Product attributes in WooCommerce are pieces of data that can be used to describe a product. Attributes can be used for things like size, color, material, etc.
By default, WooCommerce comes with a few attributes already set up, but you can also add your own custom attributes.
There are two ways to add custom product attributes in WooCommerce.
- The first way is to add them through the WordPress admin panel.
- The second way is to add them directly in the code. We’ll cover both methods in this article.
Adding Custom Attributes through the WordPress Admin Panel
The first way to add custom product attributes in WooCommerce is through the WordPress admin panel. To do this, go to WooCommerce > Products > Attributes.
From here, you’ll see a list of all the default attributes that come with WooCommerce. You can also add new attributes from here.
To add a new attribute, click the Add New button at the top of the page. This will bring up a form where you can enter the attribute name, slug, type, and orderby.
The name is what will be shown to customers on the front-end of your store. The slug is a unique identifier for the attribute that is used internally by WooCommerce. The type can be either select or text, and orderby determines how the attribute will be sorted on the front-end of your store.
Once you’ve added all the necessary information, click the Save Attribute button to save your changes.
Your attribute will now be visible on the front-end of your store!
Adding Custom Attributes Directly in Code
The second way to add custom product attributes in WooCommerce is by adding them directly in the code. This method is recommended for those who are comfortable with code and would like more control over their attributes.
Adding an Attribute Using WordPress Hooks
The first method we’ll cover is adding an attribute using WordPress hooks. Hooks allow you to insert content or code into specific areas of your website without having to edit any core files. This method is considered safe because it doesn’t involve editing any files and can be easily reversed if necessary.
1. Create a new file in your child theme
If you don’t have a child theme set up yet, now would be a good time to create one. A child theme allows you to make changes to your website without affecting the parent theme (i.e., the theme you’re currently using). This is important because it means you can update your parent theme without losing any changes you’ve made.
To create a child theme, create a new folder in your WordPress directory and name it something like “my-child-theme”. Then create two new files inside this folder: functions.php and style.css.
The functions.php file will contain all the code for your child theme while the style.css file will contain all the CSS styles for your child theme.
You can learn more about how to set up a child theme here.
Once you have your child theme set up, open functions.php in a text editor and add the following code:
<?php
function my_child_theme_setup() {
add_theme_support( 'woocommerce' ); }
add_action( 'after_setup_theme', 'my_child_theme_setup' ); ?>This code tells WordPress that your child theme supports WooCommerce.
1. Create a new function in functions.php file named mychildtheme_add_attribute().
2. Inside the function add the following code to define attribute slug and type:
$attribute = array('slug' => 'color', 'type' => 'select');3. Next add the code for creating a new form field to select color with the label “Select color”:
$args = array('show_option_none' => __('Select color', 'woocommerce'));
echo $woocommerce->form_field('color', $args, $attribute['value']);4. Next, we need to hook our function into specific areas of WooCommerce using actions and filters.
5. To do this add the following code:
add_action( 'WooCommerce_after_order_itemmeta', 'mychildtheme_add_attribute');
add_action( 'WooCommerce_product_options_' . $product_id, 'mychildtheme_add_attribute');6. This will run our function after an item has been added or edited in the cart and also when someone adds or edits a product.
This is for create a new function for add a attribute field to cart and product pages, this functions should be added to the functions.php file in the active theme.
2. Adding an Attribute Using a Plugin
There are many plugins available that allow you to easily add custom product attributes in WooCommerce.
One such plugin is called “WooCommerce Custom Attributes”.
This plugin allows you to easily create custom attributes and assign them to products.
Once installed and activated, go to “WooCommerce > Settings > Custom Attributes” from your WordPress admin panel.
