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Why Your Gutenberg Block Toolbar Is Missing and How to Get It Back

13 threads Sep 9, 2025 Plugin → Gutenberg

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If you've ever been editing a post in the Gutenberg block editor and found that the formatting toolbar for your paragraph block is mysteriously absent, you're not alone. This common issue can be frustrating, but the solution is often very simple.

The Problem: A Missing Block Toolbar

Users expect to see a toolbar with options like Bold, Italic, and link insertion appear when they click on a paragraph block. However, sometimes this toolbar doesn't appear, leaving users unable to format their text easily.

The Most Common Cause and Solution

Based on community reports, the most frequent reason for this behavior is an accidentally enabled editor setting. The Gutenberg editor has a 'Top Toolbar' option that, when activated, moves all block toolbars to a fixed position at the top of the editor screen instead of appearing above the selected block.

If this setting is on and you are looking for the toolbar directly above your paragraph, it will seem to have vanished.

Here is how to fix it:

  1. Look for the three vertical dots in the top-right corner of the editor window to open the 'Settings' menu.
  2. Click on 'Options' to view the editor preferences.
  3. Find the 'Top Toolbar' option in the list.
  4. If there is a checkmark next to it, click on it to disable the setting.
  5. The toolbar should now appear contextually above the block you have selected.

What If That Doesn't Work?

If disabling the top toolbar does not resolve the issue, the problem may be related to a conflict with your theme or another plugin. This is a common cause for various unexpected behaviors in the editor, as seen in other threads where themes caused default blocks to change.

To perform a basic conflict test:

  1. Temporarily switch your theme to a default WordPress theme like Twenty Twenty-Three.
  2. Disable all your plugins.
  3. Check if the toolbar now works correctly.
  4. If it does, reactivate your theme and plugins one by one, testing the editor after each, to identify which one is causing the conflict.

Once you identify the culprit, you can seek out alternatives or look for an update that resolves the compatibility issue.

Finding and resolving these little interface quirms can make your content creation experience much smoother. For more community-driven tips and solutions, keep exploring BugWP.com.

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