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Remove the Link From Parent Menu Item

1 min read Updated Sep 2026 General WordPress

To remove the link from a parent menu item, add it as a Custom Link and clear its URL. The item then shows as text and only opens its drop-down. In a block theme, unlink the item.

The menus you see depend on your theme. A classic theme shows Customize in Appearance, plus Menus and Widgets when it supports them. A block theme shows Editor in place of Customize, unless the theme or a plugin adds Customizer settings. It shows Menus or Widgets only when it supports them. Polestar, Ultra and the Puro theme are classic themes.

Classic Admin Screens

  1. Go to AppearanceMenus.
  2. Under Custom Links, enter # in URL and the menu label in Link Text.
  3. Click Add to Menu.
  4. Open the new menu item and delete the contents of its URL field.
  5. Drag the sub-menu items under it.
  6. Click Save Menu.

A Custom Links menu item with an empty URL on the Menus screen

In the mobile menu of the Puro theme and Polestar, tapping a parent item without a link opens its sub-menu.

Customizer

  1. Go to AppearanceCustomizeMenus and open the menu.
  2. Click Add Items, open Custom Links, enter # in URL and the label in Link Text, then add it.
  3. Open the new item and delete the contents of its URL field.
  4. Click Publish.

A custom link parent menu item with an empty URL in the Customizer

Block Themes

  1. Go to AppearanceEditorNavigation and select the menu.
  2. Add a Custom Link item with the label you want, then click Add submenu in the block toolbar.
  3. Click Unlink in the toolbar to remove the link from the parent.
  4. Add the child items inside the submenu, then click Save.

A parent navigation item without a link in the Site Editor

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