A few months ago, my friend asked me to look at her WordPress website. Her online store looked great, but she was frustrated because visitors weren’t buying anything. After spending just 30 minutes on her site, I could see exactly why—the user experience was all over the place.

I’ve seen this same problem a lot of times. Small business owners focus so much on making their sites look pretty that they forget about making them easy to use.

The result? High bounce rates, low conversions, and missed opportunities.

That’s why I put together this guide with 13 practical tips to improve your WordPress user experience. These simple changes can dramatically boost your conversions and keep visitors coming back for more.

Why User Experience Matters for Your WordPress Site

User experience (UX) is about how easy and enjoyable it is for visitors to use your WordPress website. This applies whether they’re reading your blog, exploring your services, or making a purchase.

Think about what happens when customers walk into a well-organized store. 🛒

If everything’s easy to find and the checkout is quick, people are more likely to stay longer, browse, and buy.

The same applies to other websites: a clear navigation menu, fast load times, and a clean design keep visitors engaged.

But if your site is confusing, slow to load, or crowded with too many elements, many users will get frustrated and leave. And most won’t come back. In fact, even a one-second delay in page speed can cause conversions to drop by 7%.

That’s why good UX isn’t optional — it’s essential. The right design choices make your site easier to use and help guide visitors toward taking action, whether that’s subscribing to your email newsletter, signing up, or making a purchase.

And the best part? Many of these improvements are easy to set up, even if you’re not a developer. I’ll walk you through the most effective tips in the sections below.

Here’s a quick overview of all the tips I’ll cover in this guide:

Ready? Let’s get started.

Tip #1: Understand Your Users

Before you can improve your WordPress site’s user experience, you need to know who you’re designing for. A great way to start is by creating simple user personas, which are fictional profiles that represent your typical visitors.

For example, if you’re running a WordPress blog targeting busy parents, one of your personas could be “Sarah.” She’s a working mom looking for time-saving tips, easy-to-follow guides, and parenting hacks to manage her busy life.

Having user personas in mind helps you tailor your website’s features and content to better serve your audience. To create one, I recommend trying the free HubSpot Make My Persona tool.

Once you understand who your users are, it becomes easier to make design and content choices that actually help them.

It’s even more important to get direct feedback from your visitors if your site is already up and running. In my experience, even a simple feedback survey can uncover valuable insights about your site’s navigation, design, or content.

You can gather real feedback using tools like UserFeedback. For example, you might create a feedback form that displays across your website so that users can share what’s working (or what isn’t).

You might ask user experience feedback questions like, “Was this page helpful?” or “What information were you hoping to find?” This way, you collect direct, actionable feedback.

You can also easily create surveys and polls to gather visitor feedback with a tool like WPForms. For instance, you could run a quick poll asking which new features your users would like to see next or set up a short survey with a rating system to learn more about their overall experience.

The more you learn about your audience, the better your UX decisions will be — and the more likely your visitors will be to stick around, explore, and take action.

For more details, we have a full guide on how to choose a target audience.

Tip #2: Do a UX Audit

A UX audit is basically a deep dive into your website from a visitor’s point of view. It helps you spot anything that might be confusing, so you can fix it as soon as possible.

One of the first things you’ll want to do is test your site for usability issues. This means checking how easily someone can navigate your site, find what they need, or complete an action.

Even minor issues, like a misplaced or hidden button, can negatively impact the user experience.

I always recommend walking through important steps on your site, like submitting a contact form or making a purchase, just like a first-time visitor would.

Take note of any steps that feel confusing, slow, or frustrating — these are your pain points and bottlenecks to address.

It’s also a good idea to track the time it takes to go from finding a feature to completing the desired action. This way, you know exactly how much time a user typically takes to convert or complete a specific action.

For a full walkthrough, be sure to check out our expert tips for how to do a UX audit in WordPress.

Tip #3: Use Analytics to Guide UX Improvements

User experience isn’t just about design — it’s also about data. Tracking how users actually interact with your WordPress site helps you make smart decisions that improve usability and drive results.

While Google Analytics (GA) is the gold standard for tracking data, it can be tricky for beginners to set up and navigate. That’s why I always recommend using MonsterInsights.

It’s a user-friendly Google Analytics plugin for WordPress that gives you the insights you need without having to navigate complex reports.

With MonsterInsights, you can track user behavior, set up conversion goals, and improve your site’s performance, all inside your WordPress dashboard. At WPBeginner, our team uses MonsterInsights every day to see this data.

For more insights into its features, see our full MonsterInsights review.

MonsterInsights also lets you keep an eye on key metrics like:

• Bounce rate: If visitors leave your site right away, it could signal poor content, confusing navigation, or an unprofessional design. Addressing these issues can help keep visitors engaged longer.
• Time on page: If visitors aren’t sticking around, your content may not be engaging or visually appealing enough. Use this metric to identify pages that need improvement in writing, visuals, or layout.
• Behavior flow: This shows where visitors go next and where they drop off. If users leave key pages early, it may indicate issues with your site’s structure, navigation, or content. Analyzing this helps improve user journeys by addressing bottlenecks.

