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The most reliable way to add Font Awesome to WordPress is the official Font Awesome plugin connected to a Kit. Install the plugin from WordPress, create a Kit, generate its API token, select the Kit in the plugin settings, and then insert icons with the Icon Chooser or your existing markup. Kits support current releases, Free or Pro styles (with the appropriate license), uploaded icons, and version selection. Use the classic CDN only when Font Awesome 5 is sufficient; Font Awesome 6 and 7 require a Kit or self-hosting.
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Which Font Awesome installation method should you use?
Choose the delivery method before adding icon markup. The method determines which Font Awesome versions and styles are available, whether the Icon Chooser works, which markup patterns render, and how much control you have over browser requests.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Official WordPress plugin with a Kit | Current Kit releases, including Font Awesome 7; Free icons or Pro styles when your account is licensed | Low | Icon Chooser, embedded SVG icons, and Kit-supported workflows | Requires a Font Awesome account, API token, and usually a Kit request on the front end |
| Official plugin with the classic CDN | Font Awesome 5 is the last version supported by the classic CDN; the documented default is v5 Free web fonts | Low | Web-font CSS, <i> markup, shortcodes, and pseudo-elements when the loaded assets support them |
Not a route to Font Awesome 6 or 7 |
| Manual theme integration | Whatever Kit or stylesheet you deliberately enqueue, including a self-hosted v7 setup | High | Depends on the asset and code you load | You must maintain PHP and prevent duplicate assets |
| Local Kit stylesheet with embedded SVGs | The Kit version whose stylesheet you downloaded | Advanced | Embedded SVG icons | Front-end visitors avoid the Font Awesome CDN, but <i> tags, [icon] shortcodes, and CSS pseudo-elements do not render while the Kit is skipped |
For a new site, the first row is the sensible default. It is the supported WordPress workflow and leaves you free to choose Free or Pro styles and a specific or latest Font Awesome version. Use the other methods when you have a clear compatibility, privacy, or developer-control requirement.
What you need before installing
- Administrator access to the WordPress dashboard.
- A Font Awesome account for creating a Kit and API token.
- A decision about Free versus Pro icons. Pro styles require the relevant Pro license; selecting Pro in a Kit does not grant a license by itself.
- A decision about version pinning. A Kit can target a specific release or the latest release in a major line.
- A backup or staging copy if your theme or another plugin already loads Font Awesome.
Keep the API token private. Font Awesome says a Kit uses the token to obtain Kit data without giving the WordPress server your account credentials. Treat the token like an integration secret: do not paste it into a public post, commit it to a public repository, or include it in front-end JavaScript.
Recommended setup: the official plugin and a Kit
1. Install and activate the official plugin
- Sign in to WordPress as an administrator.
- Open Plugins > Add New Plugin (the label may appear as Add New on older WordPress versions).
- Search for the official Font Awesome plugin, install it, and select Activate.
- Open the Font Awesome settings screen added by the plugin. Do not install a second icon plugin unless you have checked that it will not load its own Font Awesome files.
The official plugin is preferable to copying random CSS snippets because it provides the Kit selector, Icon Chooser integration, compatibility options, and documented delivery modes in one place.
2. Create a Kit
- Sign in to your Font Awesome account and create a new Kit.
- Choose whether the Kit should expose Free icons only or Pro styles covered by your license.
- Choose a Font Awesome version. Select a specific version when you need predictable assets; select the latest supported version when you want newly released icons without changing the integration manually.
- Save the Kit and generate an API token or API key as requested by the account interface.
A Kit is the configuration that tells Font Awesome which icon families, styles, version, and uploaded icons your WordPress installation may use. The plugin does not automatically know which Kit belongs to your site until you provide its token and select it.
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3. Connect the Kit in WordPress
- Return to the plugin settings in WordPress.
- Change the delivery option to Kit rather than the classic CDN.
- Paste the Kit API token into the token field.
- Select the intended Kit from the available Kits list.
