New Admin Bar Design
Today we launched a redesigned admin bar, the handy toolbar you see at the top of every WordPress.com blog when you’re logged in. We’ve retired the old flat blue look in favor of something that better matches the swanky new WordPress.com dashboard.
The new admin bar is designed to command less attention — the previous blue bar had a tendency to clash with some themes. With the new design, the admin bar should recede into the background — available when you need it, not too noticeable when you don’t.
We’ve also included a few extra touches of style for users of the latest-generation browsers with the best CSS support.
A before-and-after view
Is there a feature of WordPress.com you’d like to see in the admin bar? Would you like the admin bar to be displayed in your dashboard? Leave a comment and let us know how we can make this feature more useful for you.
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May 6th, 2008 at 3:06 am
I would like a link that takes me directly to the stats page…you guys are always experimenting and have become a yardstick of comparison to all your competitors, on second thought , you have beaten all competition…black and blue..thank you !
May 6th, 2008 at 3:07 am
i want it
May 6th, 2008 at 3:09 am
cool! can’t wait to see what else you unvail this month!
RED OUT
May 6th, 2008 at 3:21 am
i like this heaps better!
May 6th, 2008 at 3:27 am
It’s the most beautiful gray colored admin bar I’ve ever seen.
May 6th, 2008 at 3:35 am
it’s love it to open directly into our dashboard or stats first.
May 6th, 2008 at 3:43 am
The new bar rocks — noticed it immediately and love the redesign. Quite slick.
May 6th, 2008 at 3:48 am
I’d like to see the admin bar scroll along with me, so I don’t have to go back up to the top of the page to get to it. It would just remain at the top of the page while I’m signed it. I think that would be a really cool feature.
As for the new design, it’ll do. 
May 6th, 2008 at 3:50 am
Can you make it more customizable in color (like Blogspot’s navbar) and content (being able to insert (and regroup) your own command like ‘My Stats’ or ‘Manage Post’ and delete your least favorite commands (I personally never click ‘Global Dashboard’))?
May 6th, 2008 at 3:51 am
it’s much better! i hated that blue thing hanging on my web browser! XP
May 6th, 2008 at 3:54 am
I like the new admin bar. Blends in well. Nice!
May 6th, 2008 at 3:56 am
Namaste!
Yeah, I totally agree with jonsquared as Safari has now become my favorite browser. Anyways, Thanks guys!
~ Hi Yo Guys
May 6th, 2008 at 3:57 am
Looks good, although it blends into the top blue too much – could be slightly more distinguished.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:02 am
I think it looks good, but the dark grey doesn’t match my blog’s theme as well, and to my eye, it pops out a little too much on Firefox for Mac (the Firefox toolbars are much lighter grey than Safari). If it were a little smaller, it would be less obtrusive.
I agree that a link directly to stats would be helpful. Thanks!
May 6th, 2008 at 4:03 am
It looks great! Love it! =)
May 6th, 2008 at 4:04 am
nice nice,,,,,^^
May 6th, 2008 at 4:09 am
I like it a lot; thanks.
but here’s a random little suggestion: would it be possible to optionally enable rollover access to the features you want from the admin bar? like, if you rolled over “stats” you could get a little preview of your stats right there?
Just a suggestion
.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:11 am
Great but works more for mac people or safari browser users. I find it ok on Opera too.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:12 am
nice one.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:14 am
I could use a button that goes straight to my blogs or blogroll or both even!
But i love the new sleak look!
May 6th, 2008 at 4:20 am
I like it
May 6th, 2008 at 4:27 am
Niceeee!