These insights are accessible on the MonsterInsights Reports page. They can help you spot what’s working and what needs improvement.

For more information, see our guide on WordPress conversion tracking.

Using heatmaps is another powerful way to visualize behavior. Heatmaps and session recording tools like Microsoft Clarity and UserFeedback show you exactly where people click, scroll, or get stuck.

This is especially helpful for refining navigation paths or identifying parts of your layout that are being ignored.

For more information on this topic, read our guide on how to set up heatmaps in WordPress.

Tip #4: Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

More than half of all website traffic comes from mobile devices. That means if your WordPress blog or site doesn’t look or work right on a phone, you’re likely losing visitors before they even get to your content.

To prevent this from happening, I always recommend using a responsive WordPress theme. These themes will adjust automatically to different screen sizes — whether someone’s on a tablet, phone, or desktop.

Most modern themes include this feature, but it’s always good to double-check.

In my opinion, Sydney is one of the best responsive themes on the market. It’s also flexible and lightweight, and comes with 17+ starter templates.

It makes building a mobile-friendly site easy, thanks to the 8 mobile-ready header styles, drag-and-drop sections, and full design control.

Plus, there’s a free version of Sydney that you can use to get started!

Next, just because your website looks fine on a laptop doesn’t mean it’s easy to tap through on a phone. That’s why I suggest avoiding small text, hard-to-click buttons, and menus that are difficult to open.

The good news is that you can preview the mobile layout of your site from your WordPress content editor.

Some page and theme builders, like SeedProd, even let you customize the mobile version of your site from the editor.

For more information about this, you can explore our expert tips for creating a mobile-friendly WordPress site.

Tip #5: Improve Accessibility for All Users

Did you know that websites are considered “places of public accommodation”? That’s why the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) allows people to file complaints if a website doesn’t meet accessibility standards.

This is a good reason to make sure your site is inclusive for all users, including people with visual, hearing, or motor impairments.

But making your website accessible doesn’t just help people with disabilities. It also improves the user experience for everyone.

One easy accessibility adjustment you can make is adding alt text and titles to your images:

• Alt text is a short description of an image that screen readers read aloud. This can help visually impaired users while giving search engines more context for better SEO.
• Image titles appear when users hover over an image, providing additional context.

When it comes to fonts, ideally, you’ll want to pick options that are easy to read.

At WPBeginner, we use Proxima Nova for its clean look and readability. It’s sleek, contemporary, and subtly elegant, which is ideal for blogs, portfolios, and media companies.

Another good one is Lato, which you can see on the WPForms website. It’s welcoming and approachable with a balanced design, perfect for mobile apps, retail stores, and eCommerce websites.

But simply choosing a good font isn’t enough. You also need to make sure there’s enough contrast between the text and the background color.

And even with the right font and contrast, some users may still struggle with reading the text if it’s too small. One simple way to make your site more accessible is by letting visitors resize the text.

All that said, true ADA compliance goes beyond just these basic steps. It involves adhering to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which provide a comprehensive framework for making web content accessible to people with disabilities.

For more in-depth insights, check out our guide on how to improve accessibility on your WordPress site.

Tip #6: Simplify Your Website Navigation and Search

Confusing navigation is one of the fastest ways to lose visitors. But the good news is that you can avoid this with an intuitive navigation menu. You’ll want it to be clear, simple, and easy to follow.

You can start by creating a logical menu structure. Stick to familiar terms like “Home,” “About,” “Blog,” “Shop,” and “Contact” so users immediately know where to go.

For example, if you’re running a business website where you sell software, your navigation should make it easy for visitors to learn about your products. In this case, key links might include “Features,” “Solutions,” “Pricing,” and “Resources.”

Plus, you may want to group similar content under dropdowns to avoid cluttering the top menu with too many items.

A mega menu can be particularly helpful for larger sites. This basically consists of multiple dropdown menus to help organize large amounts of content, products, or information.

For example, WPForms uses this menu type in their navigation to neatly group features, tutorials, and resources. This makes it easy for visitors to find what they need quickly.

For more information, see our guide on how to add a navigation menu in WordPress.

It’s also a good idea to add breadcrumbs, which are small links that show users where they are on your site (like Home > Blog > Article Name).

Breadcrumbs make it easy for visitors to backtrack and are especially helpful for blogs and online stores with lots of content.

Finally, if you want to provide your visitors with the best possible navigation experience, I suggest optimizing your WordPress search.

The default search function isn’t always the most accurate or helpful. Upgrading it can make a big difference, especially if you have a content-heavy site where users need to quickly find posts, products, or resources.

To do this, I recommend starting by reviewing your site’s search stats. This can show you what visitors are looking for, what they can’t easily find, and whether your current search function is meeting their needs.

From there, you can upgrade your WordPress search to deliver faster, more accurate results. Learn more about it in our guide on how to improve WordPress search.

Tip #7: Use Clean, Minimalist Design

A cluttered website can overwhelm your visitors and make it hard for them to focus. It can be tempting to overdo your design with fancy features, loud colors, and animations, but it’s not always the best option.

On the other hand, clean design helps guide people’s attention to what really matters — whether that’s your content, products, or call-to-action.

