How to Restrict Authors to Specific Category in WordPress

Do you want to restrict an author’s ability to post only in specific categories of your WordPress site?

If you’re running a multi-author blog, then it can be helpful to limit the author’s ability to only post to a selected category or particular sections of your website.

In this article, we’ll show you how to easily restrict authors to a specific category in WordPress.

Why Restrict Authors to a Specific Category?

If you have multiple people writing for your WordPress blog, then there is a chance that they may not select the appropriate category.

By restricting authors to specific categories, you can limit the categories they can select. You can even assign an author to post in just one category.

This not only helps them focus on their writing strengths, but it can also prevent content from being posted in the wrong category.

Overall, using categories properly can be very beneficial to your website’s SEO ranking as well.

With that being said, let’s take a look at how to restrict authors to specific categories.

Method 1: Restrict Author Categories Using PublishPress Permissions

This method is more flexible and gives you additional options to restrict authors to not just categories, but also tags and post types.

First, you’ll need to install and activate the PublishPress Permissions plugin. For more instructions, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, you need to visit the Permissions » Groups page from the admin sidebar and click on the ‘Add New’ button.

Next, you need to write a name and description for your new Permission Group. All of the writers in this group will have the same set of categories they can post in.

For instance, you may want to restrict certain writers to the ‘Tutorials’ category on your WordPress website. Simply name the group something you’ll remember and then click on the ‘Create Group’ button to continue.

Once the Permission Group has been created, you need to scroll down to the ‘Group Members’ section.

From here, you need to type the name of the author that you want to restrict to a specific category in the search box.

Once the search results are displayed, you need to select the author’s name and then click on the ‘Select’ button.

This will move the authors’ names to the ‘Current Selection’ column.

Next, you need to scroll down a bit and switch to the ‘Set Specific Permissions’ tab.

From here, you need to select the ‘Post’ option from the ‘Post Type’ dropdown menu.

This will open up more settings for configuration.

Now you need to click the ‘Assign Term’ option under the ‘Operation’ column, and then choose the ‘Limit to’ option under the ‘Adjustment’ column.

After that, select the ‘Categories’ option from the ‘Qualification’ dropdown menu.

Selecting ‘Categories’ under Qualification will reveal the ‘Select Categories’ section.

From here, you can simply check the box next to the specific category that you want to restrict the author to. You can select multiple categories as well.

Next, click on the ‘Add Selected’ button to continue.

The Permission Group details will now be shown on the screen.

You can double-check the details and then click on the ‘Save Permissions’ button to store your settings.

You have now successfully restricted an author to a specific category.

Upon visiting the content editor, the author will only see the selected categories under the ‘Categories’ panel in the right column.

You can always make changes to your permissions group, delete it, or add/remove authors from it.

Simply go to the Permissions » Groups page from your WordPress admin sidebar and click on the Edit link below the permission group that you want to change.

Method 2: Restrict Author Categories Using a Free Plugin

If the method above is not what you’re looking for, then this method is for you.

First, you need to install and activate the Restrict Author Categories plugin. For more details, see our beginner’s guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, head over to the Restrict Author Categories page from the admin sidebar.

Once there, simply choose an author from the list in the ‘Users’ section.

Once you have selected an author, all the categories on your site will be displayed to the right. Simply check the boxes next to the categories that you want the author to be restricted to.

The categories which are left unchecked won’t be shown as an option to that specific author.

Once you’ve made your choice, the toggle next to the author’s name will automatically switch to ‘Active’ and your settings will be saved.

Now, upon visiting the content editor, the author will only see the specific categories under the ‘Categories’ panel of the sidebar.

As you can see, they cannot select any other categories due to the plugin settings we’re using.

We hope this helped you learn how you can restrict authors to a specific category in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to create a WordPress membership site, and our expert pick of the best WordPress plugins for all websites.

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