- Select Save and wait for the settings confirmation.
If the Kit list is empty or the save operation reports an authorization problem, re-copy the token from Font Awesome, check that no spaces were added at either end, and verify that the token belongs to the account containing the Kit. Never solve an authorization error by publishing the token in page content.
4. Insert an icon
Use the plugin’s Icon Chooser when your editor or block exposes it. Search by icon name, choose the style that your Kit permits, and insert the result. The chooser helps prevent a common failure: selecting a Pro style or a newly added icon while the site is actually loading an older Free-only asset set.
Developers can also keep existing Font Awesome markup when the selected delivery method supports it. A typical web-font element looks like this:
<i class="fa-solid fa-house" aria-hidden="true"></i>The class names must match an icon and style present in your selected version and tier. If you use an icon for navigation or another meaningful control, give it an accessible name with visible text or an appropriate label; do not rely on an unlabeled decorative glyph.
5. Check the front end and editor
- Open a page containing an icon in a private browser window or while logged out.
- Confirm that the icon shape appears at the intended size and color.
- Open the browser’s page source and search for Font Awesome assets. There should not be competing copies from the theme, another plugin, and the Kit.
- Test an editor screen if you use the Icon Chooser. The editor may contact Font Awesome to search Kits even when your front-end delivery is local.
Using Font Awesome 6 or 7 in WordPress
The classic Font Awesome CDN is not a path to the current major releases. Font Awesome’s documentation identifies version 5 as the last version supported by that CDN. Font Awesome 6 and 7 Pro are not available through the CDN, and Font Awesome 7 generally requires a Kit or a self-hosted installation.
Upgrade from a CDN to Font Awesome 7
- In Font Awesome, create a Kit configured for the latest 7.x release (or another 7.x version you require).
- Generate the Kit API key or token.
- In WordPress, change the plugin’s delivery mode from CDN to Kit.
- Enter the key, select the v7 Kit, and save.
- Test every template that contains icons.
Icons that were inserted as SVGs can retain their old path data. Switching the Kit does not automatically rewrite those saved SVGs, so replace an existing SVG manually when you need a newly added v7 icon or a changed style. Also check old class-based markup: an icon name or style that existed in v5 may have been renamed, moved, or made unavailable in the selected tier.
When the classic CDN is still appropriate
The plugin’s documented CDN defaults are Font Awesome v5, Free icons, and Web Font technology. You can change the plugin’s CDN settings, but the version ceiling remains: the classic CDN supports v5, not v6 or v7. This mode can be useful for an established site whose theme already uses v5-compatible <i> classes, shortcodes, or pseudo-elements and whose owners do not need newer icons.
Do not select the CDN merely because it avoids creating a Kit. If you need v7, Pro styles, uploaded icons, or current Icon Chooser workflows, create a Kit instead. Before switching a production site, inventory the icon classes and test a staging copy; changing from one major release to another can leave blank squares where a name or style no longer exists.
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Manual integration is intended for someone comfortable editing a child theme or maintaining a small custom plugin. Editing a parent theme’s functions.php can be overwritten by a theme update, so use a child theme or a dedicated site plugin.
The official pattern registers a function with wp_enqueue_script and attaches it to the front-end, administrator, and login hooks. Replace the example URL with the real Kit URL supplied for your account:
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function mysite_enqueue_font_awesome() {
wp_enqueue_script(
'mysite-font-awesome',
'https://kit.fontawesome.com/yourkitcode.js',
array(),
null,
false
);
}
add_action( 'wp_enqueue_scripts', 'mysite_enqueue_font_awesome' );
add_action( 'admin_enqueue_scripts', 'mysite_enqueue_font_awesome' );
add_action( 'login_enqueue_scripts', 'mysite_enqueue_font_awesome' );The three hooks in this example cover public pages, dashboard screens, and the login screen. Only add the contexts you actually need, and use a unique handle so it does not collide with another script. A Kit loader controls the remaining assets. In CDN mode, the plugin can enqueue all.js or all.css, with optional v4 shims and conflict detection; Kit mode uses a Kit loader script instead.