That’s why I strongly recommend using clean, minimalist design principles.

For starters, it’s usually best to stick to a consistent color scheme and limit your font choices to two or three. This keeps things looking polished and makes your content easier to read.

For example, on WPBeginner, we use our famous orange as the primary color on our website, and Proxima Nova as our font.

Using plenty of white space also prevents your layout from feeling crowded or cluttered. It not only looks modern but also makes your site feel more organized and professional.

I recommend keeping each page focused by limiting the number of elements, like popups, banners, and widgets, unless they serve a clear purpose.

Too many distractions can make it hard for visitors to choose what to do next, which often leads to confusion or even higher bounce rates.

In contrast, a clean and minimalist design improves the user experience. This can also increase conversions, generate more leads, and boost engagement!

One of the easiest ways to ensure a good balance of color, fonts, and white space is by using a well-designed theme, like Sydney, Neve, or OceanWP.

For tips on picking the right theme, check out our guide on selecting the perfect theme for WordPress.

If you already know you want something minimalist and easy to set up, you can take a look at our list of the best simple WordPress themes for a professional, clutter-free design.

Alternatively, you can use a page builder like SeedProd to create custom layouts that give you more control over design elements.

SeedProd lets you drag and drop elements to build landing pages, sales pages, coming soon pages, and even entire WordPress themes — no coding needed.

It’s perfect for beginners and non-technical users who need a completely custom look.

Did you know? Duplicator’s website was custom-built using SeedProd. To learn more about what the page builder can do, see our extensive SeedProd review.

To get started building your custom pages, see our expert checklist of key design elements for an effective WordPress website.

Tip #8: Present Content in a User-Friendly Way

When you showcase your content in an organized and user-friendly way, you’ll be more likely to get your message across.

To organize your content better, I recommend starting by using clear headings. They are like signposts that guide visitors along your page.

You can also use these headings to create a table of contents, like we do on the WPBeginner blog. That way, readers can quickly jump to the parts of a post or page that interest them most.

Many of our posts also start with a brief overview and then break into actionable steps using bullet points. Here’s why that helps with content organization:

• Big blocks of text can overwhelm readers who skim.
• Bullet points highlight key details quickly, while short paragraphs keep content light and digestible.
• Together, they make your posts and pages more engaging, encouraging visitors to stay and interact longer.

Visuals can make a big difference, too. Adding images, videos, or infographics can help illustrate your points and simplify complex ideas.

In our A/B test tutorial, for example, we included a screenshot of our test results. This visual comparison helped readers quickly see which version won and why it was more effective, making the concept of A/B testing more concrete and actionable. (You’ll learn more about A/B testing in Tip #10!)

Additionally, a quick explainer GIF can help keep visitors engaged and make your content more memorable.

Want to boost interaction? I also recommend including interactive polls, sliders, or fun quizzes using WordPress plugins. These small touches can make your content feel more dynamic and invite visitors to actively participate.

Looking for more details on how you can improve the way you present content? Check out our guide on how to write a great blog post and structure it.

Tip #9: Speed Up Your Website

How quickly your website loads plays a big role in user experience. A delay of just one second can cause people to lose interest and leave your site.

That’s why improving your WordPress website’s performance should be a top priority.

To start, you’ll want to use a caching plugin. Caching stores a ready-to-go copy of your site, so it loads much faster for repeat visitors.

Plugins like WP Rocket or WP Super Cache make this super easy.

I tested WP Rocket to see how it works, and it turned out to be really easy!

During testing, I enabled mobile caching to ensure a smooth experience on all devices. I also activated user caching to support logged-in users on WooCommerce and membership sites.

Then, I adjusted the cache lifespan based on how often the site content was updated, and enabled file minification and lazy loading.

These tweaks alone helped reduce my test site’s page load times by over 40%, and bounce rates also dropped.

For details, please see our guide on how to properly install and set up WP Rocket in WordPress.

Another way to boost your speed is by adding a CDN (Content Delivery Network).

A CDN stores copies of your site’s files on servers around the world, which means users load your site from the server closest to them. This can dramatically cut down load times, especially if you have visitors from different parts of the globe.

If you’re not sure where to start, we have a handy guide on how to set up Cloudflare’s free CDN in WordPress.

It’s also important to compress your images. Large image files are one of the biggest reasons sites slow down.

You can shrink your images without losing quality by using tools like TinyPNG or plugins like EWWW Image Optimizer that automate the process for you.

While you’re at it, consider switching to modern image formats like WebP. These formats offer better compression compared to traditional JPEG or PNG files, so your pages load even faster without sacrificing image quality.

Finally, don’t forget to test your site’s performance regularly. Free tools like GTmetrix or Google PageSpeed Insights can analyze your site and give you specific suggestions to make it even faster.

For more information and tips on improving site speed, refer to our ultimate guide to boosting WordPress performance.

Tip #10: Test Website Changes with A/B Testing

When it comes to improving your site’s user experience, small tweaks can lead to big results — but how do you know what actually works?

That’s where A/B testing comes in.

A/B testing is a method for comparing two versions of a webpage or element (like a button or headline) to see which one works better.

