Header is one of the most visible parts of a website. Because of this, many site owners are trying hard to make it look stands out. In WordPress, you can go to the theme customizer (Appearance -> Customize) to customize the header of your website (some themes like Newspaper come with a control panel to customize the header).
The customization options available on the theme customizer are varied depending on the theme you use. If you use a free theme, you usually have fewer customization options. If you want to have more customization options to customize your site header, you can use one of the plugins we are going to mention below.
Some page builder plugins — such as Divi Builder, Brizy, and Elementor — come with a theme builder feature that you can use to create a custom header. Creating a custom header using those plugins, you have unlimited options to customize your header. You can, for instance, apply a certain behavior like sticky, hide the header on scroll down and show it up again on scroll up, and so on.
Here are 6 of the WordPress plugins that you can use to create a custom header.
1. Brizy
Brizy is a lightweight page builder plugin for WordPress. In addition to allowing you to create beautiful pages on your WordPress site without coding, you can also use Brizy to create a custom header for your website. You can apply some behavior like sticky, fixed, or static. If you have JavaScript knowledge, you can apply any effect to your liking.
When creating a custom header on your WordPress site using Brizy, you can add any element you like, including custom fields in case you need ones. Of course, you can also add the navigation menu as well as the site logo. You can even add a mega menu without installing an extra plugin.
To be able to create a custom header using Brizy, you need to use the pro version as the theme builder feature is only available on Brizy Pro. You can install Brizy on any WordPress theme. Creating a custom header using Brizy is a bit different to other page builder plugins. Instead of templates, you can create a custom header via a block. Brizy has a block dedicated specifically for the header.
2. Divi Builder
Divi Builder is a premium page builder plugin developed by Elegant Themes. Elegant Themes itself is the developer of a popular premium WordPress theme Divi. A crucial thing to note that Divi and Divi Builder are two different products. Divi (just “Divi”) is a WordPress theme while Divi Builder is a WordPress plugin.
Divi Builder is available as a standalone plugin, which you can install on any WordPress theme, other than Divi. It also comes with a theme builder feature which you can use to create a custom header template to replace the default header template of your theme.
Unlike Brizy, Divi Builder supports display conditions. Meaning that you only need to create the header template once and then assign it to any page of your website you like.
3. Elementor
Being the most popular page builder plugin, it would be a mistake not to mention this one. Just like Brizy and Divi Builder, Elementor also comes with a theme builder feature that you can use to create custom templates for your theme. One of which is the custom header template. You can create the template using the visual editor of Elementor. You can add any element you like to your header template. From site logo, navigation menu, button, social media icons, and so on.
One advantage of Elementor compared to other similar plugins is that it has a massive community. To add a certain feature that is not available by default, you can install an add-on. For instance, you can install JetMenu if you need to add a mega menu on your custom header.
You can combine the theme builder of Elementor with its popup builder to create an attractive menu. You can, for instance, create an off-canvas menu and full-screen menu by combining the two. The theme builder of Elementor also support display conditions.
4. JetThemeCore
If you have been using Elementor but still have a doubt to upgrade to pro as Elementor only accept subscription-based payment option, JetThemeCore can be a great alternative. JetThemeCore is a premium add-on for Elementor developed by Crocoblock. Unlike Elementor, you can get it with a one-time purchase option.
JetThemeCore can replace the Elementor Pro feature that allows you to create custom templates for your theme, including the header. There are tens of premade header templates offered by JetThemeCore to streamline your workflow.
5. Beaver Themer
Beaver Themer is an add-on for Beaver Builder, another popular page builder plugin. In other words, you need to have Beaver Builder active on your WordPress site to be able to use Beaver Themer. With Beaver Themer, you can create a custom header and assign it to specific page(s) on your site. Or, you can also create a custom header for the entire website.
6. Visual Composer
Another page builder that comes with a theme builder feature to create a custom header is Visual Composer. Visual Composer itself is a freemium plugin and the feature to create a custom header template is only available on the pro version.
So, you need to use the pro version to be able to create a custom header template for your WordPress site using Visual Composer. When creating a custom header template using Visual Composer, you can also set display conditions to assign your template to certain pages on your website.
