Canvas Docs

Footers And Copyright Bars

Canvas splits the bottom of the page into two independent pieces: the Footer, the large block of columns and widgets, and the Copyright bar, the small print strip beneath it. They are separate records because they change on different schedules: the footer is a design decision made once, while the small print changes with a year end or a new policy link, and splitting them means changing one never risks the other.

Starting screenCanvasTheme Options, the Footer tab.

Keep Footer Mode on Block Builder, follow the Manage Footers link to the Footers list, and choose Add New. A footer is ordinary block content: columns of links, contact details, a subscribe form, whatever the design wants, and the editor canvas previews it with the site's real footer styling. Publish it, return to the Footer tab, and select it as the Default Footer. Every page without an override now renders it.

The record's own screen is where you judge it. When you open a page in the Site Editor, the footer at the bottom of the canvas is the theme's footer template part, drawn with its real bands and styling, because your assigned Footer record is swapped in as the page is served. Edit the record, then check the page on the front end.

The tab's Footer group holds the site wide appearance, and the Legacy mode for sites that prefer widget columns:

  • Footer ModeDefaultBlock Builder

    Choose between Block Builder (full design freedom) or Legacy mode (widget columns and text fields).

    ChoicesBlock BuilderLegacy (Widgets & Text)

  • Default FooterDefaultEmpty

    Select the footer to display globally on all pages. Individual pages can override this via the Footer meta box.Manage Footers

    Shown when Footer Mode is "Block Builder"

  • Color SchemeDefaultDark

    Dark or light appearance for the footer wrapper.

    ChoicesDarkLight

  • Background ColorDefaultEmpty

    Override footer background color. Leave empty to use the default.

  • Top BorderDefaultEmpty

    Rule drawn along the top edge of the footer, written as thickness, style and colour. A heavy rule in your brand colour is a common way to close the page.

  • PaddingDefaultEmpty

    Space inside the footer, written as the vertical amount then the horizontal one. Raise the first value to give a tall footer with several widget columns more room to breathe.

  • Sticky FooterDefaultOff

    Enable sticky footer on small screens.

  • Footer ColumnsDefault4 Columns

    Number of widget columns displayed in the footer widget area.

    Choices1 Column2 Columns3 Columns4 ColumnsShown when Footer Mode is "Legacy (Widgets & Text)"

Each Footer record also carries one behaviour of its own, which travels with the record:

  • Sticky Footer

    Pinning keeps the footer at the bottom of the screen on pages too short to fill it.

The copyright bar works the same way, one tab section down. Keep Copyrights Mode on Block Builder, follow Manage Copyrights, choose Add New, compose the strip (a line of text and a short link list is typical), publish, and select it as the Default Copyrights. The Legacy mode instead assembles the strip from text fields and the menu assigned to the Copyrights Menu location under Appearance > Menus:

  • Copyrights ModeDefaultBlock Builder

    Choose between Block Builder (full design freedom) or Legacy mode (text fields and menu).

    ChoicesBlock BuilderLegacy (Text & Menu)

  • Default CopyrightsDefaultEmpty

    Select the copyrights bar to display globally. Individual pages can override via the Copyrights meta box.Manage Copyrights

    Shown when Copyrights Mode is "Block Builder"

  • Background ColorDefaultEmpty

    Override the copyrights bar background color. Leave empty to use the default.

  • Copyrights Top BorderDefaultEmpty

    Rule drawn along the top edge of the copyright bar, written as thickness, style and colour. A faint rule separates the bar from the footer above without adding another block of colour.

  • Copyrights PaddingDefaultEmpty

    Space inside the copyright bar, written as the vertical amount then the horizontal one. Lower the first value to keep the bar as a thin strip.

  • Copyrights TextDefaultCopyrights © 2026 All Rights Reserved by Canvas.

    Copyright line shown in the copyrights bar. HTML is allowed.

    Shown when Copyrights Mode is "Legacy (Text & Menu)"

  • Copyrights LinksDefaultEmpty

    Optional HTML links for the copyrights bar, e.g. Terms of Service or Privacy Policy.

    Shown when Copyrights Mode is "Legacy (Text & Menu)"

  • Copyrights Contact InfoDefaultEmpty

    Contact details displayed in the copyrights bar. Each item shows an icon and text (e.g. phone number, email, address).

    Shown when Copyrights Mode is "Legacy (Text & Menu)"

  • Copyrights MenuDefaultOn

    Display a navigation menu in the copyrights bar. Assign a menu to the Copyrights Menu location under Appearance → Menus. Only top-level items are shown, separated by /.

    Shown when Copyrights Mode is "Legacy (Text & Menu)"

Per Page Overrides

Once at least one record exists, every page's edit screen gains a Footer panel and a Copyrights panel. Each is one select: Footer for this page and Copyrights for this page, offering Global Default, None (Disable Footer) or None (Disable Copyrights), and every published record. A landing page that should end cleanly sets both to None; a campaign section picks its own footer and leaves the copyright bar inherited, because the two are independent per page exactly as they are site wide.

Pitfalls

The mode switch and the record based design produce three predictable surprises:

  • There is no Footer panel on the page editor. The panel registers only once at least one Footer record exists, and the Copyrights panel likewise. Create the first record and the panels appear on every page.
  • Default Footer is missing from Theme Options. It is shown only while Footer Mode is Block Builder. In Legacy mode the footer is assembled from widget columns instead, so there is no record to pick, and the same applies to Default Copyrights under Copyrights Mode.
  • Your copyright year or menu edits do nothing. Copyrights Text, Copyrights Links and Copyrights Menu belong to Legacy mode. In Block Builder mode the strip is whatever the assigned Copyrights record contains, so edit the record.

The other end of the page is covered in How To Build A Header. For the reference detail on the two record types, see Footers and Copyrights.

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