Here’s how it works: You create two variations (A and B), show them to different groups of visitors, and then see which version gets more clicks, conversions, or engagement.

With tools like Thrive Optimize, setting up an A/B test is easy. It will then help you track which version gets more clicks, signups, or sales.

You can test things like:

• Headline variations
• Button color or text
• Page layout or section order
• Different images or testimonials

For example, in Thrive Optimize, I ran a test where I changed the color of the call-to-action (CTA) button on a landing page. After editing the variation, I split traffic between versions and started the A/B test.

This process is intuitive, and instead of relying on gut feeling, you’ll have real data to back up your design and content choices!

For example, you might find that a shorter headline keeps users engaged longer, or that moving your CTA higher on the page increases conversions.

Most A/B testing tools will automatically show the winning version once enough data has been collected, helping you continuously improve your site without guessing.

For details on how to do it, refer to our guide on how to do A/B split testing in WordPress.

Tip #11: Be Selective With Your Content

If your posts or pages include too much unnecessary content, it can make it harder for your audience to understand your message.

That’s why it’s always best to keep your content focused and intentional. Every page should have a clear goal, and every section of content should support that goal.

If you’re building a landing page, for example, the layout and copy should guide visitors toward a single action, like signing up for your newsletter or downloading a free resource.

For tips on building landing pages, please see our complete guide on increasing your landing page conversions.

When it comes to writing blog posts, the same rule applies. Publishing every idea that comes to mind might fill your site with content, but it won’t always serve your readers.

It is better to focus on topics that align with your niche and help your audience solve real problems.

To take it a step further, you can group related posts around a main pillar page using a content cluster strategy. This helps improve navigation and build authority in your niche.

We have a full tutorial on how to build content clusters in WordPress, including how to plan them around your areas of expertise.

It also helps to do regular content audits. This is because, over time, some posts stop performing — either because they’re outdated or because search intent has changed.

This is called content decay. For example, a blog post called ‘Top SEO Tips for 2020’ might no longer rank well in search results because SEO practices have evolved.

So, during your regular content audits, you’ll want to review older pages and decide: should I keep, update, or delete the content?

A little cleanup goes a long way in keeping visitors engaged and helping them find exactly what they need.

Tip #12: Encourage User Interaction 

When people can actively interact with your pages, they will naturally stay on your site longer.

Creating opportunities for user interaction can make all the difference.

A great place to start is your comments section. If it feels outdated, clunky, or inactive, people might not bother leaving a reply.

To give it an update, you can add like/dislike buttons. This way, your visitors can engage with the conversation even if they don’t want to post.

Alternatively, you might want to feature a simple user ranking system. For instance, you can pin top comments to the top of the section or award badges to users who consistently leave helpful remarks.

These small touches motivate readers to participate and foster a stronger community around your content.

To do all this, you can upgrade your comment system using a plugin like Thrive Comments. It helps create a better experience that encourages more interaction and discussion.

For insights about the plugin, see our in-depth Thrive Themes Suite review. Need more tool recommendations? Feel free to check out our expert picks of the best plugins to improve WordPress comments.

Tip #13: Build Community with Live Chat or Chat Rooms

Want to take user interaction to the next level?

Creating space for real-time conversations can turn your website into a more inclusive and supportive place. Providing a platform for real-time interaction helps create community and encourages return visits.

If you’re running an eLearning, support-based, or membership site, adding a live chat feature can make a significant impact. It allows users to ask questions about course material or get help with platform features.

For other types of websites, such as online stores or service-based sites, live chat offers immediate support. Users can easily get help with a product feature, clarifying a service detail, or resolving a technical issue.

Learn more about it in our guide on how to add live chat in WordPress.

Want something more community-focused? You can create private chat rooms or discussion boards using tools like BuddyBoss.

This is especially helpful for membership programs or online courses, where people want to connect with others on the same journey.

Hop over to our guide on how to create chat rooms in WordPress to learn more.

Bonus Tip: Detect Design Issues with Visual Regression Testing 🕵️

Sometimes, even a small theme or plugin update can break your layout without you noticing. That’s where visual regression testing comes in.

Visual regression testing (VRT) helps you make sure that updates to your website don’t accidentally mess up its look or design.

The process is simple – your VRT software takes ‘screenshots’ of a page before and after you make changes to it. It analyzes the code or pixel differences of these pages to catch any visual issues early, before they hurt the user experience.

The VRTs plugin is one of the best tools for automating this process. For step-by-step instructions, you can read our guide on how to do visual regression testing in WordPress.

I hope my tips and tricks help you improve user experience in WordPress. Next, you might want to check out our guide on how to add a forum to your site and our expert picks of key design elements for an effective WordPress website.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Improve User Experience in WordPress (13 Practical Tips) first appeared on WPBeginner.

When I first started working on my WordPress websites, I was mostly guessing what visitors wanted. It wasn’t until I started using heatmaps that I truly understood how people interacted with my site — where they clicked, how far they scrolled, and what actually caught their attention.

If you’re trying to improve your WordPress site but aren’t sure what’s working and what’s not, then heatmaps can give you some answers.

