I created this video to explain how to add categories and tags in WordPress, and more importantly, how to use them in a way that boosts your SEO and keeps your content organized.

This is one of those features that’s easy to overlook, but it makes a big difference once your blog grows beyond a handful of posts. If you’ve ever landed on a site with great structure — where it’s easy to find related content — that’s usually because the creator put real thought into their categories and tags.

Step 1: Understand the difference

Categories are broad groupings — like chapters in a book. You should only have a few of these, and every post should belong to one (or occasionally two at most).

Tags are more specific — like keywords or index entries. You can have as many of these as you like, and they’re great for connecting posts that don’t fit into the same category but share a topic.

Example:

  • Category: Photography
  • Tags: Portrait, Natural Light, Sony A7III, Lightroom

Step 2: Add categories

You can add categories in two places:

  • While editing a post (right-hand sidebar)
  • Or globally via Posts > Categories

From there, you can:

  • Create new categories
  • Set a “parent” to create a hierarchy (e.g. Tutorials > WordPress)
  • Add descriptions (useful for SEO plugins)

I show how I structure categories on one of my niche content sites, grouping by content type, not just topic (e.g. Tips, Reviews, Comparisons).

Step 3: Add tags

Tags can be added directly in the post editor — just type them in and hit Enter. WordPress will remember previously used tags, so you can stay consistent.

Best practice is to:

  • Avoid over-tagging (3–5 per post is plenty)
  • Reuse tags across multiple posts to build interlinked topic hubs
  • Avoid making tags that are too specific (e.g. “best Sony 85mm f/1.8 lens review 2024”)

Step 4: Use SEO-friendly slugs

When creating categories or tags, WordPress automatically assigns a slug (URL-friendly version). You can edit this — I recommend keeping it short and relevant (e.g. photography instead of my-photography-tips-for-beginners).

In the video, I also show how RankMath and Yoast treat category pages, and why it’s worth optimizing them like landing pages — not just leaving them blank.

Are you using categories and tags strategically, or just letting WordPress assign them by default?