How To Delete the Uncategorized Category

Depending on the purpose of your WordPress website one of the tasks you might want to consider before going live is to delete the Uncategorized category. This might not apply to everyone but if you have a very targeted website you probably don’t want that Uncategorized category to be the default one on your blog posts.

However, if you go into the Category screen, you cannot delete it either individually or using the Bulk Actions.

This is because it is set as the default category when you first install WP. This guide will show you how to change the default and delete the uncategorized category.

1. Create a New Default Category

Click on Posts and then Categories. WordPress always needs a default category so you need to decide what yours will be.

The left side of the screen is where you add a new category. Fill in the name and click Add New Category. If you want to adjust the Slug, Parent or Description, feel free but you don’t need to change them for this process.

2. Change the Default Category

Click on Settings and then Writing. Here you will see a dropdown called Default Post Category.

Click on it and your new category and Uncategorized will appear in the menu.  Choose your new category and click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

You have now changed the default category but Uncategorized still exists.

3. Delete the Uncategorized Category

Go back to Posts and Categories. Now when you roll your mouse over Uncategorized, the Delete option is available. Click on Delete.

You have now deleted the Uncategorized category. Bear in mind that you can never delete the default post category. So if you want to delete a category and the Delete option doesn’t appear, you have set it as default. In that case follow this routine for the new category.