After testing several tools over the years, I’ve narrowed it down to 2 easy ways to set up heatmaps in WordPress: Microsoft Clarity and UserFeedback.

In this guide, I’ll go through each setup process step by step. By the end, you’ll have the tools you need to make data-driven changes to your site. 🔥

Why Do You Need to Set Up WordPress Heatmaps?

A heatmap is a visual tool that shows you exactly how visitors interact with your WordPress website. It uses color coding to highlight the most and least active areas on a page:

• Red, orange, and yellow (“hot” areas) show where visitors click, tap, or spend the most time.
• Blue and green (“cold” areas) show spots that get little or no attention.

By seeing this activity mapped out, you can stop guessing about what’s working and what’s not. In other words, heatmaps help remove the guesswork by giving you clear insights into visitor behavior.

They help you answer important questions, such as:

• Are people clicking your CTA buttons?
• Do they scroll down far enough to see your content?
• Are they clicking on things that don’t do anything?

With this information, you can make smart changes to your site. You’ll know what to fix, what to move, and what to improve.

You can use that insight to get more readers, boost sales, or increase inquiries from potential clients — all by making simple changes based on how people actually use your site.

In the following sections, I’ll share how to set up WordPress heatmaps using 2 of the best tools for adding heatmaps. One is completely free, and the other is a premium option with extra features.

Feel free to use the jump links below to go to your preferred method:

Step 0: Preparing Your WordPress Site for Heatmaps

Before you add heatmaps to your WordPress site, it’s important to make sure your site is properly prepared. Taking a few precautionary steps can help prevent any issues as you get started.

If you’re adding heatmaps to your live site for the first time, it’s a smart move to test everything on a staging site first.

A staging site is essentially a duplicate of your live website, where you can make changes and test new features without affecting your real website. It allows you to try out new tools, like heatmaps, safely, without risking any disruptions to the user experience.

Then, you can simply push the changes live to apply them to your real website.

If you use Bluehost, then you can easily create a staging site, thanks to their quick 1-click solution.

That said, if you don’t have access to staging through your hosting, then you can also use plugins like WP Stagecoach to create staging sites.

For a full walkthrough, you can check out our guide on how to create a staging site for WordPress.

Additionally, always back up your site before making any major changes. Having a backup ensures that, in case something goes wrong during the setup process, you can easily restore your site to its previous state without losing any important data.

Finally, remember that heatmaps work best when used alongside other analytics tools and user feedback.

Think of them as a starting point for uncovering potential issues or opportunities, not the only source of information. Combining insights from heatmaps with broader data gives you a clearer, more accurate picture of how visitors interact with your site.

Method 1: Set Up WordPress Heatmaps Using Microsoft Clarity

Microsoft Clarity is a free, easy-to-use heatmap and session recording tool that integrates seamlessly with WordPress. It’s best for overall site analysis, ideal for beginners, bloggers, and small business owners who want to understand visitor behavior.

That’s why we use it across some of our partner websites to track heatmaps and gain insights into user interactions.

Step 1: Create a Free Microsoft Clarity Account

To set up WordPress heatmaps with Microsoft Clarity, you’ll first need an account.

Go to the Microsoft Clarity website and click ‘Get Started.’

In the popup that appears, you’ll see that you can sign up with a Microsoft, Facebook, or Google account. Just click on the one you prefer.

For this tutorial, I’m going to select ‘Sign in to Google.’

After that, you can follow through the signup process by choosing the appropriate account.

Then, click ‘Continue’ on the confirmation page.

Upon signup, you’ll be asked to confirm your email address.

Don’t forget to check the Clarity Terms of Use and click the checkbox before continuing.

You’ll then be prompted to create a new project for your WordPress site.

You just need to give your project a name, enter your website URL, and choose your industry from the dropdown menu.

With that done, go ahead and click ‘Add new project’ to finish the setup.

With that done, you’re now ready to install the Microsoft Clarity WordPress plugin to set up heatmaps on your website.

Step 2: Install Microsoft Clarity in Your WordPress Site

In this step, you’ll install the Microsoft Clarity plugin and connect it to the account you just created.

From your WordPress dashboard, let’s go to Plugins » Add New Plugin.

Use the search bar to quickly find the Microsoft Clarity plugin.

Just click ‘Install Now’ on the relevant search result, and once again on ‘Activate’ when it appears. 

For step-by-step instructions, see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon plugin activation, the next step is choosing a Clarity project to connect both tools.

You can navigate to Clarity from your WordPress admin area and choose the project you just created from the dropdown menu.

In the next few seconds, you should see a ‘Project integrated successfully’ notification.

For more details, you can see our guide on how to install Microsoft Clarity Analytics in WordPress.

💡 Note: If you are using a WordPress caching plugin, then you need to clear your WordPress cache after connecting Microsoft Clarity to your website. This is important because, otherwise, Microsoft will not be able to verify your site for a few hours.

Step 3: Set Up Heatmaps in Microsoft Clarity

Once you connect Microsoft Clarity, it will automatically start tracking your visitors — no need to paste any code manually or mess with theme files.

