Gutenberg Table Block
The Gutenberg Table block is WordPress's built-in block for HTML tables. Type /table, set columns and rows, and click Create Table, or paste a range from Excel or Google Sheets onto an empty line. Turn on Header section, add a caption and stripes. It cannot merge cells or let visitors sort; that needs a plugin such as TablePress.
For WordPress editors adding comparison, price or spec tables to posts and pages without installing a table plugin.
knowledge
- Read time
- 4 min
- Sections
- 7
- Updated
- 14 Nov 2026
- Written by
- WebJi® team
Last editorial update: 14 November 2026.
What is the Gutenberg Table block?
The Gutenberg Table block is WordPress's built-in block for real HTML tables, with optional header and footer rows, a caption, stripes and fixed-width columns. It needs no plugin and works on any WordPress 5.0+ site.
| Feature | Core Table block |
|---|---|
| Header row, footer row, caption | Yes |
| Stripes, text and background colour | Yes |
| Equal column widths | Yes, "Fixed width table cells" |
| Links, bold and italic inside cells | Yes |
| Merging cells in the editor | No |
| Image or Button block inside a cell | No |
| Visitor sorting or search | No |
The block saves ordinary markup, a <figure class="wp-block-table"> around a <table>, so search engines and AI tools can read every cell. The wider set of core blocks is covered in the Gutenberg blocks guide.
How do you insert a table in the WordPress block editor?
Type /table in an empty paragraph and press Enter, set the number of columns and rows, then click Create Table. Rows and columns can be added or removed later from the toolbar.
- Open the post or page and place the cursor on an empty line.
- Type
/tableand press Enter, or choose Table from the plus inserter's Text group. - Enter column and row counts and click Create Table.
- Type into cells; Tab moves to the next cell and Shift+Tab moves back.
- Use the toolbar's Edit table menu to insert or delete rows and columns.
New to WordPress? Start with installing WordPress; the Table block is available as soon as the site runs.
Can you paste a table from Excel or Google Sheets?
Yes. Copy the cell range, click an empty paragraph (not an existing table) and paste; WordPress converts it into a Table block. It carries values, not formatting.
- Kept: cell values as they were displayed in the sheet.
- Lost: colours, fonts, borders and formulas.
- Split: merged cells become separate cells, so unmerge in the sheet first.
- Fix a messy paste: undo, then paste again on a fresh empty paragraph.
For price lists you update often, keep the master in the spreadsheet and re-paste after each change rather than editing two copies.
How do you style a Gutenberg table?
Select the whole table, then use the sidebar: turn on Header section, choose the Stripes style, and set colours under Color. Selecting only some text styles just that text, not the table.
| Setting | Where | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Header section | Block tab → Settings | Always, if the first row names the columns |
| Footer section | Block tab → Settings | The last row is a total or a note |
| Fixed width table cells | Block tab → Settings | Columns hold similar short values |
| Stripes | Block tab → Styles | Long tables that are hard to read across |
| Caption | Block toolbar → Add caption | Always: one sentence saying what the table compares |
| Border, padding | Block tab, if the theme allows | The theme's default lines are too faint |
Turn fixed widths off when the first column carries long labels and the others short numbers; equal widths would squeeze the labels.
How do you make a Gutenberg table work on mobile?
The Table block does not restack rows into cards on phones; instead its wrapper scrolls sideways, and you control how narrow the columns may get. WordPress's own block styles already set horizontal overflow on the table wrapper in current versions.
If a theme overrides that and the whole page becomes wider than the screen, give the block a class under Advanced → Additional CSS class(es), for example scroll-table, and add this CSS (Appearance → Editor → Styles → Additional CSS on block themes, or Appearance → Customize → Additional CSS on classic themes):
.scroll-table { overflow-x: auto; }
.scroll-table table { min-width: 36rem; }The min-width stops columns from crushing words to one letter per line; the wrapper then slides under a finger while the page stays still. Test at a phone width in the editor preview and on a real phone.
When should you use a table plugin instead of the core block?
Use a plugin such as TablePress when visitors must sort or search, when cells need images or buttons, or when one table must appear on many pages from a single edit. For a comparison typed once in one post, the core block is enough.
TablePress stores tables on its own admin screen and inserts them with a block or shortcode, so a price change updates every page that shows that table. The trade-off is one more plugin to update and its own scripts on the page. WebJi® has no affiliation with TablePress.
How do you keep a WordPress table accessible and search-friendly?
Turn on Header section so the first row becomes real <th> header cells, add a caption, and keep the data as text rather than an image of a table. Screen readers announce header cells as users move across a row.
- Bold text in a normal row is not a header for assistive technology.
- Put a heading above the table that states the question the table answers.
- Do not use a table for page layout; use the Columns block for side-by-side content.
Large tables on slow hosting can delay rendering; WebJi® WordPress hosting serves pages over NVMe storage with a global CDN. If the Table block is missing on a WebJi®-hosted site, email support@webji.services with the page URL.
Frequently asked questions
How do I delete a row or column in a Gutenberg table?
Click a cell in that row or column, open Edit table in the block toolbar, and choose Delete row or Delete column. The command acts on the row or column containing the selected cell, so click carefully before deleting.
Can I change the table's text alignment per column?
Yes. Select a cell, then use the Change column alignment control in the toolbar to set left, centre or right for that whole column. Right-aligning price and number columns makes them easier to compare.
Why does my table look different on the live site than in the editor?
The theme's front-end CSS styles tables, and it may differ from the editor styles. Check the live page in a private window, then adjust colours or borders in the block settings, or override the theme with Additional CSS targeting .wp-block-table.
Can I convert a Table block into a TablePress table later?
Not automatically. Copy the table from the live page into a spreadsheet, export it as CSV, and import the CSV into TablePress. Then replace the core block with the TablePress block in each post that used it.
Block settings checked against WordPress 6.x documentation · Reviewed by the WebJi® team, Jaipur.
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