May 6th, 2008 at 4:28 am
I love grey. Thanks, yo.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:42 am
I would like the Admin bar to be shown on the dashboard. It’s perfectly fine without it though. I also think there should be a button to go directly to your site that you made your main blog from the profile section.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:43 am
Yikes! I can see how the change would be a big improvement for many themes. However, for mine ( ”White as Milk“ ) the old blue color was absolutely perfect — whereas the new gray fades away and leaves my pages looking anemic and visually unbalanced. I vote with the others who’ve asked for a choice of colors. . . . I do, however, always appreciate your efforts to improve things.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:43 am
it’s nice
May 6th, 2008 at 4:50 am
You guys have changed the history of wordpress.com
May 6th, 2008 at 4:55 am
I still like the blue one..
May 6th, 2008 at 5:02 am
Cool!
But to display the admin bar in the dashboard errr… I don’t think so
May 6th, 2008 at 5:07 am
Something looked different, I like it
May 6th, 2008 at 5:09 am
Like it a lot. Maybe a direct link to site stats?
May 6th, 2008 at 5:17 am
Like the new look… very low key!. Having a ‘help’ / ‘FAQ’ link in the dashboard would be great. Thanks
May 6th, 2008 at 5:18 am
nice one. Like it.
May 6th, 2008 at 5:19 am
not bad..
May 6th, 2008 at 5:21 am
The second most page I visit in my dashboard is blog stats, so it would be great if you can provide a link to it directly frm the admin bar.
May 6th, 2008 at 5:23 am
It’s way cooler than the previous one. Good job.
May 6th, 2008 at 5:27 am
how about allowing users to add favourite links (such as stats, comment or any other part of admin) to the bar themselves?
May 6th, 2008 at 5:38 am
Oh! Um, now I notice it. Thanks!
May 6th, 2008 at 5:41 am
Wow! How…. grey…
May 6th, 2008 at 5:47 am
I knew there was something different, just couldn’t put my finger on it. I like it
Thanks
May 6th, 2008 at 5:49 am
Nice
May 6th, 2008 at 5:56 am
Sorry but is there any difference apart from the colour? I feel like Im missing something. Apart from the colour I cant see any difference to the old one, yet the message says you’ve “redesigned” it and people are all excited. What is it that I fail to notice?
May 6th, 2008 at 5:58 am
Ta fino,Me gusta Mucho..Muchas Gracias..!
May 6th, 2008 at 6:03 am
i’d also like to go to the stats bar directly from the admin browser.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:05 am
I REALLY like the new look.
That said…………. I am becoming a massive fan of all things WordPress. The Ideas Blog salutes you!
Jim Connolly
May 6th, 2008 at 6:09 am
The make over of the bar is great.
However, if the “Recent Comments” is available on the bar, it’ll be better. It’ll be more convenient for users as we can directly check for comments and reply to any comments as soon as possible.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:11 am
I see no problem! For me, it’s perfectly fine as it is now! Keep up the good job and thank you for all your efforts to make WordPress such an enjoyable place!
May 6th, 2008 at 6:14 am
cool!! i love it
PD: please i need to put VeohTV videos
May 6th, 2008 at 6:22 am
Hot damn this looks way better now. Indeed the new color scheme makes it less obtrusive and attention-demanding. Thanks for the redesign.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:22 am
there should be a option where I can
1) Choose color for the admin bar
2) Toggle its visibility.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:30 am
“Would you like the admin bar to be displayed in your dashboard?”
———————————————————
Admin bar, don’t reomve it!!!
it’s been very helpful to save time.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:33 am
I love it. The old one would stand out too much. This one is great!
May 6th, 2008 at 6:46 am
COOL!!!
May 6th, 2008 at 6:58 am
Looks much better.
And for all those people who feel it is too strongly attached to safari, try either:
-> Safari 3 for windows
-> Firefox 3 beta 5
Both suit the new admin bar really well.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:01 am
looks good with safari
May 6th, 2008 at 7:02 am
I really like it, very very nice!
May 6th, 2008 at 7:04 am
yep!
looks nicer with safari
May 6th, 2008 at 7:23 am
wooow, c’est magnifique ca
j’adore !!
I Like it
WordPress c’est plus bien, Saya suka itu…..