Inside your Clarity dashboard, you’ll find useful reports that give you an overview of how people interact with your WordPress blog or site.

Some of the key metrics include:

• Sessions – This shows how many individual visits your site received.
• Pages per session – Tells you how many pages a visitor viewed during one session.
• Scroll depth – Shows how far users scroll down each page.
• Active time – Tracks how long users are actively engaging with your page (not just leaving it open in a background tab).

You’ll also find pre-built widgets like the ‘User Overview,’ which highlights visitor types and devices.

Plus, there are behavioral insights such as rage clicks (when users repeatedly click in frustration) and excessive scrolling (when users scroll too much, possibly looking for something).

To see your heatmaps, go ahead and switch to the ‘Heatmaps’ tab.

Once inside, you’ll see a list of all the page heatmaps that Clarity automatically recorded.

Just click on a page you want to analyze.

Once you open a heatmap, you’ll see three main views: Clicks, Scroll, and Attention.

You can switch to ‘Click’ to see where visitors are clicking the most.

To find out your scroll depth, simply move to the ‘Scroll’ tab.

Here, Clarity will reveal how far users scroll down your page. This helps identify if they miss your key content.

Finally, go ahead and click on the ‘Attention‘ button to see the average time visitors spend on different parts of the page.

Red zones indicate higher attention, while blue areas get less.

That’s all – You’ve successfully set up WordPress heatmaps using Microsoft Clarity!

Method 2: Set Up WordPress Heatmaps Using UserFeedback

UserFeedback by MonsterInsights combines heatmap-style feedback with surveys and advanced targeting. It’s a powerful option for growing websites, online stores, and agencies needing deeper insights and more control over how to collect visitor feedback.

At WPBeginner, we have used UserFeedback to gain insights into what our web design customers want and expect from us. We’ve had a great experience with it, and you can check out our full UserFeedback review to see why we recommend it!

Step 1: Install and Activate UserFeedback

First, you’ll need to set up a UserFeedback account. You can do this by visiting the UserFeedback website and signing up for a plan.

Once you’ve signed up for an account, you’ll be redirected to your UserFeedback account dashboard, where you can find the download link to the UserFeedback zip file and your license key.

Now, it’s time to install the plugin.

From your WordPress dashboard, you need to go to Plugins » Add New.

On the next screen, let’s search for UserFeedback.

You can then install and activate the plugin like you would any other WordPress plugin.

New to installing plugins? Here’s a detailed guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Once activated, you can enter your license key to unlock all the pro features that come with your plan.

To do this, you can navigate to UserFeedback » Settings. Then, simply copy and paste your license key from your UserFeedback dashboard into the ‘License Key’ field.

Go ahead and click the ‘Verify’ button to start the verification process.

In a few seconds, you should see a verification success message.

Step 2: Enable the Heatmaps Addon

Now, let’s go to UserFeedback » Addons to install the Heatmaps addon.

You can just scroll down the page to find the Heatmaps addon and click ‘Install Addon’ in the appropriate box.

Once installed, make sure it’s activated by clicking the ‘Activate’ button.

Step 3: Create a New Heatmap

With the Heatmaps addon activated, you can now create your site’s heatmap.

Let’s go to UserFeedback » Heatmaps in your WordPress dashboard, and click the ‘New Heatmap’ button.

In the popup that appears, expand the dropdown menu to select the specific page you want to track. For example, you can create a heatmap for your homepage, landing page, or blog post.

Go ahead and hit the ‘Create’ button to set up the heatmap.

Step 4: View Your Heatmap Results

After you create a heatmap, UserFeedback will start collecting user data immediately.

Let’s go to UserFeedback » Heatmaps and click on a heatmap to see detailed visual insights.

On the next screen, you’ll be able to view detailed insights about your visitors, including:

• Device Filter – Compare user behavior across desktop, tablet, and mobile.
• Clicks – See exactly where people are clicking on your page.
• Mouse Movements – Track how users move their mouse across the screen.

If you’re promoting your site across multiple channels, then you can also filter the data by UTM campaign, source, or medium. This helps you understand how visitors from different marketing efforts interact with your site.

And that’s all there is to it – You’ve successfully set up WordPress heatmaps using UserFeedback!

Bonus Steps: Maximize Your Heatmap Insights 🔥

Heatmaps are only useful if you know how to act on what they’re telling you. Here’s how to turn the insights from your heatmaps into real improvements for your WordPress site.

Fix Where Visitors Drop Off

You can use scroll maps to see how far down your visitors go on a page. If important content is buried too far down the page, then most people may never see it.

You can try moving key elements like CTAs or offers higher on the page, and break up long pages with smaller sections and clear headings. You can also use date filters to track how these changes affect visitor behavior over time.

This small change can reduce bounce rates and keep your visitors engaged longer.

Spot and Solve User Confusion

Sometimes, visitors try to click on images, icons, or text that aren’t clickable. This shows that they’re confused or expecting something different.

You can review your click maps and mouse movements to spot these areas. If necessary, you can link those images or add buttons nearby to make things easier for users.

You can also set up a quick survey with UserFeedback to ask what users were expecting to find.

