Subsites
Define a named branch of your page tree that a theme can present as a distinct section of your site
A Subsite is a named branch of your existing page tree. Use one when a programme, venue, festival, campaign, or other part of your organisation should behave as a distinct section while remaining within the same site.
The Subsite begins at a homepage you choose. That page and every page nested beneath it belong to the Subsite automatically. Your theme determines how the Subsite is presented to visitors.
Plan availability
Subsites are available when the feature is enabled for your workspace. If Subsites does not appear under Website, contact your account manager.
How a Subsite behaves
| Subsite behaviour | |
|---|---|
| Domain | Uses the same domain as the rest of the site. |
| Homepage | Can be any page. Build and edit it like any other page, without special content restrictions. |
| Pages | Includes the homepage and every page nested beneath it in the site tree. |
| Web addresses | Creating a Subsite does not change a page's web address. Moving pages in or out of its branch may change their addresses because their position in the site tree has changed. |
| Presentation | Depends on the theme. Website Builder can apply a shared layout automatically; a custom theme controls its own Subsite presentation. |
Before you create a Subsite
Set up the page branch first:
- Create the page that will be the Subsite's homepage.
- Place every page that should belong to the Subsite beneath that homepage in the site tree.
You must also select a layout when creating the Subsite. How that selection is used depends on your theme. If your site uses Website Builder, prepare the layout first by following Subsites in Website Builder.
Create a Subsite
Open Subsites
Under Website, open Subsites, then create a new Subsite.
Name the Subsite
Enter a name that editors will recognise. The name identifies the Subsite in Basker; it is not used as the public page title.
Choose the homepage
Select the page where the Subsite begins. That page and all of its descendants in the site tree become part of the Subsite.
Choose the layout
Select a layout. Website Builder uses it automatically for eligible pages in the Subsite. A custom theme can use the Subsite and its layout selection differently.
Publish
Publish the Subsite when it is ready to appear on the live site. You can also keep it as a draft or schedule it to publish later.
Change which pages belong to a Subsite
Membership follows the page tree. Move a page beneath the Subsite homepage to bring that page and its descendants into the Subsite. Move it outside that branch to return it to the surrounding site.
Creating a Subsite around an existing top-level page does not change that page's web address. Moving pages can change their addresses when the move gives them a different parent path. Review Organising pages in the site tree before rearranging a published branch.
How themes use Subsites
Subsites define which branch a page belongs to; they do not prescribe one visual treatment for every theme.
- Website Builder themes can automatically apply the selected layout to the Subsite homepage and its descendants. See Subsites in Website Builder for layout inheritance and overrides.
- Custom themes control how a Subsite is rendered. A theme developer might create another Liquid layout, build navigation from the Subsite's page branch, or apply different templates, assets, and presentation rules. See Layouts in custom themes.
Nested Subsites
A Subsite can begin inside another Subsite. From the inner Subsite's homepage downwards, it is the more specific Subsite. For example, a Festival Subsite may contain a Schools programme Subsite. The active theme determines how it presents that distinction.
Example: a festival
Suppose a venue runs an annual Summer Festival. Its site already has a top-level festival page at /summer-festival, with Events, Plan your visit, and About the festival pages nested beneath it.
- Choose Summer Festival as the Subsite homepage.
- Keep the festival pages beneath Summer Festival in the site tree.
- Select the layout required by the active theme.
- Publish the Subsite.
The existing addresses remain /summer-festival, /summer-festival/events, /summer-festival/visit, and /summer-festival/about. The theme can now present that branch as a distinct festival site. A new page nested beneath Summer Festival joins the Subsite automatically; moving Plan your visit outside the festival branch removes it from the Subsite and may change its web address.
Where to go next
Subsites in Website Builder
Build the header and footer and understand Website Builder layout inheritance.
Organising pages in the site tree
Nest and move the pages that make up a Subsite.
Create pages
Create the homepage and child pages for a Subsite.
Custom theme layouts
Create Liquid layouts for a custom theme.