When you first install WordPress, it sets up a default post category of “Uncategorized”, but if this is used for all your posts, it is not helpful either to your readers or for your website content organization. You want a default category that helps your readers understand what your blog or website really features, so you can choose just a few words that broadly describe your posts, and set it as the default.

Today’s tutorial shows you how to remove the “Uncategorized” post category forever, and it will only take you a few minutes.
Two Methods to Edit the Default WordPress Category
- Edit the name and slug of Uncategorized in the Post > Categories page.
- Change the Default Post Category in Settings > Writing page.
And you may actually want to use a combination of both methods. Method 1 is the only step you need if you have a new blog or website, but you may also want to use it to change the category on posts you have already written. If you already have a lot of post categories, and you want all your old posts to update to use a category that you already have, start with Method 2.
Method 1 – Change the Name and Slug
If you edit the Name and Slug, all the posts that were Uncategorized will automatically be updated.
- In your WordPress Dashboard Menu, click on Posts > Categories.
- Find Uncategorized.
- Hover, and click on Quick Edit.
- Now you can change the Name Field to be anything that you want your readers to see, for instance “Social Media Marketing.” (Do not add the quotes.)
- Next change the Slug Field to relate to the Name Field, all lower case with dashes between words, for instance “social-media-marketing”. (Do not add the quotes.) Be sure to check your spelling here.
- Click the blue “Update Category” button.
- Now check your blog. The Hello World post is now – “Filed under: Social Media Marketing”, if you use Genesis themes or “This entry was posted in Social Media Marketing”, if you use the Twenty Twelve theme.
- And each time you write a new blog post, unless you check another category while writing the post, this will be your post category.
Method 2 – Change the Default Category in Your Settings
If you already have a lot of post categories, and you want to choose one of them to be your new default category, you will want to use this method.
- In your WordPress Dashboard Menu, click on Settings > Writing.
- Find the Default Post Category drop down.
- Select the Category that best describes the posts for your blog or website.
- Click the blue “Save Changes” button at the bottom of the page.
- Now every time you write a new post, the category you chose will automatically be your post category.
- Now you can do three things with “Uncategorized”.
- Delete Uncategorized under Posts > Categories (See Method 1).
Just hover over and you will see a Delete link. Click it and all your old Uncategorized posts will change to the new Default that you just set. - Change the Name and Slug of Uncategorized, as in Method 1, and all your old posts will become that category.
- You can just leave it, and all your old posts will still be Uncategorized.
You can quickly banish the Uncategorized post category from your WordPress website forever. What will you change yours to be?
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