May 6th, 2008 at 7:29 am
Nice, really.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:37 am
Very sweet.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:42 am
COOL COOL!
more updates more more more!!!!
May 6th, 2008 at 7:46 am
Cool. I like it.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:56 am
It’s Super!
May 6th, 2008 at 7:58 am
Much better. I love it
May 6th, 2008 at 8:01 am
It’s nice news agains
May 6th, 2008 at 8:01 am
My first reaction was “Gray? How boring!” My second reaction was “Hey, that doesn’t look too bad!”
I like it, but I’d like more options in it. Perhaps stuff like “New page” wouldn’t be needed, but I’d like to quickly be able to visit and switch between my actual blogs, not just the dashboards. And in general, I would like color options both for this bar and the dashboard in general.
Anyway, good job
May 6th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Superb! Another great job as always.
Thanks for doing hard work for us.
May 6th, 2008 at 8:45 am
Awesome! Looks really cool. I wouldn’t want it on the Dashboard though – can’t see how it would be useful, but it’s great on blogs!
May 6th, 2008 at 8:49 am
you guys rock I get sexual turned on when you do updates (just kidding). Keep up the good work and never, PLEASE GOD don’t sell to Google. Blogger was terrible and so neglected
May 6th, 2008 at 8:52 am
Love it dude..!!! Keep Going for the Best…!! I can’t wait to have it in my blog.. the design is simple yet great…!!
May 6th, 2008 at 8:56 am
Goes great with my theme
Nice work, guys.
May 6th, 2008 at 9:05 am
Better look. I Like
May 6th, 2008 at 9:17 am
Great work, but I kinda miss the blue one.
I have a suggestion how to improve it, though I’m not sure if it’s possible; maybe you guys could make it half transparent? Sometimes it might block things at the top of the page.
May 6th, 2008 at 9:28 am
looks good to me!
May 6th, 2008 at 9:48 am
Nice! Much easier now, thanks.
May 6th, 2008 at 9:51 am
also, it might be useful for some if the admin bar was fixed… in other words, even if you scroll down the page you can still see the admin bar at the top of the window.
this would mean people can edit their post or go to another section easily, without having to scroll back to the top of the page.
of course, it would be best if this was optional. “Fixed admin bar” or “Scrollable admin bar”
May 6th, 2008 at 9:59 am
love it!
May 6th, 2008 at 10:20 am
It’s pretty good. Love it
May 6th, 2008 at 10:46 am
Perfect with my current theme
May 6th, 2008 at 10:49 am
cool
May 6th, 2008 at 10:51 am
I think its a great idea.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:00 am
I like the new admin bar design, thanks.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Looks cool and pretty simple. Is there any thing you can add there? It was real surprise for me, while I woke from my bed this morning.
One final word from me. “AMAZING”
May 6th, 2008 at 11:13 am
Love it:D Good job next improvement opacity… hope to see it soon
May 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am
would like to see a link to ‘Blog Stats’ in the admin bar
May 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am
Awesome, Simple and Sober.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Uhmm … uhhh … iihtszz too duull andd borriinggg.
bhutt i guess ii whill livvee .
whhattevvaaerrreee
~The Blinkkstuherr
May 6th, 2008 at 11:48 am
How about no bar at all?
May 6th, 2008 at 11:58 am
nice .. it makes it totally out of focus .
May 6th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Love it!
It blends perfectly whit my theme (Freshy).
May 6th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
much better,….
looking nice…
May 6th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
I’d also add my voice for direct link to stats.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
very very nice…. “fantastica” (in italian)…..so……bye!!
May 6th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
I actually like the blue better. I might get used to the grey. . .
Having Stats on the Admin Bar would save the step of having to go to Dashboard and then to States.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
what, so you’re trying to encourage people to use safari now? emulating OS chrome is a weak design move.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
The new flyover newsfeed bar in the dashboard is also very cool. I’d love to get the same functionality for my blog itself.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Very very very good! Thanks from Italy. Roberto.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Love it. Thanks a lot, Matt!