How to Customize Breadcrumbs in Rank Math

The Rank Math breadcrumb settings at WordPress Dashboard → Rank Math SEO → General Settings → Breadcrumbs provides you with a series of options to set up and modify the breadcrumbs on your site. 

However, if you want to modify your breadcrumbs beyond the options available in the settings, then you will need to add custom code snippets to your site. In this knowledgebase article, we will provide you with some examples to add or remove features from your breadcrumbs. 

Note: You can refer to this guide on adding filters to your WordPress site. 

1 Remove Breadcrumbs From the Homepage

Use the below code to add Rank Math breadcrumbs on all pages except the homepage. This code snippet needs to be added to the appropriate location in your theme’s template file.

/**
 * Use the following code in your theme's template files to display breadcrumbs except your homepage
 */
<?php
if ( function_exists('rank_math_the_breadcrumbs') && !is_home() ) {
    rank_math_the_breadcrumbs();
}
?>

2 Add a Blog Page to Your Breadcrumbs

If you have set a static page as your blog page, navigate to WordPress Dashboard → Rank Math SEO → General Settings → Breadcrumbs. 

Once done, scroll down and enable Show Blog Page. Then, click Save Changes. 

This option will be unavailable if you have not set a static page as your blog page in WordPress. In that case, use the below filter to add a Blog page to your breadcrumbs.

Note: Ensure to replace https://yourdomain.com/blog with your blog URL.

 /**
 * Filter to add a 'Blog' page to Rank Math Breadcrumbs.
 */
 add_filter( 'rank_math/frontend/breadcrumb/items', function( $crumbs, $class ) {

    if ( is_home() || is_front_page() ) {
        return $crumbs;
    }

	$blog = ['Blog',
		 'https://yourdomain.com/blog' //replace with the URL of your blog page
		];
	if (count($crumbs) <3){
		array_splice( $crumbs, 0, 0, array($blog) );
		return $crumbs;
	}
	array_splice( $crumbs, 1, 0, array($blog) );
	return $crumbs;
}, 10, 2);

3 Shorten the Post Title of Your Breadcrumbs

Use the below filter to set the maximum character count of the post title displayed in your breadcrumbs. 

Note: The maximum character limit $max_char_limit is set to 19 in the filter. You can modify it to any number of your choice.

/**
 * Filter to shorten the post title of Rank Math Breadcrumbs.
 */
add_filter( 'rank_math/frontend/breadcrumb/items', function( $crumbs, $class ) {
    $title = get_the_title();
    $max_char_limit = 19; //Set the limit for breadcrumb title
    
    if(strlen($title) > $max_char_limit){
        $RM_truncate_breadcrumb_title = substr($title, 0, $max_char_limit).'...';
        array_splice($crumbs, count($crumbs) - 1, 1);   
        $crumbs[][0] = $RM_truncate_breadcrumb_title; 
    }   
    return $crumbs;
}, 10, 2);

4 Display Tags in Your Breadcrumbs

To display your tags in your breadcrumbs, navigate to WordPress Dashboard → Rank Math SEO → Titles & Meta → Posts, as shown below. 

Then, scroll to Primary Taxonomy and ensure it is set it to Categories, as shown below.

After saving your changes, add the below filter to your site.

/**
 * Filter to display tags in Rank Math Breadcrumbs.
 */
add_filter( 'rank_math/frontend/breadcrumb/items', function( $crumbs, $class ) {
	$get_post_tags = get_the_tags();


	if ($get_post_tags) {
	  foreach($get_post_tags as $tag) {
		  $tag_list= [  $tag->name, get_tag_link( $tag->term_id ) ];
		  array_splice( $crumbs, 2, 0, array($tag_list) );
	  }
	}
	return $crumbs;
}, 10, 2);

5 Remove Breadcrumb Categories on Posts and Pages

Use the below filter to remove categories from being displayed in the breadcrumbs of your posts and pages.

/** 
* Filter to remove categories from Rank Math Breadcrumbs. 
*/ 
add_filter( 'rank_math/frontend/breadcrumb/items', function( $crumbs, $class ) { 
        // check if we are viewing single posts
 	
        if(is_singular('post')){ //Unset elements with key 1 		
          unset($crumbs[1]); 
          $crumbs = array_values($crumbs); 		
          return $crumbs; 	
        } 	
        return $crumbs; 
}, 10, 2);

Note: This filter will not remove the breadcrumbs on your archive pages. You can refer to this guide to remove categories from the breadcrumbs of your archive pages. 

And that’s it! These are some handy code snippets to modify your breadcrumbs in Rank Math. With these, you have the flexibility to customize your breadcrumbs and enhance the user experience of your site. So go ahead, give them a try, and make your breadcrumbs stand out.

We hope you are able to use the codes and filters to modify your breadcrumbs. If you have questions, you’re always more than welcome to contact our dedicated support team. We’re available 24/7, 365 days a year…