WordPress Tabs Block in Core (7.1): Setup and Limits

Applies to WordPress 7.1 and later. Last verified: 2026-09-11, against WordPress 7.1.

Short answer: WordPress 7.1, released August 19, 2026, added a Tabs block to core, so you can build tabbed content without a plugin or a page builder. Type /tabs in the editor and you get two tabs with empty panels, and each panel accepts any blocks. WordPress says it follows the W3C tabs pattern for keyboard and screen reader behavior. It needs 7.1 or later, it always keeps at least one tab, and consistent vertical tabs are still on WordPress's to-do list.

WordPress.org's Tabs block documentation, published August 19, 2026, last updated August 20 and read on September 11, 2026, is the source for every step below. It describes the block as a way to present "several related pieces of information without making visitors scroll through them all," and suggests it for FAQs and product specifications.

Back up before replacing existing tabs. Adding a new Tabs block to a page is low-risk. Converting pages that already use a tabs plugin or page-builder tabs is not, because the old content stops displaying properly the moment that plugin is switched off. Have a backup you can restore, and do the conversion on a copy first, the same way you would test an update on a copy of your site.

What you need before you start

The documentation lists one requirement: WordPress 7.1 or later. If typing /tabs in the editor finds nothing, the site is on an older version. The rest of that release is covered in what's new in WordPress 7.1, and if updating to it causes trouble, problems after a major WordPress update, and the fixes is the place to start.

How the core WordPress Tabs block is built

The Tabs block is several nested blocks working together. It is worth understanding before you start clicking, because each part has its own toolbar and its own settings:

Tabs: the outer block that holds everything.
- Tab List: the row of clickable tab buttons.
  - Tab: one button per tab.
- Tab Panels: the container for all the content.
  - Tab Panel: the content for one tab. Only the panel for the selected tab is visible at a time.

Each Tab is linked to the Tab Panel in the same position, so the third button shows the third panel. Open List View (Shift+Alt+O on Windows, Ctrl+Option+O on a Mac) to see and select each part.

Build a set of tabs, step by step

Insert the block. Place your cursor where the tabs should go, open the Block Inserter (+), search for "Tabs" and select it. Or type /tabs and press Enter. You start with two tabs, each with an empty panel.
Name the tabs. Click each tab's label and type. Short labels work best, because the row of tabs wraps onto more lines when the labels do not fit.
Add a tab. Select the last Tab, put your cursor at the end of its label and press Enter. A new tab and a matching empty panel appear after it. You can also use Add tab in the block toolbar to add one at the end of the list.
Fill the panels. Select a tab, click inside its panel, and add blocks with the inserter as you would anywhere else. A panel works like a Group block, so paragraphs, images, headings and columns all fit.
Reorder. Select a Tab and use the reorder buttons in the block toolbar. If you drag a Tab Panel in List View instead, its Tab moves with it to stay in sync.
Duplicate. Select a Tab, open More options (the three vertical dots) and choose Duplicate. You get a copy of both the button and its panel content, linked together as a new tab.
Remove. Select the Tab, put your cursor at the very start of its label and press Backspace. The tab and its panel are removed together. You cannot remove the last remaining tab.

Settings worth setting

On the Tab List:

Layout. By default the buttons wrap onto more lines when they do not all fit, so long labels stay readable instead of being cut off.
Label. A name for the set of tabs that screen readers announce, such as "Product details tabs." Set it on every Tabs block, and especially when a page has more than one, so a screen reader user can tell the sets apart.

On each Tab button:

Color, including colors for the selected, active state, so readers can see which tab is open.
Typography, Border and Spacing, like many other blocks.

To style every tab button on the site at once, the documentation points to Styles > Blocks in the Site Editor.

Tabs block or Accordion block?

Core already has an Accordion block, documented by WordPress.org since December 2025 and read on September 11, 2026, and both documentation pages suggest their block for FAQs. The real difference is how many sections a reader can see at once.

