How to add internal featured images in WordPress
Learn how to add internal featured images to your WordPress posts.
2020-12-06
1. Get an image
Before we go to WordPress, we need to have an image. Then I went to Vampixel and in just over a minute I generated the image on the right. When clicking on it with the right button, the browser shows the option to save the image. So I saved the image file on my computer and it will be the used as the featured image of my WordPress post.
2. Add a new post
Access your WordPress site and in the left menu click on "Posts". You will see the "Add New" option, which appears twice, in the menu and as a button. It doesn't matter if you select one or the other. Click "Add New" and you will be taken to the WordPress post editor.
3. Set the featured image
In the editor I typed the title of my post "How to add internal featured images in WordPress", but I left the content empty since it is not important at the moment. Notice that in the right side menu, you have the "Featured image" box. Click on it and you will have the "Set featured image" button. And click on this button to open the image selection dialog.
4. Select the image file
Once the dialog opens, click on the "Select Files" button to view your computer files. Navigate to the directory where you saved the image file and select it. If the image size is less than the limit established in your website settings, the image will be uploaded to your media library.
5. Confirm the featured image
After uploading, the image is available in your media library. You can edit the image and its metadata, including the title. I will not go into details about this edition now, so just click on the "Set featured image" button to confirm the image selection and return to the post editor.
6. Publish
Your post now has a title and also a featured image. You may also want to add some content, a category and tags before publishing the post. You can also replace or remove the selected featured image. When everything is ready, click on the "Publish" button.
7. Confirm
Before publication, WordPress asks for confirmation regarding the visibility of the post and when it should be published. Eventually WordPress may suggest changes, such as the inclusion of tags if they have not been defined. When you think everything is okay, click on "Publish" again.
8. View the post
WordPress published your post. It is now available on your website and, perhaps, on the Internet. To view the post, just click on "View post" and you will be redirected. Possibly the title and the featured image of your post will also appear on the homepage.
9. Check the result
And that's it. Post published with our internal featured image. It is internal because there is an image file saved and taking up space in your media library. The biggest advantage of internal images is that they can be edited, for example to generate optimized thumbnails. The big disadvantage is that the storage and processing of these images will consume resources from your web hosting service and you may overpay or be blocked if you exceed the limit. In the next post we will see how to use external featured images, through the Featured Image from URL (FIFU) plugin.
