Elementor Content

Directly read, create, modify, and restructure Elementor page builder content by working with the underlying JSON data — either in exported

.json

template files or in the WordPress database via WP-CLI.

When to Use

Creating or editing Elementor page/template content
Modifying widget settings (text, images, styles, links)
Restructuring page layouts (moving sections, adding containers)
Bulk-updating content across multiple Elementor pages
Importing/exporting Elementor templates
Building new Elementor pages from scratch
Creating Theme Builder templates (header, footer, single, archive) programmatically

Operational Modes

Mode 1: JSON Template Files

Work directly with

.json

files exported from Elementor (Library → Export Template). Read, edit, and write the file. Import back via Elementor UI or WP-CLI.

Mode 2: WP-CLI Database Operations

Read/write the

_elementor_data

post meta key in WordPress. Requires WP-CLI access and a running WordPress installation. See

references/wp-cli-operations.md

Core Workflow

Identify mode — JSON file on disk, or live WordPress database?
Read the content — parse the JSON file or fetch via
```
wp post meta get
```
Understand the tree — Elementor content is a nested array of elements (see
```
references/element-structure.md
```
)
Locate target — find the element to modify by walking the tree; match on
```
widgetType
```
,
```
settings
```
content, or
```
id
```
Modify — change settings, add/remove/reorder elements
Validate — run the validation checklist below before writing
Write — save the JSON file or update via
```
wp post meta update
```
Flush cache — if using WP-CLI, run
```
wp elementor flush-css
```
to regenerate stylesheets

Reference Guides

Topic	File	Load when...
JSON structure & hierarchy	`references/element-structure.md`	You need to understand the data format, nesting rules, or settings patterns
Widget types & settings	`references/widget-catalog.md`	You need to create a widget or modify widget-specific settings
WP-CLI operations	`references/wp-cli-operations.md`	You're working with a live WordPress database (not a JSON file)
Theme Builder templates	`references/theme-builder-templates.md`	You're creating header, footer, single, or archive templates programmatically

Quick Reference: Common Operations

Change a heading: Find the element with

"widgetType": "heading"

, update

settings.title

Add a button to a container: Create a new element with

"elType": "widget"

"widgetType": "button"

, generate a unique

id

, set

settings.text

and

settings.link

, and append to the parent container's

elements

array.

Restructure layout: Move elements between parent containers by cutting from one

elements

array and pasting into another. Ensure no element appears in two places.

Create a new page: Build the full JSON tree: outer container(s) → inner containers/widgets. Wrap in template format if exporting, or write directly to

_elementor_data

via WP-CLI.

Create a Theme Builder template: Requires post meta (

_elementor_template_type

_elementor_conditions

), taxonomy term (

elementor_library_type

), AND registration in the

elementor_pro_theme_builder_conditions

option. See

references/theme-builder-templates.md

for the full checklist — missing any step will silently fail.

Change styling: Modify the relevant settings key on the element. Responsive variants use

_tablet

and

_mobile

suffixes. Dimensions use

{top, right, bottom, left, unit, isLinked}

objects.

Element ID Generation

Every element requires a unique

id

— an 8-character lowercase hexadecimal string (e.g.,

"3f2a1b7c"

). Generate randomly; ensure no duplicates within the document.

Constraints

MUST preserve valid JSON at all times
MUST keep every element's
```
id
```
unique within the document
MUST maintain correct nesting: containers hold containers or widgets; widgets have
```
"elements": []
```
(empty)
MUST include
```
elType
```
on every element
MUST include
```
widgetType
```
on every widget element
MUST NOT place widgets directly inside the root array — they must be inside a container (or legacy section → column)
MUST NOT leave orphaned references (e.g., removing a container but leaving its children elsewhere)
MUST flush CSS cache after database writes (
```
wp elementor flush-css
```
)

Validation Checklist

Before writing the modified content:

Valid JSON (parseable without errors)
All
```
id
```
values are unique 8-char hex strings

Every element has

elType

set (

"container"

"widget"

"section"

, or

"column"

)

Every widget has
```
widgetType
```
set to a valid type
Widgets have
```
"elements": []
```
(empty array, never omitted)
No widgets at root level — all wrapped in containers
Settings values use correct format (dimensions, URLs, media objects)
Template wrapper (if applicable) has
```
type
```
,
```
version
```
,
```
title
```
,
```
content
```

elementor-content

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content