WordPress 5.7 is the first of four major updates planned for WordPress in 2021. In this article, you'll find out everything you can expect in the new version of WordPress and what you should look out for.

New major updates to WordPress are always hotly debated weeks before they are released. This is also the case with WordPress 5.7, on which work began on November 17, 2020.

Overview: What's changing with WordPress 5.7?

There has been a lot of discussion about WordPress 5.6, which was released in December 2020. Mainly because PHP 8.0, auto updates for major versions and the modernization of jQuery usage have created some potential sources of problems for website operators. See our detailed article on WordPress 5.6.

In this article, we will therefore take a closer look at the changes you can expect with WordPress when you update to the new version. We have already installed the first beta version of WordPress 5.7 and will guide you step by step through the new features.

Simplified changeover from HTTP to HTTPS

The use of TLS encryption (formerly: SSL) should already be standard for most websites. Not only because Google now prefers to display encrypted websites, but also to ensure security when using your website.

Switching from HTTP to HTTPS has never been a major problem in WordPress. However, updating existing HTTP links to the new HTTPS used to be a problem. This required the use of a search-and-replace plugin that replaces all links in the database. An unpleasant - and often error-prone - stress factor for beginners.

With WordPress 5.7, this is now simplified: Users can simply switch to HTTPS in the settings and WordPress automatically adjusts all links in the database. In addition, the recently introduced site health check now also includes an HTTPS status.

Lazy Load for iFrames

Lazy load is a function with which content is only loaded when it is actually needed (i.e. when it appears in the visitor's field of vision). This makes sense in order to increase the loading speed of a website. When someone comes to your site, not all images and other content have to be loaded from the start. This makes the website load faster.

A similar function will also be introduced for iFrames with WordPress 5.7. All you have to do is add the attribute loading="lazy" to your iFrames. They will then only load when they appear in your visitors' field of vision. You can find more information on this at WordPress.org.

Better contrasts in the backend thanks to new color palette

WordPress 5.7 further improves accessibility and the user interface. There is now a cleaner color palette, which should create better contrasts in the backend.

Half of the color tones are intended to provide better contrast with white, the other half with black. According to the team behind WordPress , this complies with the current accessibility guidelines.

By the way, a semi-transparent background has also been added to the spacer block in the Gutenberg Editor to provide better contrast. I will go into the other block improvements in more detail below.

Under the hood: New Robots API and jQuery improvements

The new Robots API and changes to jQuery, which was already a focus in WordPress 5.6, are less exciting for "normal" users, but for all those who work more deeply with WordPress.

The new Robots API in WordPress 5.7 will make it possible to centrally change the robots meta tags that are important for search engines using filters. WordPress is also continuing to tidy up jQuery:

"Messages about deprecated jQuery functions used in the core and in the standard themes are significantly less frequent and the notifications about them are more meaningful"

, writes the WordPress developer team.

Improvements in the Gutenberg Editor

With WordPress 5.7, the Gutenberg editor will also be further improved. Gutenberg versions 9.3 to 9.9 will be included in this major update. Let's take a detailed look at what this changes:

Button block

The alignment options in the button block have been revised. There is now also an option to display buttons in a vertical layout (i.e. one below the other instead of just next to each other). There are also four percentage widths that can be set (25 percent, 50 percent, 75 percent and 100 percent).

Cover Block

An option has been added to the cover block that allows the entire block to be displayed over the entire viewport height. This means that you can automatically set the cover block to the height of your visitors' screen. You can think of it like an image that you set to full width, but with the height of the screen.

Social Icons Block

The block for social media icons has also been improved. With the new WordPress 5.7 version, you also have the option of adding buttons for Patreon, Telegram and TikTok. You can now also set the size of the icons more easily.

Other changes

In addition to the major changes in the button, cover and social icon blocks, there are also smaller changes. These concern, for example, a font size option that has been added to the code and list blocks. Or the previously mentioned semi-transparent background for the "Spacer" block.

With the new Gutenberg changes, WordPress 5.7 now offers a more practical option for converting block variants. In addition, an option has been created to insert blocks and block templates into the editor using the drag-and-drop function. The Gutenberg editor has therefore been expanded to include a few variants that should simplify work in the editor and with the individual blocks.

There will be no new default theme in WordPress 5.7. This is not surprising and was not expected. With WordPress 5.6, the new default theme Twenty Twenty-One was released in December 2020, which is also "included" in WordPress 5.7.

Schedule: When will WordPress 5.7 be ready?

Before the release, the update was in release candidate status for WordPress 5.7, which means that the final tests are underway to identify any incompatibilities or bugs.

The final release of WordPress 5.7 took place on March 9, 2021. Incidentally, there will be three more major updates this year: WordPress 5.8 will follow in June 2021, WordPress 5.9 in September 2021 and the jump to WordPress 6.0 in December 2021, although this is currently still under discussion.

WordPress 5.7: Outlook and conclusion

WordPress 5.7 is less "spectacular" than 5.6, which was released in December 2020. The new functions fall into the "nice to have" category, but are not major highlights. In particular, the simplified switch from HTTP to HTTPS should be a relief for many beginners, while Lazy Load for iFrames also helps with loading times.

There are also practical new functions, bug fixes and improvements in the Gutenberg Editor. In particular, the integration of Tiktok and Telegram into the social media buttons should please many users. The drag-and-drop option for blocks is also a nice improvement and makes using the Gutenberg editor more intuitive again.

If you are interested in the development process of WordPress and the planned features, you can find a list of the changes and much more first-hand information about the new WordPress 5.7 at WordPress.org here and here.