Prevent duplicate loads
Duplicate Font Awesome files are a frequent cause of icons changing shape, loading slowly, or appearing twice in source. A theme, page builder, optimization plugin, and your custom code may each enqueue a copy. View the generated page source, search for “font-awesome”, “fontawesome”, and Kit URLs, then disable all but the deliberate path. Do not combine a manually enqueued Kit with the plugin’s Kit mode unless you have a specific reason and have confirmed that only one loader executes.
Local delivery for privacy-sensitive sites
The advanced local approach fetches the Kit stylesheet into the WordPress uploads directory and tells the plugin not to enqueue the remote Kit on normal front-end requests:
add_filter( 'font_awesome_skip_enqueue_kit', '__return_true' );Use this only after following the plugin’s local-delivery procedure to obtain the stylesheet and keep it updated. The filter alone does not download or maintain the file. When configured correctly, normal visitors do not contact the Font Awesome CDN for that front-end stylesheet.
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This mode has an important compatibility boundary: it works only with embedded SVG icons. It does not render <i> tags, [icon] shortcodes, or CSS pseudo-elements while the Kit is skipped. Convert those uses to embedded SVGs, or restore a Kit or stylesheet delivery method that contains the required web-font and CSS rules.
The WordPress editor and Icon Chooser can still contact the CDN while searching Kits or retrieving SVGs. Local front-end delivery therefore reduces visitor requests; it does not make every administrative interaction completely offline.
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Troubleshooting icons that do not appear
Blank square, empty space, or missing glyph
- View the page source and confirm that a Font Awesome stylesheet or Kit loader is present.
- Search for duplicate Font Awesome CSS or JavaScript. Remove the unintended theme or plugin copy.
- Check the icon name and style against the selected Kit’s version and Free or Pro tier.
- Clear page-cache, browser-cache, and optimization-plugin caches after changing the Kit.
The Kit does not appear in the plugin
- Confirm that the plugin is in Kit mode, not CDN mode.
- Re-enter the API token carefully and save again.
- Verify that the token has access to the account and Kit you selected.
- Temporarily disable security or outbound-request restrictions that prevent WordPress from contacting Font Awesome, then re-test.
Old v4 markup stopped working
Older themes often use Font Awesome 4 class names. Enable the plugin’s documented v4 compatibility support when you must retain that markup, and test each icon. Compatibility support cannot create an icon that is absent from the selected version or license.
Icons disappeared after enabling local delivery
Check whether the affected elements are <i> tags, [icon] shortcodes, or pseudo-elements. The local skip mode supports embedded SVG icons only. Replace those elements with embedded SVG output or undo the skip filter and use a Kit or stylesheet that supports the original markup.
Icons look different after changing versions
Major releases can change names, styles, and available glyphs. Compare the saved markup with the icon list for the new Kit, replace renamed icons, and manually replace saved SVGs when you need a new v7 path. Do not assume that changing the loader rewrites SVG data already stored in post content.
Maintenance checklist
- Keep one intentional Font Awesome delivery path per site.
- Record whether the Kit is pinned to a specific version or follows the latest release.
- Review Free and Pro availability before publishing a new icon.
- After a version change, test navigation, buttons, menus, widgets, login screens, and editor previews.
- Keep API tokens private and rotate them through the Font Awesome account if exposure is suspected.
- For local delivery, refresh the downloaded stylesheet when you change Kit settings or upgrade the selected Font Awesome version.
For most WordPress sites, the practical decision is straightforward: install the official plugin, connect a Kit, and use the Icon Chooser or Kit-compatible SVGs. Choose the classic CDN only for a deliberate Font Awesome 5 deployment, use manual PHP when you need developer-owned asset loading, and use local delivery only when you accept its embedded-SVG markup limitation.
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