How to Add Thumbnails to Previous and Next Post Links in WordPress

Would you like to display thumbnails with the previous and next post links in WordPress?

At the bottom of each post, WordPress displays links to the previous and next posts for easy navigation. Adding thumbnails to these links will make them more appealing to your readers.

In this article, we’ll show you how to use thumbnails with previous and next post links in WordPress.

Why Display Thumbnails With the Previous and Next Post Links?

Your WordPress blog offers some helpful features to help your visitors find new content and navigate around your site.

These features include navigation menus, a search bar, and a post archives widget.

Another helpful navigation feature is found at the bottom of each blog post in WordPress. There you will find links to the previous and next blog posts on your site.

These links build user engagement because when your visitors finish reading one blog post they will be looking for something else to read. However, the links will look more interactive if you add thumbnails.

With that being said, let’s take a look at how to add thumbnails to the previous and next post links in WordPress.

Using Thumbnails with Previous and Next Post Links in WordPress

To add thumbnails to your previous and next post links, you’ll have to add code to your WordPress theme’s files. If you haven’t done this before, then see our guide on how to copy and paste code in WordPress.

Adding Code to Your Theme’s functions.php File

The first step is to add the following code snippet to your functions.php file, in a site-specific plugin, or by using a code snippets plugin.

function wpb_posts_nav(){
    $next_post = get_next_post();
    $prev_post = get_previous_post();
    
    if ( $next_post || $prev_post ) : ?>
    
        <div class="wpb-posts-nav">
            <div>
                <?php if ( ! empty( $prev_post ) ) : ?>
                    <a href="<?php echo get_permalink( $prev_post ); ?>">
                        <div>
                            <div class="wpb-posts-nav__thumbnail wpb-posts-nav__prev">
                                <?php echo get_the_post_thumbnail( $prev_post, [ 100, 100 ] ); ?>
                            </div>
                        </div>
                        <div>
                            <strong>
                                <svg viewBox="0 0 24 24" width="24" height="24"><path d="M13.775,18.707,8.482,13.414a2,2,0,0,1,0-2.828l5.293-5.293,1.414,1.414L9.9,12l5.293,5.293Z"/></svg>
                                <?php _e( 'Previous article', 'textdomain' ) ?>
                            </strong>
                            <h4><?php echo get_the_title( $prev_post ); ?></h4>
                        </div>
                    </a>
                <?php endif; ?>
            </div>
            <div>
                <?php if ( ! empty( $next_post ) ) : ?>
                    <a href="<?php echo get_permalink( $next_post ); ?>">
                        <div>
                            <strong>
                                <?php _e( 'Next article', 'textdomain' ) ?>
                                <svg viewBox="0 0 24 24" width="24" height="24"><path d="M10.811,18.707,9.4,17.293,14.689,12,9.4,6.707l1.415-1.414L16.1,10.586a2,2,0,0,1,0,2.828Z"/></svg>
                            </strong>
                            <h4><?php echo get_the_title( $next_post ); ?></h4>
                        </div>
                        <div>
                            <div class="wpb-posts-nav__thumbnail wpb-posts-nav__next">
                                <?php echo get_the_post_thumbnail( $next_post, [ 100, 100 ] ); ?>
                            </div>
                        </div>
                    </a>
                <?php endif; ?>
            </div>
        </div> <!-- .wpb-posts-nav -->
    
    <?php endif;
}

Once you save your changes, this function can be called from the template where you wish to display previous and next post links with thumbnails.

Adding Code to Your Theme’s single.php Template

Next, you need to open your theme’s single.php file. This file already includes code that adds previous and next post links without thumbnails. You will first need to remove that code.

For example, here’s a screenshot of the Twenty TwentyOne theme’s single.php file. Look for the section labeled // Previous/next post navigation.

Now you need to delete the code in that section starting with the_post_navigation until the end of the loop. After that, you should paste the following code its place:

wpb_posts_nav();

Make sure you save the file when you’re finished.

Adding CSS Code to Your Theme’s Style Sheet

To style the previous and next links, you will need to add custom CSS to your theme’s stylesheet. You can learn more in our guide on how to easily add custom CSS to your WordPress site.

Add this code to your theme’s styles.css file or using the WordPress theme customizer:

.wpb-posts-nav {
    display: grid;
    grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr;
    grid-gap: 50px;
    align-items: center;
    max-width: 1200px;
    margin: 100px auto;
}

.wpb-posts-nav a {
    display: grid;
    grid-gap: 20px;
    align-items: center;
}

.wpb-posts-nav h4,
.wpb-posts-nav strong {
    margin: 0;
}

.wpb-posts-nav a svg {
    display: inline-block;
    margin: 0;
    vertical-align: middle;
}

.wpb-posts-nav > div:nth-child(1) a {
    grid-template-columns: 100px 1fr;
    text-align: left;
}

.wpb-posts-nav > div:nth-child(2) a {
    grid-template-columns: 1fr 100px;
    text-align: right;
}

.wpb-posts-nav__thumbnail {
    display: block;
    margin: 0;
}

.wpb-posts-nav__thumbnail img {
    border-radius: 10px;
}

Don’t forget to save your changes.

Previewing the Previous and Next Links with Thumbnails

Now when you view a post on your website, you will see that the previous and next links at the bottom of the post now have thumbnails.

If one of the linked posts does not already have a featured image, then you will not see a thumbnail. To learn how to add thumbnails to a post, see our guide on how to add featured images or post thumbnails in WordPress.

Alternative: Displaying Popular Posts with Thumbnails

Another way to engage your readers after they read a post is to display a list of popular posts after each article. This will give your readers a chance to see your best content, rather than just the previous and next articles that were published.

Your popular posts contain your most successful content. Displaying them to your visitors will build trust, improve social proof, and ensure that your visitors stay on your website longer.

When you check the first method in our guide on how to display posts by views in WordPress, you’ll learn how easy it is to add popular posts using the MonsterInsights plugin.

MonsterInsights’ Popular Posts Widget offers a wide range of attractive themes as well as a lot of customization options.

You may also want to see our guide on how to add custom after post widgets in WordPress, where you can learn how to add various types of content to the end of each blog post.

We hope this tutorial helped you learn how to use thumbnails with previous and next post links in WordPress. You may also want to learn how to speed up WordPress performance, or check out our list of the best social media plugins for WordPress.

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