How to make WordPress and TinyMCE accept <a> tags wrapping block-level elements as allowed in HTML5?

Starting with version 5 the HTML standard allows <a> tags wrap block-level elements. On a specific page I need to wrap a heading and an image with an <a> tag:

Some intro text.

<div>
  <a href="http://somewhere/">
    <h4>Some heading</h4>
    <img src="https://somewhere/some-img.jpg" alt="Some image" />
  </a>
</div>

While I can enter this in the text editor it causes some strange behavior:

The code above will be transformed into this HTML code:

<p>Some intro text.</p>
<div>
<a href="http://somewhere/"></p>
<h4>Some heading</h4>
<p><img src="https://somewhere/some-img.jpg" alt="Some image" /><br />
</a>
</div>

Obviously, the opening <a> followed by a closing </p> for a never opened <p> is plain wrong. Also there’s some non-closed <p> tag before the <img> tag.


Since this seems to be a newline-related issue, I tried to remove newlines from my WordPress code:

Some intro text.

<div><a href="http://somewhere/"><h4>Some heading</h4><img src="https://somewhere/some-img.jpg" alt="Some image" /></a></div>

Interestingly, this results in the following HTML code:

<p>Some intro text.</p>
<div><a href="http://somewhere/"><br />
<h4>Some heading</h4>
<p><img src="https://somewhere/some-img.jpg" alt="Some image" /></a></div>

Now, there’s still a closing </p> tag missing after the <img>. (Okay, HTML5 accepts non-closed <p> tags… but I don’t think that this behavior is used intentionally here.) Also, WordPress introduces a <br /> that comes out of nowhere.

So far to the WordPress-related issues…


Now to the TinyMCE-related issues:

When switching back from the text edit mode in WordPress to the visual edit mode, the <a>s are still there. However, when switching back to text mode again (or saving the page from visual edit mode) the <a>s get completely removed.


Having this explained, let’s come to my main question: How can I make WordPress and TinyMCE accept <a> tags wrapping block-level elements?


Here’s what I’ve already tried:

I also found the ticket “Block <a> tags are getting stripped from the Editor“, but don’t really understand if stripping <a> tags is considered intentional behavior there.

$299 Affordable Web Design WordPress

This article was republished from its original source.
Call Us: 1(800)730-2416

Pixeldust is a 20-year-old web development agency specializing in Drupal and WordPress and working with clients all over the country. With our best in class capabilities, we work with small businesses and fortune 500 companies alike. Give us a call at 1(800)730-2416 and let’s talk about your project.

FREE Drupal SEO Audit

Test your site below to see which issues need to be fixed. We will fix them and optimize your Drupal site 100% for Google and Bing. (Allow 30-60 seconds to gather data.)

Powered by

How to make WordPress and TinyMCE accept <a> tags wrapping block-level elements as allowed in HTML5?

On-Site Drupal SEO Master Setup

We make sure your site is 100% optimized (and stays that way) for the best SEO results.

With Pixeldust On-site (or On-page) SEO we make changes to your site’s structure and performance to make it easier for search engines to see and understand your site’s content. Search engines use algorithms to rank sites by degrees of relevance. Our on-site optimization ensures your site is configured to provide information in a way that meets Google and Bing standards for optimal indexing.

This service includes:

  • Pathauto install and configuration for SEO-friendly URLs.
  • Meta Tags install and configuration with dynamic tokens for meta titles and descriptions for all content types.
  • Install and fix all issues on the SEO checklist module.
  • Install and configure XML sitemap module and submit sitemaps.
  • Install and configure Google Analytics Module.
  • Install and configure Yoast.
  • Install and configure the Advanced Aggregation module to improve performance by minifying and merging CSS and JS.
  • Install and configure Schema.org Metatag.
  • Configure robots.txt.
  • Google Search Console setup snd configuration.
  • Find & Fix H1 tags.
  • Find and fix duplicate/missing meta descriptions.
  • Find and fix duplicate title tags.
  • Improve title, meta tags, and site descriptions.
  • Optimize images for better search engine optimization. Automate where possible.
  • Find and fix the missing alt and title tag for all images. Automate where possible.
  • The project takes 1 week to complete.