Sometimes only part of a page should be public. A discount code, a download link or a members-only note can sit behind a password, or behind the visitor being logged in with the right role.
The Protected Content widget in The Plus Addons for Elementor puts that gate on any Elementor page. This page walks through every setting it has.
Requirement – This widget is a part of The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, make sure it’s installed & activated to enjoy all its powers.
Before You Start
- Edition: Pro — Protected Content is only in The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro. With the Pro plugin switched off the widget is not in the editor at all, and a page that already uses it shows nothing where the widget was — not the gate and not the protected content either.
- Widget to enable: Protected Content, switched on under The Plus Addons > Widgets. Search for the widget name there and turn its toggle on.
- Use a throwaway password while you build: the password is stored as plain text in the page’s Elementor data, so treat it as a shared door code rather than a secret, and never reuse a password from anywhere else.
Learn via Video Tutorial
Choose What Is Protected
Drop the Protected Content widget on the page and open the Content section. Content Source decides what appears once the visitor gets through the gate.
| Content Source | What it shows | Where you set it |
|---|---|---|
| Content (default) | Text you type straight into the widget. | The Protected Content editor below the dropdown. |
| Page Template | A saved Elementor template, so the protected part can be a full designed section. | Elementor Templates, with a Create Template button if you have not built one yet. |
| Redirect Link | Nothing on the page — the visitor is sent to a URL instead once the password is correct. | Redirect Link. Redirection is disabled inside the editor, so test it on the published page. |
Choose Who Gets Through
Open the Protection Type section. This is the gate itself.
| Protection Type | What it does | Extra fields |
|---|---|---|
| User role | Only visitors logged in with one of the roles you pick see the content. Everyone else sees the message. There is no password form at all. | Select Roles, Preview of Error Message |
| Single Password (default) | One shared password unlocks the content. | Set Password, Show Content, Cookie |
| Multiple Password | Several passwords, any one of which unlocks the same content. | A repeater of Set Password rows, Show Content, Cookie |
The Multiple Password list arrives with one row already filled in with 1234. Change it before you publish, or that is your password.
What Visitors Actually See
On a published page a visitor who has not unlocked anything sees the message, the password field and the button — and nothing else. The protected text is not in the page source at that point, so it cannot be read by viewing the HTML.
A wrong password reloads the page with the gate still in place and the Error Message underneath it.
The right password replaces the whole gate with the protected content.
Show Content and Cookie
Two switches sit under Set Password, and both change who can read the content, so it is worth being precise about them.
| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Show Content | Reveals the protected content on the front end as well as in the editor. While it is on there is no password form and every visitor reads the content. | Hide |
| Cookie | A popover toggle. Switch it to Custom and the browser remembers the unlock, so the visitor is not asked again on the next visit. | Default (off) |
| Days | How long that cookie lasts. Inside the Cookie popover. Accepts 1 to 365. | 1 |
Show Content is not a preview-only switch. Turn it on to style the content, then turn it off again before you publish — otherwise the page is open to everyone.
With Cookie left off, an unlock lasts for that one page view only. Reload the page and the password is asked for again. Switch Cookie on if you want the unlock to stick.
The Message
The Message section is what a visitor sees instead of the content.
| Message Source | What it shows | Default |
|---|---|---|
| None | No message at all — just the password form. | |
| Message | Text you type in the Text editor. | Selected, with “You do not have permission to see this content.” |
| Elementor Templates | A saved template, chosen in Choose Elementor Template. |
Form Text and Error Message
Form Text holds the two labels on the gate: Input text is the placeholder inside the password box (default Enter Password) and Button text is the button label (default Submit).
Error Message is the single line shown when a password does not match. It defaults to “Wrong password, please try again.”
Neither section applies to the User role protection type, because that type never renders a password form.
Styling
The Style tab has six sections, each for one part of the widget.
- Message — the restriction message.
- Form Input — the password box.
- Submit Button — the button next to it.
- Error Message — the wrong-password line.
- Front Content — the block everyone sees, i.e. message plus form.
- Content — the protected content itself, once it is unlocked.
How It Behaves
- Before the gate is passed, the protected content is not in the page HTML. The widget renders the message and the form and stops there.
- A password is checked when the form is posted. The reply to that post shows the content; with Cookie off, the next page load asks again.
- User role checks the logged-in user’s first role. A logged-out visitor and a visitor with any other role both get the message.
- Each widget keeps its own unlock. Two Protected Content widgets on one page are unlocked separately.
Limitations
- This is page-level gating, not membership. Passwords are stored as plain text in the page’s Elementor data, so anyone who can edit the page — or read a database backup — can read them.
- Show Content exposes the content to every visitor while it is on, not only to you in the editor.
- The remembered unlock is an ordinary browser cookie with a fixed value, so it is not proof that a password was ever entered. Do not use this widget for anything that must stay private.
- Without Cookie, the unlock does not survive a page reload.
- Search engines and anyone with the URL can still reach the page itself. Only the widget’s content is hidden.
Troubleshooting
Everyone can see the protected content without a password
Check Show Content in the Protection Type section. While it is on, the gate is not rendered at all. Set it back to Hide.
The password is asked for again on every page load
That is the default. Open the Cookie popover, switch it to Custom and set Days.
The right password is rejected
Passwords are compared exactly, including case and spaces. Re-type the value in Set Password rather than pasting it, and check you are not still on the Multiple Password list from an earlier edit.
Nothing renders where the widget should be
The Pro plugin is inactive, or the widget is off. Turn Protected Content on under The Plus Addons > Widgets.