Identify and Fix Navigation Issues

If you see visitors frequently jumping between pages without clear direction, it’s a sign that your navigation may be confusing.

Simplify your navigation by making sure information is easy to find and adjusting anything that could cause confusion. You can also walk through important steps on your site like a first-time visitor to ensure everything functions properly.

You may also want to see our guide on how to create a custom navigation menu in WordPress.

Make Your CTA Buttons Impossible to Miss

If your CTAs (call-to-action buttons) aren’t getting enough clicks, then I recommend adjusting their color, text, or placement to make them stand out more.

Go ahead and use your mouse movement insights to spot hesitation before clicking and check device filters to ensure your CTAs are visible and easy to click on all devices, especially mobile.

I hope this article has helped you set up WordPress heatmaps. Next, you might want to explore our expert-curated landing page tips to skyrocket WordPress conversions and our ultimate guide on geolocation targeting.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Setup WordPress Heatmaps (2 Easy Ways) first appeared on WPBeginner.

Last week, a friend who manages multiple WordPress sites called me in a panic. A routine plugin update had broken his client’s navigation menu, but he didn’t notice until customers started complaining.

This is a common problem I’ve seen countless times, and it’s exactly why visual regression testing is so important for WordPress website owners.

Visual regression testing might sound complicated. However, it’s actually a simple solution that can save you hours of manual checking and prevent embarrassing layout issues.

Typically, it works by automatically comparing before-and-after screenshots of your pages. This helps catch even the smallest visual changes that might break your site’s appearance. 🔍

In this guide, I’ll show you how to do visual regression testing on your WordPress site. After testing numerous tools and methods, I’ve found the most reliable solution that won’t require any coding knowledge or technical expertise.

What Is Visual Regression Testing, and Why Is It Important? 🤔

Every time you update your site — whether it’s a WordPress core update, a new plugin, a theme change, or just a minor code tweak — there’s a chance that something on the front end might shift out of place.

For example, a button could disappear, your layout might break, or a product image could stop loading properly.

The problem? These visual bugs often go unnoticed until a visitor points them out through a contact form or design feedback survey.

By then, the damage to your site’s user experience might already be done.

That’s where visual regression testing comes in.

The process is simple: take snapshots of your pages before and after an update, then compare them to spot anything that’s changed.

And if you’re testing on a staging site (which we recommend), you can safely make updates and run comparisons to catch visual issues before anything goes live.

The good news? You don’t have to do it manually.

With visual regression testing tools like VRTs, Percy, or BackstopJS, you can automate screenshot comparisons and check how your site looks across different screen sizes — helping you catch layout issues on desktop, tablet, and mobile.

Why is this important for WordPress users?

If you’re managing a WordPress website, visual regression testing is a time-saving safety net. Instead of clicking through every page after an update, this tool gives you a visual report of what changed — and whether it’s something you need to fix.

It’s especially helpful in many scenarios, such as agencies running updates across multiple WordPress sites, freelancers managing client websites, or online store owners who want to make sure the product and checkout pages stay intact.

In short, visual regression testing helps you avoid frustrating surprises, save time, and keep your WordPress site running smoothly.

With that said, I’ll share how to easily do visual regression testing in WordPress. Here’s a quick overview of all the steps I’ll cover in this guide:

Step 1: Install and Activate the Visual Regression Testing Plugin

In this tutorial, I’ll use the VRTs plugin because it’s beginner-friendly and super easy to use for visual regression testing. Whether that is a shifted layout, a missing button, or a broken element after an update, VRTs helps you spot it early.

Here’s how it works: The plugin takes screenshots of the pages you select. You can then trigger comparisons manually or schedule them to run automatically after making changes to your site, such as updating a plugin or tweaking your theme.

The plugin then compares the ‘before’ and ‘after’ screenshots side-by-side and highlights any visual differences.

So, instead of manually checking every page, you get a quick visual report showing what changed, and whether anything looks off.

To install the plugin, you first need to visit the VRTs website and sign up for a plan by clicking on the ‘Get started for free’ button.

You can then choose one of the plans. The free plan will allow you to test up to 3 pages per day on one domain and schedule daily tests.

On the other hand, paid plans will allow you to test a higher number of pages, run manual tests, and automatically run visual regression tests after WordPress core, plugin, and theme updates.

Simply click on ‘Buy now’ or ‘Install now’ underneath the plan you want to use.

Then, follow the instructions to sign up for an account on the VRTs website and add your payment details.

Once you have completed the payment, you will land on your VRTs dashboard, where you can download the plugin as a .zip file.

Then, simply head to Plugins » Add Plugin and click on the ‘Upload Plugin’ button. From here, you can choose the VRTs plugin .zip file that you just downloaded.

Make sure to activate the plugin once it has been installed. For full details, you can see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Step 2: Configure the VRTs Plugin Settings

Once you’ve activated the plugin, it’s time to set up when your visual regression tests should run.

Head over to VRTs » Settings in your WordPress admin menu.

Once inside, you can scroll down to the ‘Triggers’ section — this is where you tell the plugin when to automatically take and compare snapshots.

