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Troubleshooting: Why Elementor Won't Show Your ACF Taxonomy Data

18 threads Sep 16, 2025 Plugin → Advanced custom fields (acf®)

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Many WordPress developers use the powerful combination of Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) and Elementor to build dynamic, custom websites. A common and frustrating issue that arises is when ACF taxonomy fields, which work perfectly in the WordPress admin, fail to appear or function within the Elementor editor or on the frontend. This guide will explain why this happens and walk you through the most effective solutions.

The Core of the Problem

Based on numerous community reports, the issue typically manifests in one of two ways:

  1. Missing from Dynamic Tags: In the Elementor editor, when you try to use a dynamic tag to pull in an ACF field, your taxonomy field is completely absent from the dropdown list. All other field types (text, number, image) are present and work correctly.
  2. No Data Retrieval: The taxonomy field appears in the dynamic tag options, but Elementor cannot retrieve the actual term data associated with the post, resulting in empty output.

This problem occurs because of a fundamental difference in how data is stored. Standard WordPress taxonomies (like Categories and Tags) are stored in the WordPress database's term relationships table. In contrast, ACF taxonomy fields store the term ID as a value within the post's meta data. While ACF seamlessly bridges this gap on the backend, some third-party page builders like Elementor may not automatically look for taxonomy data in the post meta table, leading to a disconnect.

Common Solutions to Try

Solution 1: Verify the Obvious First

Before delving into code, always check the simplest settings:

  • Elementor Settings: Ensure your custom post type (CPT) is enabled in Elementor. Go to Elementor > Settings > General and check the post types under the 'Post Types' option.
  • ACF Post Type Archive: If the problem is with an archive template, confirm that 'Archive' is enabled for your CPT in ACF. Navigate to ACF > Post Types > Edit your Post Type > Advanced Settings > URLs and ensure 'Archive' is set to 'Yes'.

Solution 2: Use a Custom Code Snippet (For Developers)

If the settings check doesn't resolve the issue, the most reliable method is to use a small PHP function to fetch the ACF taxonomy data directly. You can add this code to your child theme's functions.php file.

// Function to get the value of an ACF taxonomy field and return the term names
function get_acf_taxonomy_terms( $field_key ) {
    // Get the current post ID
    $post_id = get_the_ID();
    
    // Get the value of the ACF field (which returns the term ID)
    $term_id = get_field( $field_key, $post_id );
    
    // If the field returns a single term ID, get the term object
    if ( $term_id ) {
        $term = get_term( $term_id );
        if ( ! is_wp_error( $term ) ) {
            // Return the name of the term
            return $term->name;
        }
    }
    
    // Return an empty string if nothing is found
    return '';
}

How to use this in Elementor:

  1. After adding the code, go to your Elementor template.
  2. Add a 'Text Editor' widget.
  3. Click on the dynamic tag icon.
  4. Select 'Custom Field' (not 'ACF Field').
  5. In the 'Key' field, enter the name of your custom function: get_acf_taxonomy_terms.
  6. In the 'Custom Key' field, enter the actual key of your ACF taxonomy field (e.g., features2).

Solution 3: Consider a Dedicated Filtering Plugin

For users who are not comfortable editing code, an alternative is to use a plugin designed for filtering and displaying posts based on their taxonomies and custom fields. Plugins like Filter Everything can sometimes handle the display of this data more effectively out-of-the-box than a page builder's native dynamic tags. However, as seen in one thread, compatibility issues can still arise, so testing is recommended.

Conclusion

The disconnect between ACF taxonomy fields and Elementor's dynamic tags is a known compatibility challenge. It stems from the different ways data is stored and retrieved. While checking basic settings is the first step, employing a custom PHP function to bridge the gap is often the most robust and permanent solution. For those unable to code, exploring dedicated filtering plugins may provide a viable workaround.

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