Description
Build Mode lets you put your WordPress site into maintenance mode with one click.
Instead of a generic message, you can select and display any page you’ve built — with the Block Editor, Classic Editor, or even a custom layout. Visitors will see your chosen page, styled using your theme’s CSS and JS, while administrators continue working behind the scenes.
Note: When Build Mode is active, only the content area of your chosen maintenance page is displayed. The header, footer, and navigation are automatically removed.
Features
— Enable or disable Build Mode from the Admin Bar
— Choose any page as your custom maintenance screen
— Logged-in admins bypass maintenance mode automatically
— Sends correct 503 + Retry-After headers (SEO-friendly)
— Lightweight and secure, built with WordPress best practices
— Compatible with classic and block themes
Use cases
— Show a custom “under maintenance” or “coming soon” screen
— Redesign or update your site without showing a broken layout
— Let search engines know your downtime is temporary
Installation
- Go to Plugins Add New in your WordPress dashboard.
- Search for Build Mode, then click Install Now Activate.
- Go to Settings Build Mode, select your maintenance page, and check the Enable Build Mode box.
- Click Save Changes to activate maintenance mode.
- You can also enable/disable Build Mode anytime from the Admin Bar menu.
FAQ
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Can I design my own maintenance page?
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Yes — use any page built with the Block Editor, Classic Editor, or a page builder.
-
Will administrators still see the full site?
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Yes. Logged-in users with the required capability (default:
manage_options) bypass Build Mode. -
Does this impact SEO?
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No. Build Mode sends proper HTTP 503 +
Retry-Afterheaders (default: 24 hours) to signal temporary downtime. -
Can editors manage Build Mode?
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By default, only Administrators can toggle it. Developers can change this using the
build_mode_capabilityfilter. -
For developers: are there filters available?
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Yes, Build Mode provides two filters.
1)
build_mode_capability— Change the capability required to manage Build Mode.
Example (allow Editors):add_filter( 'build_mode_capability', function () { return 'edit_pages'; } );2)
build_mode_retry_after— Control the Retry-After header value (in seconds).
Default is 24 hours (DAY_IN_SECONDS). Example (set to 1 hour):add_filter( 'build_mode_retry_after', function () { return HOUR_IN_SECONDS; } ); -
Where can I get help?
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You can ask your question in the WordPress.org Support Forum
Reviews
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Contributors & Developers
“Build Mode – Maintenance Page” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.
Contributors
“Build Mode – Maintenance Page” has been translated into 1 locale. Thank you to the translators for their contributions.
Translate “Build Mode – Maintenance Page” into your language.
Interested in development?
Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.
Changelog
0.1.0 — (8 Sep 2025)
- Initial release