Folders for ACF field groups
Every ACF project adds field groups: one for the hero, one for the team page, one for each block, and a few that nobody remembers. On a large site the list grows past fifty names.
Plathix PRO adds private folders to the ACF Field Groups list, and to the lists of post types and taxonomies you made in ACF. Group them by page, block or status. Your fields, location rules and JSON files stay as they are.
Fifty field groups, one flat list
ACF shows every field group in one list. Groups for pages sit next to groups for blocks, options and last year’s experiments.
Many developers split one huge flexible content group into many small ones. Small groups are easier to edit. The list gets longer with every project.
ACF has no way to group field groups, so teams put the group into the title: “Page Template: Home”, “Options: Footer”, “Block – Hero”.
So many field groups you lose track of them
Developers who build big sites with ACF describe the same moment. Each group does its job. Finding the right one in the list is the slow part.
The list of field groups gets really long. To keep some order, each title carries a label like Page Template, Options or Post Type.
There are so many field groups that you need categories just to keep track of them, sort them and find the one you are looking for.
A group title has to work for two people: the editor who sees it, and the developer who keeps the groups organized so the same group is not built twice by accident.
On a site with hundreds of pages and lots of field groups, it is hard to tell which groups can be retired and which must stay.
Folders give the Field Groups list a private tree in wp-admin: by page, block, release or status. Fields, keys and location rules stay as they are.
Folders that match how you build with ACF
By page or section
Home, services, team, contact: open the folder of the page you are working on and see only its groups.
Blocks apart from pages
If you build blocks with ACF, keep their field groups in one folder, away from the page groups.
Testing and retired
ACF can switch a group to inactive. A folder tells the team why: still in testing, or replaced and waiting to be removed.
One folder per release
Group the field groups that ship together, so a release can be reviewed in one place.
Three ACF lists, three folder trees
Field Groups
The folder panel sits next to the Field Groups list. Inactive groups are counted too, so a group you switched off still shows in its folder.
ACF post types and taxonomies
The lists where ACF keeps the post types and taxonomies you created get their own trees.
The types you build with ACF
A post type you create in ACF has a normal WordPress list. Turn it on in Settings → General → Enabled Sections and it gets its own tree, if its key has 17 characters or fewer.
A link for each folder
The address changes when you open a folder. Bookmark the folder for the block you are working on.
ACF never sees your folders
| What you do | What changes | What stays as it is |
|---|---|---|
| Put a field group in a folder | Its Plathix folder | Its fields, key and location rules |
| Save the field group | Its JSON file, as usual | Its folder |
| Rename or move a folder | The folder tree in wp-admin | Your acf-json files and every screen that shows the fields |
| Trash a field group, then restore it | Its Trash state | Its folder: it comes back to the same place |
| Turn Plathix PRO off | The lists look like plain ACF | Your folders wait in the database and come back |
Folders live in the site’s database, not in acf-json. They never appear on the site.
How we test ACF lists
We run each check on a live site with Plathix PRO and the current ACF version, with local JSON turned on.
Status Planned
Results go to Plathix Lab. Each row turns into a link once it has run.
| Check | What we verify | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Enable ACF lists | Turn on Field Groups, Post Types and Taxonomies in Enabled Sections; the panel appears on each list. | Planned |
| Inactive groups | An inactive field group stays in its folder and is counted. | Planned |
| JSON unchanged | Put a group in a folder: its acf-json file does not change. | Planned |
| Columns | Which columns the ACF lists show with folders turned on. | Planned |
| Trash and restore | A trashed field group comes back to its folder. | Planned |
ACF folders FAQ
Are folders saved in acf-json?
Do folders change my fields or where they show?
I sync field groups between staging and live. What about folders?
Do the post types I created with ACF get folders?
Do ACF options pages get folders?
Is this in Plathix Free?
Related pages
Keep building with ACF. Open the right field group, not the whole list.
Field groups, ACF post types and taxonomies in folders you choose. Fields and JSON files stay as they are.