Here are the available options:

• Run Tests every 24 hours (Free) – This is the default setting. VRTs will automatically check your selected posts or pages once per day for visual changes.
• Run Tests after WordPress and plugin updates (Pro) – Great for catching layout issues caused by updates, right when they happen.
• Run Tests with your favorite apps (Pro) – Connect VRTs with external tools or workflows using webhooks.
• Run Tests on demand (Pro) – Manually trigger tests whenever you need them, directly from your WordPress dashboard.

Once you’ve selected the trigger that fits your workflow (or your license), simply click the ‘Save Changes’ button at the bottom of the page.

Step 3: Add New Pages or Posts to Test

Once you’ve configured the plugin settings, it’s time to choose which pages or posts you’d like to include in your visual regression tests.

Let’s now switch to the ‘Tests’ tab, which is where you’ll manage and run your visual tests.

From here, you can click the ‘Add New’ button. This will let you choose posts or pages to test.

In the popup that appears, you need to choose the pages or posts you want to perform the visual regression testing on.

Then, click ‘Add New Test’ to confirm your selections.

The VRTs plugin will take an initial snapshot of each selected page. This acts as your baseline — basically a “before” version of how your posts or pages look right now.

After setting up your test, you’ll see an instruction to refresh the page to load the initial snapshot. Go ahead and do just that.

With that done, you’ll find a link to the page or post snapshot you added for testing.

You will also see that the ‘Test Status’ is automatically set to ‘Scheduled’ for the next day. This is because the free version of VRTs runs tests on a 24-hour schedule.

You can click the ‘View Snapshot’ link to check the initial screenshot.

It will open in a new tab like this:

Now, you can make any changes you need to your site. Then, come back tomorrow to review the comparison and spot any unexpected visual issues.

Step 4: Check for Visual Differences

Once the test is complete and any visual bugs are detected, you should see a notification alert in the VRTs » Runs tab.

Once inside, you can hover over the run with changes detected.

Then, click the ‘Show Details’ link when it appears.

On the next screen, you’ll see a side-by-side comparison of your page, showing the before and after versions.

The plugin automatically highlights visual differences, so you can quickly spot:

• Layout Shifts and Misaligned Elements: If your design changes after a plugin update or theme change, like buttons moving out of place or text jumping around, VRTs will flag it.
• Missing or Broken Elements: Whether it’s a missing image, CTA button, or embedded form, VRTs make it easy to spot anything that disappears unexpectedly, which is especially useful for eCommerce or landing pages.
• Unexpected Content Changes: The plugin will also alert you to changes in text, links, or images, so you can catch unauthorized edits or publishing errors before users do.

You can use the drag handle in the center of the screen to slide between the old and new versions and visually confirm the exact changes.

Step 5: Review and Take Action

After running a visual regression test, you can take action based on the results. Here’s what you can do next:

• Manually edit the page: If the changes are small, you can fix the issues directly by editing the page, such as adjusting the layout, moving elements, or adding back missing features.
• Revert to a backup: If the changes are bigger or harder to fix, you can restore the page to a previous version using your website backup or version history. This helps avoid leaving issues on your site.

FAQs for Running Visual Regression Testing in WordPress

If you’re just getting started with visual regression testing, you’re not alone. Here are some quick answers to common questions I often hear from WordPress users and developers.

What is the difference between snapshot testing and visual regression testing?

Snapshot testing checks if your website’s code or content stays the same, kind of like saving a backup of how things are supposed to be.

Visual regression testing, on the other hand, focuses on the appearance of your site. It compares screenshots before and after updates to catch layout changes, missing elements, or visual bugs you might not notice right away.

What is the best tool for visual regression testing in WordPress?

The easiest option is the VRTs – Visual Regression Tests plugin. It’s beginner-friendly, doesn’t require any coding, and runs directly from your dashboard. Plus, it has a free version that’s super easy to use.

How can I do regression testing manually?

Manual regression testing means going through your site and checking key pages after you make changes, like installing a new plugin or updating your theme.

You’ll want to visit your homepage, contact page, checkout process (if you have one), and any custom layouts to make sure everything still looks and works as it should. It works, but it can be time-consuming if you manage a large or busy site.

How do you speed up regression testing?

The best way to save time is to automate it. Using a plugin like VRTs – Visual Regression Tests lets you create snapshots of your important pages and quickly compare them after an update.

No need to manually click through every page — the plugin does the visual check for you.

You can also test updates on a staging site first, so you’re not fixing issues on a live site.

What are the best ways to test WordPress website design?

Here are a few tips to test your WordPress design:

• Use a visual regression tool like VRTs – Visual Regression Tests to spot design changes.
• Preview your theme and plugin updates on a staging site.
• Test on multiple screen sizes (desktop, tablet, and mobile).
• Use browser dev tools to check how your site looks in different viewports.
• Ask for feedback from users or clients — they often notice things you might miss.

I hope this article has helped you learn how to do visual regression testing in WordPress. Next, you might want to check our article on creating chat rooms in WordPress for your users and the best user experience feedback questions to ask site visitors.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Easily Do Visual Regression Testing in WordPress first appeared on WPBeginner.