Remove Copyright from the Footer of a WordPress Website

This post was last updated on January 5th, 2022.

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We address two points in this blog post. The first is how to Remove Copyright from the footer of a WordPress Website.  And Replacing Copyright with your own credits is the second. Some refer to Copyright as website credits.

The common methods are: 

1. Customizer, using an Astra Starter Template
2. the footer widget area, 
3. a plugin,
4. or revising the footer.php code.

For most personal blogs, hiding or removing the WordPress branding is not high on the priority list. Having a website complete with its brand logo is highly sought for corporations and small businesses. Having your website branded with the company or corporation logo presents a more polished site to the consumer.

Not all WordPress themes are designed the same way, but you can follow some typical patterns to hide or delete the content output in the Copyright area of your WordPress website. The process of removing or changing the Copyright is pretty straightforward.

Your choice most likely depends on the specific theme you are using. In my example, I am using an Astra Theme.

You won’t get in trouble removing WordPress footer credits

Worried removing the WordPress footer and or heading might get you into trouble? No need to worry; it is legal and encouraged! WordPress is a free operation licensed under GPL (general public licenses), meaning anyone who downloads a WordPress theme is allowed to rearrange the characteristics of the theme to their personal needs. The same applies to themes you purchase.

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Where is the copyright branding?

At Slocum Studio, we try to be as discreet as possible with our branding.

We place our name in the footer, and the site owner has the Copyright attached to their name. A designated footer or copyright area will exist on almost all themes. In my example, I am using an Astra Theme at Slocum Themes we use and recommend the Astra Theme.

On a WordPress Theme, by default, it contains copyright that reads ‘Powered by WordPress.’ The WordPress footer is usually designated in the footer.php template file.

1. How to remove the copyright from the footer of website themes that we use at Slocum Themes 

As mentioned above, If you are using a WordPress theme, you’ll notice the words “Powered by WordPress” in the copyright. If you purchased a paid or free theme from a theme company, you would probably see their brand name there. 

Note: not all WordPress themes work the same way

Your company or organization’s name will show the copyright in front when you go to Settings> General Settings and place the Site Title name (see diagram below). Include the Tagline.

Follow the examples in 1,2, and 3 below to remove the copyright in a WordPress or Theme Company Theme.

Navigate to the expansive Customize section of this theme in the WordPress dashboard. The Customizer can be found by navigating to Appearance > Customize.

Some themes may differ slightly from this method. This is usually with themes that offer header and footer modules to add text, color adjustment, etc. These will appear as links to the Customizer.

“Click Appearance” takes you to Footer Builder (in customizer)

“Click the Footer Builder and then HTML 1 to remove the theme company brand name. Note: if you added your company, or blog name in the General Setting you should see it in the Copyright section below.

Shortcodes will automatically update

One last note: be sure to keep your year updated. If you’re using a shortcode, the date will automatically update. However, if you’ve manually entered a date, you will have to update it each year. This gives the appearance of a new website.

Remove Copyright from the Footer of a WordPress Website 

For designers and developers wanting to add their own credits.

By navigating to that section, you can add YOUR COPYRIGHT to make it your own. In the (block editor) left arrow you can bold type, make color changes and more.

For example, you could create a Copyright that says “Copyright X Company 2023” and then set the branding to “Your Company Here Design,” complete with LINKS! Make sure to save your changes!!

Backing up your website before making any permanent changes helps you recover the progress already completed if something were to go awry.

2. If your theme doesn’t have the footer builder you can make your Copyright adustment in the widget area.

Some themes may not show the classic widget area, instead, they show the Gutenberg blocks. If you are uncomfortable using blocks you can download the Classic Widget plugin.

3. Or use a footer plugin!

DOWNLOAD it here.

4. How to remove the Copyright from a WordPress theme uing PHP.

This will manifest itself in a PHP file with a name most likely tied to footer.php or something similar for coding purposes.

You can access these template files from the WordPress Appearance > Editor or the wp-content folder of your FTP.

Typically, you need to adjust the PHP code to remove the Copyright from a theme.

After installing/creating a child theme based on the existing theme, you will need to set a new value in the footer.php file or other files (depending on the theme) to remove the copyright text from the footer PHP or change it. Typically, you can “comment out” the PHP by adding the // text before the add action that triggers displaying the Copyright and branding.

If you are comfortable with PHP, you should be able to find where the call is, give these directions, and make modifications on your child theme and with your FTP. Each theme is different, however.

Here is another post you may be interested in How to Adjust the size of a Featured on WordPress

Themes that support the removal of the copyright footer:

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