new controls (combobox, adaptiveSelect), and updated trigger for panel layout (dedicated edit button). Additionally, the initial iteration for validation is complete: all controls have support, and all layouts display error messages.
- DataViews: DataViews has a new activity layout, and a foundation has been laid to be able to register 3rd party types in future releases.
- CodeMirror update: CodeMirror has been updated to version 5.65.40, aiding more flexible extensibility and library options.
Media processing in the browser
WordPress 7.0 introduces Client-side media processing, leveraging the browser’s capabilities to handle tasks, like image resizing and compression, for smoother image processing. This enables the use of more advanced image formats and compression techniques, and reduces demand on the web server; providing a more efficient media handling process for both new and existing content, and supporting smoother media workflows.
With so many options and enhancements in WordPress 7.0 Beta 1, this is still only the beginning. You can expect future releases to be even better.
Just for you: a Beta 1 haiku:
As sun kisses moon,
Beta 1 ignites in bloom…
Seven-oh lands soon.
Props to @ellatrix, @jeffpaul, @annezazu, @chaion07, @zunaid321, @audrasjb, @mukesh27, @ankit-k-gupta, @oandregal, @westonruter, @karmatosed, @bph for reviewing and collaborating on this post!
Share this:
