If you have been using WordPress for more than a year, you know that a major version is typically released in April. However, things were different with WordPress 7.0 (planned on 09th April 2026) as it was delayed because of the RTC (Real-Time Collaboration) feature. Finally, the new version was released on 20th May 2026, and here are the 10 most impactful features you will find in WordPress 7.0.
Note: You can use the WordPress Beta Tester plugin to install beta and release candidate versions before they are publicly available.
A Brief Note on the Dropped Real-Time Collaboration Feature
Currently, WordPress locks a post when someone is editing it, which means no two users can edit the same post parallelly. RTC or Real Time Collaboration, as the name indicates, allows multiple users to edit the content simultaneously in Gutenberg editor with real-time tracking. However, RTC needs a new database table, which affects persistent caching when content is edited or saved as discussed in this Make WordPress Core thread.
Since the feature is not fully ready, it has been removed from WordPress 7.0 and tentatively moved to version 7.1. Don’t worry about the removed RTC feature as there are still plenty to be excited about in 7.0.
1. AI Integration in Core WordPress
Frankly, it’s too late to talk about AI integration as there are many plugins and themes already offer seamless connection with AI models like ChatGPT. Nevertheless, including AI into core WordPress opens multitude of opportunities. With the new WP AI Client, developers can directly integrate AI models in the admin dashboard and allow their plugins and themes to connect safely and consistently. You can add the API key from ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude in “Settings > Connectors” section and integrate AI using the corresponding AI provider plugins. For example, you can connect ChatGPT using the AI Provider for OpenAI plugin from WordPress community and link the API key.
After that, install the AI plugin to enable features like alt text generation, content classification, meta description generation, etc. under “Settings > AI” section.
Hosting companies like SiteGround announced that they will automatically integrate their AI Studio using the connector feature (for SiteGround users). Also, some themes like Astra already integrated Abilities API and MCP (Model Context Protocol) server endpoint features to integrate AI models.
So, you can expect more such automatic integrations to get the most out of AI instead of manually installing and configuring the model yourself. On the flip side, you can no longer ignore AI features as they are now right there in your admin dashboard.
2. Block-Level Additional CSS
As of now, you can add CSS by going to “Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS”, which will be effective at site level (loaded as inline in the header section of each page). With 7.0, you have an option to add CSS for individual block level. So, you can apply a custom font (explained in next point) only for a text block on a page without affecting any other content on your site.
3. Using Custom Fonts
The “Fonts” option, earlier available only for Block-based themes, is now available for classic themes as well. Go to “Appearance > Fonts”, where you can upload a custom font or install Google Fonts. At this point, you can apply the installed fonts for a block (Typography > Font) in Gutenberg editor.
Soon you can expect the site level font changes without hassle.
4. New Breadcrumb Block
If you are relying on a third-party plugin for inserting breadcrumb in your posts, that ends with WordPress 7.0. You have a new “Breadcrumbs” block for inserting it anywhere on your post. You can also customize the appearance like typography, background, padding, and margins like any other block.
5. New Icons Block
This is one of the basic things WordPress has been missing for a long time. Now, you can use an “Icon” block to insert SVG icons without any third-party plugins. Though there are limited icons in the default library, you can expect this to grow in coming releases. For sure, this is a big relief for users to get rid of heavy libraries like Font Awesome.
6. Command Palette
The Command Palette is a quick assistant for finding actions in your dashboard. Click the lens icon showing on top left corner next to your site’s name or press Command + K (Mac) or Control + K in Windows. A floating search box appears where you can type the action you want and navigate to that section quickly.
7. Change in Revisions
As of WordPress 6.9, you can check the “Revisions” (under document type’s right sidebar settings) to view the old vs. new content in a new tab. Now, you can visually compare the revisions in the same tab and view meta data. This will be useful if you frequently restore the content from older versions.
8. Block’s Visibility Control
This is yet another useful feature to hide or show blocks without any plugin. Simply select “Hide” from the block’s settings toolbar (Options > Hide). You can completely omit a block from published content or hide on a particular device like desktop, tablet, or mobile.
9. Switching Between Headings
Currently, the “Heading” block frustrates many users when trying to toggle from H1 through H6. There is a minor improvement in WordPress 7.0 to show each heading level as a variation within the “Heading” block. You won’t see a different blocks for different heading levels but can switch from the sidebar by just clicking the level (you can still toggle from the toolbar).
10. Mobile Overlay for Navigation Block
If you frequently use the “Navigation” menu block, there is an improvement for mobile overlay. Now you can expand the “Overlay” section and create a new template for the overlay to customize the appearance on mobile devices.
Other Notable Features
The above listed are notable features, however, there are also other features in WordPress 7.0 which may be useful depending on your workflow.
- Lock pattern’s design while still editing content without losing styles.
- Image and Gallery blocks use correct aspect ratio on all devices.
- Minor adjustments in dashboard appearance to make the elements more appealing (if you don’t like the new colors, go to “Users > Profile” section and change the color scheme).
- Performance optimizations to improve faster rendering of blocks, reduce database queries to improve server response time, and improve lazy loading.
Final Words
WordPress 7.0 focuses heavily on introducing an AI framework including connectors, the Abilities API, WP AI Client, and MCP, alongside many other useful features. Even though you will miss RTC for a while, you will need some time to get familiar with this already long list of new features.
