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How to Control the Number of Posts Displayed on Your Twenty Twelve Site

22 threads Sep 9, 2025 Theme → Twenty twelve

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Many users of the Twenty Twelve theme encounter a common question: how do I change how many blog posts, recent comments, or category listings appear on my pages? This is a fundamental aspect of managing your site's layout and user experience. Based on community discussions, this guide explains where these settings are controlled and how to adjust them.

The Core Issue: Global vs. Widget Settings

The confusion often arises because WordPress and the Twenty Twelve theme handle post counts in two different places:

  1. Global Blog Settings: This controls the main blog page, category archives, tag archives, and search results.
  2. Widget Settings: This controls auxiliary elements like the 'Recent Posts' or 'Recent Comments' widgets in your sidebar.

Changing one will not affect the other. For example, you might have your main blog pages set to show 10 posts, but your 'Recent Posts' widget might be separately configured to only show 5 links.

How to Change the Number of Main Posts per Page

To change the number of posts that appear on your main blog page, category pages, or other archive pages, you need to adjust a global WordPress setting.

  1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Settings > Reading.
  3. Find the setting labeled 'Blog pages show at most'.
  4. Enter your desired number of posts in the field (e.g., 8 instead of the default 10).
  5. Click 'Save Changes' at the bottom of the page.

This change will immediately apply to the pagination on all your standard archive pages. If you find that pagination stops working after a certain page or redirects you, it is often due to a custom query in your theme files and is a separate issue.

How to Change Widget Limits

Elements like the 'Recent Posts' or 'Recent Comments' sidebar widgets have their own independent settings.

  1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Appearance > Widgets.
  2. Find the widget you want to edit (e.g., 'Recent Posts') in your sidebar or other widget area.
  3. Click the down arrow on the widget to expand its settings.
  4. Look for a field labeled 'Number of posts to show' or similar.
  5. Change this number to your preferred value.
  6. Click 'Save' on the widget.

As confirmed by users in the community, this is the standard way to control the output of these specific widgets. The 'Recent Comments' widget can be modified in the exact same way.

When These Settings Might Not Be Enough

There are scenarios where you might need more granular control:

  • Custom Post Types: The main reading setting often only applies to default posts. Displaying custom post types may require a different solution.
  • Individual Category Pages: The global setting applies to all categories uniformly. To have one category show 5 posts and another show 15, you would likely need a custom-coded solution or a plugin.
  • Front Page with Sticky Posts: If you use sticky posts, note that they are included in the post count. For example, if you have two sticky posts and a limit of 3 posts, only one non-sticky post will be displayed.

For these advanced use cases, custom development or searching for a dedicated plugin may be necessary.

Conclusion

Managing the number of posts displayed in Twenty Twelve is typically a straightforward process handled within the native WordPress Settings and Widgets menus. Before assuming a problem is a bug or requires code, always check these administrative areas first. For most users, the solution is just a few clicks away.

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