	Tabs block	Accordion block
Sections visible at once	One	One, several or all, depending on settings
Start with a chosen section open	Not described in the documentation	Yes, "Initially open" on each item
Close the others automatically	Always one at a time	Optional Auto-close toggle
Heading level for the labels	Not described in the documentation	You choose the level for item headings
Best when	Readers pick one of a few parallel options, such as specifications, dimensions and warranty	Readers scan a list and may want several items open, such as a long FAQ

A practical test: if readers would want to compare two sections side by side, neither block is ideal, and plain headings may serve them better. If they only ever need one answer from a short set, tabs keep the page compact.

What the Tabs block still can't do

This is the section plugin pages have no reason to write.

It never shows more than one panel at once. That is the point of tabs, but it means anything a reader must not miss, such as a safety warning or a condition on a price, belongs outside the tabs, not in the third one.
It always keeps one tab. Removing the last tab is blocked. To get rid of tabs entirely, remove the whole Tabs block.
Vertical tabs are unfinished. The block's public tracking issue in WordPress's Gutenberg repository, read on September 11, 2026, still lists "Needs Consistent Vertical Tabs Behavior" among its open items, along with improved visual transitions and animation, more button and tab styling options, and background colors for tab content.
Some behavior is simply not documented. The 7.1 documentation says nothing about linking straight to a particular tab from a URL, tabs that rotate on their own, or tabs that turn into an accordion on small screens. Do not assume any of them. If your current tabs depend on one, that is a reason to keep your current solution until a later release documents it.

On accessibility, WordPress's Accessibility Improvements in WordPress 7.1 post on Make WordPress Core, read on September 11, 2026, says the Tabs block was introduced "with accessibility testing." That is WordPress's statement about its own testing. We have not tested the block with assistive technology ourselves, and the Tab List label described above is the one accessibility setting that is up to you.

Replacing a tabs plugin or page-builder tabs

If you already use a tabs plugin, the core block is worth a trial, not an instant swap.

On a copy of the site, rebuild one page's tabs with the core block and compare the result with the original on a desktop and on a phone.
Check that everything you used in the old tabs has an equivalent. Anything from the list in the previous section is a reason to wait.
Convert the remaining pages one at a time, deleting the old plugin's shortcodes or blocks as you go.
Deactivate the old plugin, rather than deleting it, and watch the site for a week.
If a converted page comes out wrong, you can compare it with an earlier version and restore that version with visual revisions.

If the plugin you are replacing has not been updated in a long time, that strengthens the case for moving, and what to do when a plugin is no longer updated covers the wider decision.

FAQ

Do I need a plugin to add tabs in WordPress?
Not on WordPress 7.1 or later. The core Tabs block builds tabbed panels in the block editor. On earlier versions, or for behavior the core block does not document, a plugin is still the route.

Is the WordPress Tabs block accessible?
WordPress's documentation says it follows the tabs pattern from the W3C ARIA Authoring Practices Guide, with keyboard and screen reader behavior built in, and the 7.1 accessibility post says it was introduced with accessibility testing. Give each Tab List a descriptive label.

Can I put images or columns inside a tab?
Yes. Each Tab Panel works like a Group block and accepts any blocks, including images, headings and columns.

Can I style the selected tab differently from the others?
Yes. Each Tab button has Color settings that include the selected, active state, as well as Typography, Border and Spacing settings.

Version context. Written against WordPress 7.1, released August 19, 2026, and confirmed as the current release on the WordPress.org release archive on September 11, 2026. Every step and setting comes from WordPress.org's Tabs block documentation (last updated August 20, 2026). The Accordion comparison comes from its Accordion block documentation (last updated September 6, 2026), the accessibility statement from the Make WordPress Core accessibility post for 7.1, and the unfinished items from the block's public tracking issue in the Gutenberg repository, all read on September 11, 2026. No tabs plugin is named or recommended. Review trigger: the next major WordPress release or any new entry in the Tabs block documentation's changelog.