SEO in the Classic Editor

If your site uses the Classic Editor plugin, or a content type that does not use the block editor, RankKit SEO adds its SEO panel as boxes on the edit screen. You get the same search preview, main fields and live analysis as in the block editor.

The Classic Editor keeps the tabbed panel described here. The block editor uses the newer RankKit SEO panel, opened from the RankKit SEO button in the editor toolbar.

Where to find it

Open any post, page or custom post type in the Classic Editor. Below the content editor you'll find two boxes:

• RankKit SEO: titles, keywords, analysis, advanced and social settings. It sits high on the screen, right under the content.
• RankKit SEO Schema: the per-post schema manager.

The boxes appear for users with the SEO fields permission (Role manager). They are not shown on media attachments. If a box is hidden, open Screen Options at the top of the screen and tick it.

The RankKit SEO box

The box shows the SEO score and word count at the top, then three tabs.

General

• Search preview of the result, with a desktop or mobile Preview device.
• SEO title and Meta description, with length meters (30–60 and 120–160 characters) and Suggest with AI when an AI provider is set up.
• Focus keywords: type a keyword and press Enter. The first one is the main keyword. See Focus keywords.
• The analysis checklist (Problems, Improvements, Good results) with Explain with AI. See Content analysis checks.

The analysis reads the content as you type, in both the Visual and Text tabs.

Advanced

Hide from search engines (noindex), Do not follow links (nofollow), Cornerstone content, Canonical URL and Schema type. These work exactly as in the block editor; see Noindex, nofollow and canonical URLs.

Social

Social title, Social description and Social image, with a share preview for Facebook, X, LinkedIn and Pinterest. See Social sharing.

Saving

The RankKit SEO fields are saved with the post when you click Save Draft, Publish or Update. There is no separate save button. Each change is recorded in the Change Log.

What the Classic Editor box does not have

The RankKit SEO panel in the block editor has a few extras that the Classic Editor box does not:

• The AI Assistant (generate the title, description and keywords in one click, or review the content) and Write with AI. See AI assistant in the editor and Write a post with AI in the editor.
• Permalink, Redirect this post to, Hide from this site's search results, Hide from archive pages and the full Robots Meta Override. See Advanced post settings.
• The Performance section with Search Console data (Pro).
• The Internal links and FAQ with AI sections (Pro).
• Schema lives in its own RankKit SEO Schema box rather than a section of the panel.

If JavaScript doesn't load

If the panel cannot load (for example, a script is blocked), the box falls back to plain fields so you can still edit SEO: SEO title, Meta description, Focus keywords (comma-separated), Canonical URL, Schema type ("Default for this post type" or a type), the checkboxes Hide from search engines (noindex), Do not follow links (nofollow) and Cornerstone content, and Social title, Social description and Social image URL.

Page builders

For pages built with Divi, Oxygen, Breakdance or Bricks, edit SEO in this box on the WordPress edit screen. The analysis reads the builder's content from the server, so word counts and checks reflect what visitors see. Elementor has its own RankKit SEO drawer; see Elementor.

FAQ

Can I switch between the Classic Editor and the block editor?

Yes. Both store the same fields, so SEO titles, descriptions, keywords and social settings carry over whichever editor you use.

Why is the score different from what I expected?

The score uses the SEO title and description that will actually be output, including the template when a field is empty, and only the main (first) focus keyword. See Content analysis checks.