Hire Full Site Editing Developers

Full Site Editing is the name for the collection of WordPress features that allow the entire site – not just post content, but headers, footers, sidebars, archive templates, single post templates, and every other layout element – to be built and edited using the block editor. In traditional WordPress, these structural elements were controlled by PHP template files and a limited customiser. With FSE, they are blocks stored in the database and editable visually.

FSE themes (also called block themes) are structured differently from classic themes. They use HTML template files that define block layouts, a theme.json file that controls typography, colours, spacing, and other design tokens, and a templates directory containing the reusable block layouts for different page types. The entire visual output of the site can be controlled from the Site Editor in the WordPress admin without writing PHP.

WordPress ships with block themes (Twenty Twenty-Three, Twenty Twenty-Four, Twenty Twenty-Five) that demonstrate FSE. Third-party block themes are available from the WordPress theme directory and commercial sources. A developer can also build a custom block theme from scratch, using theme.json to precisely control the design system and block templates to define every layout used across the site. Gutenberg Full Site Editing Guide Classic Theme Users.

FSE work is appropriate in these situations:

• You want to build a new WordPress site on a modern, forward-compatible foundation – block themes are where WordPress development is heading, and starting new projects with FSE avoids future migration work.
• You need custom block templates for specific content types – a custom archive layout for a portfolio, a distinct single-post template for a specific category, or a landing page template with no header or footer.
• You want to give content editors control over headers, footers, and structural elements without requiring a developer for every change.
• You are building a custom block theme for a client and need tight control over the design system through theme.json.
• You have an existing classic theme and want to convert it to a block theme, or add FSE features incrementally through a hybrid theme approach.

FSE is relatively new and the API has changed significantly across WordPress versions. Look for developers who have shipped block themes recently – experience from 2021 does not necessarily reflect what FSE looks like now. Ask what WordPress version their most recent FSE project targeted and whether they have worked with theme.json v2 (introduced in WordPress 6.0).

For custom block theme development, ask how they handle the design token system in theme.json – font sizes, colour palettes, spacing scales, and block gap settings. A developer who understands theme.json deeply can build a consistent design system that editors cannot accidentally break.

Ask about their approach to backward compatibility. FSE block themes do not support widgets, classic menus, or the customiser – clients who are used to these features need guidance and sometimes alternative solutions. A developer who has managed this transition with a client before will handle it more smoothly.

Common FSE problems: Creating Custom Gutenberg Block Patterns Consistent Layouts.

• Site Editor showing blank or broken templates – usually caused by a plugin that enqueues scripts conflicting with the block editor. Disable plugins one by one to identify the conflict.
• Theme.json changes not reflecting on the front end – browser and server caches. Clear all caches, including any object cache and CDN, before assuming the change did not work.
• Custom blocks not available in template editing – some blocks are registered for post content only, not for templates. The block registration needs the usesContext or allowedBlocks parameters adjusted.
• Classic plugin menus not working in a block theme – block themes use the Navigation block for menus, not wp_nav_menu(). Plugins that inject items into classic menus using wp_nav_menu filters do not automatically work in block themes.
• Styles set in theme.json overriding plugin styles unexpectedly – theme.json controls CSS custom properties that cascade into all blocks. A colour or typography setting in theme.json can override plugin-generated styles. Scoping the theme.json setting or increasing plugin CSS specificity resolves it.

Block themes and FSE features update with WordPress core, and major WordPress releases periodically introduce changes to the block API and theme.json schema. Block templates built for WordPress 6.1 may behave differently in WordPress 6.5 – testing after major WordPress updates is necessary.

The Site Editor gives non-developer users the ability to edit templates and the global styles that control the design system. Unintended edits – a content editor accidentally modifying a template rather than a page – are a real operational risk. Locking blocks and templates to prevent unintended edits is possible and worth configuring on sites with multiple editors.

When posting an FSE project on Codeable, specify whether you are building a new block theme, modifying an existing one, or converting a classic theme. These are meaningfully different scopes.

Mention the specific WordPress version you are targeting and whether you need WooCommerce compatibility – WooCommerce has its own timeline for FSE support and not all WooCommerce templates work as block templates yet.

If the project involves content editors who will use the Site Editor, describe how much control they need. A developer can configure the Site Editor to be as open or as locked-down as the situation requires.