How to change button size in WordPress

Button size can significantly impact a website’s user experience, affecting how people navigate, engage, and even convert.

Whether you’re designing a call-to-action button or a simple link, resizing buttons for the right look and feel in WordPress can make all the difference.

Through years of web design experience, I’ve faced and solved this issue on countless WordPress projects.

Here, I’ll walk you through how to adjust button sizes in WordPress, sharing practical advice, real examples, and insights to help you create clickable buttons that align perfectly with your design.

Why Button Size Matters in Web Design

Before diving into the steps, let’s quickly cover why button size is crucial. Buttons that are too small can frustrate users and lead to missed conversions, while oversized buttons can throw off the balance of your site’s design.

According to a study from the MIT Touch Lab, users find it easier to interact with buttons that are at least 44 x 44 pixels. This size aligns with user expectations and ease of accessibility, making it important to adjust your buttons appropriately.

Different Ways to Change Button Size in WordPress

In WordPress, changing button size can be accomplished in several ways, depending on your theme, plugins, and the approach you’re most comfortable with. Here’s a breakdown of the most effective methods:

Adjusting Button Size Using the Theme Customizer

If you’re using a theme with built-in customization options, start with the WordPress Customizer.

Many themes, especially premium ones, offer dedicated settings for buttons, allowing you to easily change size, color, font, and more.

1. Go to the Customizer: Navigate to Appearance > Customize from your WordPress dashboard.
2. Look for Button Settings: Some themes have dedicated sections for button customization. If you’re using Enfold, for example, you’ll see a “Button Style” section under “General Styling.”
3. Adjust Size and Spacing: Use the sliders or dropdowns to increase or decrease button size, padding, or border radius. Often, padding adjustments alone can significantly change the perceived size of your button.

Practical Example: I worked on a project for a client where the buttons were too small to click easily on mobile. Using Enfold’s Customizer, I increased the padding, making the buttons easier to tap. This simple tweak improved user satisfaction, as reflected in lower bounce rates.

Using Page Builders (Like Elementor)

Page builders such as Elementor give you the flexibility to adjust button size directly within the page editor.

This method is particularly useful if you want to customize individual buttons differently across various sections of your website.

1. Open the Page in Elementor: If you’re using Elementor, click “Edit with Elementor” on the page where your button is located.
2. Select the Button Widget: Click on the button you want to edit.
3. Customize the Button: Under the “Style” tab, you’ll find options for typography, padding, margin, and size. Increase the button size or adjust the padding to fit your needs.

Personal Tip: When redesigning my website with Elementor, I realized that the standard button sizes looked too small on mobile. By adjusting the padding in Elementor’s responsive design settings, I created buttons that resized seamlessly across all devices.

Changing Button Size with Custom CSS

If your theme doesn’t offer extensive button customization, or if you want full control, you can always add custom CSS to change button size.

This option provides greater flexibility but requires a bit of CSS knowledge.

1. Inspect the Button: Right-click the button you want to adjust and select “Inspect” (on Chrome) to view its CSS class.
2. Add Custom CSS: Go to Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS and enter your custom CSS code. A typical rule might look like this:

.button-class {

    padding: 15px 30px;

    font-size: 18px;

}

1. Adjust for Responsiveness: Ensure the button size is optimized for both desktop and mobile by adding media queries:

@media (max-width: 768px) {

    .button-class {

        padding: 12px 24px;

        font-size: 16px;

    }

}

Practical Example: I once needed a CTA button that was more prominent than the theme allowed. By adding custom CSS, I increased its padding and font size, resulting in a button that immediately captured users’ attention without overwhelming the layout.

Using the Gutenberg Block Editor

For those using the Gutenberg block editor, WordPress has made button customization relatively straightforward. While Gutenberg may not offer as many style options as Elementor, it allows for basic customization.

1. Insert a Button Block: In the Gutenberg editor, add a “Button” block.
2. Edit Size in the Block Settings: In the right sidebar, adjust settings such as padding, font size, and alignment to change the button’s appearance.

Personal Example: On a recent blog post where I wanted a simple call-to-action, I used the Gutenberg editor. While I needed more control over button style, adjusting the padding and alignment in Gutenberg provided a clean, effective look.

Common Issues and How to Troubleshoot Them

Buttons Not Responsive on Mobile

If your button size looks great on desktop but doesn’t scale down on mobile, use media queries in CSS to adjust padding and font size based on screen width. This ensures users on all devices experience the same ease of use.

Theme Limitations

Some themes offer minimal styling options. If your theme restricts button customization, consider using a page builder or switching to a theme with more flexibility. Alternatively, a plugin like “CSS Hero” can help you make visual changes without directly coding.

Conflicting Styles from Plugins

Sometimes, plugins add their styles, which can interfere with button customization. In such cases, inspect the button’s CSS class and use custom CSS with !important to override conflicting styles:

.button-class {

    padding: 15px 30px !important;

    font-size: 18px !important;

}

Best Practices for WordPress Buttons

• Be Consistent: Use similar button sizes across your site for consistency, which makes it easier for users to identify clickable elements.
• Use Contrast for Visibility: Buttons with the right contrast are easier to spot. This is especially important if you’re changing sizes for accessibility purposes.
• Accessibility: According to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), clickable areas should be at least 44×44 pixels for accessibility. Always keep this guideline in mind when adjusting button sizes.

Tools and Resources for Button Design

Here are a few tools I’ve found useful in designing buttons and adjusting their size:

• CSS Hero: This plugin allows for live CSS editing, making it easy to adjust button sizes visually.
• Google Chrome DevTools: This browser tool is invaluable for testing CSS changes in real time, including adjusting button size.
• Responsive Design Checker: Use tools like responsivedesignchecker.com to see how your buttons appear on various screen sizes.

Conclusion

Mastering button sizing in WordPress requires understanding your theme options, knowing a bit of CSS, and using page builders when needed.

As you work with button sizes, remember that it’s not just about aesthetics—it’s about making your site user-friendly and accessible to everyone.

So, next time you notice that your button sizes don’t quite align with your design vision, start by exploring the built-in options in your theme’s customizer or the page builder.

If those don’t do the trick, don’t be afraid to dive into custom CSS. By keeping button sizes consistent, visually balanced, and responsive, you’ll improve user experience and ensure that your website visitors find it easy to engage with your content.