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Why Your Duplicated Pages Lose Styles or Don't Show in Menus (And How to Fix It)

42 threads Sep 16, 2025 Plugin → Yoast duplicate post

Content

If you use the Yoast Duplicate Post plugin, you might occasionally run into a situation where a duplicated page looks broken, has lost its styling, or doesn't appear correctly in your navigation menu. This is a common point of confusion, but the solutions are often straightforward. This guide will walk you through the most likely causes and how to resolve them.

Why This Happens

These issues are rarely due to a fundamental flaw in the plugin itself. Instead, they are typically caused by one of three things:

  1. Theme or Plugin Conflicts: Your active theme or another plugin might be handling post duplication or menu registration in a non-standard way.
  2. Plugin Settings: A specific setting within the Duplicate Post plugin might need to be adjusted for your custom post type or situation.
  3. Caching: Temporary caching (either in your browser, a plugin, or your server) can sometimes delay changes from appearing immediately.

Common Problems and Their Solutions

Problem 1: Duplicated Page is Missing Styles

Description: You duplicate a page, but the new copy looks plain and lacks the styling of your theme.

Why it happens: This can occur if your theme's styles are heavily dependent on a specific page template or custom fields that weren't fully copied. It can also be a sign of a temporary conflict.

How to fix it:

  1. Check the Page Template: In the WordPress editor for the duplicated page, look for the "Template" option (usually in the "Page Attributes" meta box) and ensure it matches the template used by the original page.
  2. Perform a Conflict Check: Temporarily switch to a default WordPress theme like Twenty Twenty-One. If the problem disappears, the issue is likely with your main theme. Next, deactivate all other plugins except Yoast Duplicate Post. If the problem is resolved, reactivate your plugins one by one to identify the one causing the conflict.
  3. Wait and Clear Caches: As seen in one user's experience, the problem sometimes resolves on its own after a short period. Clear any caching on your site (plugin, server, or CDN) and your browser cache.

Problem 2: Duplicated Page Doesn't Appear in Menus

Description: You've duplicated a page, but you can't find it in the list of available items when trying to add it to a navigation menu.

Why it happens: The most common reason is that the duplicated page was created as a "draft." By default, draft pages are not available to add to menus.

How to fix it:

  1. Publish the Page: Edit the duplicated page and change its status from "Draft" to "Published." You should then be able to find and add it to your menu.
  2. Check for Parent Page Conflicts: If your original page was a child of another page, the duplicate will also be a child page. This affects its permalink and could potentially affect its visibility in some menu interfaces. You can change this in the "Page Attributes" meta box.

Problem 3: Can't Duplicate Custom Post Types (Portfolios, Events, etc.)

Description: The "Clone" or "New Draft" links don't appear for your custom post types (e.g., Portfolios, Events, Team Members).

Why it happens: For security and compatibility, the duplication feature is not automatically enabled for all custom post types.

How to fix it:

  1. Enable it in Settings: Go to Settings → Duplicate Post in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Click on the "Permissions" tab.
  3. Find your custom post type (e.g., "portfolio," "event") in the list and check the boxes to enable the links for it.
  4. Save Changes. The duplicate links should now appear for that post type.

Conclusion

Most issues with duplicated pages losing style or not appearing in menus can be solved by checking the page status, reviewing the plugin's permissions settings, and performing a basic conflict check. The Yoast Duplicate Post plugin is a powerful tool, and understanding these common troubleshooting steps will help you use it effectively on any WordPress site.

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